Appanoose County, Iowa Genealogy
Guide to Appanoose County, Iowa ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.
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County Information
Description
Appanoose County was named for Chief Appanoose and is located in southeastern Iowa.[3]
County Courthouse
Appanoose County Courthouse
201 North 12th Street
Centerville, IA 52544
Phone: 641-437-7178
Appanoose County Website
Appanoose County, Iowa Record Dates
Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1880 | 1846 | 1880 | 1847 | 1850 | 1847 | 1847 |
Record Loss
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There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes
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Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[7]
| Cities | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
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| Townships | ||
History Timeline
- Established in 1843, Appanoose County was named for a chief of the Sac and the Fox Indian tribes that lead the peace party during the Black Hawk War. Appanoose means "A Chief When a Child." [8]
- During the first part of the 20th century, mining was a major factor in Appanoose.
Resources
Bible Records
Listed below are resources for Bible records specific to Appanoose County. To find more resources, go to the Iowa Bible Records page.
- Appanoose County Bible Records at USGenWeb Iowa Archives
Biographies
- Biographical and Genealogical History of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa. By S Thompson Lewis. Chicago, IL: Lewis Publishing Company, 1903. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($)
- Biographical and Historical Record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa. Chicago, IL: Inter-State Publishing Company, 1886. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, HathiTrust, Internet Archive.
- Iowa Labor History Oral Project at Iowa Digital Library.
- Appanoose County, Iowa Biographies Project at RootsWeb
Business, Commerce, and Occupations
- Iowa State Planning Board, Committee on Business and Industry. The Industrial History of Appanoose County, Iowa. Des Moines, IA, 1935 Online at: Wikipedia
- Iowa, State Employees at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
Cemeteries
Census Records
Iowa recorded not only federal, but state censuses for several in-between years as well. For more information, see the very informative Iowa Census article.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1850 | 3,131 | — |
| 1860 | 11,931 | 281.1% |
| 1870 | 16,456 | 37.9% |
| 1880 | 16,636 | 1.1% |
| 1890 | 18,961 | 14.0% |
| 1900 | 25,927 | 36.7% |
| 1910 | 28,701 | 10.7% |
| 1920 | 30,535 | 6.4% |
| 1930 | 24,835 | −18.7% |
| 1940 | 24,245 | −2.4% |
| 1950 | 19,683 | −18.8% |
| 1960 | 16,015 | −18.6% |
| 1970 | 15,007 | −6.3% |
| 1980 | 15,511 | 3.4% |
| 1990 | 13,743 | −11.4% |
| 2000 | 13,721 | −0.2% |
| 2010 | 12,884 | −6.1% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
State Census
- 1885 Iowa State Census, 1885 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1895 Iowa State Census, 1895 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1905 Iowa State Census, 1905 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images (individual cards, not family context)
- 1915 Iowa State Census, 1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1925 Iowa State Census, 1925 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Church Records
Most church records are held by individual churches. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository. For more information about these major repositories, see Iowa Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Lutheran
- 1781-1969 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781-1969 at Ancestry ($)
- 1845-1987 Iowa, Church and Civil Deaths, 1845-1987 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records
United Methodist Church
- Iowa churches : a file at the Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- Ministerial Biographies: A File in the Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- Camp of Israel at The Joseph Smith Papers — later referred to as Zion's Camp.
Court Records
- 1851-1859 County Court Record, v. 1, 1851-1859(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- 1852-1910 District Court Records, 1852-1910(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- 1869-1886 Circuit Court Records, 1869-1886(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- 1881-1926 Justice Dockets, 1881-1926(*); Justice of the Peace at FamilySearch Catalog — images
Directories
- 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
Emigration and Immigration
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
Funeral Homes
- Lange Funeral Home and Crematory in Centerville and Moravia
- Thomas Funeral Home in Centerville and Moulton
Genealogies
- Lewis, S. Thompson. Biographical and Genealogical History of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa. The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, IL, 1903. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; Internet Archive; Ancestry — index & images ($)
Guardianship
Land and Property Records
Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. They include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.
See Iowa Land and Property for information about early Iowa land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, transactions were usually recorded and housed at the county courthouse.
Online Land Indexes and Records
- 1847-1903 Town Lot Deeds, 1847-1903(*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- 1850-1907 Deeds, 1850-1907(*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Appanoose County, which may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see Iowa Local Histories.
- Biographical and Historical Record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa. Chicago, IL: Inter-State Publishing Company, 1886. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($).
- The History of Appanoose County, Iowa. Chicago, IL: Western Historical Company, 1878. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- Past and Present of Appanoose County, Iowa. By L.L. Taylor, Ed. Chicago, IL: The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913. Online at: Vol. I - FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive; Vol. II - FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
Maps and Gazetteers
County and state maps, historical and more current, are valuable research tools. For online maps and collections in libraries and societies, see Iowa Maps. Historical maps may be especially useful.
for more resources
- 1860-1918 U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918, Appanoose County at Ancestry ($) - index.
- 1875-2007 Appanoose County 1875-2007 at Historic Map Works - may include names of land-owners.
- 1883-1916 Fire Insurance Maps for Appanoose County, Iowa at Library of Congress - various years between 1883 and 1916.
- 1896 Outline Map of Appanoose County, Iowa, 1896; at FamilySearch Digital Library.
- 1915 Atlas of Appanoose County, Iowa, 1915(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images.
- Appanoose County at IAGenWeb
- Appanoose County at Iowa Digital Library.
- Appanoose County Historical Atlas; Centerville, IA, (Appanoose County Sesquicentennial Commission, 1996), by Heusinkveld, W.M., reprinted by the Appanoose County Historical and Coal Mining Museum in 2010; — Online at AppanooseCounty.Iowa.gov
- County Atlas, Appanoose County, Iowa(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images.
- Official Map of Appanoose County, Iowa at FamilySearch Digital Library.
- The Iowa Heritage Digital Collections, Appanoose County at State Library of Iowa.
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places.
Migration
Early migration routes to and from Appanoose County for European settlers included:
- 1846 Mormon Trail, 1846 from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah.
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Military Records
Multiple Wars
- 1835-1998 Iowa, Armed Forces Grave Registrations, ca. 1835-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index only
- 1862-1910 Iowa, Records of Persons Subject to Military Duty, 1862-1910 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Civil War
- 1861-1949 Iowa, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1861-1949 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Civil War service men in Appanoose County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed here:
- - 3rd Regiment, Iowa Cavalry , Company I
- - 6th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies D and F
- - 7th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
- - 8th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Companies F and H
- - 17th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
- - 18th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
- - 36th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies C, F, G and I
- - 47th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company B
Naturalization and Citizenship
Please see the Iowa Naturalization and Citizenship page for state-wide information.
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
- 1859-1990 United States, Iowa Naturalization Records, 1859-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1866-1929 Naturalization Records, 1866-1929(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
Newspapers
- 1800s-Current Iowa, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1870-1872 The Weekly Citizen (Centerville, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1872-1873, 1881 The Centerville Citizen (Centerville, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1881-1882 The Appanoose Times (Centerville, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1881-1882 Centerville Times (Centerville, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- The Newspaper Directory on the Library of Congress' Chronicling America lists newspapers which have been published in Appanoose County, Iowa.
- NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a large collection of digitized Iowa newspapers online. This database is sometimes free at libraries.
Obituaries
- Book of obituaries, Appanoose County, Iowa(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images
Other Records
Periodicals
Probate Records
In most counties in Iowa, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. The records are available at the county courthouse.
Online Probate Indexes and Records
- 1758-1997 Iowa, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1758-1997 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1846-1976 Probate Index, 1846-1976(*) District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
- 1847-1873 General Index to Probate Court, v. 1, ca. 1847-1873(*) Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
- 1847-1927 Appanoose County, Iowa, Probate Records, 1847-1927(*) Clerk of the District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- 1848-1930 Probate Records, 1848-1930(*) District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- 1852-1910 District Court Records, 1852-1910(*) District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- 1854-1933 Wills, 1854-1933(*) District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- 1899-1909 Newspaper Clippings and Obituaries from the Semi-Weekly Iowegian, 1899-1909(*) at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
- 1941-1980 Collateral Inheritance Tax and Lien, 1941-1980(*) County Treasurer at FamilySearch Catalog - images
- Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
School Records
Social Security Records
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
Tax Records
Iowa tax records complement land records and can supplement the years between censuses. Iowa's unique Old Age Assistance tax gives names, addresses and birth years. There may be gaps of several years. For more information, see the wiki page Iowa Taxation.
Online Tax Indexes and Records
- 1934-1958 Iowa, Old Age Tax Assistance Records, 1934-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Vital Records
Vital Records consist of births, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded by civil officials on registers, certificates, and other documents. Copies or extracts may be purchased from the Iowa Department of Public Health or the County Clerk's office. See also Iowa Vital Records.
Birth
- 1850-1939 Iowa, Delayed Birth Records, 1850-1939 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1880-1935 Iowa, County Births, 1880-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection, index
- 1921-1942 Iowa, Birth Records, 1921-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1921-1947 Iowa, Birth and Stillbirth Records, 1921-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images, coverage may vary
Marriage
- 1518-1996 Iowa, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
- 1809-1992 Iowa, Marriages, 1809-1992 at MyHeritage — index ($)
- 1836-1926 Iowa, Marriages, 1836 - 1926 at MyHeritage — index ($)
- 1838-1934 Iowa, County Marriages, 1838-1934 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1880-1951 Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880-1951 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1941-1951 Iowa, Marriage Records, 1941-1951 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Death
- 1845-1987 Iowa, Church and Civil Deaths, 1845-1987 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records
- 1850-1990 Iowa Deaths and Burials, 1850-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and some images; Also at: MyHeritage($)
- 1880-1992 Iowa, County Death Records, 1880-1992 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1888-1904 Iowa, Death Records, 1888-1904 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images, coverage may vary
- 1900-1939 Iowa Death Index, 1900-1939 at MyHeritage — index ($)
- 1904-1951 Iowa, Death Records, 1904-1951 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1920-1967 Iowa, U.S., Death Records, 1920-1967 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
Divorce
Research Facilities
Archives
Listed below are archives in Appanoose County. For state-wide library facilities, see Iowa Archives and Libraries.
FamilySearch Centers
FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries
- FamilySearch Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
- FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
- Centerville Iowa FamilySearch Center
- Oskaloosa Iowa FamilySearch Center
- Ottumwa Iowa FamilySearch Center
Libraries
Listed below are libraries in Appanoose County. For state-wide library facilities, see Iowa Archives and Libraries.
Drake Public Library
115 Drake Ave
Centerville, IA 52544
Phone: 641-856-6676
Email: drake@centerville.lib.ia.us
Website
Garrett Memorial Library
123 S Main St
Moulton, IA 52572
Phone: 641-642-3664
Email: Chelsey.wentz@moulton.lib.ia.us
Website
Museums
The Appanoose County Historical & Coal Mining Museum
100 W Maple
Centerville, IA 52544
Phone: 641-856-8040
Email: appanoosehistory@yahoo.com
Website
Societies
Listed below are societies in Appanoose County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Iowa Societies.
Appanoose County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 684
Centerville, IA 52544-0684
Email: acgs2005@hotmail.com
Website
The Appanoose County Historical Society
100 W Maple
Centerville, IA 52544
Phone: 641-856-8040
Email: appanoosehistory@yahoo.com
Website
Websites
- Appanoose County at Cyndi's List - a comprehensive, categorized & cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online
- Appanoose County at Genealogy Trails - volunteer transcriptions of genealogical and historical data
- Appanoose County at Iowa USGenWeb - free online resources for genealogical research
- Appanoose County at Iowa USGenWeb Archives - free online data for genealogical research
- State Historical Society of Iowa — select from research collection topics
- State Library of Iowa — electronic depository of documents intended for the general public produced by Iowa agencies
- The Iowa Heritage Digital Collection — digital images from a variety of Iowa cultural institutions
- FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection. Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.
Research Guides
References
- ↑ Iowa Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library; accessed on 11 April 2021.
- ↑ Iowa Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library; accessed on 11 April 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Appanoose, Iowa," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appanoose_County,_Iowa.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Iowa.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Iowa Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library; accessed on 11 April 2021.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Iowa.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Appanoose County, Iowa," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appanoose_County,_Iowa, accessed 22 November 2018.
- ↑ Appanoose County, accessed 19 April 2021.