DeKalb County, Indiana Genealogy
Guide to DeKalb County, Indiana ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.
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County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
DeKalb County was named for General Johann de Kalb, a Continental Army officer from Bavaria, who was fatally wounded at the Battle of Camden, South Carolina. The county is located in the northeastern area of the state.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
DeKalb County Courthouse
100 S Main Street PO Box 810
Auburn, IN 46706
Phone: 219-925-2112
County Website
DeKalb County Health Department
220 E. Seventh St, Ste. 110
Auburn, IN, 46706
Health Officer: Mark Souder, MD
Phone Number: 260-925-2220
Fax: 260-925-2090
Email: bsukala@co.dekalb.in.us
Health Department
County Health Department has birth and death records.
County Clerk has marriage and court records from 1837, probate records from 1855 and school records 1903-1932.
County recorder has land records. [2]
Health Department has birth records and death records.
Copies may be obtained from the county health department or the Indiana State Division of Vital Records.
DeKalb County, Indiana Record Dates[edit | edit source]
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 |
| 1882 | 1837 | 1882 | 1837 | 1837 | 1855 | 1807 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
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1913 -- Courthouse burned and many records were damaged. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:
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Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
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Populated Places[edit | edit source]
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:[6]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Townships | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
- Bible Entries at INGenWeb
- DeKalb County Indiana, Family Bibles/ Stories at Genealogy Trails
Biographies[edit | edit source]
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
Census Records[edit | edit source]
For tips on accessing DeKalb County census records online, see: Indiana Census.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1840 | 1,968 | — |
| 1850 | 8,251 | 319.3% |
| 1860 | 13,880 | 68.2% |
| 1870 | 17,167 | 23.7% |
| 1880 | 20,225 | 17.8% |
| 1890 | 24,307 | 20.2% |
| 1900 | 25,711 | 5.8% |
| 1910 | 25,054 | −2.6% |
| 1920 | 25,600 | 2.2% |
| 1930 | 24,911 | −2.7% |
| 1940 | 24,756 | −0.6% |
| 1950 | 26,023 | 5.1% |
| 1960 | 28,271 | 8.6% |
| 1970 | 30,837 | 9.1% |
| 1980 | 33,606 | 9.0% |
| 1990 | 35,324 | 5.1% |
| 2000 | 40,285 | 14.0% |
| 2010 | 42,223 | 4.8% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
- Index to Mortality Schedule (1860) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
- Index to Defective, Dependent & Delinquent Census for DeKalb County (1880) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Church Records[edit | edit source]
Most church records are held by individual churches. For contact information, check a phone directory, such as SearchBug or Dex Knows. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository.
For more information about these major repositories, see Indiana Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court Records[edit | edit source]
- 1818-1954 Indiana Court Cases at MyHeritage — index ($)
- 1839-1921 Civil Order Books, 1839-1921(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
Directories[edit | edit source]
- 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
- Directory of Businesses in DeKalb County, Indiana (1868) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
- Carnahan-Baidinger and Walter Funeral Home in Spencerville.
- Feller and Clark Funeral Homes in Auburn.
- H.E. Johnson and Sons Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Butler.
- Oberlin-Turnbull Funeral Home and Crematory in Hamilton.
- Pinnington Funeral and Cremation Services in Auburn.
- Thomas Funeral Home in Garrett.
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents. See Indiana Land and Property for additional information about early Indiana land grants and patents.
After land was transferred from the government to private ownership, subsequent transactions were recorded at the DeKalb County courthouse, where records are currently housed.
Online Land Indexes and Records
- Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for DeKalb County. County histories may include biographies; church, school and government histories; and military information. For more information about local histories, see Indiana Local Histories.
- History of DeKalb County, Indiana. 1885. Chicago : Inter-State Publishing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- History of Dekalb County, Indiana. 1914. Indianapolis : B.F. Bowen. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- History of Northeast Indiana, Lagrange, Steuben, Noble, and DeKalb Counties. 2 volumes. 1920. By Ira Ford. Chicago, Illinois : Lewis Pub. Co. Online at: Vol. 1 - FamilySearch Digital Library, Vol. 2 - FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
- Historic Indiana Maps at IUPUI University Library
- Old Antique Atlases & Maps of Indiana
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
- Military Record Series Index at Indiana Digital Archives
Civil War
Civil War service men from DeKalb 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 in DeKalb County.
- 9th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company G
- 12th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Companies B, C, and I
- 13th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Companies B, D
- 30th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company H, and Reorganized Companies C, and D
- 44th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company K
- 88th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company A, and H
- 100th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, and K
- 118th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (6 months, 1863-4), Company F
- 129th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company A
- 142nd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, and D
Civil War Books:
- Sliger, Reba. Veterans' Cards for Veterans of DeKalb County Who Served in the Civil, Spanish-American, Mexican Wars: Copied from Records at the DeKalb County Courthouse,( Auburn, Indiana. Auburn, IN: The Chapter, 1990.) Available online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; 977.277 M2sFS Library Collection; Internet Archive
- History of DeKalb County, Indiana: Together with Sketches of Its Cities, Villages and Towns, Educational, Religious, Civil, Military, and Political History, Portraits of Prominent Persons, and Biographies of Representative Citizens. (Knightstown, Ind: The Bookmark, 1978.), page 90-117, 977.277 H2b FS Library Collection other library Internet Archive
- 1885 History of De Kalb County, Indiana: Together with Sketches of Its Cities, Villages and Towns, Educational, Religious, Civil, Military, and Political History, Portraits of Prominent Persons, and Biographies of Representative Citizens with New Index.( Knightstown, Ind: The Bookmark, 1978.) page 333-400, 977.277 H2hiFS Library Collection other library Internet Archive
- Hobson, Margaret. The Iron Men of Indiana's 44th Regiment, Book 1: Biographies and Statistics. This book contains a complete list of DeKalb County men in the 44th Indiana.
World War I
- 1919 Indiana, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
- Naturalization Record Series (for this county) at Indiana Digital Archives. Search by names.
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Indiana newspapers may contain genealogical value including obituaries, births, marriages, deaths, anniversaries, family gatherings, family travel, achievements, business notices, engagement information, and probate court proceedings.
For more Indiana newspaper information see the wiki page Indiana Newspapers.
- 1800s-Current Indiana, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
- The Garrett Clipper Newspaper: Obituary database from 1975 through January, 2012 provided courtesy of the Garrett Public Library.
- Hoosier State Chronicles
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Voting Records
- 1850-1931 Indiana, Voter Registers, 1850-1931 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
In most counties in Indiana, probate records have been kept by the county clerk of the circuit court. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. The records are available at the DeKalb County courthouse. For more information, see Indiana Probate Records.
Online Probate Indexes and Records
- 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry ($)
- 1850-1936 Estate Packets, 1850-1936 ; Record of Guardians, Administrators and Executors Reports, 1903-1920(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- 1852-1922 Will Records, 1852-1922(*); Probate and Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1855-1915 General Entry, Claim and Allowance Dockets, 1855-1915(*); Probate and Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1861-1921 Probate Records, 1861-1921(*); Probate and Circuit Court, and Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1889-1923 Will Records, DeKalb County, Indiana, 1889-1923(*); Circuit Court 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[edit | edit source]
- Directory of Teachers (1936) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Social Security Records[edit | edit source]
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
Tax Records[edit | edit source]
Indiana tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the wiki page Indiana Taxation.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Indiana law in 1882 required registration of births and deaths in counties. The Indiana Department of Health has birth records filed after October 1907 and death records filed after January 1900 for deaths. Copies may be obtained from the county health department or the Indiana State Division of Vital Records.
Birth[edit | edit source]
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1780-1992 Indiana Marriages, 1780-1992 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
- 1800s-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at Findmypast $
- 1802-1892 Indiana Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry ($)
- 1811-1959 Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959 at MyHeritage - index & images ($)
- 1811-2007 Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
Death[edit | edit source]
- Pre-1882 WEB: Indiana, Deaths, Pre-1882 at Ancestry - index, (Free collection)
- 1750-1993 Indiana Deaths and Burials, 1750-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1882-1920 Indiana, Death Index, 1882-1920 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1899-2011 Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 at Ancestry ($)
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
Listed below are archives in DeKalb County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
FamilySearch Centers[edit | edit source]
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
- Decatur Indiana FamilySearch Center
- Fort Wayne Indiana FamilySearch Center
- Huntington Indiana FamilySearch Center
- Allen County Public Library - an affiliate library.
- Noble County Public Library - an affiliate library.
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Listed below are libraries in DeKalb County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in DeKalb County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Societies.
DeKalb County Indiana Genealogy Society
PO Box 6085
c/o Eckhart Public Library
603 S Jackson Street
Auburn, IN 46706
Email: rozwells@sbcglobal.net
Website
Facebook
DeKalb County Indiana Historical Society
201 East Main Street
Butler, IN 46721-1409
Phone: 260-868-0979
Garrett Historical Society
300 N Randolph St
PO Box 225
Garrett, IN 46738-0225
Phone: 260-357-0162
Website
Willennar Genealogy Center
700 S Jackson St
Auburn, IN 46706-2267
Phone: 260-925-2414 Ext 120
Email: info@epl.lib.in.us
Website
Facebook
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Indiana Digital Archives Search by name in all records or specific collections
- Indiana Historical Society Digital Collections Search by county or keyword
- Indiana Memory Click the map or select a statewide collection
- List of indexes and databases at Indiana State Library
- Indiana Genealogical Society Databases Free and Members-only. Select a county
- USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
- DeKalb County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
- 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[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "DeKalb County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeKalb_County,_Indiana 3/08/2017.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "DeKalb County, Indiana" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeKalb_County,_Indiana (accessed 2 August 2013).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "DeKalb County, Indiana," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeKalb_County,_Indiana, accessed 06 December 2019.