Plymouth County, Iowa Genealogy

United States

Iowa

Plymouth County

Guide to Plymouth County, Iowa ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Iowa Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Le Mars Organized: February 10, 1870 Parent County(s): Non-County Area 9 Neighboring Counties Cherokee • O'Brien • Sioux • Woodbury • Union (SD) See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

Plymouth County was named for Plymouth, Massachusetts and is located in northwestern Iowa.

County Courthouse

Plymouth County Courthouse
215 4th Avenue SE
LeMars, IA 51031
Phone: 712-546-4215
Plymouth County Website

Plymouth 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.

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1880	1869	1880	1869	1856	1880	1847
* Statewide registration started for births in July 1880 and for deaths January 1891. General compliance by 1924.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

Parent Counties: Created from Non-County Area 9, January 15, 1851. Organized Date: February 10, 1870 County seat: Le Mars Iowa Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county Iowa Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating Iowa county boundary changes

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:

Cities
Akron Brunsville Craig Hinton	Kingsley Le Mars Merrill Oyens	Remsen Struble Westfield
Unincorporated communities
Adaville Brookdale Crathorne James Mammen Milnerville	Neptune O'Leary Plymouth Potosia Ruble	Seney Union Center (Also known as "The U") West Le Mars Wren Yeomans
Townships
America Elgin Elkhorn Fredonia Garfield Grant Hancock Henry	Hungerford Johnson Liberty Lincoln Marion Meadow Perry Plymouth	Portland Remsen Sioux Stanton Union Washington Westfield

Resources

Bible Records

Listed below are resources for Bible records specific to Plymouth County. To find more resources, go to the Iowa Bible Records page.

Biographies

• History of Plymouth County, Iowa: With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families. 2 volumes. By W. S. Freeman. Indianapolis, IN: B.F. Bowen, 1917. Online at: Vol. II - FamilySearch Digital Library. Vol. I contains history, Vol. II contains biographies.
• History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, Iowa: Sketches of the Prominent Men, and Biographies of Many of the Representative Citizens. By Will Leach Clark and William V. Norris. Chicago, IL: A. Warner and Company Publishers, 1891. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, HathiTrust, Ancestry ($).

• Plymouth County, Iowa Biographies Project at RootsWeb — links to biographies and local histories
  

Bold text=== Business, Commerce, and Occupations ===

• Iowa, State Employees at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Plymouth County, Iowa online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	BillionGraves Find a Grave IA Tombstone Transcription Project IAGenWeb Iowa Gravestone Photo Project USGenWeb Archives WPA 1930's Graves Registration Survey Iowa, Church and Civil Deaths (cemetery records), incomplete
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	FamilySearch Places Find a Grave
See Iowa Cemeteries for more information.

 

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.	%±
1860	148	—
1870	2,199	1385.8%
1880	8,566	289.5%
1890	19,568	128.4%
1900	22,209	13.5%
1910	23,129	4.1%
1920	23,584	2.0%
1930	24,159	2.4%
1940	23,502	−2.7%
1950	23,252	−1.1%
1960	23,906	2.8%
1970	24,322	1.7%
1980	24,743	1.7%
1990	23,388	−5.5%
2000	24,849	6.2%
2010	24,986	0.6%
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.

• 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
  
• FamilySearch Places

Lutheran

• 1781-1969 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781-1969 at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Directories

• 1889-1893 Sioux City, Iowa Directories, 1889-90, 1892-93 at Ancestry ($)
• 1914 Atlas and Farm Directory with Complete Survey in Township Plats of Plymouth County, Iowa(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary

Funeral Homes

• Fisch Funeral Home and Monument, LLC in Remsen
  
• Mauer Johnson Earnest Funeral Homes in Kingsley and Le Mars
  
• Rexwinkel Funeral Homes in Le Mars
  
• Rohde Funeral Home in Kingsley
  

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

• 1856-1875 Abstract of original entries, about 1856-1875 at FamilySearch Catalog - images
• 1856-1907 Deed record, 1856-1907 at FamilySearch Catalog - images
• 1857-1907 Town lot deed record, 1857-1907 at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
• 1859-1918 Land transfer books, 1859-1918 at FamilySearch Catalog - index & 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 Plymouth County, which may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see Iowa Local Histories.

• History of Plymouth County, Iowa: With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families. 2 volumes. By W. S. Freeman. Indianapolis, IN: B.F. Bowen, 1917. Online at: Vol. I - FamilySearch Digital Library. Vol. I contains history, Vol. II contains biographies.
• History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, Iowa: Sketches of the Prominent Men, and Biographies of Many of the Representative Citizens. By Will Leach Clark and William V. Norris. Chicago, IL: A. Warner and Company Publishers, 1891. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, HathiTrust, Ancestry ($).

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.

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• 1860-1918 U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918, Plymouth County at Ancestry ($) - index.
• 1875-2007 Plymouth County 1875-2007 at Historic Map Works - may include names of land-owners.
• 1883-1941 Fire Insurance Maps for Plymouth County, Iowa at Library of Congress - various years between 1883 and 1941.
• Atlas and Farm Directory with Complete Survey in Township Plats of Plymouth County, Iowa(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images.
• Atlas of Plymouth County, Iowa at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Standard Historical Atlas of Plymouth County, Iowa: containing Maps of Villages, Cities and Townships of the County, 1907 at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• IAGenWeb - Plymouth County.
• Iowa Digital Library, Plymouth County at Iowa University Libraries.
• Plymouth County Maps at FamilySearch Catalog.
• Standard Historical Atlas of Plymouth County, Iowa at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• The Iowa Heritage Digital Collections, Plymouth County at State Library of Iowa.
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places.

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

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
• 1869-1906 Naturalization Record Card Index, 1869-1906(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• 1872-1944 Naturalization Records, 1872-1944(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• Northwest Iowa pioneers(*); compiled by Janice Stofferan at FamilySearch Catalog — images

Newspapers

• 1800s-Current Iowa, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1884-86 Barometern. 1884-86. Sioux City, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1951-1952 Lemars Semi Weekly Sentinel. 1951-52. Le Mars, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1953-1957 Le Mars Sentinel. 1953-54 and 1957. Le Mars, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1953-1959 Le Mars Globe Post. 1953-54, 1956-57, and 1959. Le Mars, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1958, 1969, 1977 Le Mars Daily News Sentinel. 1958, 1969, and 1977. Le Mars, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1963 and 1972 Le Mars Daily Sentinel. 1963 and 1972. Le Mars, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 1964 The Sioux City Sunday Journal. 1964. Sioux City, IA, USA. Online at Ancestry ($)
• 2006-2009 Akron Hometowner - digitized issues in Google News Archive

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 ($)
• 1871-1928 Probate Index, 1871-1899 ; Letters of Administration, Guardianship, and Executors, 1901-1928 ; Records of Heirs and Estates, ca1874-1890(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
• 1871-1928 Probate Records, 1871-1928(*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
• Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

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 & images
• 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 ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Plymouth 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

• Sioux City Iowa FamilySearch Center
• Vermillion South Dakota FamilySearch Center

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Plymouth County. For state-wide library facilities, see Iowa Archives and Libraries.

Remsen Public Library
211 Fulton Street
Remsen, IA 51050
Phone: 712-786-2911
Email: jklein@midlands.net
Website
Facebook

Akron Public Library
350 Reed Street
PO Box 348
Akron, IA 51001
Phone: 712-568-2601
Website
Facebook

Le Mars Library
46 1st Street SW
Le Mars, IA 51031
Phone: 712-546-5004
Website

Museums

Plymouth County Historical Museum
335 1st Avenue SW
Le Mars, IA 51031
Phone: 712-546-7002
Email: pchmuseum@gmail.com
Website

Societies

Listed below are societies in Plymouth County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Iowa Societies.

Northwest Iowa Genealogical Society
C/O Le Mars Public Library
46 First Street S.W.
Le Mars, IA 51031
Email: lchdvm736@gmail.com
Website

Marcus Historical Society
PO BOX 321
Marcus, IA 51035
Website

Hawarden Historical Society
PO Box 68
Hawarden, IA 51023
Email: bsrvhs79@gmail.com
Website

Websites

• Plymouth County at Cyndi's List - a comprehensive, categorized & cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online
• Plymouth County at Genealogy Trails - volunteer transcriptions of genealogical and historical data
• Plymouth County at Iowa USGenWeb - free online resources for genealogical research
• Plymouth 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.

This table contains the dates the local or state government began recording in the county or county equivalent. Use substitute records for earlier dates. If you believe there is an error, email us at wikisupport@familysearch.org.

County boundary maps are currently unavailable. Download information instead.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access. Some subscription websites are available for free at your local FamilySearch Center or Affiliate Library.

To access available information, first log into FamilySearch.

Due to contractual agreements, some images and/or databases on FamilySearch.org may only be viewed at a FamilySearch Center or FamilySearch Affiliate Library.

Users should verify which locations and dates are included in this collection.

“Current” indicates records are available as recently as privacy laws allow. This date can change from year to year. To determine the exact dates available, contact the respective organization/repository.