Indiana Court Records: Difference between revisions

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Latest revision as of 18:30, 13 February 2025

Indiana Wiki Topics

Beginning Research

Record Types

Indiana Background

Cultural Groups

Local Research Resources

Online Resources[edit | edit source]

1818-1954 Indiana Court Cases at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
Indiana Digital Archives Court Records Search Engine
Early Indiana trials: and sketches , 1794-1859, e-book
mycase.IN.gov - Indiana court cases

Background[edit | edit source]

Many Indiana residents’ names are listed in civil court records, where there is information about disputes over property, divorce, partitions, settlement of estates, and other matters. These courts also handled criminal matters. Court Order Books and case files may contain a person’s age, residence and occupation, and may state family relationships (sometimes relatives or neighbors gave depositions).

Type of Court Records[edit | edit source]

Indiana courts having records of genealogical value were established as follows:

1790–1805: General Quarter Session of the Peace had jurisdiction over criminal and county administrative matters. [Knox (1790–), Clark (1801–), and Dearborn (1803–)].

1790–1813:Circuit Court of the General Court had criminal jurisdiction.

1790– 1805: Court of Common Pleas had civil jurisdiction.[Knox, 1790–; Clark,1801–; Dearborn, 1803–].

1805–1813: Court of Common Pleas heard civil, criminal, and probate cases, and administrative matters.

1814–present: Circuit Court was and still is the basic county level court of general jurisdiction, with jurisdiction over civil, divorce, naturalization, criminal, estates, guardianship, mental health, and, after 1903, juvenile matters. The basic records of court proceedings, the Civil Order Books, are being microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, along with the Complete Order Books, through 1920.

1853–1873: Court of Common Pleas, primarily a probate court, but handled naturalization, divorces, and limited civil and criminal matters. Similar Order Books have been microfilmed for some counties.

1871: Superior Courts had concurrent civil jurisdiction with the Circuit Court in the county until after World War II. Some Superior Courts were established in cities away from the county seat and, beginning in 1899, also had probate jurisdiction. These courts were established as Circuit Courts’ case loads became too heavy for one judge. (Marion County, 1871; Tippecanoe, 1875; Allen and Vanderburg, 1877; Vigo, 1881; Madison, Laporte, Lake and Porter, 1895; Grant and Howard, 1897). Several other counties had Superior Courts prior to 1920, and Lake and Marion had several such courts. Superior Court Order Books and Complete Order Books through 1920 have been microfilmed for many counties. If a county has had both a Circuit and Superior Court, consult Order Books, case files, and related records for both courts.

For a discussion of Indiana court records, see:

Newman, John J. Research in Indiana Courthouses: Judicial and Other Records. Indianapolis, Indiana: Indiana Historical Society, 1981. (FS Library book 977.2 P2n .) This book gives a brief history of the court system and lists the dates each court began.

Federal court records are described in:

Griffin, Warren B. Preliminary Inventory: Records of the U.S. Courts for the District of Indiana. Chicago, Illinois: Federal Record Center, 1967. (FS Library book 977.2 A1 no.83; film 982239 item 10.) The boundaries of each District Court are defined and the types of court records are listed, along with the dates these court records cover.

For U.S. Circuit and District Court naturalization records, see Indiana Naturalization and Citizenship.

Court records can be found in the Locality Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:

INDIANA- COURT RECORDS

INDIANA, [COUNTY]- COURT RECORDS

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-Many Indiana residents’ names are listed in civil court records, where there is information about disputes over property, divorce, partitions, settlement of estates, and other matters. These courts also handled criminal matters. Court Order Books and case files may contain a person’s age, residence and occupation, and may state family relationships (sometimes relatives or neighbors gave depositions).
+{{IN-sidebar}}{{breadcrumb
+| link1=[[United States Genealogy|United States]]
+| link2=[[United States Court Records|U.S. Court Records]]
+| link3=[[Indiana, United States Genealogy|Indiana]]
+| link4=
+| link5=[[Indiana Court Records|Court Records]]
+}}
+__TOC__
+== Online Resources ==
+*'''1818-1954''' [https://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-20652/indiana-court-cases?s=275764761 Indiana Court Cases] at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
+*[https://secure.in.gov/apps/icpr/search/Home/Search?RecordSeriesId=6 Indiana Digital Archives Court Records Search Engine]
+*[http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=miun.aja2972.0001.001;view=1up;seq=9 Early Indiana trials: and sketches , 1794-1859], e-book
+*[https://mycase.in.gov mycase.IN.gov] - Indiana court cases
-Indiana courts having records of genealogical value were established as follows:
+==Background==
+Many Indiana residents’ names are listed in civil court records, where there is information about disputes over property, divorce, partitions, settlement of estates, and other matters. These courts also handled criminal matters. Court Order Books and case files may contain a person’s age, residence and occupation, and may state family relationships (sometimes relatives or neighbors gave depositions).
-'''1790–1805: ''' General Quarter Session of the Peace had jurisdiction over criminal and county administrative matters. [Knox (1790–), Clark (1801–), and Dearborn (1803–)].
+==Type of Court Records==
+Indiana courts having records of genealogical value were established as follows:
-'''1790–1813:  '''Circuit Court of the General Court had criminal jurisdiction.
+'''1790–1805:''' General Quarter Session of the Peace had jurisdiction over criminal and county administrative matters. [Knox (1790–), Clark (1801–), and Dearborn (1803–)].
-'''1790– 1805:'''  Court of Common Pleas had civil jurisdiction.[Knox, 1790–; Clark,1801–; Dearborn, 1803–].
+'''1790–1813:'''Circuit Court of the General Court had criminal jurisdiction.
-'''1805–1813: ''' Court of Common Pleas heard civil, criminal, and probate cases, and administrative matters.
+'''1790– 1805:''' Court of Common Pleas had civil jurisdiction.[Knox, 1790–; Clark,1801–; Dearborn, 1803–].
-'''1814–present:'''  Circuit Court was and still is the basic county level court of general jurisdiction, with jurisdiction over civil, divorce, naturalization, criminal, estates, guardianship, mental health, and, after 1903, juvenile matters. The basic records of court proceedings, the Civil Order Books, are being microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, along with the Complete Order Books, through 1920.
+'''1805–1813:''' Court of Common Pleas heard civil, criminal, and probate cases, and administrative matters.
-'''1853–1873:'''  Court of Common Pleas, primarily a probate court, but handled naturalization, divorces, and limited civil and criminal matters. Similar Order Books are being microfilmed. (Marion and Tippecanoe counties had Courts of Common Pleas, 1849–1852).
+'''1814–present:''' Circuit Court was and still is the basic county level court of general jurisdiction, with jurisdiction over civil, divorce, naturalization, criminal, estates, guardianship, mental health, and, after 1903, juvenile matters. The basic records of court proceedings, the Civil Order Books, are being microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, along with the Complete Order Books, through 1920.
-'''1871: ''' Superior Courts had concurrent civil jurisdiction with the Circuit Court in the county until after World War II. Some Superior Courts were established in cities away from the county seat and, beginning in 1899, also had probate jurisdiction. These courts were established as Circuit Courts’ case loads became too heavy for one judge. (Marion County, 1871; Tippecanoe, 1875; Allen and Vanderburg, 1877; Vigo, 1881; Madison, Laporte, Lake and Porter, 1895; Grant and Howard, 1897). Several other counties had Superior Courts prior to 1920, and Lake and Marion had several such courts. Superior Court Order Books and Complete Order Books through 1920 are currently being microfilmed. If a county has had both a Circuit and Superior Court, consult Order Books, case files, and related records for both courts.
+'''1853–1873:''' Court of Common Pleas, primarily a probate court, but handled naturalization, divorces, and limited civil and criminal matters. Similar Order Books have been microfilmed for some counties.
-For a discussion of Indiana court records, see:
+'''1871:''' Superior Courts had concurrent civil jurisdiction with the Circuit Court in the county until after World War II. Some Superior Courts were established in cities away from the county seat and, beginning in 1899, also had probate jurisdiction. These courts were established as Circuit Courts’ case loads became too heavy for one judge. (Marion County, 1871; Tippecanoe, 1875; Allen and Vanderburg, 1877; Vigo, 1881; Madison, Laporte, Lake and Porter, 1895; Grant and Howard, 1897). Several other counties had Superior Courts prior to 1920, and Lake and Marion had several such courts. Superior Court Order Books and Complete Order Books through 1920 have been microfilmed for many counties. If a county has had both a Circuit and Superior Court, consult Order Books, case files, and related records for both courts.
-Newman, John J. ''Research in Indiana Courthouses: Judicial and Other Records''. Indianapolis, Indiana: Indiana Historical Society, 1981. (FHL book 977.2 A1 no.240.) This book gives a brief history of the court system and lists the dates each court began.
+For a discussion of Indiana court records, see:
-Federal court records are described in:
+Newman, John J. ''Research in Indiana Courthouses: Judicial and Other Records''. Indianapolis, Indiana: Indiana Historical Society, 1981. (FS Library book {{FSC|418505|title-id|disp=977.2 P2n}} .) This book gives a brief history of the court system and lists the dates each court began.
-Griffin, Warren B. Preliminary Inventory: ''Records of the U.S. Courts for the District of Indiana''. Chicago, Illinois: Federal Record Center, 1967. (FHL book 977.2 A1 no.83; film 982239 item 10.) The boundaries of each District Court are defined and the types of court records are listed, along with the dates these court records cover.
+Federal court records are described in:
-For U.S. Circuit and District Court naturalization records, see the "[[Indiana Naturalization and Citizenship|Naturalization and Citizenship]]" section of this research outline.
+Griffin, Warren B. Preliminary Inventory: ''Records of the U.S. Courts for the District of Indiana''. Chicago, Illinois: Federal Record Center, 1967. (FS Library book {{FSC|158304|title-id|disp=977.2 A1 no.83}}; film {{FSC|158304|title-id|disp=982239 item 10}}.) The boundaries of each District Court are defined and the types of court records are listed, along with the dates these court records cover.
-Court records can be found in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under:
+For U.S. Circuit and District Court naturalization records, see [[Indiana Naturalization and Citizenship]].
-INDIANA- COURT RECORDS
+Court records can be found in the Locality Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:
-INDIANA, [COUNTY]- COURT RECORDS
+INDIANA- COURT RECORDS
-'''Online Resources'''
+INDIANA, [COUNTY]- COURT RECORDS
-http://www.in.gov/icpr/archives/databases/supremecourt/index.html
-http://www.in.gov/icpr/archives/databases/posey/index.html
-http://www.in.gov/icpr/archives/databases/life_pri.html
+{{Indiana|Indiana}}
+[[Category:Indiana, United States]][[Category:Court records by U.S. state]]