Washington County, Indiana Genealogy
Guide to Washington County, Indiana ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
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County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
Washington County was named for George Washington.[2] The county is located in the south-central part of the state.[3]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Washington County Courthouse
99 Public Square
Salem, IN 47167
Phone: 812-883-5748
County Website
Washington County Health Department
806 Martinsburg Road, Suite 100
Salem, IN, 47167
Health Officer: Jeffery Morgan, MD
Phone Number: 812-883-5603
Fax: 812-883-5017
Email: sgreen@washingtoncounty.in.gov
Health Department
County Health Department birth and death from 1882.
County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate, probate and court records from 1814 and newspapers from 1891.
County recorder has land records.
County Historical Society has many family records. [4]
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.
Washington 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.
| Marriage | Court | Land | Probate | Census | ||
| 1882 | 1814 | 1882 | 1814 | 1814 | 1814 | 1807 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
|
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
|
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:[8]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Census-designated places | ||
| Townships | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
- Indiana Biography Index at Indiana State Library
- Biographical and Historical Souvenir for the Counties of Clark, Crawford, Harrison, Floyd, Jefferson, Jennings, Scott and Washington, Indiana. (John M. Greesham & Co, 1889.) Available at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
Census Records[edit | edit source]
For tips on accessing Washington County census records online, see: Indiana Census.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1820 | 9,039 | — |
| 1830 | 13,064 | 44.5% |
| 1840 | 15,269 | 16.9% |
| 1850 | 17,040 | 11.6% |
| 1860 | 17,909 | 5.1% |
| 1870 | 18,495 | 3.3% |
| 1880 | 18,955 | 2.5% |
| 1890 | 18,619 | −1.8% |
| 1900 | 19,409 | 4.2% |
| 1910 | 17,445 | −10.1% |
| 1920 | 16,645 | −4.6% |
| 1930 | 16,285 | −2.2% |
| 1940 | 17,008 | 4.4% |
| 1950 | 16,520 | −2.9% |
| 1960 | 17,819 | 7.9% |
| 1970 | 19,278 | 8.2% |
| 1980 | 21,932 | 13.8% |
| 1990 | 23,717 | 8.1% |
| 2000 | 27,223 | 14.8% |
| 2010 | 28,262 | 3.8% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org" | ||
- Index to Defective, Dependent & Delinquent Census for Washington County, Indiana (1880) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Church Records[edit | edit source]
Most church records are held by individual churches. For contact information, check a phone directory, such as SearchBug or Dex Knows. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository. For more information about these major repositories, see Indiana Church Records.
Lutheran
- Records of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).
Court Records[edit | edit source]
Directories[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
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 Washington County courthouse, where records are currently housed.
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Washington County. County histories may include biographies; church, school and government histories; and military information. For more information about local histories, see Indiana Local Histories.
- Centennial History of Washington County, Indiana. 1916. By Warder W. Stevens. Indianapolis : B.F. Bowen. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive, Google Books; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- History of Washington County, Indiana. 1965. Paoli, Indiana : Stout's Print Shop. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat). A re-production of the original "History of Lawrence, Orange and Washington Counties", Chicago : Goodspeed Bros. & Co., 1884. Some links above may be of the full original title.
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War
Civil War service men from Washington 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 Washington County.
- 5th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry (90th Regiment, Indiana Volunteers), Company E
- 13th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company G
- 16th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company B
- 18th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company G
- 22nd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company H
- 24th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company K
- 38th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company D
- 50th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C
- 66th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, B, F, H, and K
- 81st Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company A
- 112th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C
- 117th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (6 months, 1863-4), Company G
- 137th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company K
- 144th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, B, C, and F
- 145th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company F
Civil War Books:
- History of Washington County Indiana: A Re-Production of the Original "History of Lawrence, Orange and Washington Counties" 1884. (Salem, Ind: Washington County Historical Society, 1965.) ("Military History", Chapter 7, page 793-815, Regiment, Companies) Available at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive
World War I
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-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
- 1804-2010 Hoosier State Chronicles 1804-2011
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
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 Washington County courthouse. For more information, see Indiana Probate Records.
- 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry $
School Records[edit | edit source]
- Students and Teachers of Salem High School (1926) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
- Directory of Teachers for Washington County at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
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 ($) — index, click here for more information.
Tax Records[edit | edit source]
Indiana tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the wiki page Indiana Taxation.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Indiana law in 1882 required registration of births and deaths in counties. The Indiana Department of Health has birth records filed after October 1907 and death records filed after January 1900 for deaths. Copies may be obtained from the county health department or the Indiana State Division of Vital Records.
Birth[edit | edit source]
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1780-1992 Indiana Marriages, 1780-1992 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1800-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at FindMyPast ($)
- 1802-1892 Indiana, Compiled Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry $
- 1811-2007 Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
Death[edit | edit source]
- 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 Washington County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local Family History Centers or Affiliate Libraries
- Family History 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 family history center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
New Albany Indiana Family History Center
1534 Slate Run Road
New Albany IN 47150-6210
Phone: 812-913-5271
E-mail: IN_NewAlbany@familyhistorymail.org
Website
Bedford Indiana Family History Center
1010 22nd Street
Bedford IN 47421-4822
Phone: 812-275-6672
Website
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Listed below are libraries in Washington County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
The John Hay Center
Steven’s Museum
307 East Market Street
Salem IN, 47167-2119
Phone 812-833-6495
E-mail:info@johnhaycenter.org
Website
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in Washington County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Societies.
- Southern Indiana Genealogical Society
PO Box 665
180 West Spring Street
New Albany, IN 47150
Email:sigsvolunteer@gmail.com
Website
- Their collection of genealogical materials is housed in the Indiana History Room of the New Albany-Floyd County Public Library.
- Washington County Historical Society
c/o Stevens Memorial Museum
307 East Market St.
Salem, IN 47167
Phone 812-883-6495
Website
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Indiana Digital Archives Search by name in all records or specific collections
- Indiana Historical Society Digital Collections Extensive - keyword searches suggested
- Indiana Memory Click the map or select a statewide collection
- List of indexes and databases at Indiana State Library
- Indiana Genealogical Society Databases Select a county
- Every Name Index.com Online indexes for county histories. Select a county
- USGenWeb, Washington County
- INGenWeb, Washington County
- City of Salem, Indiana
- Washington 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]
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Genealogy Trails History Group, “Washington County, Indiana Genealogy and History”, http://genealogytrails.com/ind/washington/ accessed 04/05/2017.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Washington County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Indiana accessed 04/05/2017.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Washington County, Indiana" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Indiana (accessed 10 May 2012).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Washington County, Indiana," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Indiana, accessed 15 January 2020.
