Wayne County, Iowa Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Anthony Wayne. The County has Corydon as its seat and the County was created 1846. The County is located in the south central area of the state.

History


The county is named after Revolutionary War General "Mad" Anthony Wayne (1745-1796).


 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa : containing portraits of all the presidents of the Un at Ancestry.com ($)

Parent County
1846--Wayne County was created 13 January 1846 from unorganized territory. It was attached to Davis County prior to organization 27 January 1851. County seat: Corydon

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Iowa County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Iowa County Boundary Maps" (1816-1872) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Places/Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog



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:

Neighboring Counties
Appanoose • Clarke •  Decatur •  Lucas •  Monroe •  Mercer County, Missouri •  Putnam County, Missouri

Biographies

 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa : containing portraits of all the presidents of the Un at Ancestry.com ($)

Cemeteries
Pioneer cemeteries being restored, 2014.

Census
State Census
 * 1895 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1905 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1915 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1925 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Church
Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints


 * Bethlehem

Local Histories
Biographical and Historical Record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa


 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose counties, Iowa : containing a condensed history of the state of Iowa, portraits and biographies of the governors, personal histories of many of the leading families. Chicago, Illinois : Inter-State, 1886. Online at:, Internet Archive, HathiTrust.


 * History of Wayne County, Iowa. By Warren H. Burton. [S.l. : s.n.], 1955, 1957. Online at:Vol.1, Vol. 2:.

Maps

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Iowa

Migration
Early migration routes to and from for European settlers included:
 * Mormon Trail 1846 from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah

Military

 * 1835-1998 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1949 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1862-1910 - at FamilySearch — index

Civil War

 * - 4th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company I
 * - 23rd Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company D
 * - 46th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company H

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1859-1990 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * 1900-04 and 1906-21 — The Humeston New Era at Ancestry.com ($) — Humeston, IA, USA
 * 1885-91 and 1893-1900 — The New Era at Ancestry.com ($) — Humeston, IA, USA
 * 1903-04 — Humeston Advocate at Ancestry.com ($) — Humeston, IA, USA

Probate
Online Probate Records


 * 1758 - 1997 Iowa Wills and Probate Records 1758-1997 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

School
A large collection of school records are held by the Prairie Trails Museum, Wayne County Historical Society, Haighway 2 East, Post Office Box 104, Corydon 50060-0104; http://www.prairietrailsmuseum.org

Taxation

 * 1934-1958 - at FamilySearch — index

Births

 * 1850-1939 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1921-1942 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Marriages

 * 1518-1996 - Iowa, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1838-1934 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Deaths

 * 1850-1990 - at FamilySearch
 * 1880-1992 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1904-1951 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Societies and Libraries
Wayne County Genealogical Society 304 North Franklin Corydon IA 50060-1330

Wayne County Historical Society P. O. Box 104 Corydon, Iowa 50060 Website

Prairie Trails Museum of Wayne County and Historical and Genealogical Library 515 East Jefferson Street (Route #2) Corydon, Iowa 50060 See it's collections and resources for local and family history research.

Websites

 * Wayne County IAGenWeb
 * Wayne County, IA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Iowa Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Iowa Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Wayne County, Iowa Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Wayne County, Iowa Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)