Owen County, Indiana Genealogy

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

Description
Owen County was named after Abraham Owen, a colonel who died at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. It is located in the southwestern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Owen County Courthouse Main Street PO Box 146 Spencer, IN 47460 Phone: 812-829-5015 County Website

Owen County Health Department 86 E. Market St. Spencer, IN 47460 Health Officer: Diane Wells, MD Phone Number: 812-829-5017 Fax: 812-829-5044 Email: [mailto:sheila.reeves@owencounty.in.go sheila.reeves@owencounty.in.go] Health Department

County Health Department has birth and death records from 1882. County Clerk has marriage and court records from 1819, divorce records from 1832 and probate records from 1833. County Recorder has land records from 1819. 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.

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:

History Timeline

 * County Timeline at Owen County INGenWeb

Biographies

 * Indiana Biography Index at Indiana State Library
 * Biographies at Owen County INGenWeb Project
 * Owen County Biographies at USGenWeb Archives
 * Owen County, Indiana Biographies at Genealogy Trails

Census Records
1820
 * 1820 Owen County census transcription at USGenWeb Archives

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1819-1868 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1843-1921 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1853-1873 (*); Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1862-1910 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Directories

 * Directory of Businesses in Owen County, Indiana in 1858 at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Directories at USGenWeb Archives

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American
 * 28th US Colored Troops, Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Funeral Homes

 * Chandler Funeral Homes in Gosport.
 * Owen County Funeral Parlors at USGenWeb Archives
 * Walton Family Funeral Service in Spencer.

Genealogies

 * Combs &amp;c Families of Owen Co, IN at Combs-Coombs &amp;c.
 * Owen County Diaries at USGenWeb Archives

Land and Property Records

 * Land Grant Applications at Owen County INGenWeb
 * Owen County Deeds at USGenWeb Archives
 * Plat Books of Indiana Counties, Vol. 4 at IUPUI University Library, pages 160 thru 173

Local Histories

 * Counties of Clay and Owen, Indiana : Historical and Biographical. 1884. Edited by Charles Blanchard. Chicago : F.A. Battey & Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive; . Index: Index of personal names, History of Owen County, Indiana, 1884. By Roger A. Peterson. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.


 * Owen County History at GenealogyTrails
 * Owen County Town and Township Histories at Owen County Historical and Genealogical Society (OCHGS)

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Historic Indiana Maps at IUPUI University Library
 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Indiana
 * Maps of Owen County at Indiana State Library. 1911 and 1936? can be viewed online.
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration

 * Military Record Series Index at Indiana Digital Archives

Military Records
War of 1812
 * Owen County Military at USGenWeb Archives
 * Veterans in Owen County, Indiana (1913) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Military Service of Residents of Owen County (1775-1848) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Civil War Civil War servicemen from Owen 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 Owen County.


 * 1st Regiment, Indiana Heavy Artillery, Company B
 * 5th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry (90th Regiment, Indiana Volunteers), Company C
 * 6th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Company F
 * 11th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company H
 * 13th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company H
 * 14th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company H
 * 18th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company H
 * 19th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company I
 * 31st Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company B
 * 52nd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company E
 * 57th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company D
 * 59th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies f, and B
 * 82nd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company I
 * 85th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company K
 * 97th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies F, and H
 * 130th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company K
 * 137th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company K
 * 144th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company I
 * 149th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies B, and D
 * 28th US Colored Troops, Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Civil War Books:


 * Company B, Twenty-First Indiana First Heavy Artillery at USGenWeb Archives
 * Vincent Anderson War Diary at USGenWeb Archives
 * Zollinger, Vivian, ed., "'I Take My Pen in Hand:' Civil War Letters from Owen County Indiana, Soldiers" Indiana Magazine of History, Vol. 93, No. 2 (June 1997, pp. 111-196 (various Owen County soldiers, Owen County 135h, 14th, 19th, 21st, 59th, 97th, 149th Indiana Volunteer Infantries, 1861-1865). Article

World War I
 * 1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * Naturalization Record Series (for this county) at Indiana Digital Archives. Search by names.

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * Owen County Newspapers at Indiana State Library
 * Newspaper abstracts at INGenWeb Project
 * Newspaper extracts at USGenWeb Archives
 * Spencer Evening World (current newspaper)

Obituaries

 * Obituaries at INGenWeb Project
 * Obituaries at USGenWeb Archives

Other Records

 * Surnames at INGenWeb Project; alphabetical abstracts of various life events per surnames listed

Probate Records

 * 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry
 * 1833-1920 (*); Indiana. Circuit Court (Owen County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * Abstracts of Owen County Indiana wills before 1900. 1994. By Zollinger, Vivian. [Gosport, Indiana] : V. Zollinger. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Index to Abstracts of Owen County Wills before 1900 at INGenWeb Project

School Records

 * Students, Teachers, and Graduates of various Owen County, Indiana Schools (1921, 1929-30, 1934-70) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 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.

Birth

 * 1880-1882 Owen County, Indiana Births 1880-1882 at Genealogy Trails

Marriage
Blanchard's 1884 county history mentions that the first wedding in the county was a double wedding that predates the recording of marriages in the county record books. This was the marriage of two daughters of Philip Hart to James Bigger and Thomas Allen. The date of this marriage is unknown. The first recorded marriage is dated 4 Oct 1819.


 * 1780-1992 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
 * 1800s-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at Findmypast $
 * 1802-1892 Indiana, Compiled Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry
 * 1811-1959 Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959 at MyHeritage - index and images, ($)
 * 1811-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * Before 1850 Owen County, Indiana Marriages Before 1850, Surnames A-J at OCHGS
 * Before 1850 Owen County, Indiana Marriages Before 1850, Surnames J-Z at OCHGS
 * Owen County Marriages at INGenWeb Project
 * Owen County Marriages at USGenWeb Archives

Book Abstracts and Indexes
 * 1819-1849 Owen County, Indiana Marriage Record 1819-1849. Available online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; Internet Archive


 * 1819-1844 - Franklin, Charles M. Owen County, Indiana Marriages, 1819-1844. Indianapolis: Ye Olde Genealogie Shoppe, 1979. Available online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; Internet Archive

Death

 * Pre-1882 WEB: Indiana, Deaths, Pre-1882 at Ancestry.com - index, (Free collection)
 * 1750-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1882-1920 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection
 * 1899-2011 Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 at Ancestry

Family History Centers

 * Bloomington Indiana Family History Center
 * Linton Indiana Family History Center
 * Martinsville Indiana Family History Center
 * Monroe County Public Library - Elletsville Branch - an affiliate library.
 * Monroe County Public Library - Main - an affiliate library.
 * Putnam County Public Library - an affiliate library.
 * Vigo County Public Library - an affiliate library.

Libraries
Owen County Library 10 S. Montgomery Spencer, IN 47460 Phone: 812-829-3392 Email: [mailto:genealogy@owenlib.org genealogy@owenlib.org] Website

Museums
Ten O'clock Line Treaty Museum at Gosport 19 North Fourth Street P.O. Box 50 Gosport, IN 474333 Phone: 812-879-4050 Email: [mailto:gosportmuseumdirector@gmail.com gosportmuseumdirector@gmail.com] Website

Societies
Owen County Historical and Genealogical Society P.O. Box 569 Spencer, IN 47460 Phone: 812-829-4466 Website

Websites

 * Owen County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History at Linkpendium
 * 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 Free and Members-only. Scroll the list.
 * Owen County at Indiana State Library Selected printed resources
 * Owen County at USGenWeb Archives
 * Owen County InGenWeb Project at InGenWeb Project
 * Owen County, Indiana at Genealogy Trails
 * Owen County, Indiana at RootsWeb
 * Owen County, Indiana at Wikipedia
 * – 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.