Louisa County, Iowa Genealogy

Guide to Louisa 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 Louisa Massey. The County has Wapello as its seat and the County was created 1836. The County is located in the east central area of the state.

Parent County
1836--Louisa County was created 7 December 1836 from Des Moines County. County seat:  Wapello

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
Des Moines • Henry •  Johnson •  Muscatine •  Washington •  Henderson County, Illinois •  Mercer County, Illinois •  Rock Island County, Illinois

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

Local Histories

 * History of Louisa County Iowa: From Its Earliest Settlement to 1912 Vol. 1. By Arthur Springer. Chicago, Illinois : S. J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1911-1912. Online at Google Books,Internet Archive;.


 * Reminiscences of pioneer life. By Robert R. Latta. Kansas City, Missouri : Frankling Hudson, c1912. Online at, Internet Archive, HathiTrust;.

Maps

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Iowa

Military

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

Civil War

 * - 5th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company C
 * - 8th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company K
 * - 11th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company C
 * - 17th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company D
 * - 19th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 19th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company G
 * - 25th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 45th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company H
 * - 1st Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company C

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1859-1990 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * NewspaperArchive.com ($) has historical newspapers online including Burlington newspapers dating back to the 1840's that may have included Louisa County residents. This database is free at some libraries.

Probate
Online Probate Records


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

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

Societies and Libraries
Louisa County, Iowa Genealogy  722 N Chestnut St Wapello, IA 52653-1006 Website