Iowa, Tama County Court Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Iowa  Tama County

What is in the Collection?
This collection contains images of court records from the the office of the Tama County Clerk for the years 1859 to 1927.

What Can this Collection Tell Me?
Information found in this collection may include:


 * Names of interested parties
 * Date of court proceeding or transaction
 * Details of the case
 * Place of residence
 * Names of witnesses

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it is helpful to know:


 * The name of your ancestor
 * The approximate court date
 * The names of other family or associates involved in the court case

How Do I Search the Collection?
View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select the appropriate "Record Category" ⇒Select the appropriate "Record Type, Volume, and Year Range" which takes you to the images

Look at the images one by one comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Use the date and locality to search for census records
 * Use the date and locality to search for church records
 * Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname as the deceased, this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have been in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after 1900.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.
 * Witnesses in court cases may be close relatives.

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking for, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. Local historical and genealogical groups also compile indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

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