Appanoose County, Iowa Genealogy

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

County Courthouse
Appanoose County Courthouse 201 North 12th Street Centerville, IA 52544 Phone:(515)856-6101

Parent County
1843 - Appanoose County was created 17 February 1843 ;from unorganized territory. The county was attached to Davis and Van Buren Counties prior to organization 3 August 1846.;
 * County seat: Centerville

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.

History
1843 - Established in 1843, Appanoose County was named for a chief of the Sac and the Fox Indian tribes that lead the peace party during the Black Hawk War. Appanoose means "A Chief When a Child." During the first part of the 20th century, mining was a major factor in Appanoose. The county seat for Appanoose is Centerville.


 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa: containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland at Ancestry.com ($)

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

Places/Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Neighboring Counties
Davis •  Lucas  •  Monroe  •  Wapello  •  Wayne  •  Putnam County, Missouri  •  Schuyler County, Missouri

Biographies

 * Biographies from The History of Appanoose County, Iowa, are transcribed in Iowa Biographies Project.
 * Biographical and Genealogical History of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa
 * Biographies from Biographical and Genealogical History of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa,
 * Biographical and Historical Record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa on RootsWeb freepages with index.
 * Biographies from Biographical and Historical Record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa are transcribed in Iowa Biographies Project.
 * Centerville: Oral interviews in Centerville, Iowa, conducted on 13 October 1981
 * Mystic: Oral interviews in Mystic, Iowa, conducted in 1981
 * Who's Who in Iowa, a Biographical Record of Iowa's Leaders in Business, Professional and Public Life.
 * Who's Who in 1940 online on the Appanoose County IAGenWeb page
 * Biographical and genealogical history of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa at Ancestry.com ($)
 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa: containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland at Ancestry.com ($)

Cemeteries

 * Cemeteries of Appanoose County, Iowa


 * Cemetery Transcriptions


 * Children Buried in Iowa Cemeteries: Appanoose County
 * Military Buried in Iowa Cemeteries: Appanoose County

Census
Iowa recorded not only the federal census but state census through out the years too. The state census contains very valuable genealogical information. Where the census information can be found, what years it was taken, mortality schedules, census substitutions and much more is discussed in the very informative Iowa Census article.

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 Records and Histories
LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Camp of Israel, (later referred to as Zion's Camp).

United Methodist Church


 * Iowa Churches: A File at the Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. This file consists of church histories, anniversary programs, and newspaper clippings. It is arranged by towns or by the name of the church.
 * Ministerial Biographies: A File in the Iowa Wesleyan College in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. These films contain biographies, mainly of Methodist ministers.

Court Records

 * Inventory of County Records - Appanoose County, Iowa.

Probate Records

 * 1848-1930 - List of books or films containing Probate information for Appanoose County from 1848 to 1930.

County Histories

 * 100th Anniversary: Iowa Trust and Savings Bank, Centerville, Iowa, 1896-1996.
 * A Pictorial History of Appanoose County, Iowa
 * A Pictorial History of Appanoose County, Iowa.
 * A Pictorial History of the Towns of Appanoose County Past and Present
 * A Report on the Rathbun Dam
 * Abandoned Towns of Appanoose County from Abandoned Towns, Villages and Post Office
 * Appanoose County Historical Atlas; Centerville, IA: Appanoose County Sesquicentennial Commission, 1996
 * Biographical and historical record of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, Iowa : containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland, with accompanying biographies of each, a condensed history of the state of Iowa, portraits and biographies of the governors of the territory and state, engravings of prominent citizens in Wayne and Appanoose Counties, with personal histories of many of the leading families, and a concise history of Wayne and Appanoose Counties, and their cities and villages.. Chicago: Inter-State Pub. Co., 1886. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * Biographical and genealogical history of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa. New York: Lewis Pub. Co., 1903. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * Early Pioneer Stories
 * Historical Sketches of Pioneer Days in Appanoose County, Iowa
 * More Shoal Creek Legends.
 * Shoal Creek Legends 3
 * Names of Old Towns Fading into Haze of Past Memories" 
 * Past and Present of Appanoose County, Iowa ~ Volume 1
 * Past and Present of Appanoose County, Iowa - Volume II
 * Pioneer Roll of Honor
 * Postoffices and Postmasters of Appanoose County, Iowa, 1846 to 1988.
 * Post Offices in Appanoose County, 1865
 * Rathbun Dam History.
 * Rural School Memories, Appanoose County, Iowa. Information, memories and pictures contributed by many volunteers about the 140 schools in Appanoose County in 1912.
 * Shoal Creek Legends. The three volumes of Shoal Creek Legends were originally newspaper articles published in The Seymour Herald; printed and sold by the Seymour Community Club as fundraising projects. Maurice Stamps grew up around Shoal Creek in Franklin Township, Appanoose County, and served many years as a teacher and administrator in the Seymour Community Schools.
 * The History of Appanoose County, Iowa - 1986
 * This Day in Iowa History.
 * The History of Appanoose County, Iowa
 * The Place-Names of Appanoose County, Iowa
 * Tour of Iowa Counties: Appanoose County" 

Genealogy

 * Biographical and genealogical history of Appanoose and Monroe Counties, Iowa at Ancestry.com ($)

Maps and Atlases

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Iowa
 * David Rumsey Map Collection is a large online collection of rare, old, antique historical atlases, globes, maps, charts plus other cartographic treasures.

Migration
Early migration routes to and from for European settlers included:


 * 1846 - Mormon Trail, 1846 from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah


 * Mormon Trails Across Appanoose County, Iowa.

Military History and Records

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

Civil War

 * Nine Appanoose Regiments in the Civil War
 * - 3rd Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company I
 * - 6th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies D and F
 * - 7th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 8th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Companies F and H
 * - 17th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 18th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 36th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies C, F, G and I
 * - 47th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company B

Museums Archives and Libraries

 * Appanoose County Historical and Coal Mining Museum 100 West Maple Centerville, Iowa 52544
 * Drake Public Library 115 Drake Avenue, Centerville, Iowa 52544 See it's collections and resources for local and family history research related to Appanoose County. The Genealogical Society of Appanoose County collection is housed at the Drake Public Library. The genealogy section features family histories, local plat maps, historic phone directories, school yearbooks from area schools, and miscellaneous histories of ghost towns. A microfilm reader is provided at the library to view the microfilm collection which includes: Centerville newspapers 1861-Present, Circuit Court Records, Miscellaneous Church Records, Appanoose County Probate Records, Census Records, Other Iowa Newspapers, Land Records, and Marriage Records.
 * Iowa Genealogical Society Library 628 East Grand Avenue Des Moines, Iowa 50309-1924 See it's collections and resources for local and family history research related to Appanoose County.
 * 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.
 * State Historical Society of Iowa, archives, libraries and museum. See it's collections and resources for local and family history research related to Appanoose County.
 * The Wabash Depot Museum 800 West North Street Moravia, Iowa Obtained from the Norfolk and Southern Railroad in 1976 when the line was discontinued through Moravia, Iowa. Displays include a section car used on the rails in the early 1900s, an operational signal board for signaling train crews before modern radio communications were used, models of trains and railroads that once crossed Appanoose County and Moravia, and artifacts of local history providing a look at how people once lived in Moravia.

Newspapers
The Newspaper Directory on the Library of Congress' Chronicling America lists 21 newspapers which have been published in Appanoose County, Iowa. The site tells the years in which each newspaper was published, detailed information about each paper, and identifies the major libraries that have holdings of it and which issues each library holds. There were other newspapers (in Mystic and Cincinnati) published in Appanoose County, but no copies of them exist. Also, information on Appanoose County often appeared in newspapers in neighboring counties -- Wayne County, Davis County, Lucas County, Monroe County, Wapello County in Iowa; and Putnam County and Schuyler County in Missouri.

NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a large collection of digitized Iowa newspapers online. This database is sometimes free at libraries.


 * The Appanoose Times. 1881-1882 Centerville, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * The Weekly Citizen. 1870-1872 Centerville, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * The Centerville Citizen. 1872-1873, 1881 Centerville, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * Centerville Times. 1881-1882 Centerville, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)

Occupations

 * Iowa Labor History Oral Project
 * The Industrial History of Appanoose County, Iowa.
 * National Register of Historic Places in Appanoose County, Iowa.

Mining

 * The History of Coal Mining in Appanoose County, Iowa

Probation
Online Probate Records


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

Societies and Libraries
Appanoose County Genealogical Society P.O. Box 684 Centerville, Iowa 52544-0684 E-mail: [mailto:acgs2005@hotmail.com acgs2005@hotmail.com]

Family History Centers



 * Centerville Iowa Family History Center 22459 465th St Centerville IA 52544 United States Location Map

Birth Records

 * 1850-1939 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1880-1901 - Early births in Appanoose County, Iowa 1880-1901
 * 1880-1935 - Birth records, 1880-1935 

Marriage Records

 * 1518-1996 - Iowa, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1838-1934 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1846-1899 - Index to early marriages, Appanoose County, Iowa  Contains: Vol 1. Bride's index, 1846-1900 -- Vol 2. Groom's index, 1847- 1900
 * 1851-1900 - Iowa, 1851-1900 Marriages from 1851 to 1900
 * 1842-1928 - Marriage records, 1842-1928 

Death Records

 * 1850-1990 - at FamilySearch - index
 * 1880-1992 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1880-1903 - Early deaths in Appanoose County, Iowa Index to early death records, Appanoose County, Iowa. Contains Vol. 1. 1880-1903
 * 1921-1940 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Obituaries

 * '1899-1939, 1910-1950 - Book of obituaries, Appanoose County, Iowa Newspapers clippings 1899-1939 and 1910-1950