Porter County, Indiana Genealogy

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

Description
Porter County was named for David Porter. The county is located in the northwestern area of the state.

County Courthouse
 Porter County Courthouse 16 E Lincolnway #209 Valparaiso, IN 46383 Phone: 219-465-3450 County Website

Porter County Health Department 155 Indiana Avenue, Suite 104 Valparaiso, IN, 46383 Health Officer: Maria Stamp, MD Phone Number: 219-465-3525 Fax: 219-465-3531 Email: Letty.Zepeda@porterco.org Health Department

Attached to St. Joseph County prior to organization 6 Feb 1836. County Health Department has birth and death records. County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate and court records from 1836. County Auditor has land records. 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:

Bible Records

 * Ellis Family Bible Records at Indiana State Library Digital Collections
 * Porter County Indiana Bible Records of the Janes Family at Genealogy Trails
 * Some Bible Records in Porter County, Indiana at Ancestry ($) - index & images; Also at: My Heritage ($)
 * Some Bible Records of Porter County, Indiana. By Daughters of the American Revolution, William Henry Harrison Chapter, Valparaiso Indiana and Mrs. Robert R. Mefford. Indiana : William Henry Harrison Chapter DAR. n.d. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library

Biographies

 * Indiana Biography Index at Indiana State Library

Census Records

 * Index to Defective, Dependent &amp; Delinquent Census for Porter County, Indiana (1880) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Courtesy of the Porter County Public Library System:


 * Enumeration of Males in Porter County IN:
 * 1937 Liberty and 1943 Morgan Townships Enumeration of Males in Porter County, Indiana The data base combines the two years into alphabetical order.
 * Porter County 1930 Census Index

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1858-1921 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1870-1955 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1875-1923 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Directories

 * Directory of Businesses in Porter County, Indiana (1884) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * 1902 Valparaiso, Indiana City Directory, 1902 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Funeral Homes

 * Angelcrest, Inc. in Kouts and Valparaiso.
 * Bartholomew Funeral Home in Valparaiso.
 * Edmonds and Evans Funeral and Cremation Services in Chesterton and Portage.
 * Geisen Funeral Homes in Hebron.
 * Rees Funeral Homes and Cremation Services in Portage.
 * White-Love Funeral Home in Chesterton.

Guardianship

 * Guardianship Court Cases from the Porter County Library.

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Local Histories

 * Counties of Porter and Lake, Indiana: Historical and Biographical. 1882. Editors: Weston A. Goodspeed, Charles Blanchard. Chicago: F.A. Battey. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive;.
 * History of Porter County, Indiana. 2 volumes. 1912. Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company. Online at: Vol. 1 - Internet Archive; Vol. 1 & 2 - Ancestry ($);.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Indiana


 * Historic Indiana Maps at IUPUI University Library
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * Military Record Series Index at Indiana Digital Archives
 * Veterans in Porter County (1894) at Indiana Genealogical Society

Civil War Civil War service men from Porter 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 Porter County.


 * 4th Battery, Indiana Light Artillery
 * 5th Battery, Indiana Light Artillery (Simonson's)
 * 5th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry (90th Regiment, Indiana Volunteers), Company I
 * 7th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Companies A, H, and K
 * 9th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company B, and Companies B, E and H
 * 12th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry Companies A, and M
 * 20th Battery, Indiana Light Artillery
 * 20th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company I, and Reorganized Company D
 * 37th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company A
 * 63rd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company B
 * 73rd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies E, and I
 * 99th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C
 * 128th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies E, and H
 * 138th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company C
 * 151st Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies B, and E
 * 28th US Colored Troops, Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Civil War Books:
 * "Military History", Chapter 6 in Lewis Publishing Company. cn. 1911. History of Porter County, Indiana: a narrative account of its historical progress, its people and its principal interests 977.298 H2h FS Library US/CAN Book,, Internet Archive

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

World War II
 * Residents of Porter County One World War II Honor Roll at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Residents of Porter County Who Died in World War II (1942-1946) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Residents of Porter County Who Served in World War II at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Military Service: 1940-1945 at Porter County Public Library

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 ($)
 * Porter County Herald Index 1933-1938 at Porter County Library

Obituaries

 * Obituary Index 1938-Jan 2011 from Porter County Library

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1838-1906 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1839-1880 (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1840-1933 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1849-1910 (*); Court of Common Pleas at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1850-1925 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1853-1872 (*); Common Pleas Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1854-1914 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1862-1914 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1870-1955 (*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1901-1935 (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1901-1955 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1914-1963 Probate Estates at Porter County Public Library
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

School Records

 * Directory of School Officials and Teachers of Porter County (1917) at Indiana Genealogical Society
 * School Enumeration of Liberty Township (1919, 1924) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * Students and Teachers of Chesterton Junior-Senior High School (1952) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
 * 1899-1931 Teacher Contracts at Porter County Public Library
 * 1919 Liberty Township School Enumerations 1919 at Porter County Public Library
 * 1924-1925 and 1931 Miscellaneous Contracts for Porter School District at Porter County Public Library

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.
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Marriage

 * 1780-1992  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
 * 1800-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at Findmypast $
 * 1802-1892 Indiana, Compiled Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry
 * 1811-1959 Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959 at MyHeritage - index & images ($)
 * 1811-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 *  1836-1976 Marriages at Porter County Library

Death

 * Pre-1882 WEB: Indiana, Deaths, Pre-1882 at Ancestry - 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

Divorce

 * 1914-1963 Divorce Records at Porter County Library

FamilySearch Centers

 * Griffith Indiana FamilySearch Center
 * Valparaiso Indiana FamilySearch Center
 * Gary Public Library - an affiliate library.
 * Lake County Public Library - an affiliate library.
 * Valparaiso Public Library/Porter County Public Library System - an affiliate library.

Libraries
Porter County Library Valparaiso Branch 103 Jefferson St Valparaiso, IN 46383 Phone: 219-462-0524 Email: [mailto:info@pcpls.org info@pcpls.org] Facebook Website Valparaiso University Archives & Special Collections Christopher Center Library 1410 Chapel Drive Valparaiso, IN  46383 Phone: 219-464-5500 Email: [mailto:university.archives@valpo.edu university.archives@valpo.edu] Website

Museums
Alton Goin Museum Portage Community Historical Society 5250 US Highway 6 Portage, IN 46368 Phone: 219-762-8349 Email: [mailto:pchs.1@frontier.com pchs.1@frontier.com] Website PoCo Muse 20 Indiana Ave Valparaiso, IN 46383 Phone: 219-510-1836 Email: [mailto:info@pocomuse.org info@pocomuse.org] Website Westchester Township History Museum 700 W Porter Avenue Chesterton, IN 46304 Phone: 219-983-9715 Email: [mailto:serena@wpl.lib.in.us serena@wpl.lib.in.us] Website

Societies
Beverly Shores Historical Society The Depot 525 Broadway PO Box 305 Beverly Shores, IN 46301-0242 Phone: 219-874-8000 Email: [mailto:bevshrshist@bevshrshistsoc.org bevshrshist@bevshrshistsoc.org] Facebook Website Duneland Historical Society PO Box 2034 Chesterton, IN 46304 Phone: 219-983-9715 Email: [mailto:dunelandhistoricalsociety@gmail.com dunelandhistoricalsociety@gmail.com] Facebook Website Hebron Historical Society PO Box 679 Hebron, IN 46341-0679 Phone: 219-996-3192 Historical Society of Ogden Dunes 115 Hillcrest Road Portage, IN 46368-8503 Phone: 708-491-8319 or 219-763-0658 Email: [mailto:rmeister@depaul.edu rmeister@depaul.edu] Website
 * The "Hour Glass", a historic house at 8 Lupine Lane, houses the Society's collections of books, papers and records; artifacts; and paintings and sculpture.

Historical Society of Porter County 153 Franklin Street Valparaiso, IN 46385 Phone: 219-465-3595 Website Kankakee Valley Historical Society 22 W 1050 S Kouts, IN 46347 Phone: 219-766-2302 Email: [mailto:president@kankakeevalleyhistoricalsociety.org president@kankakeevalleyhistoricalsociety.org] Website Northwest Indiana Genealogical Society PO Box 595 Griffith, IN 46319 Email: [mailto:nwigsweb@gmail.com nwigsweb@gmail.com] Facebook Website

Websites

 * Porter County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History (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 Select a county
 * Every Name Index.com Online indexes for county histories. Select a county
 * Porter County, Indiana: A Part of the Indiana GenWeb Project
 * Swedish Farmsteads of Porter County, Indiana
 * – 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.