O'Brien County, Iowa Genealogy

Guide to O'Brien 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 William Smith O'Brien, a leader for Irish independence in 1848. The County has Primghar as its seat and the County was created 1851. The County is located in the northeast area of the state.

Parent County
1851--O'Brien County was created 15 January 1851 from unorganized territory. It was attached to Woodbury County prior to organization 7 April 1860. County seat: Primghar

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
Buena Vista • Cherokee •  Clay •  Dickinson •  Lyon •  Osceola •  Plymouth •  Sioux

Biography

 * Biographical data and army record of old soldiers who have lived in O'Brien Co., Iowa at Ancestry.com ($)

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

Lutheran

 * Records of Siloam Lutheran Church, Paullina, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Local Histories

 * Past and present of O'Brien and Osceola Counties, Iowa at Ancestry.com ($)

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
 * Biographical data and army record of old soldiers who have lived in O'Brien Co., Iowa at Ancestry.com ($)

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


 * The Sheldon Mail. 1954. Sheldon, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * Obrien County Bell.1905-06. Primghar, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)

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
O'Brien County Historical Society Box 385 Primghar, Iowa, 51245 Telephone:712-957-2581 Website