Orange County, Indiana Genealogy

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

Historical Facts

 * Parent Counties: Formed from 26 December 1815 from Washington, Knox and Gibson Counties.
 * County Seat:  Paoli

Description
The county was named after a county of North Carolina, in which many of the early settlers had previously resided. The County Seat is Paoli and was founded 1816. It is located in the South Central area of the state.

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
Martin •  Lawrence  •  Washington  •  Crawford  •  Dubois

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Indiana County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Indiana County Boundary Maps" (1790-1873) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Bible Records

 * INGenWeb, Orange County Bible records

Cemeteries

 * Linkpendium

Census Records

 * Index to Defective, Dependent &amp; Delinquent Census for Orange County, Indiana (1880) (members only database, Indiana Genealogical Society)

Directories

 * Directory of Businesses in Orange County, Indiana (1868) Indiana Genealogical Society)
 * Early Settlers and County Officials of Orange County Indiana Genealogical Society)

Local Histories

 * History of Washington County Indiana: A Re-Production of the Original "History of Lawrence, Orange and Washington Counties" 1884. (Salem, Ind: Washington County Historical Society, 1999.) 977.226 H2Lc FHL other libraries   INTERNET ARCHIVE


 * History of Orange County - Linkpendium


 * Historical Articles of Orange County - INGenWeb

Maps

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Indiana
 * Family Maps of (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com Free surname search.
 * Maps and Gazetteers - Linkpendium

War of 1812

 * Residents of Orange County Who Served in the Mexican War (1846-1848) Indiana Genealogical Society)
 * Look under Military Information - USGenWeb

Civil War
Civil War service men from Orange 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 Orange County.


 * 13th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Companies E, and F
 * 24th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies B, and G
 * 38th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, and I
 * 47th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company F
 * 49th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company G
 * 59th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company F
 * 66th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies D, and E
 * 86th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C
 * 93rd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, D, G, and H
 * 112th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies E, and H
 * 137th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company K
 * 140th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company A
 * 144th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company F
 * 145th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company B
 * 28th US Colored Troops, Companies D, E, F, G, and Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Civil War Books


 * "Military History Of Orange County" Chapter 7 in History of Washington County Indiana: A Re-Production of the Original "History of Lawrence, Orange and Washington Counties" 1884. (Salem, Ind: Washington County Historical Society, 1999.), (page 508-529, Regiment, Companies),977.226 H2Lc FHL other libraries   INTERNET ARCHIVE

World War I

 * 1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Probate Records
Online Records
 * 1798 – 1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $


 * Index to Will Records (1816-1852) (free, Indiana Genealogical Society)

School Records

 * Directory of Teachers (1936) Indiana Genealogical Society)

County Courthouse
Orange County Courthouse Court St; Paoli, IN 47454 Phone: 812.723.2649 County Health Department has birth records from 1882, death and burial records. County Clerk has marriage, divorce,probate and court records from from 1816. County Recorder has land records from 1816.

Family History Centers

 * Bedford Indiana Family History Center

For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online in the family history center directory.

Societies
Orange County Genealogical Society PO Box 344 Paoli, IN 47454

Orange County Historical Society PO Box 454 Paoli, IN 47454-0454 E-mail: [mailto:info@historicorangecounty.org info@historicorangecounty.org] Website

French Lick West Baden Museum PO Box 250 469 S. Maple Street Suite 103 French Lick, IN 47432 Telephone Number:812-936-3592 E-mail: [mailto:flwbmuseum@gmail.com flwbmuseum@gmail.com]

West Baden Historical Society PO Box 284 West Baden Springs, IN 47469-0284 Telephone Number: 812-936-4875

Taxation
Primarily for Martin County, but includes a list of delinquent taxes from Orange County for 1853 and 1854

Vital Records

 * INGenWeb


 * Indiana State Digital Archives

Marriage Records

 * 1800s-2007 - Indiana, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $


 * 1780-1992 - FamilySearch


 * 1802-1892 Indiana Marriages, 1802-1892 - Ancestry.com $


 * 1811-2007 at FamilySearch — index and images

Death Records

 * 1882-1920 at FamilySearch Historical Records - Index only
 * 1899-2011 Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 at Ancestry - ($), index and images
 * Indiana State Digital Archives

Websites

 * Orange County, IN History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Indiana Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Indiana Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * INGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county.
 * , Orange County
 * Orange County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)