Allen County, Ohio Genealogy

United States Ohio Allen County

Historical Facts

 * Parent Counties: Formed from Shelby Logan and Mercer Counties in 1820 (1831).
 * County Seat: Lima
 * Neighboring Counties: residents may also have records in Auglaize (south)·Hancock (northeast)· Hardin(east)· Mercer (southwest)· Putnam (north)

History

 * The Shawnees (tribe) were removed to Kansas in 1832 from the Hog Creek Reservation (now Shawnee Township.)
 * 1875 Personal Histories of Allen County Ohio.
 * In 1885, oil was discovered in Lima. This brought about a boom that lasted until after 1910.
 * Henry Howe’s 1889's depiction of the History of Allen County Ohio

Parent County

 * 1820 -- Allen County was created 12 February 1820 from Shelby County. County seat: Lima  
 * The county seat was not selected until 3 March 1831 when Lima was platted.
 * The records did not begin until 6 June 1831 when the county commissioners first met. Earlier records may be in Shelby County.

Boundary Changes

 * Auglaize County was set off 14 February 1848 from the southern half of original Allen County.
 * Monroe, Richland and southern half of Sugar Creek Townships were transferred from Putnam County in 1848.
 * Parts of VanWert and Mercer counties were transferred to Allen County to form Spencer Township and part of Marion Township in 1848.
 * Cash settlement was agreed upon by Allen and Putnam counties for Putnam's loss May 1853.

See an interactive map of Allen County boundary changes.

Record Loss
1929--Allen County Courthouse destroyed by fire on January 7, 1929. Many county records destroyed.

Populated Places
Cities

Villages

Townships

Communities

Neighboring Counties

 * Auglaize
 * Hancock
 * Hardin
 * Putnam
 * Van Wert

Cemeteries
Rural


 * Cemetery transcriptions for the following cemeteries: Fisher, Harrods, Ridge, Westminster
 * Salem Cemetery, Harrod BillionGraves

Urban

Cemeteries of Lima, Allen County, Ohio


 * Gethsemani Cemetery, 2001 Spencerville Road, Lima, Ohio 45805, 419-223-1651


 * Memorial Park Cemetery, 3000 Harding Highway, Lima, Ohio 45804, 419-223-3811


 * Woodlawn Cemetery, 1751 Spencerville Road, Lima Ohio 45805, 419-223-9831

Census
1785 1850--Federal Census transcription and images 1920--index for surnames beginning with the letter "E" and "F"

Land
Bureau of Land Management Database Transcription It shows the original purchasers of land from the federal government and covers the period from pre-Revolutionary times up to 1908.

Maps

 * Township maps of Allen County in 1880

Migration

 * Migrations Through Allen County, Ohio

Military
Revolutionary War


 * Pensioners Living in Ohio in 1818-1819
 * 1840 Census of Pensioners Revolutionary and Military Services

War of 1812


 * Roster of Ohio Soldiers at The Ohio Historical Society

Civil War


 * Civil War service men from Van Wert 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 Van Wert County.


 * -4th Regiment, Ohio Cavalry, Companies F and I
 * -99th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies B and E


 * Civil War Rosters
 * Men In the Civil War Allen County, Ohio

World War I


 * The Unreturning Brave (from WWI) published in 1925
 * List of Dead Heroes Whose Bodies Rest in Allen County

Miscellaneous


 * The names of the soldiers buried in different cemeteries of Allen county whose graves were decorated May 30, 1907

Obituaries

 * Search Engine for the Obituary Index to the Lima News

Taxation
1834 Tax Lists


 * Amanda and Auglaize Townships
 * Bath and Deuchoquette Townships
 * German and Jackson Townships
 * Marion, Perry and Wayne Townships

Taxpayers--Personal Property


 * Allen County Tax List August 25, 1881

Vital Records
Marriages in Allen County


 * 1836-1852 Pioneer marriages, Not all inclusive
 * 1854 Taken from Lima Democratic News
 * 1852-1860 Marriages from the Lima Dailey News
 * 1860 Marriages from the Lima Democratic News
 * 1861-1862 Marriage Books and Partial book B
 * 1889-1893 Marriage Licenses
 * 1900 Allen County Republican Gazette Marriages
 * Marriages with no date


 * Divorce Petitions and Decrees

1876 | 1878 | 1879 | 1880 | 1881 | 1882 | 1883 | 1884 | 1885 | 1886 | 1887 | 1888 | 1889 | 1890 | 1891 | 1892 | 1893 | 1894 | 1895 | 1896 | 1897 | 1898-1899 |


 * Divorce Petitions and Decrees for Allen and Van Wert Counties, and Surrounding Areas, 1898-1900

1898-1900 | 1901 | 1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1905-1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909 | 1900 | 1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 |

Death Records

 * Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 Free name indexes and images at FamilySearch.org. Records include such information as birth date of deceased, city, county, and state of death, name of spouse if married, names of parents, maiden name of mother, name of informant, if deceased was single, married, windowed or divorced, occupation of deceased.


 * Transcribed from Allen County newspapers of those who died in Allen and surrounding counties.

Societies and Libraries

 * Allen County Ohio Genealogy Society Lima, Ohio.
 * Allen County Museum and Historical Society Lima, Ohio, including the Elizabeth M. MacDonell Memorial Library for genealogical and historical research
 * Lima Public Library

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Lima Ohio Family History Center

Web Sites

 * The 1880 Business Patron’s References is divided by town and township, each section has a unique set of information about their patrons.
 * The Allen County OHGenWeb Project, a member of The OHGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Allen County
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Allen County