Poweshiek County, Iowa Genealogy

United States Iowa  Poweshiek County

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

County Courthouse
The Poweshiek County Courthouse in Montezuma contains vital records (starting about 1848 for birth, marriage, and death) on the 2nd floor. The staff is friendly and helpful. Access inside the records vault is allowed, although no cameras are permitted. There is no charge for transcribing documents, and since personal computers are allowed inside the records vault, transcription is easy. The cost for having the staff make copies was only a few dollars per copy.

Parent County
1843--Poweshiek County was created 17 February 1843 from Keokuk County. It was attached to Mahaska and iowa Counties prior to organization 3 April 1848. County seat:  Montezuma

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
For a list of record loss in Iowa Counties see: Iowa Counties with Burned Courthouses

Places/Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Neighboring Counties
Benton • Iowa • Jasper • Keokuk • Mahaska • Marshall • Tama

Lutheran

 * Records of the Trinity Lutheran Church, Malcom, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Local Histories

 * History of Poweshiek County, Iowa : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement. By Leonard Fletcher Parker. Chicago : S. J. Clarke, 1911. Online at: Vol. 1, Vol.2 Internet Archive, Vol. 1and Vol.2 HathiTrust;.


 * The History of Poweshiek County, Iowa : containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., biographical sketches of its citizens, war record, history of the northwest. Des Moines [Iowa] : Union Historical, 1880. Online at:, Google Books.


 * Iowans born in Ohio : the history of Poweshiek County, Iowa. The Report (Ohio Genealogical Society) - v. 41 (2001) - v. 41, no. 4 (winter 2001). Online at:.

Maps

 * Old Antique Atlases & Maps of Iowa

Civil War

 * - 10th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F
 * - 13th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company I
 * - 28th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies C and H
 * - 46th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company B
 * - 10th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company F :- 13th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company I :- 28th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company C :- 28th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company H :- 46th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company B

Newspapers
NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a large collection of digitized Iowa newspapers online. This database is sometimes free at libraries.
 * Grinnell Herald Register. 1940, 1953, 1954. Grinnell, IA, USA. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)

Societies and Libraries
See also a List of Iowa Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

The Montezuma Public Library contains only an handful of local history books. All newspapers and genealogical materials are in the Poweshiek County Historical and Genealogical Society in Montezuma (see website below).