Minnesota, Clay County Land and Property Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
The collection includes land and property records for Clay County for the years 1872 to 1947, with some indexes going beyond the year 1947. The records include:
 * Grantor indexes
 * Grantee indexes
 * Deeds
 * Abstract books

After the county's creation, a county land office was formed. Land transactions among private owners were then recorded by the registerar of deeds in the county office.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:
 * Names of interested parties
 * Date of transaction
 * Legal description of the property
 * Monies exchanged
 * Details of the transaction
 * Names of witnesses

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The names of the interested parties
 * The approximate date of the land transaction
 * The location of the property

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located your ancestor’s land record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Search for the family in census records
 * Use the information found to search additional state and county records
 * Search for records of people in the county who shared a surname
 * For each parcel of land owned, you should obtain two documents:
 * 1) The deed that documents when ownership transferred to the individual or the family
 * 2) The deed that documents when ownership was transferred to someone else

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, What Now?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names
 * Check for a different index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume
 * Search the indexes for the “parent” county to find the original purchase of a parcel of land. You may also need to search a neighboring county since that courthouse may have been more convenient for the person to record the deed
 * Check the land records of the people mentioned in your ancestor’s deeds to see if a different residence was ever mentioned for them
 * Make a list of all residences mentioned in the records within a year or two of when your ancestors came to the county—regardless of surname. Then search the records of places that seem likely or that occur frequently
 * Create a database for other people with the same surname who lived in the county. Doing this may help you identify which individuals were related. If your ancestor’s records do not contain the information you need, a county database might give you a more complete picture
 * Search other areas of the index. For example, if the land was sold for taxes, the entry may be in the grantor index under “S” for “sheriff,” under “T” for “tax collector” or “treasurer,” under the names of those officials, or even under the county name. County histories or other records may give the names of these county officials
 * Consult the Minnesota Record Finder to find other records

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in the state of Minnesota.
 * Beginning United States Land and Property Research
 * Minnesota Guided Research
 * Minnesota Record Finder
 * Minnesota Research Tips and Strategies
 * Step-by-Step Minnesota Research, 1880-Present

Family History Library Holdings

 * Clay County land and property records, 1872-1947
 * Clay County Historical Society. Clay County, biography files, 1950's-1980's
 * D.W. Meeker. Clay County illustrated, Minnesota : some facts showing the wonderful development of the banner county of the Red River Valley in Minnesota. Moorhead, Minnesota : D.W. Meeker, c1916.

FamilySearch Historical Records

 * United States Bureau of Land Management Tract Books, 1800-c. 1955
 * Minnesota Will Records, 1849-1985
 * Minnesota, Clay County, School Census Records, 1909-1962
 * Minnesota, Clay and Steele County Obituaries, 1865-2006

FamilySearch Digital Library

 * John Turner and C.K. Semling, joint editors. History of Clay and Norman counties, Minnesota : their people, industries, and institutions : with biographical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families. 2 volumes Indianapolis, Indiana : B.F. Bowen & Company, 1918

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.