Buchanan County, Iowa Genealogy

Guide to Buchanan 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 US president James Buchanan. The County has Independence as its seat and the County was created 1837. The County is located in the northeast area of the state.

County Courthouse
Clerk District Court has Birth and Death Records from 1880, Marriage Records from 1848, Divorce, Probate and Clerk Records from 1845.

Parent County
1837--Buchanan County was created 21 December 1837 from Dubuque County. It was attached to Dubuque and Delaware Counties prior to organization 4 October 1847. County seat: Independence

Buchanan County History

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
Benton • Black Hawk •  Bremer •  Clayton •  Delaware •  Fayette •  Linn

Biographies

 * Many Biography records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.
 * History of Buchanan County, Iowa : with illustrations and biographical sketches. at Ancestry.com ($)

Burials
WPA 1930's Graves Registration Survey

Cemeteries

 * Littleton, Buchanan County, Iowa Cemetery Index
 * Buchanan County, Iowa Cemeteries
 * The Tombstone Transcripton Project
 * Many Cemetery records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Census
Iowa recorded not only the federal census but state census through out the years too. The state census contains very valuable genealogical information. Where the census information can be found, what years it was taken, mortality schedules, census substitutions and much more is discussed in the very informative Iowa Census article.

United States Census
 * United States Census, 1850
 * 1852 State Special Census of Iowa, Buchanan County.
 * United States Census, 1860
 * United States Census, 1870
 * 1880 Census Buchanan County, Independence Mental Institution
 * United States Census, 1880
 * United States Census, 1900

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

Church

 * Churches of Buchanan County

Lutheran
Aurora


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

Independence


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

Court

 * Many Court records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.
 * Many Guardianship records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Land

 * Many Plat Book records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.
 * Many Land and Property records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Local Histories

 * Many Local History records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.


 * Garfield, James A. History of Buchanan County, Iowa : with illustrations and biographical sketches. Cleveland, Ohio : Williams Bros., 1881.
 * Online at FamilySearch (Free)


 * Church, Harry. History of Buchanan County, Iowa, and its people. Chicago, Illinois : S. J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1914.
 * Vol 1 Online at FamilySearch (Free)
 * Vol 2 Online at {https://dcms.lds.org/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?from=fhd&dps_pid=IE92784 FamilySearch] (Free)


 * History of Buchanan County, Iowa : with illustrations and biographical sketches. at Ancestry.com ($)
 * History of Buchanan County, Iowa, and its people at Ancestry.com ($)

Maps

 * Old Antique Atlases &amp; Maps of Iowa
 * Buchanan County, Iowa Cemetery Maps
 * 1875 Maps of Buchanan County
 * Many Map records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Military

 * Buchanan County Military Page
 * World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing for Buchanan County, Iowa
 * Many Military records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.
 * Many Military World War, 1914-1918 records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.
 * 1835-1998 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1949 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1862-1910 - at FamilySearch — index

Civil War

 * - 4th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company B
 * - 5th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company E
 * - 6th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company G
 * - 27th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Companies C and H
 * - 47th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company D
 * - 27th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company C :- 27th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company H :- 47th Regiment, Iowa Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company D :- 4th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, :- 5th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company E :- 6th Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company G

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1859-1990 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Many Naturalization and Citizenship records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Newspapers

 * NewspaperArchive.com ($) has historical newspapers online including Cedar Rapids newspapers and Waterloo newspapers that may have included Buchanan County residents. This database is free at some libraries.


 * Bulletin Journal. 1947, 1955, 1962, 1966 Independence, IA, USA Online at: Ancestry.com ($)
 * Winthrop News. 1957 Winthrop, IA, USA Online at: Ancestry.com ($)

Obituaries

 * Buchanan County, Iowa Obituaries
 * Many Obituary records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Probate
Online Probate Records


 * 1758 - 1997 Iowa Wills and Probate Records 1758-1997 at Ancestry.com — index and images $


 * Many Probate records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog..

Schools

 * Graduation years 1924-1948 to Jesup High School.
 * Buchanan County Schools

Taxation

 * 1862 - Buchanan County Tax Roll 1862
 * 1934-1958 - at FamilySearch — index

Many Taxation records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

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
 * 1848-1858 - Buchanan County, Iowa Marriages Book 1 1848-1858
 * 1854-1910 - Buchanan County, Iowa Marriages 1854-1910

Deaths

 * 1850-1990 - at FamilySearch - index
 * 1880-1992 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1904-1951 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Many Vital records for Buchanan County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see the from their catalog.

Societies and Libraries
Buchanan County Genealogical Society 103 4th Ave. SE Independence, IA 50644 Telephone:319-334-9333 E-mail: [mailto:buchanancoia@yahoo.com buchanancoia@yahoo.com] Website

Buchanan County Iowa Historical Society P.O. Box 321 Independence, Iowa 50644 Telephone:319-334-4616 E-mail: [mailto:bchs.lkh@gmail.com bchs.lkh@gmail.com] Website

Independence Public Library 805 1st Street East Independence, IA 50644 Telephone:319-334-2470 E-mail: [mailto:indylib@indytel.com indylib@indytel.com] Website