Black Hawk County, Iowa Genealogy

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

Description
Black Hawk County was named for Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The county is located in east-central Iowa.

County Courthouse
Black Hawk County Courthouse 316 East 5th Street Waterloo, IA 50703-4774 Phone: 319-833-3000 Black Hawk County Website

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:

History Timeline

 * Black Hawk County was attached to Buchanan, Benton, and Delaware Counties.

Biographies

 * Historical and Biographical Record of Black Hawk County Iowa. Chicago: Interstate Publishing Co., 1886. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive.
 * History of Black Hawk County Iowa and Its People. By John C Hartman, Ed. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1915. Online at: Vol. I - FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, HathiTrust, Vol. II - FamilySearch Digital Library, HathiTrust.
 * History of Black Hawk County, Iowa and Representative Citizens. By Isaiah Van Metre. Chicago, Illinois: Biographical Publishing Co., 1904. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Books.
 * Black Hawk County, Iowa Biographies Project at RootsWeb — links to biographies and local histories

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

 * Iowa, State Employees at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Census Records
State Census
 * 1885 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1895 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1905 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images (individual cards, not family context)
 * 1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1925 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Lutheran
 * 1781-1969 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781-1969 at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Court Records

 * 1853-1866 (*); County Court Judge at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1854-1861 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1868-1874 (*); Justice of the Peace at FamilySearch Catalog — images

Directories

 * 1910 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1957 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1957 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Funeral Homes

 * Dahl-Van Hove-Schoof Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Cedar Falls
 * Greer Funeral Home Inc in Waterloo
 * Hagarty-Waychoff-Grarup Funeral Service in Waterloo
 * Locke Funeral Services in Waterloo
 * Parrott and Wood Chapel of Memories Funeral Home and Crematory in Waterloo
 * Richardson Funeral and Cremation Services in Cedar Falls
 * Sanders Funeral Service in Waterloo

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records
 * 1852-1947 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1853-1908 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1854-1988 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1855-1901 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images
 * 1859 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1865-1929 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1866-1909 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1870-1986 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
 * 1907-1933 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Local Histories

 * History of Black Hawk County, Iowa, and its People. By John C Hartman, Ed. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1915. Online at: Vol. I - FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive; Vol. II - FamilySearch Digital Library; Vols. I & II - HathiTrust;.
 * The History of Black Hawk County. Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1878. Online at: Internet Archive, HathiTrust;.
 * History of Black Hawk County, Iowa and Representative Citizens. By Isaiah Van Metre. Chicago, Illinois: Biographical Publishing Co., 1904. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library;.
 * Historical and Biographical Record of Black Hawk County, Iowa. Chicago, IL: The Inter-state Publishing Company, 1886.. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive;.
 * Historical Record of Cedar Falls, the Garden City of Iowa Containing a brief history of Iowa, of Black Hawk County. By Peter Melendy. Cedar Falls, IA: Peter Melendy, 1893. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Iowa Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * 1860-1918 U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918, Black Hawk County at Ancestry ($) - index.
 * 1875 Township Map of 1875 Black Hawk County, Iowa at My Genealogy Hound.
 * 1875-2007 Black Hawk County 1875-2007 at Historic Map Works - may include names of land-owners.
 * 1885-1962 Fire Insurance Maps for Black Hawk County, Iowa at Library of Congress - various years between 1885 and 1962.
 * (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images.
 * Black Hawk Countyat IAGenWeb.
 * Black Hawk County at Iowa Digital Library.
 * Black Hawk County at The Iowa Heritage Digital Collections.
 * (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images.
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Multiple Wars
 * 1835-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index only
 * 1862-1910 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Civil War
 * 1861-1949 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Civil War service men in Black Hawk 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 here:
 * - 1st Regiment, Iowa Cavalry, Company G
 * - 3rd Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company K
 * - 9th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company G
 * - 12th Regiment, Iowa Infantry, Company E

World War I
 * 1917-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1855-1936 (*); Clerk of the District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1859-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — index

Newspapers

 * 1860-1908 Cedar Falls Gazette (Cedar Falls, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1871-1872, 1878-1880, 1885-1889, 1893 La Porte City Progress (La Porte City, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1882-1885 La Porte City Review (La Porte City, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1894-1896, 1919, 1921-1925, 1927-1938, 1941-1949, 1951-1977 Progress Review (La Porte City, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1928, 1944-1951, 1954 Waterloo Daily Courier (Waterloo, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1938-1940 La Porte City Progress Review (La Port City, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1945, 1947 1949-1951 Waterloo Sunday Courier (Waterloo, Iowa) at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a large collection of digitized Iowa newspapers online. This database is sometimes free at libraries.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1758-1997 Iowa, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1758-1997 at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * 1853-1951 (*) District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - index & images

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry — index and images ($)

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * 1934-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Birth

 * 1850-1939 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1880-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1921-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Marriage

 * 1518-1996 Iowa, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1809-1992 Iowa, Marriages, 1809-1992 at MyHeritage — index ($)
 * 1836-1926 Iowa, Marriages, 1836 - 1926 at MyHeritage — index ($)
 * 1838-1934 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1880-1951 Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880-1951 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * 1941-1951 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Death

 * 1850-1990 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and some images; Also at: MyHeritage($)
 * 1880-1992 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1900-1939 Iowa Death Index, 1900-1939 at MyHeritage — index ($)
 * 1904-1951 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1920-1967 Iowa, U.S., Death Records, 1920-1967 at Ancestry — index & images ($)

FamilySearch Centers

 * Belle Plaine Iowa FamilySearch Center
 * Cedar Falls/Waterloo Iowa FamilySearch Center
 * Marshalltown Iowa FamilySearch Center
 * African American Museum Of Iowa - an affiliate library
 * Genealogical Society of Linn County, Iowa - an affiliate library

Libraries
Evansdale Public Library 123 N Evans Rd Evansdale, IA 50707 Phone: 319-232-5367 Email: [mailto:eplib@mchsi.com eplib@mchsi.com] Website Hudson Public Library 401 Fifth St P.O. Box 480 Hudson, IA 50643 Phone: 319-988-4217 Email: [mailto:staff@hudson.lib.ia.us staff@hudson.lib.ia.us] Website Waterloo Public Library 415 Commercial St Waterloo, IA 50701 Phone: 319-291-4480 Email: [mailto:askus@waterloopubliclibrary.org askus@waterloopubliclibrary.org] Website

Museums
Cedar Falls Historical Society Museums 308 West 3rd Street Cedar Falls, IA 50613 Phone: 319-266-5149 Email: [mailto:cfhistory@cfu.net cfhistory@cfu.net] Website Grout Museum District 503 South St Waterloo, IA 50701 Phone: 319-234-6357 Email: [mailto:info@gmdistrict.org info@gmdistrict.org] Website

Societies
Cedar Falls Historical Society 308 West 3rd Street Cedar Falls, IA 50613 Phone: 319-266-5149 Email: [mailto:cfhistory@cfu.net cfhistory@cfu.net] Website

Websites

 * Black Hawk County at Cyndi's List - a comprehensive, categorized & cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online
 * Black Hawk County at Genealogy Trails - volunteer transcriptions of genealogical and historical data
 * Black Hawk County at Iowa USGenWeb - free online resources for genealogical research
 * Black Hawk County at Iowa USGenWeb Archives - free online data for genealogical research
 * State Historical Society of Iowa — select from research collection topics
 * State Library of Iowa — electronic depository of documents intended for the general public produced by Iowa agencies
 * The Iowa Heritage Digital Collection — digital images from a variety of Iowa cultural institutions
 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.