Howell County, Missouri Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Josiah Howell, pioneer settler. The County is located in the south center area of the state.

County Courthouse
Howell County Courthouse County Courthouse Square West Plains, MO 65775 Phone: 417-256-2591 Howell County Website County Clerk has birth records 1883-1895 and death records 1883-1893. Circuit Clerk and Recorder of Deeds has marriage, divorce, court and land records. Associate Circuit Court has probate records.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places in Howell County, MO, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The State Historical Society of Missouri has information on historical Missouri place names for all 114 Missouri Counties. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Cemeteries

 * Missouri Cemeteries Missouri Genealogy Cemeteries

Census Records

 * 1732-1933 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1880 Howell County, Missouri Census, 1880 at Ancestry ($)

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes


 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1800-1991 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Local Histories

 * A History of Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas. 1907. By William Monks. West Plains, Missouri: West Plains Journal Co. Online at Google Books.
 * History of Missouri's Counties, County Seats, and Courthouse Squares. 1983. by Marian M. Ohman. Missouri: Missouri State Library. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * Reminiscent History of the Ozark Region. 1884. Missouri: Missouri State Library. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * State of Missouri: an autobiography. 1904. By Walter Williams. Columbia, Mo: Press of E. W. Stephens. Online at: Missouri Digital History

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Missouri (1804-1889)
 * Map of Howell County townships (Histopolis)
 * Missouri As It Is In 1867. 1867. by Nathan II. Parker. Philadelpia: J. B. Lippincott & Co. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * The University of Missouri Digital Library has digital copies of Missouri county plat books (ca. 1930) for all Missouri counties including Howell County. The city of St. Louis is not included in this collection.
 * Plat Book of Howell County, Missouri at Missouri Digital Heritage
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1900-1941 at FamilySearch — images - How to Use this Collection

Civil War
Online Records


 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1911-1938  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * Community and Conflict: the Impact of the Civil War in the Ozarks, Howell County.

Regiments

Service men in Howell County, Missouri 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 Howell County, Missouri:


 * - 4th Regiment, Missouri Infantry - Confederate, Company B
 * - 4th Regiment, Missouri Infantry - Confederate, Company C
 * - 8th Provisional Regiment, Enrolled Missouri Militia (Union), Company C

World War I

 * The honor roll : 1917-1918-1919.West Plains, Mo. : A.T. Hollenbeck, 1920. FHL Digital ImagesIncludes lists of men who served in Mexican War, Civil War, and Spanish War.

World War II

 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1941-1946  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1800-1991 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

Newspapers

 * Missouri Digital Newspaper Project at Missouri State Historical Society

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records


 * 1750-1988 at FamilySearch — images - How to Use this Collection


 * 1766-1988 Missouri Wills and Probate Records 1766-1988 at Ancestry — index and 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, click here for more information.

Birth

 * Pre-1910 Missouri Birth and Death Records Database, Pre-1910 at Missouri Digital Heritage - index.
 * 1817-1939 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1827-1935  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1851-1910 Missouri Birth Records, 1851-1910 at Ancestry — index/images ($)
 * 1920-2015 Missouri, Birth Index, 1920-2015 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
 * 1920-2015 Reclaim the Records: Missouri Birth Index at Archive.org - images of index

Marriage

 * 1750-1920  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1776-1988 Missouri, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
 * 1800-1991  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1805-2002 Missouri, Marriage Records, 1805-2002 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1850 Missouri Marriages to 1850 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1867-1881 Howell County Marriage Books A thru C Index 1867-1881. Batch  at FamilySearch.
 * 1881-1885 Howell County Marriage Book 1 Index 1881-1885. Batch at FamilySearch.
 * 1885 Howell County Marriage Book 2 Index 1885. Batch at FamilySearch.

Death

 * 1834-1910 Missouri, Death Records, 1834-1910 at Ancestry — index/images ($)
 * 1867-1976 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1883-1930 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1910-1960 Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969 at Missouri Digital Heritage - index and images.
 * Missouri State Archives provides on-line access to Missouri Death Certificates more than 50 yrs old starting in 1910.
 * 1968-2015 Missouri, Death Index, 1968-2015 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
 * 1968-2015 Reclaim the Records: Missouri Death Index at Archive.org - images of index

Family History Centers

 * West Plains Missouri Family History Center

Libraries

 * List of Missouri Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies

Websites

 * Missouri Digital Heritage. Free. digital images of many types of records from institutions across the State
 * Howell County MO Genealogy Research. Contains information for researching genealogy in Howell County MO, Census, bios, obituary, birth, death, marriage, maps, and other records
 * MOGenWeb. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or complete transcriptions
 * USGenWeb Archives. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * . Free. - 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
 * RootsWeb resources. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * Linkpendium. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * CyndisList. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * StateofUS. Free. family history resources and government records
 * Missouri Genealogy. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)