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Martin County History and Information |
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County History |
Court Records |
Vital Records |
CENSUS Records |
TAX Records |
Military Records |
Church & Cemetery | Maps & Atlases | Genealogy Addresses | Genealogy Related Sites | |
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Martin County was created on February 1, 1820 and was formed from Daviess and Dubois Counties. The County was named for Maj. John T. Martin of Kentucky The County Seat is Shoals. Shoals wasn't always the County Seat. In fact, this county has the record for the greatest number of County Seat changes. Hindostan was the first County Seat. Before a Courthouse could be built, the County Seat was relocated. Mount Pleasant, laid out in 1817, was the next County Seat until May, 1844. Memphis, the present site of Shoals, became the next County Seat only to be moved in the fall of the same year. Harrisonville, near the site of Trinity Springs became the location of the County Seat. Hillsboro became the County Seat on April 30, 1845. The name of the city was changed to Dover Hill by a legislative act of February 11, 1848. Laid out in 1845, by 1849 Dover Hill had about 50 inhabitants. While the county buildings were being built at Dover Hill, Mount Pleasant again became the County Seat. After the building of the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad through the county in 1856 agitation was started to change the County Seat again and on December 11, 1869 it was moved to the west side of White River at the City of Memphis, which was christened the town of "West Shoals" where business was opened July 4, 1871. On April 27, 1876, the Courthouse was destroyed by fire, and pending the erection of new buildings, the offices were moved across the river to Shoals. A few years later, the boundaries of West Shoals were dissolved and extended to take in that territory, thus placing the County Seat at Shoals. See also County History for more historical details. Counties adjacent to Martin County are Greene County (north), Lawrence County (east), Orange County (southeast), Dubois County (south), Daviess County (west). Martin County is divided into 9 Civil Townships as follows: Baker, Brown, Center, Halbert, Lost River, McCameron, Mitcheltree, Perry and Rutherford. The township once known as Columbia in now included mostly in Halbert Township although small portions are included in Center and Lost River Townships. Cities, Towns and Communities include Blankenship, Bramble, Burns City, Cale, Crane, Dover Hill, Hindostan Falls, Indian Springs, Ironton, Loogootee, Mt. Olive, Natchez, Pleasant Valley, Rusk, Scenic Hill, Shoals, South Martin, Trinity Springs, Whitfield, Willow Valley, Windom, and Yenne.
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NOTE: The date listed for each category of record is the earliest record known to exist in that county. It does not indicate that there are numerous records for that year and certainly does not indicate that all such events that year were actually registered. See also the Martin County Courthouse History Martin County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1820 , Probate Records from 1821 and Court Records from 1821 and is located at 111 Main St. (Annex), PO Box 120,
Shoals, IN 47581;
(812)247-3651 Martin County Recorder has Land Records from 1820 and is located at PO Box 147,
Shoals, IN 47581;
(812)247-2420.
Martin County Health Department has Birth / Death Records from 1882 and is located at Corner of Main and Second St, P.O. Box 368, Shoals, IN 47581; (812) 247-3303 Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Court Records by clicking the link below:
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Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
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Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Martin County, Indiana are 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your Family Tree in Martin County, Indiana are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms. See Also Statewide Records that exist for Indiana Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Census Records by clicking the link below:
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Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Ohio and other states. You can view rotating animated maps for Indiana showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Maps. Email us with websites containing Martin County Maps by clicking the link below: |
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The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Military Records by clicking the link below:
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Records of county taxes were kept as early at 1842, although most were discarded. Remaining ones would be at the county courthouse. National Archives-Great Lakes Region has records of the Internal Revenue Service for Indiana for 1867 to 1873. These are tax assessment records, arranged by district and then chronologically. Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Tax Records by clicking the link below: |
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The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over. Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Martin County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
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There are many churches and cemeteries in Martin County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Martin County Tombstone Transcription Project. Baptist records are found at Franklin College (in Franklin); Methodist at DePauw University (in Greencastle); Mennonite at Goshen College (in Goshen); Presbyterian at Hanover College (in Hanover); Disciples of Christ at their historical society in Nashville, Tennessee; and French Catholic at Vincennes University in the Byron R. Lewis Collection. There are also Catholic church histories and records at the Catholic Archives, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana. Quaker records are at Earlham College (at Richmond). The commissioner's office of each Indiana county may have burial records for soldiers, sailors, and marines. If available, the records should include name, age, date of enlistment, discharge date, and death date. Records begin about 1862. The Indiana State Library holds records of inscriptions from some Indiana cemeteries. The "Indiana Cemetery Locator File," compiled by the Genealogy Division, is an alphabetical listing of cemeteries, indicating the location in the state and the designation in the Genealogy Division of the Indiana State Library where inscriptions may be found. Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Martin County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
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When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Martin County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Martin County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
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1849 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Gazetteer," published by E. Chamberlain Martin County, named in honor of the late Major Martin, of Newport, Kentucky, a hospitable and patriotic citizen, was organized in 1820. It is bounded north by Greene, east by Lawrence and Orange, south by Dubois, and west by Daviess. It is about twenty-six miles in length by thirteen in breadth, and contains 340 square miles. The civil townships are, Baker, McCammon, Brown, Micheltree, Halbert, Perry, Rutherford and Columbia. The population in 1830 was 2,010, in 1840, 3,875, and at this time [1849] about 5,000. The face of the country is generally hilly, and the soil various in quality, but mostly clay. Nine-tenths of the county was originally timbered upland, the balance about equally divided between river bottoms and barrens. The surplus articles raised for exportation are corn, hay, flaxseed, pork and beef, and these, with staves, hoop-poles, etc., are shipped down the river to the value of about $60,000, annually. There are in the county nine gristmills, nine sawmills, two lawyers, nine physicians, six preachers, and 126 mechanics of the trades usually most needed. The taxable land amounts to 156,666 acres, and about 45,000 acres still belong to the United States. There is a large rock, in Perry Township, half a mile from White River, called the Jug Rock, from its shape. It is about twelve feet in diameter at the base, eighteen feet through the center and ten feet at the top, and thirty feet high. It has a cap on the top three feet thick and eighteen feet in diameter, on which grow several sarvice bushes, and when these are in bloom, in the spring, the whole resembles and immense flower pot. Trinity Springs, near Harrisonville, on Indian Creek, are now visited a good deal for their medical properties. 1938 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Review," published by the State Legislature Although the majority of Martin County is unsuited for agriculture, in the bottomlands the soil is fertile and grains and grasses are grown in abundance. Much of the hill country, which characterizes the region, was formerly heavily timbered with hardwoods. Some of the land for various agricultural purposes has left little woodland. Much of the territory is underlaid with a fine quality of bituminous coal, and iron deposits also have been found. Martin has the natural beauty typical of southern Indiana counties and its scenery is famous. Such features as immense "Jug Rock," a jug-shaped rock seventy-six feet high, "The Pinnacle," a backbone extending out to White River's edge, at a height of 276 feet, enjoy widespread fame. Other beauty spots are "House Rock," "Aquatic Rock," "Cedar Hill," and "Gormerly Bluff." Martin County is the home of Trinity, Indian Mineral, and LaSalle Springs, in addition to a great number of other mineral springs. Martin County's nine townships embrace 339 square miles. The incorporated city is Loogootee, 2,203; town: Shoals, 1,128. County population 1890, 13,973; 1900, 14,711; 1910, 12,950; 1920, 11,865; 1930, 10,103. Shoals is located forty-two miles east of Vincennes, and is served by one railroad. It manufactures pearl buttons, furniture, and hardwood lumber. On the road between Shoals and Loogootee is a marker at the site of the cemetery of the lost city of Hindostan. Loogootee, located seven miles west of Shoals, is on the same railroad. This city is the center of the county's mining activities, and also has a number of manufactures. Some of the products are window glass, bottles, pearl buttons, clothing, sewer pipe, and shale brick. The figures of the 1935 census listed five manufacturing establishments in Martin County. These employed 275 wage earners. Martin County has 1,464 farms averaging 120 acres each. The value of these was $3,265,393. A total of 25,494 head of livestock was reported. The total county tax valuation for 1936 was $4,245,305. ? |
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