The County Seat is Jeffersonville. The County Seat hasn't always been Jeffersonville. The first county seat was Springville. This was a little village, which stood near where Charlestown now stands. This village was on the old Indian trail from the Falls of the Ohio to the Indian nations of the north, west and east. Jonathan Jennings, first Governor of Indiana, lived a short distance from this little town, which was at one time a great trading center for the French and Indians, but nothing remains to tell where the village stood. On June 9, 1802, Governor Harrison issued a proclamation "fixing the seat of justice at the town of Jeffersonville ... after the first day of August next," however, the Territorial Legislature changed it to Charlestown by the Act of December 14, 1810.
On September 23, 1873, the County Seat was permanently located at Jeffersonville.
Charlestown was first settled in 1808 and by 1849 (twenty-four years before the County Seat was transferred to Jeffersonville) it contained a Courthouse, Presbyterian County Seminary and Female High School, churches for the Episcopal and Reformed Methodists as well as Baptists and Presbyterians, about 200 dwelling houses and a population of 1,200. Port Fulton, now included within Jeffersonville, was home to the third-largest hospital in the United States during the Civil War. Jefferson General Hospital was built on property confiscated from U.S. Senator Jesse D. Bright, who was a Confederate sympathizer. Under the command of Dr. Middleton Goldsmith from February 21, 1864 to December of 1866, the facility saw more than 16,000 patients. See also County History for more historical details.
Clark is divided into 12 Civil Townships as follows: Bethlehem, Carr, Charlestown, Jeffersonville, Monroe, Oregon, Owen, Silver Creek, Union, Utica, Washington and Wood. Cities, Towns and Communities include Bennettsville, Bethlehem, Bolden, Carwood, Charlestown, Henryville, Jeffersonville, Marysville, Memphis, Nabb, New Washington, Otisco, Otto, Owen, Prather, Sellers, Solon, Speed, Watson and Wilson.
Indiana Newspaper Holdings for Clark County: The county newspaper holdings are under regular revision, as new microfilm holdings are added. These files are not up to date; there are continuous updates and corrections.
PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.
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 Clark County Courthouse History
Clark County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1807 , Probate Records from 1801 and Court Records from 1801 and is located at City County Bldg - Rm 137,
Jeffersonville, IN 47130;
(812) 285-6244. The Clerk of the Circuit Court is a ministerial officer who is the custodian of the Clerk's record and seal, issues process, accepts filings of commencement of actions in litigation, enters judgments and orders of the court, receives money in his official capacity, makes certified copies of record, issues many miscellaneous licenses, and keeps a record of all wills and matters of trust in probate proceedings.
Clark County Recorder has Land Records from 1801 and is located at 501 E. Court Ave. Room 105,
Jeffersonville, IN 47130;
812-285-6235 (Phone) . The county recorder's function is to maintain permanent public records involving a wide variety of instruments. These documents detail transactions involving real estate, mining, personal property, mortgages, liens, leases, subdivision plats, military discharges, personal bonds, etc. Generally, all of these instruments are recorded either for giving legal public notice of their existence or for safekeeping and future reference. The recorder maintains and preserves all legal documents affecting title to real property.
Clark County Health Department has Birth / Death Records from 1882 and is located at 1216 Akers Avenue,
Jeffersonville, IN 47130;
(812) 282-7521.
Below is a list of online resources for Clark County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Court Records by clicking the link below:
Indianapolis Newspaper Index, 1848-1991: Select articles from 1848-1888 Indianapolis daily newspapers; heavily focused on deaths and marriages. Select articles from 1898-1991 about people, places, events, and topics in Indianapolis and the state of Indiana. Extremely limited for deaths; no coverage of marriages. Card file also available in the Microforms Area, second floor.
Reference & Government Services CD Collection: Database to allow searching of the hundreds of CDs from the federal government and other sources, part of the collections of the Reference & Government Services Division.
Indiana Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.
Click Here to Search Indiana Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.
Birth Certificates:
The Division of Vital Records and Statistics maintains birth records that occur in Indiana since Oct 1907 to the present.
Prior to October 1907, records of birth are filed only with the local health department in the county where the birth actually occurred.
Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $10.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy.
Make your check or money order payable to "Indiana State Department of Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep check amount for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
In Person:
The ISDH Vital Records office is located at 6 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204. The office is open for walk-in requests from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., E.S.T., Monday through Friday (excluding official State Holidays). The cost for the first certificate is $10.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy. Average wait time is less than an hour.
Processing Time: 5 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Death Certificates: The Division of Vital Records and Statistics maintains death records that occur in Indiana since 1900 to the present. Prior to 1900, records of death are filed only with the local health department in the county where the death actually occurred.
For deaths occurring from 1900 to 1917, the city and/or county of death is required in order to locate the record.
Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $8.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy.
Make your check or money order payable to "Indiana State Department of Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep check amount for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
In Person:
The ISDH Vital Records office is located at 6 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204. The office is open for walk-in requests from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., E.S.T., Monday through Friday (excluding official State Holidays). The cost for the first certificate is $8.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy. Average wait Time is less than an hour.
Processing Time: 5 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Marriage Certificates: Certified copies of marriage certificates are not available from the State Health Department. They are available from the Clerks of the Circuit Court in the county where the marriage was granted. Fees vary.
Divorce Certificates: Certified copies of divorce certificates are not available from the State Health Department. They are available from the County Clerk in the county where the divorce was granted. Fees vary.
Order Online: You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates within 2-5 days by ordering below
Below is a list of online resources for Clark County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE - Search over 82 million death records and get genealogical information crucial to your family research. New content added weekly! Most comprehensive SSDI site online!
Research Death records In The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of historical Indiana newspaper articles about deaths. Search for local articles about an old family friend that died many years ago or a celebrity that committed suicide. Historical newspapers contain a wealth of information about the deceased.
Click Here to Search Indiana Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.
Below is a list of online resources for Clark County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Census Records by clicking the link below:
Indiana Census, 1790-1890: This collection contains the following indexes: 1790 (Northwest Territory) Federal Census Index; 1807 State Census Index; 1810 Wayne County Census Index; 1812 Census Index; 1820 Federal Census Index; 1830 Federal Census Index; 1840 Federal Census Index; 1840 Pensioners List; 1850 Federal Census Index; 1860 Federal Census Index; 1870 Federal Census Index; 1890 Veterans Schedule.
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
You can view rotating animated maps for Indiana showing all the county boundary changes for each 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 County Maps
Below is a list of online resources for Clark County Maps. Email us with websites containing Clark County Maps by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Indiana Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.
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 Clark County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Military Records by clicking the link below:
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Indiana (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Indiana World War II Servicemen: Database to locate information about Indiana men and women who served in World War II who were mentioned in one of the Indianapolis daily newspapers during the war.
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 Clark County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
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 Clark County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Clark County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Clark County Historical Society,
P.O. Box 606,
Jeffersonville, IN 47130
Indiana State Library,
Attn: (Division or Staff Name),
140 North Senate Avenue,
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2296
Loan Desk and General Inquiries: 317-232-3675,
ind@statelib.lib.in.us
Genealogy Division: 317-232-3689,
genealogy@statelib.lib.in.us
Indiana Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
Click Here to Search Indiana Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
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 Clark County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Clark County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of Indiana obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a Indiana newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from Indiana.
Click Here to Search Indiana Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.
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 Clark County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Clark County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
Indiana Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
1849 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Gazetteer," published by E. Chamberlain
Clark County was organized in 1801, and named after the celebrated George Rogers Clark, at one time a citizen of the county. At that time the boundaries, as defined by the Governor, were, "Beginning on the Ohio River at the mouth of Blue River, thence up that river to the crossing of the Vincennes Road, thence in a direct line to the nearest point on White River, thence up that river to its source and to Fort Recovery, thence on the line of the Northwest Territory to the Ohio at the mouth of the Kentucky, thence to the place of beginning." Clark now contains about 400 square miles, and is bounded north by Jefferson and Scott counties, east and south by the Ohio River and the county of Floyd, and west by the county of Washington. Its population in 1830 was 10,719, in 1840, 14,595, and at this time [1849] about 16,600. It is divided, for civil government, into nine townships, viz: Charlestown, Jeffersonville, Utica, Wood, Monroe, Silver Creek, Owen, New Washington and Bethlehem.
The surface of the county along the Ohio River, and from three to five miles in the interior, is rolling; the remainder mostly level, except a chain of "knobs," as they are called, which form a semi-circle along the northwestern and western boundary of the county, and strike the Ohio River just below the City of New Albany. Only a small portion of the knobs is cultivated, but they are crowned with fine timber, among which may be found large quantities of chestnut, oak, and some pine. With the exception of the "knobs," all the land in the county is susceptible of cultivation. The strip along the river, about thirty-five miles in length and from five to ten in width, has a limestone soil, and though mostly rolling, is, when well cultivated, equal in productiveness to any bottom lands. The timber here is composed of beech, sugar tree, walnut, poplar, sycamore, ash and oak. In the northern or back part of the county, the land is more inclined to be wet; oak predominates, and the soil is well adapted to grass.
There are no prairies in the county. The farms are generally well improved, and have good buildings upon them. The surplus products and stock, consisting of wheat, corn, hay, horses, mules, cattle and hogs, are shipped mostly to the south, often by the farmers themselves, either on flat or steamboats. There are about fifty dry goods, provision and drug stores in the county; six groceries, twelve lawyers, eighteen physicians, twenty-one preachers, two woolen factories, two printing offices, sixty-two grist and sawmills, of which about one-third are propelled by steam, the others by water, five market houses, ten hotels, six divisions of the Sons of Temperance and twenty-two churches, of which one is Episcopalian, and of the others about an equal number are Methodists, Baptists and Presbyterians. The schools in the county are generally in the prosperous condition and highly creditable to the citizens. There are 209,170 acres of taxable land in the county, and near 50,000 acres belonging to the United States, of but little value. Iron ore, marble, excellent building rock and hydraulic cement are found in abundance. There is a Chalybeate spring, much visited and with good accommodations, near Jeffersonville, and another spring, called the Buffalo Licks, in which salts and sulfur are the principal ingredients, near Charlestown.
In 1804, Mr. John Work, form Pennsylvania, settled on Fourteen Mile Creek, three and a-half miles from Charlestown, and finding situation to answer his purpose, he dug a tunnel through a solid limestone 314 feet, making a mill race six feet deep and five wide, through a ridge ninety-four feet below its summit, by which he gained a fall of twenty-seven feet. Five men performed this work in two years and a half, in which they used 600 pounds of gunpowder. The whole expense to the owner was $3,300. On the seat valuable mills were erected.
Most of the land within the present limits of the county is embraced in what is called the "Illinois Grant." This was made by Legislature of Virginia in 1786, and conveyed to certain commissioners 149,000 acres of land in trust, to be apportioned according to their rank, to General Clark and the officers and men of the regiment which he commanded in the expedition to Vincennes and Kaskaskia; it was divided into 500 acre tracts and apportioned accordingly. One thousand acres more, lying along the Falls of the Ohio, was also granted at the same time for the location of a town to be called Clarksville, which flourished for a time, but has since gone to decay. The first settlements of any consequence were made from 1790 up to 1800, in the towns along the river, so that the inhabitants, on the first notice of the approach of Indians, might escape into Kentucky.
The first court in the county was held April 7, 1801, at Springville, by Marston G. Clark, Abraham Huff, James N. Wood, Thomas Downs, Wm. Goodwin, John Gibson, Charles Tuley and Wm. Harrod, who had been appointed Justices of the Court of General Quarter Sessions by Governor Harrison.
Jeffersonville, the site of old Fort Steuben, is beautifully situated on the head of the Falls, on the Ohio River, in Clark County, on elevated ground, and extends up the river where deep water approaches the shore, so that boats of all sizes can land near it, at all times, on a fine, natural beach. The view, from the town, of the river, here about a mile wide, its islands, the Falls, Louisville, nearly opposite, and the range of hills or knobs on the west, five or six miles distant, presents a variety of beautiful scenery that is not, probably, surpassed in the western country. Jeffersonville was laid out, originally, on a plan furnished by Mr. Jefferson, which resembled a chess board, and only the alternate squares were to be built on, the others were to be reserved for public grounds. This plan was afterwards altered by the authority of the Legislature. Jeffersonville is the site of the State Prison; it is far more favorably situated than the opposite side of the river for the construction of a canal around the falls, and that subject is again engaging public attention. The railroad into the interior is at this time being successfully prosecuted, and there is now a good prospect that the commercial and other advantages of the town will be ultimately appreciated. Steamboat building has at times been carried on extensively at this place, and the completion of the Railroad will vastly increase this and much other business. The population is now [1849] about 1,200, and is rapidly increasing.
1938 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Review," published by the State Legislature
Clark County was organized February 1, 1801, by William Henry Harrison and named in honor of General George Rogers Clark, who was at one time a citizen here. Most of its land lies within what was formerly called the Illinois Grant, or Clark Grant, made by the legislature of Virginia in 1786. Clark County now compromises 375 square miles and is divided into twelve townships.
Situated in the southern part of the state, its entire southeastern border is bounded by the Ohio River. Clark County was the early gateway to the great Northwest Territory. In the latter part of the eighteenth century there were a number of settlements along the State of Indiana.
The old Courthouse of Charlestown still stands. Originally the county of Clark was a vast territory, including what is now Harrison, Floyd, Washington, Jackson, Scott, Jefferson, Ripley, Decatur, Franklin, Bartholomew, Shelby, Rush, Fayette, Union, Henry, Randolph, Wayne, Jay, and Switzerland Counties, which made up about one-fifth of the whole state.
The incorporated city is Jeffersonville, 11,945 population. Towns are Clarksville, 2,243; Claysburg, 615; New Providence, 358; Charlestown, 859; Sellersburg, 1,050. County population in 1890 was 30,259; 1900, 31,835; 1910, 30,250; 1930, 30,764.
Jeffersonville is on the Ohio River opposite Louisville and is served by three railroads and river steamboats. Its industries include foundries, machine shops, sauerkraut canning, railroad car works, shipyards, and factories for trunks, soap, shirts, and cement. According to 1935 federal census figures, the city had fourteen manufacturing establishments employing 370 wage earners on pay rolls of $1,055,453.
Jeffersonville was hard hit during the 1937 floods, but it recovered with astonishing rapidity.
This city was the site of the First State Penal Institution in Indiana, the State Prison, was authorized by an act of the Legislature, approved January 9, 1821 and the first prisoner was received November 1, 1822. In 1859, when the Michigan City Prison was opened, the Jeffersonville Institution was known as the Southern Indiana State Prison.
There are a number of sites of historical significance in this city, including Warder Park with its limestone marker and bronze tablet commemorating General LaFayette's visit in 1825. There is also the Clark County Memorial Hospital erected in memory of the World War dead. The D. A. R. has erected a marker at the river road near the site of the home of George Rogers Clark.
Among other points of interest in Clark County are a State Forest and Forest Nursery; the Captain English Home at Lexington; a monument at the grave of the Revolutionary Soldier, John Armstrong, at Bethlehem, and a monument to Jonathan Jennings in Charlestown Cemetery. Opposite the cemetery is the First Methodist Church in Indiana, erected in 1807.
An outstanding attraction in Clark County is the "Knobs," a range of hills beginning five miles below the falls of the Ohio River. Most of the hills are about equal in elevation, rising to about five hundred feet, and although each hill separately is small, they unite at about one hundred to two hundred feet below their summits and extend for about fifty miles into the interior. Inasmuch as a similar ridge extends south of the Ohio River into Kentucky, it is entirely possible that these two ranges were once united.
There is much evidence here of the Mound Builders' civilization, such as an elevated, pear-shaped ridge a few miles above Jeffersonville overlooking the Ohio River. The ridge probably was the site of the fort. Several miles north of this is a circular enclosure of about 2,000 feet in circumference. The embankment of which was originally about twelve feet in height. An abundance of pottery, fresh water shells and fragments of bones have been found here. Another stone enclosure is found on the banks of the Big Creek, this one covering about ten acres. It is supposed that these remains had been memorials to some events in the history of that ancient civilization.
According to figures in the 1935 federal census, Clark County had twenty-six manufacturing establishments employing 1,309 wage earners.
The county had 1,880 farms averaging 103 acres each, their total value being $6,374,239; 36,109 head of livestock was reported.
Total county tax valuation for 1936 was $23,843,150.
