County Court Minutes
A Treasure Trove of Information on Our Ancestors
One of the most underused sources for genealogists doing 18th, 19th and 20th century research are the county court minutes (sometimes called order books, journals, or commissioner’s records). These gems are usually unindexed or poorly indexed but they contain a world of information about our ancestors. They are the records of the county courts. (It is important to remember that cities/towns and municipalities kept these minutes as well). You will find them under various names. At each session of the court, every action taken by the court was recorded. Other books were also kept though not always extant – fee books, execution books, docket books, judgment books, etc.
What can you find in these books? A world of various details on your ancestors including:
1) Appointment of guardians for minor children
2) Orders to pay for the care of paupers who are named
3) Order to pay funeral expenses for paupers
4) References to individuals committed to mental institutions
5) Information on the establishment and maintenance of roads and bridges naming road supervisors/overseers and those required to work on the road in a specific area
6) Lists of jurors
7) Appointment of county officials and bonds for their offices
8) Lists of delinquent taxpayers often with notations such as “Indigent,” “Not found in county,” “Moved to Kentucky,” etc.
9) Licenses granted to professionals
10) Information on the establishment of school districts
11) Naturalizations
12) Information on slaves/freedmen
13) Records of adoption or formal apprenticeship
14) Registration of livestock brands/marks
15) Information on legal name changes
16) Information on individuals charged with crimes
In short, any business which the county or municipality conducted will be recorded here. It is important to note that these records are separate from the civil and criminal court records. These records typically pertain to the county/town courts regarding the collection and distribution of public funds.
With the recent experimental AI tool of FamilySearch, it has become easier to search these records for specific individuals if the records are on the FamilySearch website. (www.familysearch.org). I have also often been rewarded by searching page by page until I find something of interest which helps break through a brick wall while working in a particular county.
In Pope County, Illinois, the digitized original county court minutes through 1850 are available online on FamilySearch and as typed volumes on Pope County Historical Society website froom books published in the 1990s by Judy Foreman Lee and Carolyn Cromeenes Foss. Volunteers at the historical society are currently busy scanning the records after 1850 which contain a wealth of information about county residents. We need volunteers to transcribe these records!!!! If you’d like to volunteer, please reach out.
