DeKalb County, Indiana Genealogy Records

Selected record inventories for DeKalb County, their listed years, and where to ask for access.

Selected inventory review: 2026-11-02. Selected catalog metadata extracted from the linked sources. This is not an examination of original records, a complete county holdings audit, or certification of current access. Historical sources are identified in the access note. Indiana State Library holdings · Indiana State Library holdings

Formed: 1835
County seat: Auburn

DeKalb CountyToday's boundaries · U.S. Census Bureau

Listed record inventories

Selected holdings and indexes for DeKalb County, checked against the repository descriptions linked below. Date spans may contain gaps; an index is not a complete set of original records.

Record type

Marriages, births and deaths

Early Marriage Records of DeKalb County, 1837-1882 · print/index, Indiana State Library1837-1882
Birth Records of DeKalb County, 1921-1944 · print/index, Indiana State Library1921-1944
Marriage Records · microfilm, Indiana State Library1837-1869; 1869-1884; 1884-1896; 1896-1908; 1908-1923; 1923-1934; 1933-1934
Marriage License Applications · microfilm, Indiana State Library1910–1951 · separate segments; see catalog for gaps
Marriage License Applications and Returns · microfilm, Indiana State Library1950-1952; 1952-1954; 1954-1955; 1955-1956; 1956-1957
Returns of Marriages · microfilm, Indiana State Library1882-1907; 1907-1933; 1933-1935
Delayed Birth Certificates · microfilm, Indiana State Librarypre-1941

Court records

Circuit Court Civil Order Book · microfilm, Indiana State Library1859-1871; 1867-1878; 1878-1898; 1898-1903; 1900-1908; 1908-1910; 1910-1912; 1912-1915; 1915-1919; 1919-1921

Repository access note: Selected State Library print indexes, abstracts and microfilm catalog series. Multiple reels of the same title are grouped together; broad spans may contain gaps. Use the source linked on each entry for individual volumes, reel numbers and availability. This is not a complete courthouse inventory or a promise of online images. Confirm access and restrictions with the library; request certified records from their original custodian.

Sources: the catalogs and repository descriptions linked on the entries above. Selected inventories do not establish complete coverage of every record type or online access to original documents. Read the repository access note for source dates and limitations.

Where to find the records

DeKalb County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the county recorder and the clerk of the circuit court, and any online record search the county offers.
The county recorder
Deeds, mortgages and other land records.
The clerk of the circuit court
Marriage licenses, probate (wills and estates), divorces and court cases.
The Indiana Archives
In Indianapolis: state records and county records on microfilm, and indexes in its online Digital Archives.
Indiana Archives and Records Administrationfree
The state archives in Indianapolis, with county records, military records and indexes in the Indiana Digital Archives.
FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Indiana, DeKalb" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.

Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.

Boundaries and parent counties

Formed from: Land not yet in any county

DE Kalb as created in 1835Where its land was the day beforeToday's boundaryBoundaries: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries

Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1835, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.

Research tip

Indiana counties recorded births from 1882 and deaths from 1882, before statewide registration began (deaths 1900, births 1907). Ask the county health department for the early county registers.