Records that survive
These are the record series from Morris County in the Kansas Historical Society's catalog of county government records, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years. Most are microfilm copies at the State Archives in Topeka. A span can include gaps.
Marriages, births and deaths
- Greenwood Cemetery Records · Council Grove1859–1996
- Marriage Record · Probate Court1859–1867
- Marriage License Record · Probate Court1860–1955
- Cemetery Deeds · Register of Deeds1887–1999
Deeds and land
- Numerical Index To County Property · Register of Deeds1857–1999
- Land Office Records - Western Land District · Register of Deeds1858–1862
- General Index To Deeds · Register of Deeds1859–1903
- Deed Record · Register of Deeds1863–1901
- School Land Sales Register · County Treasurer1866–1924
- Tax Sale Deed Record · Register of Deeds1873–1911
- Homestead Deed Record · Register of Deeds1879–1923
- Patent Record · Register of Deeds1885–1891
- Miscellaneous Record · Register of Deeds1892–1929
- Tax Deed Record · Register of Deeds1899–1916
Wills and estates
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1856–1917
- Record Of Wills · Probate Court1864–1924
- Administators And Guardians Accounts · Probate Court1879–1925
- Record Of Inventory And Appraisement · Probate Court1879–1930
Naturalization
- Naturalization Declaration Of Intention · District Court1870–1929
- Naturalization Final Record · District Court1872–1906
- Naturalization Certificate Stubs · District Court1907–1929
Military and pensions
- Index To Military Discharges · Probate Court1917–1999
Tax records
- Tax Rolls - Lot 21927–1942
- Distribution Of Taxes Register · County Treasurer1957–1964
Court records
- General Index - District Court Records · District Court1857–1928
- Civil Appearance Docket · District Court1860–1918
- Petition And Record · District Court1906–1929
- Appearance Docket · Probate Court1907–1921
- Minutes, High School Athletic Association · Superintendent of Public Instruction1935–1958
Schools
- School District Bonds Registers · County Treasurer1872–1958
- School And Class Register · Superintendent of Public Instruction1875–1882
- Annual Reports And Scholastic Census · Superintendent of Public Instruction1881–1966
- School District Officers · Superintendent of Public Instruction1901–1933
- Inter-High School League · Superintendent of Public Instruction1930–1958
Town and city records
- Numerical Index To City Lots · Register of Deeds1857–1999
County government
- Journal · District Court1860–1924
- Journal · County Clerk1887–1909
- Journal · County Treasurer1905–1907
Other records
- Semiannual Appropriations Records · Superintendent of Public Instruction1881–1917
- General Ledger · County Treasurer1913–1917
- Bank Accounts Registers · County Treasurer1917–1960
- Motor Vehicle License Registers · County Treasurer1921–1931
- Record Book · Superintendent of Public Instruction1921–1931
- Daily Records Of Attendance Of Morris County Normal Institute · Superintendent of Public Instruction1926–1929
- Redemptions Distribution Register · County Treasurer1931–1932
See the full list at the Kansas Historical Society
Source: Kansas Historical Society, catalog of county government records (the county searches on its County Records On Microfilm page). Most of the film was made by the Genealogical Society of Utah, so FamilySearch may have it too. Kansas began statewide registration of births and deaths in 1911.
Where to find the records
- Morris County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the register of deeds, the probate court, the clerk of the district court and the county clerk, and any online record search the county offers.
- The register of deeds
Deeds, mortgages and other land records, usually from the county's beginning.
- The probate court
Wills, estates, guardianships and, for most years, marriage licenses. Since court unification in 1977 the probate court has been part of the district court, so ask the clerk of the district court for these records.
- The clerk of the district court
Civil and criminal cases, divorces and, in many counties, naturalizations.
- The county clerk
Tax rolls and the county commissioners' journals.
- The Kansas State Archives (Kansas Historical Society)
In Topeka: microfilm of county records, the Kansas state censuses and newspapers from across the state.
- Kansas Historical Society: Morris County recordsfree
Every county record series in the Society's catalog, with the office, dates and a description of each.
- Kansas Historical Society: County Records On Microfilmfree
How to use or borrow the county microfilm, with links to each county's list.
- Kansas Historical Society: Kansas censusesfree
The territorial and state censuses, what each one asks, and where to find them and their indexes.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Kansas, Morris" 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: Created by the Kansas territorial legislature in 1855 from land not yet in any county
Later formed partly from Morris County: Chase County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1855, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Kansas took its own census every ten years from 1865 to 1925, halfway between the federal ones. A state census can place a family in a county and township in a year the federal census misses, and most of them (all but 1865) also ask where a family came from before Kansas.