Listed record inventories
Selected holdings and indexes for St. Joseph County, checked against the repository descriptions linked below. Date spans may contain gaps; an index is not a complete set of original records.
Business Records
- St. Joseph County files · RG 83-531968 to 1976
Census Records
- Federal census · RG 65-141850, from 1860, and from 1870
- State census · RG 65-141845, from 1884, and from 1894
Court Records
- Assignment docket · RG 83-47*1882 to 1910
- Blotter book · RG 83-47*1839 to 1876
- Chancery calendars · RG 83-47*1846 to 1901
- Chancery case files · RG 83-47*1880 to 1900
- Chancery decrees · RG 83-47*1881 to 1912
- Circuit Court calendar · RG 83-47*1831 to 1838 and from 1855 to 1901
- Circuit Court commissioners docket · RG 83-47*1881 to 1895
- Circuit Court journal · RG 83-47*1833 to 1901
- Common order books · RG 83-47*1847 to 1895
- Common rule book · RG 83-47*1855 to 1904
- County court journal · RG 83-47*1847 to 1851
- County court record · RG 83-47*1847 to 1851
- Criminal calendars · RG 83-47*1860 to 1907
- Criminal case files · RG 83-47*1880 to 1903
- Decrees for divorce · RG 83-47*1894 to 1912
- Law case files · RG 83-47*1898 to 1903
- Orders and decrees · RG 83-47*1858 to 1900
- Record book · RG 83-47*1837 to 1854
- Special motion book · RG 83-47*1876 to 1902
- Transcripts · RG 83-47*1870 to 1894
Land Records
- Rural Property Inventory · RG 72-761936 to 1942
Military Records
Naturalization Records
- Certificate stubs · RG 2005-361908 to 1967
- Declarations of Intention · RG 2005-361854 to 1967
- Naturalization journal · RG 2005-361895 to 1897
- Petitions · RG 2005-361908 to 1967
- Petitions granted and denied · RG 2005-361930 to 1967
Tax Records
Voter Records
See the repository's descriptions and search options
Repository access note: Selected holdings described by the Archives of Michigan. Preserve the record-group (RG) reference when requesting records. Some collections are held at partner repositories; consult the guide before traveling. Asterisks and other qualifiers refer to access or location notes in that guide. Some records have privacy restrictions or require proof of death. A date span may contain gaps and does not establish that images are online.
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
- St. Joseph County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the county clerk, the register of deeds and the probate court, and any online record search the county offers.
- The county clerk
Births, deaths and marriages registered in the county, and court records.
- The register of deeds
Deeds, mortgages and other land records.
- The probate court
Wills, estates and guardianships.
- The Archives of Michigan
In Lansing: state and county records, and Michigan death certificates from 1897 to 1952 online at Michiganology.
- Archives of Michiganfree
The state archives in Lansing, with county and state records, military records and Michigan death records.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Michigan, St. Joseph" 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
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1829, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Michigan began registering births and deaths in 1867, much earlier than most states, with county clerks keeping the registers and sending copies to the state. Ask the county clerk for the early registers.