Records that survive
These are the record series from Bates County that the Missouri State Archives has on microfilm, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Marriages, births and deaths
- Index to Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1860–1951
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1860–1970
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1887
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1886
- Register of Births · County Clerk1883–1907
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1893
- Register of Marriage License's · Recorder of Deeds1887–1913
Deeds and land
- Abstract and Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1839–1997
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1839–1981
- Swampland and School Land · County Clerk1855–1871
- Abstract and Index to Mortgages · Recorder of Deeds1857–1997
- Survey Book · Surveyor1857–1860
- Land Records · Collector1861–1869
- Real Estate - Record of · Collector1865–1880
- Swampland Records · County Clerk1866–1885
- Swampland and School Patents · County Clerk1869–1956
- Land Sale Records · County Clerk1871
- Mechanic Liens · County Clerk1871–1902
- Board of Trustees (Minutes) · City Clerk1872
- Board of Trustees Minutes · City Clerk1872–1882
- Township Plats · Recorder of Deeds1875
- and 25 more series in the full listing
Wills and estates
- Wills · Probate Court1845–1926
- Probate Records · Probate Court1852–1887
- Letters of Administration · Probate Court1854–1904
- Inventories · Probate Court1865–1872
- Bonds and Letters · Probate Court1871–1905
- Bonds · Probate Court1871–1914
- Inventories, Appraisements and · Probate Court1872–1887
- Notices · Probate Court1877–1912
- Settlements · Probate Court1877–1887
- Record of Decedants · County Clerk1899–1908
Naturalization
- Petition for Naturalization · Circuit Court1904–1927
- Declaration of Intention · Circuit Court1907–1928
Military and pensions
- Soldier Discharges · Recorder of Deeds1865–1918
- Board of Equalization Records · County Clerk1871
- Military Service Index · Recorder of Deeds1919–1949
- Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines · County Clerk1919
- Discharge Records · Recorder of Deeds1943–1971
Tax records
- Strays · Collector1851–1860
- Taxes · Collector1863–2014
- Forfeit List · Collector1872–1876
- Assessments · Collector1874
- Railroad Tax Book · Collector1893–1910
- Ditch Taxes · Collector1907
- Merchant Taxes · Collector1907–1912
- Collector's Accounts · Collector1908–1919
- Inheritance Taxes · County Clerk1911–1919
- Railroad, Telephone, Telegraph · Collector1911–1931
- Ditch Assessments · Recorder of Deeds1914
- Personal Property - Record of · Collector1923–1937
- Consolidated Back Taxes · Collector1925–1937
- Delinquent Taxes · Collector1925
- and 2 more series in the full listing
Court records
- County Court Record Index · County Clerk1852–1973
- County Court Records · County Clerk1852–1990
- Minutes · County Clerk1857–1952
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1858–1882
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1858–1885
- Court Records · Justice Of The Peace1872–1877
- Judgment Records · County Clerk1873–1876
- Judgments - Delinquent List · County Clerk1873
- Special Executions · County Clerk1873–1875
- Docket · Justice Of The Peace1875–1945
- Board of Aldermen (Minutes) · City Clerk1882
- Board of Aldermen Minutes · City Clerk1882–1894
- Court Docket · County Clerk1884–1903
- Minutes · City Clerk1884–1995
- and 7 more series in the full listing
Schools
- Bond Register · County Clerk1881–1935
- School Board of Health · County Clerk1883–1976
- School Fund · County Clerk1883–1908
- School Board Register Loans · County Clerk1892–1913
- School Records · County Clerk1893–1900
- District Clerk's Records · Superintendent Of Schools1901–1959
- School Fund Apportionments · County Clerk1908–1955
- Teacher's Certificates · County Clerk1915–1923
- Teacher's Examination and · County Clerk1916–1918
- School Enumerations · County Clerk1929–1931
Other records
- Commissions and Official Bonds · County Clerk1857–1945
- Commission and Bond Index · County Clerk1858–1878
- Transcript · Justice Of The Peace1871–1892
- Township Boundary Records · County Clerk1872
- Commissions and Bonds · County Clerk1873–1988
- Physicians · County Clerk1874–1910
- Stray Fund and Stock Marking · County Clerk1877–1923
- Pharmacists and Physicians Lic · County Clerk1881–1906
- Register of Elected Offices · County Clerk1881–1885
- Assignments · County Clerk1882–1915
- Board of Aldermen Ordinances · City Clerk1882–1894
- Ordinances · City Clerk1882–1947
- Dentists and Dental Surgeons · County Clerk1883–1901
- Warrant Register · County Clerk1883
- and 43 more series in the full listing
Open the full roll-by-roll listing (PDF)
Source: Missouri State Archives, Guide to County and Municipal Records on Microfilm. Recorder of deeds records dated 1970 or later must be requested from the county. Counties kept birth and death registers under an 1883 law until its repeal in 1893, with coverage varying by county; statewide registration began in 1910.
Where to find the records
- Find Bates County's official website
We haven't checked this county's website yet, so this opens a web search. Look for an address ending in .gov, then find the recorder of deeds, the probate court and the circuit clerk.
- The recorder of deeds
Deeds and mortgages, and marriage records, usually from the county's beginning. Licenses were required from 1881; earlier books record the marriages themselves.
- The probate court
Wills, estates, guardianships and curatorships. Since 1979 it has been the probate division of the circuit court.
- The circuit clerk
Civil and criminal cases, divorces and, in many counties, naturalizations.
- The Missouri State Archives
In Jefferson City: microfilm of county records from Missouri's counties and the City of St. Louis, and free online databases, including death certificates from 1910 that are more than 50 years old.
- Missouri State Archives: Bates County records on microfilm (PDF)free
Every roll the state archives holds for this county, with the office, title, dates and reel number.
- Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975free
Search the Missouri State Archives' death certificate index by name and view the certificates.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Missouri, Bates" 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: Jackson County, Lafayette County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Jackson County, Lafayette County
Later formed partly from Bates County: Vernon County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1833, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Missouri's probate files often hold far more than a will: inventories, sale bills listing the buyers (often relatives and neighbors) and the receipts of heirs. Check the circuit court too, where heirs went to divide land.