Records that survive
These are the record series from Cole 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 Deeds1821–1919
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1821–1945
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1906
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1906
- Register of Births · County Clerk1883–1906
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1906
- Record of Births · City Clerk1901–1909
Deeds and land
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1821–1969
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1821–1895
- Plats · Recorder of Deeds1867–1964
- Deed Record · Public School District1869–1889
- Deed Records · Public School District1873
- Sherrif Deed Record · Public School District1888
- Deeds · Public School District1889–1948
- Sheriff Deed Record · Public School District1917
- Mechanics Liens · Circuit Court1937
- Subdivision Plats · Public Works Superintendent1939–1995
- Plats · Public Works Superintendent1973–1995
- Warranty Deeds · Public Works Superintendent1973–1986
- Miscellaneous Records · Public Works Superintendent1975–1979
- Real Estate - Record of · Collector1994–2002
- and 1 more series in the full listing
Wills and estates
- Index of Wills Microfilmed · Probate Court1820–1986
- Probate Case File Index · Probate Court1830–1988
- Index to Proceedings · Probate Court1834–1953
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1834–1880
- Probate Record Index · Probate Court1834–1889
- Probate Records · Probate Court1834–1889
- Estate Settlements · County Clerk1842–1868
- Settlements · Probate Court1842–1890
- Wills · Probate Court1843–1982
- Cole County Probate Case Files · Probate Court1848–1930
- Inventories · Probate Court1854–1891
- Letters of Administration · Probate Court1857–1884
- Insane Patient Records · County Clerk1859–1969
- Index to Abstract of Demand · Probate Court1867–1874
- and 6 more series in the full listing
Naturalization
- Declaration of Intention · Circuit Court1868–1907
- Naturalization Records · Circuit Court1882–1955
Military and pensions
- Military Records · County Clerk1859–1865
Tax records
- Coroner Inquest Index · Collector1862–1960
- Coroner Inquests · Collector1862–1948
- Merchants License Applications · County Clerk1863
- Assessments · City Assessor1891–1925
- Coroner Records · Collector1907
- Personal Property - Record of · Collector1989–2002
- Taxes · Collector1993–2002
- Personal Property - Tax · Collector1996
Court records
- Circuit Court Case File Index · Circuit Court1820–1940
- Circuit Court Papers Index · Circuit Court1820–1926
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1821–1940
- Circuit Court Record Index · Circuit Court1821–1984
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1821–1976
- County Court/Commission · County Clerk1821–1989
- Fee Book · County Clerk1826
- County Court Minute Index · County Clerk1843–1935
- County Court Cases · County Clerk1854–1868
- City Board of Health · City Clerk1873–1895
- Minutes · Circuit Court1886
- Docket · Justice Of The Peace1894–1898
- Attorneys Roll · Circuit Court1896–1966
- Circuit Court Vacation Records · Circuit Court1901–1945
- and 10 more series in the full listing
Schools
- School Enumerations · County Clerk1866–1980
- Quit Claim Record · Public School District1884–1926
- Teachers Roster · County Clerk1897–1903
- House Lease · Public School District1901
- List of Teachers · County Clerk1925–1949
Other records
- Index to Journal of Proceedings · City Clerk1838–1958
- Journal of Proceedings · City Clerk1839–1958
- Accounts · County Clerk1856
- Cole County Road and Bridge · County Clerk1860–1956
- Oaths of Office · County Clerk1861–1870
- Loyalty Oaths · County Clerk1863–1869
- County Poor Farm Records · County Clerk1864–1933
- Petitions · County Clerk1864
- Licenses · County Clerk1865–1918
- Outdoor Relief Records · County Clerk1866–1915
- Register of City Bonds Issued · Treasurer1867–1910
- Register of Warrants · Treasurer1867–1880
- Estray Records · County Clerk1872–1945
- Physicians and Surgeons Roll · County Clerk1874–1987
- and 31 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
- Cole County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the recorder of deeds, the probate court and the circuit clerk, and any online record search the county offers.
- 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: Cole 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, Cole" 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: Cooper County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Cooper County
Later formed partly from Cole County: Miller County, Moniteau County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1821, 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.