Records that survive
These are the record series from Jackson 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 Deeds1827–1937
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1827–1969
- Birth Records · City Clerk1874–1904
- Death Record Index · City Clerk1874–1915
- Death Records · City Clerk1874–1909
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1890
- Register of Births And Stillbirths · County Clerk1883–1895
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1893
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1884–1890
- Birth Records · County Clerk1910–1929
- Birth Record · County Clerk1915
Deeds and land
- Original Patents · Recorder of Deeds1800
- Plat Map and Land Index · Recorder of Deeds1800
- Plat Maps and Land Filed · Recorder of Deeds1800
- Plat Maps of Towns · Recorder of Deeds1800
- Original Land Book · Recorder of Deeds1821–1843
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1827–1909
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1828–1891
- Abstract and Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1831–1885
- Original Land Entries · Recorder of Deeds1832–1894
- Plat Maps · Recorder of Deeds1848–1885
- Crow Creek Records · Recorder of Deeds1852–1864
- Township Plat Maps · Recorder of Deeds1870
- Deeds · Public School District1871–1873
- Jackson County Map · Recorder of Deeds1881
- and 8 more series in the full listing
Wills and estates
- Wills · Probate Court1820–1981
- Probate Case File Index · Probate Court1828–1900
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1828–1938
- Probate Record General Index · Probate Court1829–1933
- Wills and Bonds · Probate Court1834–1866
- Settlements · Probate Court1850–1969
- Inventories · Probate Court1855–1917
- Bonds and Letters · Probate Court1868–1913
- Bonds · Probate Court1871–1923
- Notices · Probate Court1871–1906
- Probate Records · Probate Court1871–1967
- Record of Guardians · Probate Court1871–1898
- Letters of Administration · Probate Court1876–1955
- Appraisements · Probate Court1877–1917
- and 9 more series in the full listing
Military and pensions
- Blind Pension Records · Probate Court1921–1923
Tax records
- Mounted Newspaper Clippings · County Clerk1900–1949
- Assessed Valuations · County Clerk1973–1991
Court records
- County Court Record Index · County Clerk1827–1972
- County Court Records · County Clerk1827–1972
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1828–1966
- Jackson Co. Circuit Court Case · Circuit Court1847–1901
- Order of Publication · Probate Court1853–1873
- Board Minutes · Public School District1867–1995
- Judgment Docket · Probate Court1874–1876
- Reference Docket · Probate Court1887–1924
- Board of Aldermen Minutes · City Clerk1909–1998
- Minutes · County Clerk1917–2003
- Minutes · City Clerk1920–1999
- Circuit Court Case File Index · Circuit Court1953–1964
Schools
- School District Boundaries · County Clerk1895–1948
- Annual School Meeting Reports · County Clerk1897–1928
- Mounted Newspaper Clippings · County Clerk1900–1949
- Classification Reports · County Clerk1908
- District Clerk's Report to · County Clerk1908
- Teacher's Term Reports · County Clerk1908
- Enumeration Records · County Clerk1914–1945
- Application for State School · County Clerk1917–1942
- Historic Scrapbook Collection · Superintendent Of Schools1918–1997
- Corr.,repts.,and Ref.materials · Parks And Recreation Department1940–1973
- School Rosters/Directories · County Clerk1949–1962
- Auditors Reports · Public School District1958–1989
- Annual Report of Secretary · Public School District1976–1980
- Historic Report · Public School District1984–1986
- and 1 more series in the full listing
Other records
- Road Records · Public Works Superintendent1827–1897
- Bridge Records · Public Works Superintendent1851–1930
- Bonds and Commissions · County Clerk1861–1872
- Blueprints · County Clerk1862–1935
- City Clerk Records · City Clerk1868–1970
- Index to City Clerk Records · City Clerk1868–1970
- Resolutions and Ordinances · Parks And Recreation Department1881–1923
- Correspondence and Reports · Parks And Recreation Department1890–1933
- Parks and Recreation · Parks And Recreation Department1890–1986
- Scrapbook Clipping Index · Parks And Recreation Department1892–1912
- Scrapbook Clippings · Parks And Recreation Department1892–1957
- Park and Blvd Commission Index · Parks And Recreation Department1895–1988
- Maps and Architectural Drawings · Parks And Recreation Department1898–1909
- Ordinances · City Clerk1898–1999
- and 36 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 Jackson 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: Jackson 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, Jackson" 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: Lillard County (extinct)
Later formed partly from Jackson County: Bates County, Cass County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1825, 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.