Records that survive
These are the record series from Knox 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 Deeds1845–1920
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1845–1944
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1893
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1893
- Register of Births And Stillbirths · County Clerk1883–1891
- Record of Marriages Solemnized · Recorder of Deeds1890–1976
Deeds and land
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1838–1889
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1845–1913
- Judgment Asked · Collector1861–1869
- Taxes · Collector1875–2012
- Forfeited Real Estate Taxes · County Collector1880–1889
Wills and estates
- Probate Record Index · Probate Court1845–1918
- Probate Records · Probate Court1845–1889
- Administators, · Probate Court1847–1859
- Wills · Probate Court1849–1918
- Probate Minutes · Probate Court1855–1877
- Inventories & Appraisements · Probate Court1858–1896
- Appraisements & Sale Bills · Probate Court1863–1898
- Settlements · Probate Court1872–1906
- Bonds · Probate Court1879–1887
- Bonds & Letters · Probate Court1882–1894
Naturalization
- Declaration of Intention · Collector1907–1922
- Petition for Naturalization · Collector1907–1922
Military and pensions
- Military Discharges · Recorder of Deeds1862–1950
- Discharged Veterans Index · Recorder of Deeds1866–1977
Records of free Black and enslaved people
- County Court Records · County Clerk1861
Tax records
- Tax Lists · Collector1859–1887
- Company Morning Reports · Collector1862–1863
- Company Descriptive Book · Collector1863
- Taxes · Collector1864–2012
- Record of Tax Sales · Collector1866–1870
- Assessment List · Collector1878
Court records
- Circuit Court Record Index · Circuit Court1845–1912
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1845–1885
- County Court Index · County Clerk1845–1919
- County Court Record · County Clerk1845–1899
- Circuit Court Minutes · Circuit Court1869–1875
- Minutes · Superintendent of Schools1961–1998
Other records
- County Poor Farm Records · County Clerk1875–1928
- Atlas · County Clerk1876–1898
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 Knox 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: Knox 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, Knox" 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: Scotland County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Scotland County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1843, 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.