Records that survive
These are the record series from Linn 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
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1842–1978
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1888
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1888
- Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1888
- Register of Births And Stillbirths · County Clerk1883–1888
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1887
- Record of Marriages Solemnized · Circuit Court1903–1981
- Record of Marriages Solemnized · Recorder of Deeds1903–1981
Deeds and land
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1836–1887
- Assessments · Collector1837–1859
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1837–1920
- Taxes · Collector1858–1995
- Mechanics Liens · Circuit Court1871–1983
- Real Estate Orders · Probate Court1972–1975
- Land Sales · Collector1985–1991
Wills and estates
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1832–1965
- Bonds · Probate Court1839–1963
- Letters of Administration · Probate Court1840–1860
- Letters · Probate Court1840–1956
- Wills · Probate Court1840–1986
- Probate Record Index · Probate Court1849–1995
- Probate Records · Probate Court1849–1974
- Inventories, Appraisements & · Probate Court1854–1864
- Fee Records · Probate Court1866–1926
- Settlements · Probate Court1884–1977
- Inventories · Probate Court1891–1956
- Appraisements · Probate Court1894–1917
- Embalmers License Register · Probate Court1895–1941
- Guardianships · Probate Court1896–1956
- and 6 more series in the full listing
Naturalization
- Naturalization Records · Circuit Court1860–1942
- Naturalizations · Circuit Court1906–1929
- Declaration of Intention · Circuit Court1907–1929
Military and pensions
- Discharge Records · Recorder of Deeds1919–1978
Tax records
- Register of Receipts · Collector1849–1852
- Taxes · Collector1858–1995
- Property Holders · Collector1868
- Tax Records · Circuit Court1879–1896
- Transcript of Judgements · Circuit Court1883–1884
- Judgement Records · Circuit Court1905–1920
- Inheritance Taxes · Probate Court1931–1969
Court records
- Minutes · County Clerk1831–1977
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1837–1988
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1837–1976
- County Court Records · County Clerk1837–1996
- Miscellaneous Files · Circuit Court1838–1921
- List of Jurors & Subpoenas · Circuit Court1841–1969
- Court Dockets · County Clerk1845–1870
- Transcript Records · Circuit Court1851–1969
- Executions · Circuit Court1858–1940
- Judgement Docket · Circuit Court1858–1919
- Depositions · Circuit Court1860–1972
- Docket · Circuit Court1866–1934
- File Book · Circuit Court1866–1888
- Minutes · Circuit Court1866–1977
- and 26 more series in the full listing
Other records
- Strays · County Clerk1839–1867
- Commissions · County Clerk1840–1943
- Count Fund · County Clerk1845–1870
- Road Records · County Clerk1880–1915
- Jail Record · County Clerk1884–1912
- Board of Health · County Clerk1885–1976
- Transcript of Judgements · Justice of the Peace1886–1930
- Official Bond Commissions · County Clerk1887–1903
- Liquor Licenses · County Clerk1905–1994
- Hunters' License Register · County Clerk1907–1908
- License Register · County Clerk1941
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 Linn 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: Linn 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, Linn" 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 1837, 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.