Records that survive
These are the record series from Phelps 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 Deeds1857–1984
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1857–1971
- Marriage Applications · Recorder of Deeds1881–1943
- Marriage Licenses · Recorder of Deeds1883–1899
- Marriage Register · Recorder of Deeds1883–1977
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1890
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1890
- Register of Births And Stillbirths · County Clerk1883–1890
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1890
- Marriages Solemnized · Justice of the Peace1912–1945
Deeds and land
- Abstract Record · Recorder of Deeds1832–1891
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1857–1976
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1857–1978
- Plat Book · Recorder of Deeds1865–1867
- Miscellaneous Records · Recorder of Deeds1867–1965
- Sheriff Land Sales · County Clerk1867–1868
- Mechanics Liens · Circuit Court1871–1992
- Taxes · Collector1885–2011
- Appraisements · Probate Court1904–1926
- Lease Records · Recorder of Deeds1907–1959
- Patent Records · Recorder of Deeds1908–1926
- Biography & Service Records · Recorder of Deeds1920–1925
- Real Estate Sales · Probate Court1927–1937
- Abstract & Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1952–1979
- and 5 more series in the full listing
Wills and estates
- Appraisements · Probate Court1845–1955
- Inventories · Probate Court1846–1958
- Probate Docket · Probate Court1857–1883
- Probate Records · Probate Court1857–1981
- Wills · Probate Court1857–1982
- Bonds · Probate Court1858–1981
- Probate Record Index · Probate Court1858–1920
- Bonds & Records · Circuit Court1859–1886
- Bonds & Letters · Probate Court1861–1955
- Letters, Bonds, & Wills · Probate Court1863–1892
- Abstract of Demands · Probate Court1865–1952
- Accounts · Probate Court1865–1883
- Day Book · Probate Court1865–1870
- Inventories & Appraisements · Probate Court1866–1981
- and 29 more series in the full listing
Naturalization
- Declaration of Intention · Circuit Court1873–1955
- Naturalization & Immigration · Circuit Court1873–1955
- Petition for Naturalization · Circuit Court1891–1955
- Naturalizations · Circuit Court1897–1906
- Petition for Citizenship · Circuit Court1904–1956
- Declaration of Intention Index · Circuit Court1975–1983
Military and pensions
- Discharged Veteran Index · Recorder of Deeds1907–1921
- Soldier Discharges · Recorder of Deeds1907–1973
Tax records
- Appraisements · Probate Court1887–1917
- Sale Bills · Probate Court1902–1955
- Judgment Records · Circuit Court1923–1931
- Inheritance Tax · Probate Court1927–1981
- Inheritance Taxes · Probate Court1974–1981
- Tax Abatements · Probate Court1985–1988
- Taxes · Collector1992–2011
Court records
- Circuit Court Case File Index · Circuit Court1857–1978
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1857–1899
- Circuit Court Record Index · Circuit Court1857–1981
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1857–1976
- County Court Minutes · County Clerk1857
- County Court Records · County Clerk1857–2000
- Transcript Docket · Circuit Court1858–1872
- Court Records · Justice of the Peace1861–1874
- Minutes · Probate Court1861–1981
- Transcript Judgements · Circuit Court1867–1992
- Execution Index · Circuit Court1870–1879
- Fee Book · Circuit Court1873–1880
- Docket · Circuit Court1880–1994
- Miscellaneous Files · Circuit Court1882–1887
- and 25 more series in the full listing
Schools
- Register of Students · Justice of the Peace1873–1922
Other records
- Warrants · County Clerk1858–1861
- State Census · County Clerk1876
- Miscellaneous File · County Clerk1913–1944
- Commissions · County Clerk1964–1986
- County Commission Records · County Clerk2001–2010
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 Phelps 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: Phelps 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, Phelps" 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: Crawford County, Maries County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Crawford County, Maries County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1857, 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.