Records that survive
These are the record series from Scotland 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 Deeds1841–1941
- Permanent Record of Births · County Clerk1883–1889
- Permanent Record of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1889
- Register of Births and Stillbirths · County Clerk1883–1889
- Register of Deaths · County Clerk1883–1889
Deeds and land
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1836–1914
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1836–1872
- Plat Maps · County Clerk1837–1882
- Swampland Records · County Clerk1850–1900
- Abstract and Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1870–1886
- Taxes · Collector1890–1900
- Assessments · Collector1894
Wills and estates
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1838–1978
- Wills · Probate Court1838–2002
- Docket · Probate Court1841
- Probate Record Index · Probate Court1842–1892
- Probate Records · Probate Court1842–1969
- Letters · Probate Court1852–1956
- Bonds · Probate Court1854–1956
- Settlements · Probate Court1854–1973
- Inventories, Appraisements and · Probate Court1866–1911
- Probate Journal · Probate Court1867–1877
- Letters, Testamentary · Probate Court1868–1890
- Abstract of Demands · Probate Court1873–1978
- Notices and Publishers Affidavits · Probate Court1873–1907
- Letters of Administration · Probate Court1890–1932
- and 13 more series in the full listing
Military and pensions
- Military Records · Recorder of Deeds1861–1879
Tax records
- Taxes · Collector1875–1900
- Assessments · Collector1894
- Coroner Records · Collector1911–1934
Court records
- Circuit Court Record Index · Circuit Court1841–1896
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1841–1888
- Justice of The Peace Case Files · Justice Of The Peace1841–1906
- Docket · Probate Court1863–1951
- County Court Minutes · County Clerk1864–1872
- Minutes · Probate Court1874–1954
- Courthouse Records · County Clerk1889–1994
- Inheritance Judgment · Probate Court1921–1958
Other records
- Federal Census · County Clerk1850–1870
- County Poor Farm Records · County Clerk1852–2000
- Records · County Clerk1865–1892
- County Ward Records · County Clerk1887–1954
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 Scotland 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: Scotland 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, Scotland" 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
Later formed partly from Scotland County: Knox County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1841, 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.