Welcome to the Newton County - Indiana's Youngest County
Celebrating 150 Years - 1860-2010 \
Search this site here!
- Many of the subjects on the page have their own SURNAME search.
Please utilize those as well.
If you cannot find the information you need from our site,
through the link below, you can post a message on the Newton County
Message Board. You can also view past postings on the message board.
Scroll to the bottom of the web site to locate the links to the message
board, as well as a link for look-up assistance.
In March and April, 1996, a group of genealogists
organized
the Indiana Comprehensive Genealogy Database. The idea was to provide a
single entry point for all counties in Indiana, where collected
databases would be stored. In addition, the databases would be indexed
and cross-linked, so that even if an individual were found in more than
one county, they could be located in the index. At the same time,
volunteers were found who were willing to coordinate the collection of
databases and generally oversee the contents of the web page.
Newton County Historical Society member Beth Bassett
is responsible for Newton County. Please contact her if you would like
to contribute to this database. If you would like to host a county,
contact the Indiana State
Coordinator.
What's the
Historical Society up to? Check out the "Newton County Historical
Society News" on this page.
Beaver
Lake (also referred to as Big Lake) was an area of
open water 16,000 acres.
Free of rush and
reeds, 8-9 ft. deep at the most with clear waters. The southern line
was
indented with numerous arms and inlets. See the 2006 Map of Newton
County for
an outline of the Beaver Lake shores. It’s most-westward
point in McClellan
Township the east portion of Section 13; and most-eastward point in
Colfax
Township the east portion of Section 18; most northward point in Lake
Township,
Sections 33 and 34; most southward point in McClellan Township, Section
22. To read more about Beaver Lake and Bogus Island, click here.
Ned Barker
and Bogus Island, Reprinted from Beaver Lake, Land of Enchantment
These
aerial photos were published in a book, "This is
Newton County, Indiana" by John Drury, published by the Loree Company,
Chicago. iin 1955. It was No. 1 in "The American Aerial County History
Series
Indiana" We have included the businesses, schools and government
buildings published in the book. All of the farms at the time were also
photographed, be we did not include those here. Check with your local
library about viewing the original book. Do you have a history on any
of these photos? Please send them to the
Newton County Coordinator - and we'll add them to the site
for future visitors!
View all 1955 photos here!
Luke's Bakery Diana
Hunt Club Colfax School
First Courthouse then
Benton-Newton-Jasper
Second Newton
Courthouse, Kentland, IN
until 1906 Third Newton Courthouse, Kentland, IN,
photo in
1940 Present Day Newton County
Courthouse, 2008
Newton
County Courthouse Celebrated 100 Years in
2006 Click here
to a link to the Newton County Historical Society's newsletter of
Summer, 2006 that has the complete history of the courthouse, written
by Jim Robbins. This is a pdf file, and it may take some time to
download.
Where can I get a copy of Newton
County Birth, Death, Marriage and other records?
Please contact the following county
offices for
documentation, and information. When writing for information, please
include a money order for up to $5.00 for postage and copies, depending
upon how many copies are needed and weight of mailing.
Birth and Death Records NEWTON COUNTY HEATLH
DEPARTMENT 4117 S 240 W Suite 500 Morocco IN 47963 Phone
(219) 285-2052 E-mail newtoncofd-vr@localhealth.in.gov
Records include some 1882 - present. Even though the State of Indiana
states that all birth records should be available beginning in 1907 and
death records in 1902, this may not necessarily be accurate. Please
contact this office for more information. They may be able to fax
information to you.
Marriage
Records NEWTON
COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE
P.O. Box 49, Kentland, Indiana 47951, Phone 219-474-6081; Records
include 1860 to present; Probate (wills, estates, guardianships) - 1860
to present; Civil Cases (divorces, lawsuits) - 1860 to present;
Election Records - 1904 or 06 to present.
Land Transfers and Deeds NEWTON COUNTY RECORDER'S
OFFICE, 201 N. 3rd Street, Kentland, Indiana 47951, Phone
219-474-6081; Records include: 1860 to present; Some Cemetery Deeds and Surveys.
Road
Petitions and Records NEWTON
COUNTY AUDITOR'S OFFICE201 N. 3rd Street, Kentland,
Indiana 47951, Phone 219-474-6081; Records include: requests
to improve roads in early days; Commissioner's Minutes - 1860 to
present.
Marriage
and Death Records
Newton
County Vital Records: Death Index 1800-1941
- These records were extracted from the World Projects Administration
(WPA) in 1941. Information includes: Surname, Given Name, Sex, Color,
Age, Death Month, Death Day, Death Year, County, Book, Page, Fiche. These are in PDF format, and may
be searched through your reader software.
The
walking and recording of these cemeteries was accomplished in 1997 by
members of the Newton County Historical Society.
The
majority of these records utilize a surname search found on the main
page. The following cemetery files are in PDF format, and may be
searched by utilizing the search tool in your pdf reader. Washington
Township: Doran; Jefferson
Township: Pleasant Grove; McClellan:
Betz/Skinner/McClellan and Morgan/Tracy.
We
would like to thank Gary Clifton for his contribution of these
databases, Enlistment records for Company B, 51st Indiana Infantry, the
largest group of soldiers from Newton County, and the cemetery records
for the Strong or Powell Cemetery which is just inside Jasper County
but includes mostly people from Newton County.
His
Newton County Roots still run deep, and over the years, many people
have contacted him personally about their kin when they became aware
that he had these lists. Please contact him at clifton@gbis.com
regarding any questions. These are in PDF format, and may
be searched through your reader software.
Members
of the Iroquois Washington Township
Preservation Committee (IWPC) are seeking obituaries for the burials at
Riverside Cemetery for publication in the near future. They are seeking
obituaries of those on this list. Please contact kidclerk@aol.com
with your information or any questions.These now appear as a web
page.
Obituaries
If
you would like to contribute to this list, please send your obituary in
a text document to the Newton
County Coordinator.
If you have several for one family, we will break them into a seperate
list with a heading on this site. Individual obits submissions can be
found in the Pioneer and Cotributed Obituaries link below.
Newton County Family Obituaries
New! Newton County Obituaries pertaining to the following families:
Brown, Brownfield, Cox, David, Ellsworth, Gibbons, Mott, Newell, Page, Sallee, Snow, Vayette
On-Going
Project!Newton
County Biographies Project - We want your
family biographies E-mail them to the Newton County Coordinator.
Census Records
Newton
County was formed from Jasper County in 1860. All census
records prior to that time would be listed under Jasper County. Special
thanks to Lori Strole-Myer who has transcribed the 1840 Jasper County
Census records for our site.
Please contact Lori with any questions or further information.
1930 Newton
County Census Records
Please contact Beth
Bassett
for look ups. These records are on CD of actual records, please include
the Township of Residence, or nearest town or village located to your
surname search. Thank you.
Please provide as much information as
possible - it will help her search the following records:
Newton Co, IN Census Records 1860-1930
Newton Co, IN Birth Records 1882-1920
Newton Co, IN death records 1882-1920
Please note that these are look up only - hard copies are not
available. Thank You
Land Records
Newton
County Landowners, 1904
- Transcribed by Janet Miller from a map of Newton County, 1904,
landowners are listed
in each Township, also view individual Township maps with sections.
This record originally appeared as a feature in the Newton County
Historical Society's newsletter, "The Newcomer," beginning in 2002
through 2005. The records were transcribed by society member Janet
Miller. These are in PDF format, and may be searched through your
reader software.
New! 1895 Map of
Newton County - Click
here: http://www.livgenmi.com/1895/IN/County/newton.htm
to view the Atlas of 1895, Newton County. Check the site out for other
Indiana and US Atlas Maps. Thanks to Pam Reitsch for downloading and
providing this link for us.
Spanish
American War - Roster
for the State of Indiana - This link also contains other
state rosters. Thanks to Pam Reitsch for providing this link.
War of 1812 - Link to the Digital Collections of IUPUI University Library - War of 1812 Collection
On-Going
Project! Newton County Civil War Vet
Project - Newton
County Historical Society Member Kyle Conrad is attempting to place a
G.A.R. marker on the graves of all Newton County Civil War Vets buried
in Newton County. He has identified many unknown veteran burials
through this project, but still needs your help with many more. Click
here to read the article that appeared in the Winter 2008
Newcomer, newsletter of the Newton County Historical Society.
Searching for a
Civil War Vet? - Search the Sons
of Union Veteran's graves registration
database here: http://www.suvcwdb.org/home/
School
Files
New Pictures Added
Newton
County School Photo Gallery - Check each school section for Gallery Photos.
Do you have photo or
information to share with this site? Contact us - we
welcome additions to the site! When emailing, please attach
the picture seperately from
the document with your email. We cannot use images pasted into emails
and text documents. Thanks!
The
Resource Center opened in November, 2007; Jim in our newspaper section;
The "Red Hatters" toured and visited the center in 2008; South Newton
4th graders listen to Jim tell about Beaver Lake.
Society News The Newton County Historical
Society is nonprofit
501-3 (c) organization. Their goal is to preserve the history of Newton
County. A new Resource Center, located at 310 E. Seymour Street in
Kentland, Indiana is the permanent home for he society. Here you can
view the many donated artifacts from the county, and utilize the vast
amount of research material available to the public. The Resource
Center is open to the public Monday 11:00-3:00 pm; Thursday
1:00-5:00 pm, and
Friday 11:00-3:00 CDT. Group tours may be arranged by contacting
219-474-6944 or by email.
The Family History Division and the general Society meetings are held
the fourth Monday of each month. The FHD meets at the Resource Center
at 2:00 pm, the general Society at the Newton County Government Center
located in Morocco, Indiana at 7:00 pm. Please note that the general
Society meeting locations may change. Please contact the President if you
have any questions regarding the location.
New! The
Family History Division Republication of Bill Bat's Hoosier
Hunting Ground or The Beaver Lake Trail
From the first chapter, Mr. Alter draws the reader in by
detailing a trapper’s cavern; the flora and fauna of Beaver
Lake; the antics
and anxieties of hunting and trapping as a lifestyle; to sitting
amongst the
Bogus Island counterfeiters while they listen to a man named Barker
deliver a
sermon on living a “straight and narrow” life.
The
characters are of mixed heritages, all coming together in several
seasons
sharing their own stories of horse thieving, honor and friendship.
If you are a fan of the tales of Bogus
Island,
curious about
the lifestyle, layout of the land, of the residents of the Beaver Lake
Country,
this book will be a definite asset to your collection of local
histories. Local artists have contributed illustrations to depict the
writer's accuate descriptions of the flora and fauna of the area. Click here for additional information
on the book, the author and ordering instructions.
Past Editions of "The Newcomer"
now on line! Newton
County Historical Society's NewsletterThe
Newcomer began publication in 1994. It has been
successfully published
each year. Please click on the
Publications for sale link below for past editions, and the NCHS
Membership Form link to receive upcoming editions. Thanks to Darlene Truby for
updating our index for the Newcomer!! Please note that
some of the PDF files may be large, and take some time to download.
