Genealogy Resources

The LaGrange County Public Library offers a number of genealogy resources in its County History department.  These include:

  • Microfilmed LaGrange County census records, 1830-1930 (including 1890)
  • An index to the 1860 LaGrange County census
  • W.P.A. index of LaGrange County birth records, 1882-1920
  • W.P.A. index of LaGrange County death records, 1882-1924
  • Indexes of birth announcements published in the LaGrange Standard & News from 1977-1989
  • Indexes of obituaries published in the LaGrange Standard & News from 1977 to the present; 1977-1989 are indexed by name, and 1973-1974 and 1984 to the present are indexed by date.
  • An index of the cemeteries of LaGrange County, circa 1984
Genealogy at LaGrange County Library in LaGrange, Indiana
  • Microfilmed LaGrange County marriage records, 1832-1950
  • An index of LaGrange County marriages 1832-1880
  • W.P.A. index of LaGrange County marriages, 1880-1920
  • Microfilmed copies of:
    • The LaGrange Standard, 1863 to the present
    • The LaGrange News, 1929-1949, 1961-1978, and 1984 to the present
    • The Topeka Journal, 1905-1957
    • Scattered issues of other local newspapers
  • Microfilmed LaGrange County wills, 1842-1923
  • A LaGrange County grantee index, 1834-1860
  • Historical atlases of LaGrange County, 1874 and 1893
  • Histories of LaGrange County and the surrounding area
  • A W.P.A. index of local history books
  • A number of family histories
  • Amish directories for LaGrange County and surrounding areas, 1970, 1980, 1985, 1988, 1995, 1998, and 2002.
  • A large number of histories of other counties and other states, Ohio and Pennsylvania in particular.
  • A number of general reference and resource books for genealogists.

These materials may be used at the library any time the library is open.  They may not be checked out.

The LaGrange County Public Library has part-time genealogy volunteers on call.  We will attempt to answer any genealogy requests that we receive, but we ask genealogists to request only very specific pieces of information, please.  In addition, please supply as much background information as possible, so we’ll have something to work with.

We urge genealogists who need in-depth research to try consulting the LaGrange County Genealogist Barb Mulholland at BMulholland@embarqmail.com,  LaGrange INGenWeb’s Look Ups, the Indiana Genealogy Society’s Researchers List, or Allen County Public Library’s Genealogy Department for local assistance.

LaGrange County Court House

LaGrange County’s marriage, divorce, probate, and court records are kept in the County Clerk’s Office at the Court House.

County Clerk’s Office
Court House
105 N. Detroit St.
LaGrange, IN 46761
Phone: 260-499-6371

Hours:
Monday – Thursday: 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Friday: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.

LaGrange County Health Department

Indiana began keeping birth and death records in 1882.  Lagrange County’s birth and death records are kept at the LaGrange County Health Department, which is located across the street from Parkview LaGrange Hospital.

LaGrange County Health Department
304 N. Townline Road, Suite #1
LaGrange, IN 46761-1319
Phone: 260-499-4182 x221
Fax: 260-499-4189
kbills @ lagrangecounty.org

Hours:
Monday – Friday:  8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

LaGrange County Historical Societies

LaGrange County Historical Society
P.O. Box 134
LaGrange, IN 46761
Website
Facebook

Topeka Area Historical Society
123 Indiana St.
P.O. Box 33
Topeka, IN 46571
Website

Shipshewana Area Historical Society
P.O. Box 1889
Shipshewana, IN 46565
Email: sahs@ ligtel.com

Genealogy Department at LaGrange County Library in LaGrange, Indiana

NATIONAL / INTERNATIONAL

USGS Geographic Names Information System – Locate towns, townships, and geographic features.
USGenWeb Census Project
VitalRec.com – United States vital records information.
The Records Project – How to locate state and county public records.
Griffith’s Valuation – Irish landowners and/or tenants, 1848-1864
Order Book Civil
Civil War Rosters
Grand Army of the Republic Ledger
World War II Scrapbook
Social Security Death Index Interactive Search
FamilySearch – A service of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Mennonite Church USA Historical Committee and Archives
MennObits – Amish and Mennonite obituaries.
Cyndi’s List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet
Genealogy.com
The USGenWeb Project – This website provides you with links to all the state websites which, in turn, provide gateways to the counties.
The WorldGenWeb Project – A not-for-profit volunteer genealogical organization dedicated to the free access of genealogical information by anyone in the world.
The Genealogy Home Page – An extensive collection of links.
GeneaNet – Genealogical database network.  Available in 7 languages.
GEDCOM 101 – The basic principles and formats of a GEDCOM file.
AncestralFindings.com – One free genealogy lookup per day from a wide selection of databases.
Heraldry on the Internet
Free Genealogy Resources 
The Seeker – Find your missing friends and relatives.
Tribal Pages
Genealogysearch.org
Find a Grave