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Boone County:
Follow the surviving records around the 1856 fire.

Start with Lebanon's local indexes, compare Zionsville-area family material, and use the State Library guide to plan around documented record loss.

Addresses and access notes ↓

Boone County, Indiana: repository locations and selected major roadsI-65I-74I-865US 521,4,5,6Lebanon2,7ZionsvilleN ↑≈ 5 miles
Selected repository locations for present-day orientation. Numbers match the research stops below. Select a marker to open its stop. Locations are approximate, not entrances or driving directions. Grouped numbers identify nearby repositories; use the address key for individual locations.

Explore local streets and repository locations ↗

Not sure where to begin? Build a free three-step research plan → Choose your question, period and records already checked.

Explore records coverage by year ↓

Additional collection references

How to search and interpret selected collections ↓

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PLAN YOUR RESEARCH ROUTE

Match the stops to the repository

Several stops can lead to the same repository. Maps show selected verified locations, not every guide stop or every community represented in the records. Use each stop’s access instructions, including for online and out-of-county collections. Check access before traveling.

Other guide stops not shown on this map

These stops may be online collections, shared repositories or locations not yet confirmed for mapping. Follow the collection’s access instructions.

Map sources and limits

County outlines: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic boundaries . Selected major roads: 2024 TIGER/Line primary and secondary roads . Public repository addresses checked against the sources above, with approximate Census geocoder positions. Unmatched addresses and out-of-county repositories are listed in the key rather than assigned a guessed position. Markers identify contact locations, not collection coverage. Historical boundaries, township lines and current traffic conditions are not shown. Prepared November 4, 2026.

Sources checked October 24, 2026. Additional collection descriptions and access instructions checked November 4, 2026. Earlier repository corrections retained. Selected dates do not imply complete coverage.

Start with one connection.

Bring a person, a place, approximate years, and one question. A township, congregation, school, or employer may reveal records a surname search misses. The custodian can be outside the county.

STOP 01 / Lebanon · countywide

Lebanon Public Library: Ralph W. Stark Heritage Center

Look for a family in cemetery indexes, local publications, and community photographs.

The Virtual Heritage Center links Oak Hill Cemetery interment records, county indexes, digitized directories and newspapers, and Lebanon athletic films and statistics. Its online photograph collection includes images from the 19th through the 21st centuries, according to department staff in October 2026.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Start with the Heritage Center's named online categories. For materials not available online, contact department staff using the contact form at the bottom of the Heritage Center page. Include a surname, approximate dates, and any relevant index reference.

A question you can ask

Does the Oak Hill interment entry or obituary index lead to a fuller record for this person?

Keep in mind

An index entry is a route to a record. Sports and photograph collections cover selected events, not every resident.

STOP 02 / Zionsville · Boone County

SullivanMunce genealogy collection through Hussey-Mayfield Library

Search a local family-history collection outside the county seat.

Hussey-Mayfield's partnership with SullivanMunce provides catalog access to part of the center's genealogy holdings, focused on Zionsville, Boone County, and Indiana.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Use the library's Genealogy in the Catalog and SullivanMunce links. Ask which institution holds the selected title and confirm a research visit before traveling.

A question you can ask

Do you have a family file or local history for this surname in the Zionsville area?

Keep in mind

Only part of the collection is represented through the shared catalog. A compiled family history needs checking against its cited records.

STOP 03 / Indianapolis · county-specific holdings

Indiana State Library: Boone County research guide

Identify a record series before requesting an original.

The guide identifies Civil Order Book 1, 1832–1840 (ISLG 977.201 B724wf), early court records for 1836–1841, and a tract book. It warns that an 1856 fire destroyed nearly all earlier records in the Recorder, Treasurer, and Auditor offices.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Use the county guide to copy the title and call number, then search the State Library catalog or use its Ask-a-Librarian service to confirm access.

A question you can ask

Which surviving court or land sources can substitute for a missing pre-1856 deed?

Keep in mind

These are selected library holdings, often indexes or abstracts. The guide does not promise every original record or online images.

STOP 04 / Lebanon Public Library: Ralph W. Stark Heritage Center

Center Township trustee books, with a documented 1928 loss

Read the collection in context.

Collection 1000.1.8599 contains a trustee general record, approximately 1928–1934, and financial/appropriation entries for January 1963–September 1964. The finding aid records a 1928 fire that destroyed some trustee records.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Book an appointment with a Heritage librarian and request the collection number and series. The finding aid reports no access restrictions.

A question you can ask

Which original item covers this place and year, and how can I consult it?

Keep in mind

The first range is approximate. These two surviving volumes do not represent continuous township coverage or a complete poor-relief register.

STOP 05 / Lebanon Public Library: Ralph W. Stark Heritage Center

Township school attendance and Lebanon school-board minutes

Read the collection in context.

Boone County Schools includes Center/Perry attendance reports (1932–1938), Worth enrollment and teacher reports (1939–1943), and Lebanon school-board minutes (1908–July 1945). Separate grade-level roll books identify pupils.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Use the finding aid to specify township, school, grade, series and year; arrange a Heritage librarian appointment.

A question you can ask

Which original item covers this place and year, and how can I consult it?

Keep in mind

The original Center Township truant record is restricted because of fragility; ask about its transcript. The finding aid has an apparent reversed date for Perry Central permanent records, so that series is not date-matched.

STOP 06 / Lebanon Public Library: Ralph W. Stark Heritage Center

Lebanon directories and Boone County vital-record indexes

Read the collection in context.

The library lists individual city-directory years from 1893 through 2004, alongside birth, marriage, death and legal-record indexes. Consult the published inventory before choosing a year.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Ask Heritage staff for the selected directory or index; use the index citation to request the underlying record.

A question you can ask

Which original item covers this place and year, and how can I consult it?

Keep in mind

Directory holdings have many gaps. Index dates do not prove universal registration or original-record survival.

STOP 07 / SullivanMunce Cultural Center

Eagle Township family files and the 1935 street-name crosswalk

Read the collection in context.

The genealogy library collects Eagle Township family, business, church, school and residence histories. Its house-research page supplies a 1935 Zionsville street-name conversion list and an approximately 1878 map.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Search the online historical catalog, then ask the genealogy library about material not digitized. Call ahead for research assistance; staff availability differs from general museum hours.

A question you can ask

Which original item covers this place and year, and how can I consult it?

Keep in mind

The online catalog represents only part of the holdings. Street-name conversion helps place an address but does not establish who occupied a property.

Leave a trail another researcher can follow.

Save the repository, collection title, dates, volume, page or item identifier, link, and the date you consulted it. Follow an index to the original record when possible. Keep uncertain names and inferred relationships visibly separate from what the source states.

Return to the Indiana county map · Explore Ohio collections

Corrections or a useful collection? hello@brickwallprotocol.com

BOONE COUNTY / SELECTED RECORDS COVERAGE

Which collections cover your years?

Use these dated holdings to choose a next search. This is a selection of cataloged collections, not a complete inventory of Boone County records.

A range is a lead, not a guarantee. Bars show the dates stated by the cited catalog or inventory. They do not establish uninterrupted coverage, complete reporting or online image access. Unmarked years mean not represented in this selection, not that records were destroyed. Indexes and abstracts still need to be followed to the underlying record.

Sources reviewed October 26, 2026. Blue shows cataloged holdings; rust identifies indexes or compiled publications where the source specifies them. Read the format label and access notes for each row.

inventory overview bounds

Marriage microfilm holdings

Listed years: 1831–1957.

Source, access and coverage limits

Open the inventory and match the year to a specific item, title and call number. Ask the Indiana State Library about viewing the microfilm or any digital counterpart. The overview may combine indexes and record volumes; its bounds do not promise an uninterrupted series.

Keep in mind: Selected Indiana State Library holdings. Microfilm overview bounds can include indexes and multiple volumes; consult item-level entries for gaps. These are not countywide survival dates or an assurance of online images.

inventory overview bounds

Deeds microfilm holdings

Listed years: 1856–1889.

Source, access and coverage limits

Open the inventory and match the year to a specific item, title and call number. Ask the Indiana State Library about viewing the microfilm or any digital counterpart. The overview may combine indexes and record volumes; its bounds do not promise an uninterrupted series.

Keep in mind: Selected Indiana State Library holdings. Microfilm overview bounds can include indexes and multiple volumes; consult item-level entries for gaps. These are not countywide survival dates or an assurance of online images.

inventory overview bounds

Wills microfilm holdings

Listed years: 1833–1877, 1879–1924.

Source, access and coverage limits

Open the inventory and match the year to a specific item, title and call number. Ask the Indiana State Library about viewing the microfilm or any digital counterpart. The overview may combine indexes and record volumes; its bounds do not promise an uninterrupted series.

Keep in mind: Selected Indiana State Library holdings. Microfilm overview bounds can include indexes and multiple volumes; consult item-level entries for gaps. These are not countywide survival dates or an assurance of online images.

inventory overview bounds

Probates microfilm holdings

Listed years: 1830–1921.

Source, access and coverage limits

Open the inventory and match the year to a specific item, title and call number. Ask the Indiana State Library about viewing the microfilm or any digital counterpart. The overview may combine indexes and record volumes; its bounds do not promise an uninterrupted series.

Keep in mind: Selected Indiana State Library holdings. Microfilm overview bounds can include indexes and multiple volumes; consult item-level entries for gaps. These are not countywide survival dates or an assurance of online images.

Confirm the historical jurisdiction as well as the date. A record may be held outside today’s county, and an inventory’s ending year does not mean recordkeeping stopped.

Check historical jurisdiction → · Find collections for my years →

FOLLOW THE COLLECTION

Additional collection references

Official catalog descriptions checked October 25, 2026. These notes identify research routes, not completed name-level searches.

W. W. Atchison’s 1861 Zionsville letter

Indiana Historical Society collection SC 2574 consists of a letter dated June 22, 1861, written from Zionsville by W. W. Atchison to his father. It offers a narrow contemporary lead for the Boone County Civil War setting.

How to begin: Read the finding aid, then contact the society’s library using SC 2574 and the letter date. Ask whether a reproduction can be consulted instead of handling the original.

What remains uncertain: The finding aid explicitly marks the item fragile. This single letter is not a militia roster or a general Boone County family collection; its relevance depends on the person or question being researched.

BEFORE YOU SEARCH

Understand the collection. Choose your next step.

Two selected collections, with practical ways to search and interpret the result. These are research suggestions, not findings about a particular person.

  1. Choose a source
  2. Check its limits
  3. Search and record
  4. Follow the next lead
Selected local collection

Center Township trustee general record

What it can tell you
Trustee records can place a family in the local administration of township affairs between censuses.

Selected listed years: 1928–1934

Date overlap is a lead, not a guarantee of complete coverage.

How to search, request and interpret this collection

Coverage and gaps
The first range is approximate. These two surviving volumes do not represent continuous township coverage or a complete poor-relief register. Approximate dates; surviving volume, not all township business.

How to search
Read the entry in its surrounding pages, noting the action, date, residence and named officials. Do not assume every person received relief.

How to retrieve it
Ask Lebanon Heritage Center for Center Township Records, collection 1000.1.8599, general record approximately 1928–1934.

Practical access
Book an appointment with a Heritage librarian and request the collection number and series. The finding aid reports no access restrictions.

If nothing turns up
The finding aid documents loss of some trustee records in the 1928 fire. Surviving volumes are not a complete account of township residents.

Read the collection source ↗

Source review: 2026-11-04; repository descriptions and finding aids checked, individual records not inspected. Search and interpretation suggestions are BWP guidance.

Then try this

Compare the family with township school attendance where appropriate.

Follow this research route →

Match collections to your research years →

Selected local collection

Worth Township enrollment and teacher reports

What it can tell you
Enrollment and teacher reports can distinguish similarly named children through school, age, grade and attendance context.

Selected listed years: 1939–1943

Date overlap is a lead, not a guarantee of complete coverage.

How to search, request and interpret this collection

Coverage and gaps
The original Center Township truant record is restricted because of fragility; ask about its transcript. The finding aid has an apparent reversed date for Perry Central permanent records, so that series is not date-matched. Specific series, not all township education records.

How to search
Identify the township and school first, then read neighboring entries for possible siblings or classmates. Treat those relationships as leads.

How to retrieve it
Request Boone County Schools, Series II.C.2, Worth Township enrollment and teacher reports, 1939–1943, from the Heritage Center.

Practical access
Use the finding aid to specify township, school, grade, series and year; arrange a Heritage librarian appointment.

If nothing turns up
A missed pupil may reflect another school, a date gap or incomplete attendance. It does not establish absence from the county.

Read the collection source ↗

Source review: 2026-11-04; repository descriptions and finding aids checked, individual records not inspected. Search and interpretation suggestions are BWP guidance.

Then try this

Use the directory inventory to test the household’s location.

Follow this research route →

Match collections to your research years →

HELP KEEP THIS GUIDE USEFUL

Know a collection we should include?

Suggest a correction, an overlooked collection or an updated access detail. An official link or source helps us check it before making a change. Please leave out private family documents and sensitive personal information.

Suggest a correction or collection

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