THE BRICK WALL
PROTOCOLGENEALOGY · BEYOND THE SEARCH BOX
BRICK WALL PROTOCOL / FREE GUIDES

Orange County:
Quaker minutes, local family material and early land records.

Start with the meeting or community, not just the surname. Religious and land records may connect families across county boundaries.

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 ↓

Community history groups and access notes · Additional collection references

Sources checked October 25, 2026. Based on public institutional descriptions and collection catalogs; no staff confirmation or onsite inspection. Confirm access before visiting.

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 / Paoli

Paoli Public Library: local-history and genealogy collection

Ask about family material that may never appear in a web search.

The library’s collection policy describes a noncirculating genealogy and local-history collection and acceptance of family histories and genealogical papers.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Contact the library with the family and period, and ask for relevant catalog entries or donated material before planning a visit.

A question you can ask

Do you hold a family history or local paper collection for this surname?

Keep in mind

The policy establishes the collection’s purpose, not the presence of a particular family file. Confirm current access and specific holdings.

STOP 02 / Indianapolis / Orange County

Indiana Historical Society: Lick Creek and Paoli Friends records

Meeting minutes can reveal a family’s movement and community ties.

The Friends finding aid lists Lick Creek men’s minutes beginning in 1813, marriage records for 1813–1850 and 1852–1870, and Paoli joint minutes for 1902–1949.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Ask IHS about reels F 1574 and F 1673 and the relevant bound marriage volume, BV 0543. Select a meeting, record type and date range.

A question you can ask

Is there a membership or transfer entry associated with this marriage?

Keep in mind

The finding aid says these microfilms are not available through interlibrary loan. A meeting’s records do not include everyone living nearby.

STOP 03 / Indianapolis / statewide

Indiana State Library: Orange County holdings

Turn a county index into a precise request for the underlying record.

Selected holdings include early county land records and supplemental marriage indexing for 1880–1920.

Research details & a question to ask

How to begin

Open the county guide, copy the title and call number, then check the catalog or ask the library about format and access before visiting.

A question you can ask

Can this land entry be linked to a tract description and the original transaction?

Keep in mind

These are selected library holdings, often indexes or transcripts. A listed date range does not guarantee every event survives or that original images are online.

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

ORANGE 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 Orange 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: 1816–1958.

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: 1816–1901.

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: 1816–1943.

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: 1816–1922.

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.

West Baden Springs photograph album

Indiana Historical Society’s General Picture Collection includes a small album of West Baden hotel interiors, exteriors, grounds, springs and a dairy.

How to begin: Ask for the West Baden Springs album, box 7, folder 12, using the finding aid.

What remains uncertain: Dates and individual identifications require item-level checking. These are place-history images, not a guest register.

COMMUNITY MEMORY

Community history groups and research leads

Local communities can help identify a place, photograph or possible source. These independently run groups are community leads, not catalogued archives or BWP partners. Keep the contributor, date, basis for an identification and original source together. Ask permission before republishing photographs or private contributions.

Facebook identities and visible access information checked October 25, 2026. Verification here concerns the group, not the accuracy of its members’ posts. No groups were joined and no messages were sent.

Orange County, Indiana, Genealogy

Private, discoverable Facebook group

An Orange County, Indiana genealogy-community lead, with Paoli identified in its location information.

Access and rules: Facebook lists a private, visible group. Request membership through Facebook; administrators decide admission. Read the current description and rules before posting.

Verification limits: The group identity, location and visible access information were checked. Member posts and particular holdings were not independently verified. Preserve source details and ask permission before reusing photographs or private contributions.

Open Orange County, Indiana, Genealogy on Facebook

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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