Give clues as to occupation and often lists buildings and fixed goods on the property
which go along with the sale.
Tax Records are also invaluable and are tied in with the land records as the land is
what most people paid taxes on. They are usually located in the Auditor's office and
date back as far back as the probates and land records do. They are indexed by both
the tax payer and the property legal address such as SW1/4 of NE1/4 of Twp 17, Range 7.
These legal descriptions of land often give descriptions based on locations of
rivers, hills, and rock formations which may have changed over the years. They help
locate your family within the county and indicate where else you might want to search
if they lived close to a major road, river, or railway or a county line.
The object of this lesson is search the grantee and grantor indexes of the county
your ancestor lived in and to record all sales of property to or from him and his
spouse. Make certain to record your searches and the time periods on your research
log. If you need to write to a courthouse for information, be specific and limit it
to a ten year period which is easily found in one book.
Point of Fact! Counties were sometimes formed from other counties or territories
and earlier records may be somewhere else. Make certain you're looking in the right place.
Find a local map for the time period you're searching and check out the county boundaries.