Bates County, Missouri Genealogical Records Information

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Bates County History and Information

Bates County Facts

Bates County was organized January 29, 1841, from Van Buren (now Cass) County and named for Frederick Bates, the second governor of Missouri. The County Seat is Butler. See also County History or Courthouse History for more historical details.

Bates County has Birth & Death Records from 1883-1907, Court Records from 1858, Marriage Records from 1860 and Land Records from 1839, Probate Records from 1845 and the Health Department has Birth & Death Records from 1910-Present. See Court Records for more details

Counties adjacent to Bates County are Cass County (north), Henry County (northeast), St. Clair County (southeast), Vernon County (south), Linn County, Kansas (west), Miami County, Kansas (northwest).

Cities and Towns include Adrian, Amoret, Amsterdam, Butler, Drexel, Foster, Hume, Merwin, Passaic, Rich Hill, Rockville

Bates County, Missouri History Books at Amazon.com
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There are free downloadable and printable forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms, U.K. Census Extraction Forms, Research Calendar, Ancestral Chart, Research Extract, Correspondence Record , Family Group Sheet , Source Summary Form.

Bates County Court Records

See Also Missouri Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.
Courthouse burned in 1861, some record loss.

All Departments below are in the Bates County Courthouse located at 1 N. Delaware, Butler, MO 64730; Telephone: (660) 679-3371, unless otherwise noted below. The Official County website is located at http://www.batescounty.net/ . See also Courthouse History.

Bates County Clerk of the Court has Permanent record of births, 1883-1886; Register of births and stillbirths, 1883-1907; Register of deaths, 1883-1893.
In this office in each county is located an index to common pleas, records of all extant proceedings, chancery minute books, records of births and deaths, county court records, right-of-way and road records, as well as surveyor's records (including field notes and plats made by the county surveyor). This office usually holds the county treasurer's notes, bonds and commissions, records of marks and brands, wolf scalps, stray notices, real estate assessments, and tax books. In some counties, early terms for this court included “Chancery” or the “Court of Common Pleas.”

Bates Register of Deeds / Recorder has Index to deeds, 1839-1887; Deed records, 1839-1930; Mortgage deeds, 1881-1893; Deeds of trust, 1881-1893; Marriage records, 1860-1919.
The Office of Recorder of Deeds records and files instruments of writing affecting real property or personal property, subdivision plats, federal and state tax liens, and other instruments of writing. Also, the Recorder’s Office issues marriage licenses, and in accordance with the Uniform Commercial Code files termination statements. All recorded instruments are available for public research.

In the smaller counties, probate matters are handled in the same office as the associate circuit court office. (In larger counties, there will be a separate probate court clerk's office and separate probate judges/commissioners).

Bates County Probate Court Clerk has Probate records, 1852-1887; Administrator’s/executor’s letters, bonds and records, 1854-1905; Inventories, appraisements and sale bills, 1865-1912; Proof of publication, notices and affidavits, 1877-191 2; Settlement records, 1877-1887; Guardian’s/curator’s records, 1871-1914; Will records, 1871-1914.

Bates County Circuit Court Clerk has Circuit court records, 1858-1885.
This office holds the direct index to records such as divorces, debt, dissolution of partnerships, adoptions, judgment, and tax fee books including direct and indirect indexes. They also retain the index to criminal records and criminal files of the circuit court. Adoptions are under the jurisdiction of the circuit court. Naturalization records, including petitions, declarations of intention, certificates, and certificates of allegiance, and granting of citizenship are also located in the clerk's office, as well as an index to civil case files. Some naturalization records have been found with the deeds.

There are a few online databases for Court, Land and Probate Records which include:Missouri Marriages, 1766-1983, Missouri Marriages to 1850, Missouri Marriages, 1851-1900. You may also search the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or Land Patents: 1831 - 1969. Many pioneers and settelers bought land from the government instead of individuals.

Click Here to Search Missouri Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Below is a list of online resources for Bates County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Bates County Court Records by clicking the link below:

Bates County, Missouri Court Books at Amazon.com
Missouri Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.

Bates County Vital Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

The Missouri Historical Society has some original tax records; others can be found in the Western Historical Manuscript Collection at the University of Missouri, but most extant records remain in the office of the clerk of the county court. The Missouri State Archives has microfilmed some tax records for the counties of Boone, Callaway, Cape Girardeau, Chariton, Clay, Cooper, Franklin, Howard, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, St. Charles, St. Francois, and Ste. Genevieve.

Prior to 1850, purchasers of the federal lands in Missouri were exempt from land taxes for five years after purchase. If one finds an ancestor on a Missouri tax list with livestock, etc., but no land being taxed, the individual may have purchased his land from the government within the preceding five years.
Some early delinquent tax lists were sent to the state auditor's office and are now located in the Capitol Fire Documents held by the Missouri State Archives

Below is a list of online resources for Bates County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Bates County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

Bates County, Missouri Tax Books at Amazon.com

Bates County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Missouri Genealogical Addresses

The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Bates County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Bates County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

Bates County Museum/Historical Society, 100 East Fort Scott, Butler, MO. 64730; 660-679-4777
The BC Historical Society/Museum does not do genealogy. The Bates County Historical Society is the parent group that runs the museum, we deal in displays and artifacts. Any genealogy requests are handled through the Bates County Genealogy Society.
Bates County Genealogy Society, 100 West Atkinson, Butler, MO. 64730; 660-679-4321
Bates County Old Settlers’ Society , Route 4, Butler, MO 64730
Heart of America Genealogical Society and Library
c/o Kansas City Public Library, 311 East Twelfth Street, Kansas City, MO 64106
West Central Missouri Genealogical Society and Library
705 Broad Street, Warrensburg, MO 64093-2032; Phone: (660) 747-6264, [EMAIL]
Local Missouri Researchers, Find a local researcher or become a local researcher.
Missouri State Archives, Missouri State Information Center, [EMAIL]
P.O. Box 1747, 600 West Main Str, Jefferson City, MO 65102; Phone:(573) 751-3280, Fax: (573) 526-7333
State Historical Society of Missouri, 1020 Lowry Str., Columbia, MO 65201-7298; (573) 882-7083, [EMAIL]
Missouri State Genealogical Association, P.O. Box 833, Columbia, MO 65205-0833
Missouri Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
See the Society page for more statewide Societies and archives
Missouri Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com

Bates County Church & Cemeteries

Click Here to Search Missouri Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Bates County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Bates County Tombstone Transcription Project.

The Missouri State Archives has published A Brief Guide to Church Records on Microfilm which is a county by county listing, but it is currently out of print. The available church records can be located by using the Archives' Manuscript Register. Church microfilm rolls are not available for purchase, without written consent of the individual church, and must otherwise be used at the Missouri State Archives. The Western Historical Manuscript Collection on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus holds some church records. These can be located by using their descriptive catalogue or microfiche guide. Most church records in Missouri are scattered and remain in private hands

There is no central registry for cemeteries located in Missouri. The following national cemeteries are located in Missouri:

Springfield National Cemetery, 1702 E. Seminole Street, Springfield, Missouri 65804. All known soldiers buried there, including those transferred from towns throughout southwest Missouri were published in Ozar'kin
Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, 101 Memorial Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63125. There is a card file reference to persons interred there. Inquiries may be made by phone or mail.
Jefferson City National Cemetery, 1024 E. McCarty Street, Jefferson City, Missouri 65101. The researcher may phone or write the Jefferson Barracks for information.

Below is a list of online resources for Bates County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Bates County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

Missouri Bible Records, Volume 1: The database is the first volume in a series of Bible records that includes such information as births, marriages, probate information, and deaths of individuals who settled in Missouri.
Bates County, Missouri Cemetery Books at Amazon.com
Bates County, Missouri Church Books at Amazon.com

Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Click Here to Search Missouri Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Bates County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Bates County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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Sites on USGenweb: [ Bates County ] [ Missouri ] [ Main Page ]
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Bates County, Missouri Family Books at Amazon.com

County History

Bates County was named in honor of Frederick Bates, the second governor of Missouri, who died in office August 14, 1825. Missionaries from New York settled the first community in Bates County, Harmony Mission, for the purpose of educating Indians. When Bates County organized and separated from Cass County in 1841, county commissioners selected Harmony Mission as the first county seat, presumably because of the established development and central location.

After first meeting in a private home, subsequent courts met in the Mission House until 1847 when the county seat moved to Papinville, three miles southeast of Harmony Mission.

Orders for building the first courthouse, at Papinville, came in November 1852, when the court appointed Freeman Barrows superintendent and appropriated $2,500. The following month Barrows submitted a plan and the court accepted bids. But, in August 1853 Abraham Redfield replaced Barrows as superintendent and produced plans and specifications prepared by Fritzpatrick and Hurt from Benton County (Fritzpatrick’s name also appears as Fitzpatrick.) The court appropriated $4,200 for the 35-by-60-foot brick building. It was completed in 1855. After 1856, when the county seat moved to Butler, Philip Seal bought the courthouse and converted it to business use. Destruction by fire came in 1861, during the Civil War.

In 1855, after an area separated to become Vernon County, Papinville was no longer near the geographic center of Bates County. The original plan for dividing Butler’s land into building lots, commonly called a plat, was filed and recorded in August 1853. Fifty-five acres donated to the county induced officials to move the county seat to Butler in 1856. The court ordered 50-by-50-foot brick courthouse at an estimated cost of $5,000. Fritzpatrick and Hurt again served as contractors. This building, too, burned in 1861.

Because of the attack on Lawrence, Kansas by Missouri guerrillas, on August 25, 1863 the infamous Order #11 was issued by General Thomas Ewing [click on these websites Missouri and the Civil War and GENERAL ORDER for more details]. This order forced all residents of Bates and Cass Counties to vacate their homes within 15 days. Bates County was put to the torch as Missouri endured 1,100 of the 6,600 engagements and battles fought in the Civil War. During this time courts were held in locations other than the county seat. In May 1864 the court met at Johnstown. The legislature recognized Pleasant Gap as the official county seat in 1865, and the sheriff was ordered to prepare a clerk’s office and courtroom.

At the end of the Civil War, Bates County citizens returned to find burnt out structures, a devastated county seat and desolate land. At the November 1865 term, the court appropriated $750 for clerk’s office and courthouse. The courthouse was to measure 16 by 24 feet, the clerk’s office 16 feet square, and both 10 feet high. Later appropriations raised the sum to $1,100. John D. Meyers, county clerk, served as superintendent, and the court authorized him to select the for this interim courthouse. Old settlers recalled the frame building situated in the northeast corner of the square.

After several attempts, plans for the 1869 courthouse crystallized. Plans of architect P. B. Leach and specifications submitted by Samuel Ward were adopted. In April 1869 the court awarded the building contract to J. B. Linkenpaughfor $23,000. Cornerstone ceremonies, held on July 15, 1869, were reported in the Bates County Record, then reprinted in the 1883 History.

This 75-foot-square brick building, in the center of the 300-foot public square, had five rooms on the first floor, three on the second and two large rooms on the third floor, leased by local civic or fraternal organizations. In 1899, after being declared unsafe, the building was sold for $500 to the highest bidder, J. S. Francisco.

The court moved into new quarters in January 1900. A successful election for $40,000 in bonds was supplemented by $10,000 from general funds. This provided $50,000 for a new courthouse. George McDonald was chosen architect for the 80-by-105-foot building. The courthouse of 1901 is similar to three other Missouri 19th century courthouses by the same architect: Andrew County, 1899; Johnson County, 1896; and Lawrence County, 1900. Contractors for this building, which was built with Carthage stone, were Bartlett and Kling, Galesburg, Illinois. Excavation began during July 1901; the cornerstone was laid October 10, 1901, and the court accepted the completed building, which is still in use as the Bates County courthouse, in July 1902.

COUNTY ORGANIZATION

At the session of the general assembly in the winter of 1840-1841 "An Act was passed to organize counties therein named , and defined the boundaries thereof." Under that act fourteen countries were organized, of which Bates County was one , and is comprised in sections 34-35 and 36, of the act above.

BATES COUNTY

"SECTION 34. All that portion of territory included within the following description limits, via: Beginning on the western boundary line of this state, at the southwest corner of Van Buren County; thence east to the southeast corner of said county; thence south on the range line and 34; thence west on said township line to the western line of the state; thence north on said line to the place of beginning, is hereby created a separate and distinct county, to be called and known by the name of the county of Bates.

Sec 35. Thomas b. Arnot, of the county of VanBuren; Robert M. White, of Johnson County, and Cornelius Davy, of Jackson County, are hereby appointed commissioners to select the permanent seat of justice for said county."

"Sec. 36. The circuit and county courts for said county shall be held at James Allen’s , at the old Harmony Mission, until the permanent seat of justice is established, or the county court shall otherwise direct. "

Approved January 29, 1841.

AN ACT ATTACHING PART OF CASS TO BATES COUNTY.

On the 22nd day of February, 1855, an act was approved attaching a part of Cass County to Bates; that act reads:

Section 1. All that part of Cass County included in and made part of the late county of Vernon by an act entitled. "An act to establish the county of Vernon, " approved the 17th of February, 1851, and which late county of Vernon was afterwards decided to be unconstitutional, is hereby attached to and made part of Bates County.

Sec. 2. All the justices of the peace and constables now acting in that part of Cass here added to Bates are hereby empowered to hold and discharge the duties of their respective offices in the county of Bates until the next general election, but should any of them neglect or refuse so to do, then the county court of Bates are authorized to supply their places by appointment.

Not only was a portion of Cass County (the part above referred to) once a portion of Vernon County, but Vernon included as well the county of Bates. The act of the legislature establishing Vernon County was approved February 17, 1851, and was as follows:

All the territory included in the following limits, to wit: Beginning on the western boundary line of the state of Missouri, at the section corner dividing sections seven and eighteen (18) in township thirty-eight, of range thirty-three; thence east with the line dividing said sections to the line of St. Clair County; thence north with the line separating the counties of Bates and St. Clair to the southwest corner of Henry County; thence continuing north with the line separating Cass and Henry Counties, to the middle of the main channel of Grand River; thence up the main channel of Grand River to the line dividing townships forty-two and forty-three; thence west with the line separating said township forty-two and three, to said western boundary line; thence south with said boundary line to the beginning, is hereby created a separate and distinct county, for all civil and military purposes, to be called the county of Vernon, in honor of Miles Vernon, of Laclede County.

It will thus be seen that Vernon County embraced Bates and the southern parts of Cass. The southern part of Cass. The new county, however was to remain such, provided the people residing in the territory included therein should ratify the act at the polls in August, 1851.

The act creating the new county of Vernon was soon declared unconstitutional, which left the county of Bates as originally erected until 1855, when as stated the southern part of Cass was added to it. During the same year (1855) Vernon County, as now formed, was organized and a portion of the southern part of Bates that was added to Vernon was two miles in width and thirty miles in length.

Courthouse History
Missionaries from New York settled the first community in Bates County, Harmony Mission, for the purpose of educating Indians. When Bates County organized and separated from Cass County in 1841, county commissioners selected Harmony Mission as the first county seat, presumably because of the established development and central location.

After first meeting in a private home, subsequent courts met in the Mission House until 1847 when the county seat moved to Papinville, three miles southeast of Harmony Mission.

Orders for building the first courthouse, at Papinville, came in November 1852, when the court appointed Freeman Barrows superintendent and appropriated $2,500. The following month Barrows submitted a plan and the court accepted bids. But, in August 1853 Abraham Redfield replaced Barrows as superintendent and produced plans and specifications prepared by Fritzpatrick and Hurt from Benton County. (Fritzpatrick's name also appears as Fitzpatrick.) The court appropriated $4,200 for the 35-by-60-foot brick building. It was completed in 1855. After 1856, when the county seat moved to Butler, Philip Zeal brought the courthouse and converted it to business use. Destruction by fire came in 1861, during the Civil War.

In 1855, after an area separated to become Vernon County, Papinville was no longer near the geographic center of Bates County. The original plan for dividing Butler's land into building lots, commonly called a plat, was filed and recorded in August 1853. Fifty-five acres donated to the county induced officials to move the county seat to Butler in 1856. The court ordered a 50-by-50-foot brick courthouse at an estimated cost of $5,000. Fritzpatrick and Hurt again served as contractors. This building, too, burned in 1861.

During the Civil War courts were held in locations other than the county seat. In May 1864 the court met at Johnstown. The legislature recognized Pleasant Gap as the official county seat in 1865, and the sheriff was ordered to prepare a clerk's office and courtroom.

At the end of the Civil War, Bates County citizens returned to a devastated county seat. At the November 1865 term, the court appropriated $750 for a clerk's office and courthouse. The courthouse was to measure 16 by 24 feet, the clerk's office 16 feet square, and both 10 feet high. Later appropriations raised the sum to $1,100. John D. Meyers, county clerk, served as superintendent, and the court authorized him to select the site for this interim courthouse. Old settlers recalled the frame building situated in the northeast corner of the square.

After several attempts, plans for the 1869 courthouse crystallized. Plans of architect P.B. Leach and specifications submitted by Samuel Ward were adopted. In April 1869 the court awarded the building contract to J.B. Linkenpaugh for $23,000. Cornerstone ceremonies, held on July 15, 1869, were reported in the History.

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