Indexes and transcriptions of Ripley County records compiled by RCHS members and volunteers. To get copies of anything listed here, please contact RCHS or see our research request policy.
Vital Records
Birth Records, 1882–1917
About 11,000 entries
Name indexes extracted from the county Health Department record books held by RCHS.
1882–87 · 1888–91 · 1891–95 · 1891–95 (book 2) · 1895–99 · 1899–1903 · 1906–07 · 1906–07 (book 2) · 1907–12 · 1912–17
Court decreed births · Getting birth & death certificates
Marriages, 1818–1880
About 12,000 entries
Marriage records from the Toph Papers, by year and by surname, plus out-of-county licenses.
IGI marriage files: Davidson · Davison · Davisson (courtesy of Chuck Davidson)
Cemeteries & Interments
About 19,000 burials
Burials recorded in roughly 150 county cemeteries, many first gathered by Violet Toph in the 1930s, with location maps.
St. Magdalene Catholic Cemetery
About 600 entries
New Marion burials, moved in 1941 for the Jefferson Proving Ground, with early and later church burials.
Land, Wills & Court Records
Wills Index, 1821–1896
About 1,100 entries
Index to Ripley County wills by surname, plus a transcription of Will Book B.
A–B · C–D · E–F · G–H · I–J · K–L · M–N · O–P · R–S · T–V · W–Z
Will Book B · Will of William Ross, Sr. (1839) · Joshua Wilson estate
First Land Owners
About 2,300 entries
The first purchasers of Ripley County land, by surname.
A–B · C–D · E–F · G–H · I–J · K–L · M–N · O–P · R · S · T–U · V–W · Y–Z
Deeds
Transcribed Ripley County deeds.
Insanity Commitments
About 150 entries
County court records of commitments, including to Central State Hospital in Indianapolis.
Coroner’s Inquests, 1908–1912
Index of county coroner inquests.
Military, Church & Census
Veterans (DD214s)
About 4,300 entries
Discharge records compiled by former county Veterans Officer Harold Hopkins, plus Civil War discharges.
Methodist Circuit Riders, 1832–1851
Indiana Conference preacher appointments, year by year.
Collections & Tools
The People’s History
Violet Toph’s index to a collection of Ripley County anecdotes, families and institutions.
The Toph Papers
6,000+ pages
Surname index to the genealogy collection Violet Toph gathered in the 1930s.
Townships
A map of each of the 11 townships and the cemeteries found in each.
Research Helps
Tools for working with older records.
Decipher German handwriting
Formation of Indiana counties
Research tips & links
