Lou’s View

It’s a very common conversational exchange—If not for everyone, then at least for me. “You’re the history writer, right?” people ask me. “Hey, can I get the history on my house?”

“Sure,” I say. “Let me explain how you can do that.”

Almost instantly, they are discouraged. They didn’t realize it would involve some sort of effort on their part. They assumed it was like fast food, where you just say what you want and it’s handed to you within two minutes. They assumed, I don’t know, I’m carrying a bunch of house brochures in my pockets or something.

A property can be researched. Anyone can find out the history of any property, and it’s not all that hard, once you’re a little familiar with the process. But it does require a little time and effort.

I usually start by going to the Assessment office, and asking for the assessment record. It’s important to know that this stuff is all public information—Nobody can legally prevent you from getting it. The assessment will have the most recent deed numbers on it. Armed with those, now I go to the Register and Recorder’s office, in the courthouse annex. (Depending on where you live, this office may be called something different, but it’ll always be there, and always have the same function.)

Deeds are organized by books and pages. The assessment record will say something like “Deed Book 2003 Page 2528.” (That is literally the deed to my own house.) The books have the numbers on the spine, so it’s simply a matter of finding the right book, and then the right page.

At this point, people’s eyes start to glaze over. “But I don’t understand why you can’t just give me the history of my house,” they say.

“Do you think someone’s written a paperback about your house specifically?” I ask. “This is how you get the history of your house. Shut up and listen.”

Each deed will have a clause that starts with the word “being.” It will read something like “Being the same property sold in 2008 and recorded in Book 346, Page 670.” And bingo! There’s the next deed to find. Doing this, you can trace any property in the county back to the county’s beginning. In our case, that’s 1839, which should cover about eighty percent of the buildings in Clinton County.

Make note of the dates, the buyers, the sellers, and the price. (You’ll see properties sold for one dollar a lot, which usually means family.) Also make note of a sentence that starts with “improvements,” as in “Improvements include a two-story frame dwelling with detached garage.” (Again, quoted from my very own deed.) This is the legal was of describing what’s been built on the land. If you go far enough back, the improvements clause won’t be there, and that’s likely an indication to when the house was built. If there’s no improvements clause, you’re looking at an empty lot.

“But that’s not what I’m interested in,” the person will now complain. “I want the dramatic stuff, all the death and excitement!”

Once again, shut up. We’re getting there. Do you think all the death, injury, and drama happened to the house?

No. Houses just sit there. They don’t do anything. The stuff you want to know about happened to the people inside the house, and if you’ve followed my instructions (Never a given, I’ve learned) you now have a list of them from the deeds.

Now go to wherever you can find obituaries and cemetery records. In Clinton County, this will be the local public library. Look up the names of the homeowners, and find their obits in the old newspapers. Now you’re getting to it—Now you have all the stuff you’ve been dying to find out.

It’s not quick, and it’s not simple. But it’s not impossible, either. And a lot of what you find out is fascinating, and isn’t that worth the extra effort?