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CCGS will award certificates to any descendant of an early Clarke County, Iowa, resident who meets the requirements and sends proof. The information submitted to prove a descent will be kept on file in the Genealogy-Local History Room of Osceola Public Library. It will help all researchers and will foster new contacts between descendants. Certificates will be printed on attractive 8 x 11 parchment paper suitable for framing.
The applicant must furnish proof that their ancestor was in the county by either 1856 (for the Pioneer Certificate) or 1895 (for the Settler certificate), and of the applicant's direct descent from the Clarke County, Iowa ancestor. The ancestor may have lived in the county from say 1860 and moved before 1895, but will still qualify for a Settler Certificate. It is not necessary that the applicant live in Clarke County, now or ever.
Print and then fill in the application, giving all the desired information for the early Clarke County resident and his or her family. Applicatons may be submitted for more than one pioneer ancestor. Any number of descendants may apply from the same ancestor. The certificates may be given as gifts in another person's name. Just fill in their name on the application and their descent from the pioneer or settler on the Ancestor chart.
Fill in a five-generation Ancestor Chart. Begin with yourself (or the name of the applicant) as number one. Number two is your father, number three is your mother, etc. Continue backwards in this manner to your pioneer ancestor.
Submit, with your application, a photocopy of one or more of the following acceptable sources of proof. Do NOT send your original records as we will not be returning them! You will need to prove that your ancestor was here by 1856 to qualify for a Pioneer Certificate, or by 1895 to qualify for a Settler Certificate. You may send as many proofs as you wish; they will all be a part of your ancestor's file in the library collection.
A. Census records, federal or Iowa (Iowa's censuses were 1856, 1885, 1895, etc.)
B. Land records - a photocopy of the deed with book and page numbers.
C. County history - a photocopy from the Clarke County Historical & Biographical Record , 1886, Lewis Publishing, establishing a date of settlement in the county.
D. Marriage records - a photocopy of the record with book and page numbers.
E. Will or Probate records - photocopy of the record with book and page or drawer and case numbers.
F. Tax records - photocopy with documentation of the book and location of record.
G. Church records - photocopy with documentation. (No Bible records as proof, please; they don't prove location. You may add them to your file, however.)
H. Birth & Death records from Clarke County records can serve as proof of residence before 1895 for the Settler Certificate. Please send photocopy with book and page numbers.
Mail your completed application, proof of descent, ancestor chart, and a check or money order for $5.00 payable to Clarke County Genealogical Society to 300 South Fillmore, Osceola, Iowa 50213.
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