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Answers (8)
- Kristi Coy, "KristiCoy"
- Contributions:99
You can probably get a lot of the information you want by contacting Chicago Title Company in your area and asking to talk with a title officer. Depending on what information you want, it's a great place to start.
- frisky1
- Contributions:448
Look at antique maps of your area--the Library of Congress American Memory collection (google it) has great antique state maps--make note of any and every village/place name you can find anywhere near your house. Then google those villages/place names to see if you can find any local maps or history books that cover those areas. You may also start finding local family names tied to those areas. and check your county library (hopefully their catalog is online)--guaranteed they have all the relevant local history books. We found a drawing of our house and the owner's name on an 1802 survey of 1000 acres surrounding a forge in a neighboring town. Best case, you'll find a large transfer of land which includes your property--otherwise it can be tough to find info on land before there was a house on it.
For a deed search, the way to start is to look at your current deed, which must be 70 years old but somewhere in your family's posession (if you don't have it, the courthouse records have indexes where you can look up your family name). That deed should reference the previous deed--and will give the book and page number. Each previous deed will reference the deed before it and usually include the book and page on whch it was recorded. Some exceptions might be sheriff sales or other odd transfers--they weren't always so careful to list the previous deed--sometimes you can hit a dead end and have to scan the books around the time of the sheriff sale to find the previous deed. When you have the names of the people in the deeds, you can search the county's inventory books to see what their possessions were when they died.
- saintnarcissus
- Contributions:3
Thanks much James and the rest of you. I'll plan to carve out some time to visit the courthouse next time I make the trip down there.
- James Ryan, "GreatRateFolks"
- Contributions:1038
Hi Saintnarcissus....
Your search starts at the County Courthouse and your County Historical Society, in that order. You are fortunate in some county records in MD go back almost 400 years and most MD historical societies also have records back that far. It sounds like a fun search, and I wish you luck....please come back and update us with any interesting information you find. Oh, and your county records may be online, check there first! Jim Ryan, Home Savings of America.
Your search starts at the County Courthouse and your County Historical Society, in that order. You are fortunate in some county records in MD go back almost 400 years and most MD historical societies also have records back that far. It sounds like a fun search, and I wish you luck....please come back and update us with any interesting information you find. Oh, and your county records may be online, check there first! Jim Ryan, Home Savings of America.
- saintnarcissus
- Contributions:3
Well I am not buying or selling the property, it has been in my family for about 65 or 70 years, and I use it from time to time and will likely someday inherit it. I am curious to learn more about the history of the plot and the original house, which I believe was servant's quarters. One thing I'm trying to determine is if it was part of an indian reservation at one time. So, basically, I am curious to learn anything I can about the history and previous deed-holders.
- New Focus Realty Team, "New Focus Realty Tea"
- Contributions:20
Agents have access to property history in MRIS. If you have an agent they could always look it up for you. :)
- Denny Giza, "dennygiza"
- Contributions:162
You can look on the county auditor's web site. It may not have all the information you want, but it can be helpful
- wetdawgs
- Contributions:26854
What sort of history are you interested in? There are some data on each property on Zillow for history, but as you've not specified what you are looking for specifically, I have no clue how to direct you.
is it possible to look up the history of a certain property?
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