MCCOGS' New Blog Presence

If your ancestors settled or just spent a little time in Muskingum County, Ohio, and you are a genealogist/family historian, count yourself lucky. Resources abound!

Muskingum County Courthouse
Zanesville, Ohio*

First, there's never been a major fire in the county courthouse, a tragedy experienced by many counties in many states. Consequently, nearly all the county records, dating back to statehood (1803), are in tact. In addition to the usual land and probate records at the courthouse, there are more obscure records, such as those of the Chancery Court, housed in the Records Center across the street from the courthouse. 

Second, the county clerks and their staff are welcoming and helpful, making courthouse research a pleasure. The County Recorders Office has a great website that allows you to search for historic land records online, and see a downloadable image of the recorded deed.

Third, Muskingum County has an active genealogy society. The Muskingum County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society maintains its own library (non-circulating) on the second floor of the John McIntire Library in downtown Zanesville. MCCOGS member volunteers are always on-hand to assist visitors, whether they are seasoned researchers or beginners. The MCCOGS library collection is extensive, and includes a large number of local families' histories, scrapbooks, and old photographs. Some regional and national literature round out the library's holdings. In addition to maintaining a library collection and offering research assistance, MCCOGS offers classes during the year to the public.

MCCOGS has a website where members can access birth, marriage, and death record information, as well as a limited number of other county records. It also has a Facebook page which includes links to interesting articles and other websites, and every Wednesday posts an old photo of an unidentified Muskingum County resident; "Who Is It Wednesday" seeks to put a name with a face.

And MCCOGS has a new blog presence. This blog will be an olio--a hodgepodge--of topics: Family stories, township and village history, photos and other illustrations, research tips and resources, and so on. Readers' suggestions for topics, as well as your contributions are welcome. 

*Photo by David Grant 2006. This photo is licensed for public, non-profit use by  Creative Commons https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/legalcode