Hamilton County Clerk of Courts History

In creating a state judicial system, the 1802 Ohio State Constitution provided for the appointment of a clerk of courts for each county. Originally, the clerk of courts was appointed by judges of the court of common pleas for a seven-year term. Under the 1851 Constitution, the office became elective for a three-year term which was extended to four years in 1936.
Through the history of our six different courthouses in Hamilton County since 1790, the Clerk of Courts’ Office has strived to keep track of all the records as best as possible, even in the face of records being shuffled from courthouse to courthouse or destroyed due to multiple courthouse fires prior to 1919. On this page you can read some of the in-depth papers on our exploration through our historical records and recent attempts to make sure that these are not forgotten or just left to gather dust on a shelf.

Digitized Historical Court Record Indexes:

• Insolvency Divorce Court 1909 to 1914
• Common Pleas Court 1802 to 1884
• District Court 1851 to 1884
• Superior Court of Cincinnati 1854 to 1884

Memos about Hamilton County Historical Records:

• History of Hamilton County Courthouses
• Case Research In Reference To 1869 Superior Court of Cincinnati Judge Alphonso Taft Whiskey Case
• The Safe in Which Historical Court Records Were Kept

Discontinued Hamilton County Historical Records:

• Land Registration Files
• Trademark Book
• Naturalization Records

Hamilton County Court History in the Media:

• The Ohio Channel: Ohio Courthouses: Seats of Justice – Hamilton County
• National Association of Government Archives & Records Administrators Keynote Speech 2023: Bathtubs, Bourbon, and Barricades: Rediscovering Queen City History!
• Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library Blog: One-of-a-Kind Historical Trademark Book Now Available on CHPL’s Digital Library
• Enquirer: Amazed.’ Documents thought lost for 139 years shine light on dark moment in region’s past
• Enquirer: VIDEO: Found documents survive courthouse fire of 1884, offer once lost county history
• WVXU: How one question led to the discovery of historical documents believed to be long gone
• Inside the Cask Blog: The curious case of Judge Taft, US Whiskey and Japan in 1869
• Pre-Pro Whiskey Men Blog: Commodore Perry, Japan & American Whiskey