Birth certificates:
Wanda, you can request a birth certificate by mail using the Health Dept's request
form. They do require some additional things as well. You can find more info about how to
request both birth & death records on their website. The request forms are available
for printing, too. Here's the URL for their site:
http://www.greenet.net/NonProfit/gchealth/vital.htm
Old Newspapers:
Newspapers for Bloomfield are available on microfilm at the Bloomfield Library back to
1888. The Library has a complete collection now, I believe. Greene Co.'s very earliest
paper, the White River Valley Times, are also available on microfilm at the Worthington
Library. To my knowledge, all of the papers available at the Recorder's office have
been microfilmed by the IN Historical Society. It is a shame about the condition of the
original papers in this office, though. Some researchers, (and I'm using that term
loosely), have even resorted to cutting out items of their interest as evidenced by the
perfectly cut rectangle-shaped holes found in many of the pages of these old papers. I
couldn't imagine doing such a thing.
Also, I thought I would mention that old public records aren't destroyed without
proper notice being given as required by law. Opportunity has to be given to interested
parties to take custody of any records scheduled for destruction. The majority of the
county records have been microfilmed and the records themselves have been stored in other
parts of the building. In reality, this is probably a good thing due to the age and
condition of these records, many of which are much older than our oldest newspapers. The
continued use of them with the oil & other substances from human hands helps to
deteriorate the pages, so using the microfilm of these records is the best thing to do to
help preserve them.
Diane :)