Researching Local Government Records

You’ve finally decided to write a story or book about a subject- a person or an event- but you lack first-hand knowledge. Where do you begin to gather information?

I start with public information/records to educate myself as much as possible about my subject. That information helps me identify individuals to interview and what questions to ask. Armed with albeit limited background information, I’m able to ask more pointed questions and sometimes my interviewees open up more because they realize I’ve done my homework.

The internet is a tremendous tool to start your research. First, I search for media stories about my subject by using at least two search engines because sometimes different material appears. Then I print useful or even potentially useful material because the articles may disappear before you return weeks or years later to reread the story. Be prepared to use your e-mail address to sign in for access to some newspapers’ archives. Any inconvenience is minor especially if you live hundreds of miles away from the newspaper.

If you can’t access a newspaper or magazine article online, visit your local library to see if it subscribes to the newspaper or magazine. Then if it doesn’t, ask if the library participates in an interlibrary loan program that allows your request for a particular article to be sent out nationwide. If so, the library will contact you once it receives the article. Alternatively, visit a larger library or one in the town where you think the local newspaper may have covered your subject. In either case, call first to make sure the library has what you want.

Next I turn to local government records. To learn as much as possible about a person, I start with the County Clerk and Recorder’s Office. Some county clerks have websites where you can search for recorded documents, such as deeds of trust, liens, recorded judgments etc. You may be able to access only a list of documents, not the actual records. If so, you need to visit the office to read the full document. That information may be computerized, on microfilm or in journals.

To learn more about an individual’s home, check the County Assessor’s Office online resources. Usually, one can search by the owner’s name and address or subdivision. If you locate the correct parcel, you will find out the sales history, previous owners, and a detailed description of the real estate- acreage and home, including square footage, number of rooms, bedrooms, bathrooms etc. Again, you may have to visit a county’s Assessor’s Office to obtain this information if you can’t access it online.

Cities and counties may post the minutes of city council or board of county commissioners meetings on their websites. Again, first check online and then call ahead to see what you can access during a visit to the particular office. You may be asked to submit an open records request and if so, depending on the laws in your state, the records custodian will have a certain time period before he/she is required to produce public records.

In Colorado, the Open Records Act, C.R.S. § 24-72-200 et seq, governs what will and will not be released. Read your state’s statutes before you submit your request. A helpful website that has links to several states’ statutes is www.lexisnexus.com If your state is not listed on that website, do an internet search to try to find access to your state’s open records laws free of charge. You want to read the pertinent law to determine if your requested document is a public record and if so, the per search and/or per page charge for a copy of the record. It’s best to be prepared before you submit your request.

When you visit local government offices, you may be able to print what you find but some require that their staff copy the material for you. Call ahead to find out the procedure as well as if you need exact change if you are permitted to print documents. If you can’t find what you want, ask a clerk for assistance. Sometimes clerks are even more helpful if they know you are researching material for an article or book. Clerks probably won’t ask if you are writing for a specific publication; they take you on your word that you are a writer. But if you are asked and don’t have a publisher, say you are a freelancer- the truth is always the best policy. Be polite. I am always amazed at how helpful clerks can be and sometimes they share gems of material. Good luck!