Where can I find adoption records?
Answer
All Indiana adoption records are kept by the clerk of court in the county in which the adoption took place. Some records are also kept by the Indiana State Department of Health. The Indiana State Library does not have adoption records.
Access to adoption records may be limited depending on when the adoption occurred. Records created prior to 1941 are accessible through the county clerk's office. Records created between 1941 and 1993 are open to adult adoptees through the Indiana State Department of Health as of July 1, 2018, although some restrictions may remain. Records created between 1993 and the present are open to adult adoptees. Adoption records post-1941 are not open to the general public. For more information on these laws and on access to records for medical history and other purposes, please visit the Indiana State Department of Health's Adoption Information page.
For more information on adoption research, including adoptions that took place outside Indiana, please consult the links available through Cyndi's List.