Our Mission Statement
The Lawrence Register’s sole purpose is to assist genealogists and historians in locating available resources in Lawrence County, Ohio. Having the essential indexes online saves you a lot of time, so when visiting our libraries, courthouse, cemeteries, etc., you can accumulate more facts quickly and accurately.
However, we do not have access to records, so we cannot make copies or do research for your particular topic, family, or ancestor. We will continue to add new material as we can and encourage you to visit our website often.
What is The Lawrence Register?
We are a free genealogy and historical website for Lawrence County, Ohio. The Lawrence Register’s ‘roots’ began in 1996 while I was working in the Hamner Room at Briggs Library in Ironton, Ohio. The library was getting a lot of phone calls and letters from people living out of the area. These patrons were trying to do their family research, some of whom would never have the chance to visit our county.
In the meantime, I was watching this new technology called “the world wide web” with intense excitement and discussing it with our patrons. One day, Lisa Boyer overheard me talking about making my own website. She approached me with the offer to help me with the technology if I would get material typed in a format we could put online.
We did this for about a year, but then I decided it was time to learn how to be able to put items online without anyone’s help. So I began the task of learning how to code HTML and the process of putting material on the ‘internet.’
After I received my promotion to the Hamner Room Manager in 1998, I was getting so many requests for volunteers to help type material, I could hardly keep up with the demand. One of these volunteers was Sharon Kouns, who started helping me with the HTML coding. I would work from home in the evenings and well past midnight. Then Sharon would log into our site and take over until mid-mornings.
“The victim of my own success,” was what my old supervisor told me, with a grin! I never dreamed The Lawrence Register would become such a success as it was. In November of 1998, I was honored when The Ohio Library Council asked me to teach other libraries in the state of Ohio how to set up genealogy websites for their libraries. Our website has also been featured in best-selling books and many authors have used our site as their own references.
I have continued to keep The Lawrence Register online since 1996, with the exception of a couple of years. Now I am proud to announce that my daughter, Sara Strohmeyer, has decided to help me ‘bring our website up into the 21st-century requirements.’
She has encouraged me to continue on with my dream, which has always been to help others with their research in Lawrence County, Ohio.
–Martha J. Martin
How can I get a copy of material that is found on The Lawrence Register?
We can answer your questions and (sometimes) connect you to the right person or resource, but unfortunately we cannot do genealogy research for you.
If you find any records, such as marriages, births, deaths, obituaries, etc., on this website and would like copies of those records, we recommend emailing Ellen Helm Gammon, or you can contact Briggs Library, Hamner Room in Ironton, Ohio at 1-740-532-1124. Another option is to email Lori Shafer who is the Reference Librarian at Briggs Library.
More About Ellen Gammon
She is retired and has been doing her family’s genealogy for 25 years. She thoroughly enjoys helping other fellow genealogists find their families.
Also, she has been doing research for hire for 20 years with no negative feedback. She mainly does research in Lawrence Co., OH but occasionally will travel to Scioto Co., OH if needed.
Her charges are very reasonable, $30.00 for two hours’ research ($35.00 if she has to go to Scioto Co.) Her rates are payable in advance, please by check or money order (or through PayPal for an extra $1.00).
If you would like to volunteer please email us with two references included, we will get back to you as soon as possible.
The ‘Lawrence Register’ takes no responsibility for individuals who work for hire. Any correspondence is strictly between you and the researcher.
How Do I Search for Material On Your Site?
In order to navigate The Lawrence Register, you have three options:
- There is a search icon (magnifying glass) at the top of each page.
- Scroll down our homepage and find the subject, then continue to follow the links of various topics.
- Another way to find the material is to use our drop-down list, just click the ‘Home’ link, which is also on the top of our website.
- While using a .pdf file, you can use the Ctrl+F shortcut key to search while that file is open.
Another requested feature we have added is our “What’s New” page, this will keep you up-to-date on our new material on The Lawrence Register.
What Do The Abbreviations Stand For?
Abbreviations:
IR = Ironton Register (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
IWR = Ironton Weekly Republican (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
IJ = Ironton Journal (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
SWI = Semi-Weekly Irontonian (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
IDR = Ironton Daily Register (Law. Co., Ohio)
IT =Ironton Tribune (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
MI = Morning Irontonian (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
IET = Ironton Evening Tribune (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
SWR = Semi-Weekly Republican (Lawrence Co., Ohio)
OSSW = On Same Stone With (for cemetery readings)
Where are the Bible Records, Births, Census, Deaths, Deeds, Divorces, Marriages, Obituaries and Wills?
You will find those files in the dropdown menu, under ‘Vital Records’.
Why did people move to Lawrence County, Ohio?
We suggest reading the blog “Before the Beginning,” and “Refugees of the Revolution.”
It is said that Lawrence County, Ohio had early settlements as far back as 1796 when the Quakers established Quaker Bottom.
When Ohio became a state in 1804, the land was opened up for those willing to take up the invitation to explore what the ‘west’ was all about.
Floating down the Ohio River in skiff boats would begin at Pittsburgh and once those old-timers arrived, they found vast waterways and abundant land. This created many new businesses, especially riverboats, ferry boats, farmers, and rivermen, who became a vital part of our county’s existence.
Because of the proximity of the Ohio River which stretches across our entire southern border, and the fact that it was aligned with two slave states, this brought people from New England and other areas who were with the Temperance and Anti-Slavery Movements.
When iron furnaces began opening in the 1840s, this brought in additional families and businessmen. That exciting news traveled worldwide about our unique iron furnaces, which resulted in a flood of immigrants into our area. And with that, came challenges, some with drastic results.