Lookup Rowan County Clerk Records

Rowan County Clerk Office

The Rowan County Clerk is the local office for recorded instruments, marriage licenses, wills as county records, motor-vehicle matters, and open-record requests for county-clerk records. The clerk's site lists the office at 600 West Main Street, Room 102, Morehead, KY 40351. The published phone number is 606-784-5212, fax is 606-784-2923, and email is elwoodJ.caudill@ky.gov.

Hours published by the clerk are Monday and Friday 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and Tuesday through Thursday 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Public records can be viewed free in the clerk's office. Online access to many recorded records uses eCCLIX, which requires an account/password and access fees.

County Clerk Record Types

The County Clerk records page says eCCLIX includes deeds, mortgages, liens, releases, assignments, powers of attorney, wills, marriages, and name changes. It also says Rowan County has indices mostly back to 1880 and images mostly January 1795-current. That coverage can matter for title work, family research, marriage proof, estate research, and older recorded documents.

• Marriage licenses and certified marriage copies.
• Deeds, mortgages, liens, releases, and assignments.
• Powers of attorney, name changes, and recorded instruments.
• Wills and probate-related recorded documents.
• Motor-vehicle records handled by the County Clerk.

The Rowan County Clerk records page is the source for eCCLIX access notes, historic coverage, and the records fee schedule.

County Clerk vs Court Clerk

The County Clerk is not the local court clerk for Rowan County state trial-court case files. The Circuit Court Clerk handles Circuit, Family, and District Court case records. That means divorce files, criminal dockets, traffic citations, misdemeanor case files, felony case files, and probate case files heard in District Court start with the Circuit Court Clerk, not eCCLIX.

Marriage License Records

Marriage licenses and certified marriage copies are County Clerk records. The official marriage license requirements say both parties must appear together, show identification, and be at least 18. Applicants need correct spelling of father's full name and mother's full maiden name. The license is valid for 30 days, usable only in Kentucky, and has no waiting period or blood test.

Certified copy request details depend on date. For marriages before June 26, 2020, a written request should include bride's maiden name, groom's name, and year of marriage. For marriages after June 25, 2020, the request should include partner 1 or partner 2 maiden name and year. A certified copy by mail is listed at $6; an in-person certified copy is listed at $5.

Wills and Probate Records

Rowan County probate research requires a two-track approach. Kentucky District Court handles probate of wills, so probate petitions, appointment orders, inventories, settlements, and court orders are court records accessed through the Circuit Court Clerk. The County Clerk handles recorded wills and probate-related county documents, including fee-listed items such as will recording, disclaimer of will, renunciation of will, and other probate records.

For a will search, decide whether the goal is a recorded will image, a certified copy from County Clerk records, or the District Court probate case file. eCCLIX and in-office County Clerk viewing may help with recorded wills, while court-file questions should go to the Circuit Court Clerk at the Judicial Center.

County Clerk Open Records

The Rowan County Clerk open-records policy applies to records handled by that office, including motor vehicles, deeds, mortgages, marriage licenses, wills, and related county-clerk records. Requests may be submitted by hand delivery, mail, fax to 606-784-2923, or email to elwoodj.caudill@ky.gov. The policy says a determination is made within five working days.

Other records are routed elsewhere. Judge Executive/Fiscal Court records, Detention Center records, City of Morehead or Morehead Police records, and Circuit Court Clerk/KCOJ court case records do not become County Clerk records just because they are public records. The Rowan Fiscal Court form uses records custodian Michele Jessee, phone 606-784-4211, fax 606-784-3535, email michele.jessee@rcky.us, and address 600 West Main Street, Suite 154, Morehead, KY 40351.

County Clerk Fees

The fee table below is limited to amounts documented in the research. It combines County Clerk open-records copy fees, marriage-copy amounts, and probate-related recording fees from the official County Clerk records material. If a fee is tied to a filing not listed here, confirm it directly with the clerk.

Note: The official marriage page contains a fee conflict, so confirm the current license fee before payment.

Request a Certified Copy

A certified County Clerk copy should be requested from the County Clerk, not from KCOJ, when the record is a marriage license, deed, recorded will, or other recorded county-clerk document. The request should identify the record type, names, date or year, book/page or instrument number if known, and whether mail or in-person pickup is preferred.

1. Confirm that the record is a County Clerk record rather than a court case record.
2. Search eCCLIX or inspect records in the clerk's office if an index or image needs to be found first.
3. Prepare names, dates, record type, and any book/page or instrument data.
4. Submit the request in person, by mail, fax, or email where the clerk policy allows.
5. Pay copy, certification, and postage costs in advance when required.