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Indiana County
Randolph County, Indiana
Winchester's Jay County connection and Indiana's flattest farmland - from Randolph County's extraordinarily flat agricultural landscape (Randolph County is among the flattest terrain in Indiana - the glacially leveled farmland of the east-central Indiana till plain produces corn and soybeans on a landscape where the horizon extends unbroken in every direction) to Winchester's role as the regional hub for east-central Indiana's agricultural communities near the Ohio state line.
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What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Randolph County Emergency Management – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
Sheriff: Randolph County Sheriff’s Office / Jail – 155 E. South Street, Winchester, IN 47394 | Non-emergency (765) 584-1721 | Fax (765) 584-5592; Sheriff Gregory J. Seabolt, with 17 full-time and 2 reserve officers.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-27 and SR-32/28 serve Winchester, the county seat, home of the historic Winchester Speedway.
Notes: Randolph County was authorized by the Indiana General Assembly in January 1818 (effective August 1818), formed from Wayne County, named either for Randolph County, North Carolina (home of many early Quaker settlers) or in honor of Edmund Randolph, Governor of Virginia. The first white settlers were Thomas W. and Anne Parker, Quakers from Carolina who arrived in 1814. County government organized in the cabin of Benjamin Cox, a prominent Quaker. Winchester was platted the same year, likely named for Winchester, Virginia, and has remained county seat for over two centuries.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Randolph County Courthouse – Winchester, IN.
Notes: Randolph County holds a genuinely significant, well-documented abolitionist history. The Union Literary Institute, a racially integrated school in the southeastern part of the county, was established in 1845. The county was home to three distinct settlements of free African Americans (including Cabin Creek and Snow Hill), and documentary evidence confirms numerous local homes and churches served as Underground Railroad stops. The discovery of oil and natural gas in the 1880s-1890s transformed Winchester into a center of glass production and Union City into a hub of auto parts manufacturing, both still economically significant today. Between 1850 and 1930, the county produced one U.S. Senator, one U.S. Congressman, two Indiana Governors (including James P. Goodrich, 1917-1921), one Lieutenant Governor, three Secretaries of State, and one State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Randolph County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Winchester Community Public Library (Winchester) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Winchester Speedway and sites connected to the county’s Underground Railroad history are the county’s premier heritage and recreational attractions.
Notes: The genuine, well-documented abolitionist and Underground Railroad history of Randolph County – including the racially integrated Union Literary Institute – is among the standout local historical facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Randolph County Assessor’s Office – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Randolph County Animal Shelter – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Randolph County Environmental Health – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
NOTES: Randolph County is the sixty-ninth county completed in Indiana’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine, well-documented abolitionist and Underground Railroad history of Randolph County is among the standout local historical facts covered anywhere in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Randolph County
Randolph County is east-central Indiana’s flat farmland county – the glacially leveled till plain of the east-central Indiana border region produces corn and soybeans on some of the flattest and most productive agricultural terrain in the state.
Winchester (the county seat, population ~4,800) serves the county’s agricultural communities near the Ohio border.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Randolph County Assessor at 100 S. Main Street, Winchester, IN 47394, phone 765-584-0441. IN residential deductions reduce assessed value.
Courts & Legal
Randolph County Circuit Court at 100 S. Main Street, Winchester, IN 47394, phone 765-584-7070, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF CIRCUIT COURT (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
100 S. Main St., Winchester, IN 47394
(765) 584-7070
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
100 S. Main St., Winchester, IN 47394
(765) 584-7070
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Randolph County Circuit Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Randolph County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Randolph County Circuit Court 100 South Main Street, Room 301, Winchester, IN 47394 (765) 584-4011 Randolph County sits on the Ohio border in east-central Indiana.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Indiana has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code – probate is governed by Indiana Code Title 29. Indiana offers several tracks depending on estate size and complexity:
Small Estate Affidavit – for estates where the gross probate estate (less liens, encumbrances, and funeral expenses) is $100,000 or less. Available 45 days after death. The affidavit must be signed and recorded with the county recorder’s office before a personal representative is appointed. No court filing is required.
Devolution of Real Estate Affidavit – a separate affidavit specifically for transferring real property, available 7 months after death, with no value limit on the real estate, recorded with the county recorder.
Unsupervised Administration – a simplified probate track available when the estate is solvent and all inheritors agree; fewer court appearances and filings than supervised administration.
Supervised Administration – full court oversight, used for contested, complex, or insolvent estates.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a Petition for Probate of Will and for Issuance of Letters (if there’s a will) or a Petition for Appointment of Personal Representative (if intestate) with the Randolph County Circuit Court.
The court reviews the will for compliance with Indiana Code § 29-1-5-3 (in writing, signed by the testator, witnessed by at least 2 credible witnesses).
The court issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (intestate) appointing the personal representative.
Publish notice to creditors; creditors generally have a limited window (commonly 3 months from first publication) to file claims.
The personal representative marshals assets, pays valid debts and expenses, and distributes the estate.
File a closing statement or final accounting to formally close the estate.
What it costs
Indiana does not have a state estate or inheritance tax.
Filing fees vary by county – confirm current amounts with the Randolph County Circuit Court.
Indiana has no statutory fee schedule for attorneys or personal representatives – fees must be “reasonable” and are subject to court approval.
Typical timelines: Small Estate Affidavit – a minimum 45-day wait; Unsupervised Administration – roughly 6-9 months if uncontested; Supervised Administration – 9-12+ months.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
110 S. Main St., Winchester, IN 47394
(765) 584-1721
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS (County Clerk)
100 S. Main St., Winchester, IN 47394
(765) 584-7070
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office: Randolph County Health Department – confirm current contact via in.gov/counties/randolph.
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Editorial Trust
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Winchester
Population: 25,000
Area: 453 sq mi
Established: 1818
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Randolph County residents.
