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Iowa County
Marion County, Iowa
Pella's Dutch Tulip Time and Knoxville's Sprint Car Capital - from Pella's Tulip Time Festival (the Dutch Reformed community of Pella - settled by Dominie Hendrik Peter Scholte and 800 Dutch immigrants in 1847 - hosts one of Iowa's most beloved spring festivals, with three days of Dutch costumes, folk dancing, and tulip displays that have drawn visitors since 1935) to Knoxville's National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum (Knoxville Raceway - the dirt oval that hosts the Knoxville Nationals each August - is the premier sprint car racing event in the world, drawing the sport's top drivers and tens of thousands of fans to a small Iowa county seat).
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Office: Marion County Emergency Management – confirm current contact via marioncountyiowa.gov.
Sheriff: Marion County Sheriff’s Office (Law Enforcement Center) – 211/221 N. Godfrey Lane, Knoxville, IA 50138 | Dispatch (641) 828-2220 | Civil (641) 828-2247 | Jail (641) 828-2245; Sheriff Jason Sandholdt. Provides 24-hour dispatching countywide except for Pella’s own police, fire, and ambulance; member of the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force. Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM (through lunch).
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-14 and IA-92 serve Knoxville, the county seat; IA-163 serves Pella, the county’s largest city.
Notes: Marion County was formed in 1845, named for Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Marion County Courthouse – Knoxville, IA.
Notes: Pella, Marion County’s largest city, was founded in 1847 by roughly 800 Dutch immigrants led by Dominee (Minister) Hendrik “Henry” P. Scholte; the town’s name references Pella of the Decapolis, where early Christians took refuge. Pella preserves this heritage through the annual Tulip Time Festival (three days, first weekend in May, featuring parades, Dutch costumes, and tulip gardens), Molengracht Plaza with its working canal and full-size drawbridge, and the 1900 Pella Opera House. The city is home to Central College and major manufacturers Pella Corporation and Vermeer Manufacturing. Genealogically, Pella has ties to lawmen Wyatt and Virgil Earp. Separately, Knoxville is internationally known for Knoxville Raceway, a premier sprint car racing venue, and the county’s Lake Red Rock is Iowa’s largest reservoir, popular for boating, fishing, biking, and hiking.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Marion County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via marioncountyiowa.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Knoxville Public Library – 213 E. Montgomery, Knoxville, IA 50138 | (641) 828-0585 | Email: [email protected]. Pella Public Library – 603 Main Street, Pella, IA 50219 | (641) 628-4268 | Email: [email protected].
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Lake Red Rock (Iowa’s largest reservoir), Knoxville Raceway, Pella’s Tulip Time Festival and Molengracht Plaza, and the Marion County Historical Village are the county’s premier heritage and recreational attractions.
Notes: The genuine, well-preserved Dutch heritage of Pella – one of the most distinctive ethnic-heritage towns in the Midwest – alongside Knoxville’s status as a national sprint-car racing hub, are among the standout cultural facts covered in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Marion County Assessor’s Office – confirm current contact via marioncountyiowa.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Marion County Humane Society – 1701 E. Pleasant Street, PO Box 655, Knoxville, IA 50138 | (641) 828-7387. No-kill shelter founded 1986, serving all of Marion County; adoption fees $40-70 cats, $125-200 dogs.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Marion County Environmental Health – confirm current contact via marioncountyiowa.gov.
NOTES: Marion County is the sixty-fourth county in Iowa’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine, well-preserved Dutch heritage of Pella and Knoxville’s status as a national sprint-car racing hub are among the standout cultural facts covered 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 Marion County
Marion County is Iowa’s Dutch tulips and sprint car capital county – Pella’s 1847 Dutch immigrant settlement and Knoxville’s world championship sprint car racing make this south-central Iowa county home to two of the state’s most beloved annual events.
Knoxville (the county seat, population ~7,500) hosts the Knoxville Nationals – the Super Bowl of sprint car racing. Pella (population ~10,500) celebrates Tulip Time every May with Dutch cultural traditions dating to 1847.
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Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Marion County Assessor at 214 E. Main Street, Knoxville, IA 50138, phone 641-828-2215. IA assessed at 100% market value with residential rollback.
Courts & Legal
Marion County District Court at 214 E. Main Street, Knoxville, IA 50138, phone 641-828-2207, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
214 E. Main St., Knoxville, IA 50138
(641) 828-2217
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Marion County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Lake Red Rock, Iowa’s largest lake by surface area, is a significant local natural and recreational landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Marion 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
Marion County District Court, 5th Judicial District 214 East Main Street, Knoxville, IA 50138 (641) 828-2207
Marion County is in south-central Iowa, seated in Knoxville, home to Lake Red Rock, Iowa’s largest lake by surface area.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Iowa has its own comprehensive probate code (Iowa Code Chapter 633) and has not formally adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Iowa offers several tracks depending on estate size and complexity:
Distribution by Affidavit (“very small estates”) – for estates where the gross value of personal property is $50,000 or less and there is no real estate, available 40 days after death under Iowa Code § 633.356. A sworn affidavit is presented directly to banks and other institutions. No court filing is required.
Small Estate Administration – a simplified probate process under Iowa Code Chapter 635 for estates with a gross value of $200,000 or less, with reduced notice requirements and court costs compared to full administration.
Regular (Full) Probate – standard administration through the district court for larger or more complex estates, which can be independent (unsupervised) or supervised.
Supervised Administration – closer court oversight, typically used for contested estates.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Executor (if there’s a will) or a Petition for Administration (if intestate) with the Marion County District Court.
The court admits the will (if any) and issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (intestate) appointing the personal representative.
Publish notice to creditors; under independent administration, creditors generally have 4 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
The personal representative inventories assets, pays valid debts and expenses, and – under independent administration – largely acts without ongoing court check-ins.
After the creditor period closes and debts are paid, the personal representative distributes assets to heirs or beneficiaries.
File a final accounting/final report; the court closes the estate upon approval.
What it costs
Personal representative fees are capped by statute at 3% of the gross value of the probate estate (excluding life insurance) unless services are itemized; attorney fees follow a similar framework.
Recording fees at the county recorder run about $7 for the first page of a document and $5 for each additional page.
Typical timelines: Distribution by Affidavit – a minimum 40-day wait; independent (unsupervised) probate typically closes in 6-12 months, with the 4-month creditor period as the primary timing constraint.
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
214 E. Main St., Knoxville, IA 50138
(641) 828-2100
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY AUDITOR (Records, Elections, Finance)
214 E. Main St., Knoxville, IA 50138
(641) 828-2207
ELECTIONS (County Auditor)
214 E. Main St., Knoxville, IA 50138
(641) 828-2207
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Marion County Health Dept
(641) 828-2238
Iowa DHHS — Region 5
(800) 338-8366
Iowa Medicaid
(800) 338-8366
MercyOne Knoxville Medical Center
mercyone.org/knoxville (quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Marion County Public Health – confirm current contact via marionph.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Knoxville
Population: 34,000
Area: 554 sq mi
Established: 1845
Tier: 3
Public Records
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