Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Missouri County
Henry County, Missouri
Truman Lake and the Osage River's impoundment - from Harry S Truman Lake (the 55,600-acre Army Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Osage River - one of Missouri's largest lakes, providing boating, fishing, and waterfowl hunting in a gentle west-central Missouri landscape named for Missouri's 33rd President) to Clinton's position as the commercial hub for the Truman Lake region and a west-central Missouri agricultural county whose lake economy supplements traditional cattle and grain farming.
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
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: Henry County Emergency Management – Clinton, MO 64735 | (660) 383-1061 | Email: [email protected].
Dispatch: Henry County Emergency 911 (Central Communications) – 115 E. Green St, Clinton, MO 64735.
Sheriff: Henry County Sheriff’s Office – 200 N. Main Street, Clinton, MO 64735 | Non-emergency (660) 885-7300 | Fax: (660) 885-3173; Sheriff Aaron Brown.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-13/MO-7 serve Clinton, the county seat, on the Harry S. Truman Reservoir in west-central Missouri.
Notes: Henry County was formed in 1834 and named for American patriot Patrick Henry. Clinton itself, first planned in 1836, is named for former New York Governor DeWitt Clinton, known for building the Erie Canal. Clinton is the western trailhead of the Katy Trail State Park, the longest developed rail-trail in the country (roughly 225-264 miles), and sits on Truman Lake, Missouri’s second-largest lake and a nationally known crappie-fishing destination drawing an estimated 75,000 visitors annually.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Henry County Courthouse – Clinton’s historic town square, built 1893.
Notes: Clinton’s Historic Square is a Registered National Historic District featuring 85 Victorian and Italianate-style buildings across roughly 10 blocks, anchored by the 1893 Henry County Courthouse – reputedly Missouri’s largest downtown square. Artesian Park, originally formed around an accidental artesian well struck during 1880s gas-drilling activity, once featured a three-story hotel and passenger rail service before changes brought by the construction of the Truman Reservoir; today it offers a public pool, spray park, and picnic areas. A bronze monument, “They Stood Tall,” commemorates Missourians who fought on both sides of the Civil War.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Henry County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via henrycomo.com.
Federal: VA facilities accessible via the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital (Columbia) or a Kansas City VA clinic; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Henry County Library – Clinton, MO 64735; traces its origins to 1927, when the first Clinton library was established by the Women’s Civic Club inside the county courthouse; the library also serves as a rest stop for Katy Trail travelers, offering restroom access.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Truman Lake (Bucksaw and Sparrowfoot recreation areas), the Katy Trail State Park western trailhead, Artesian Park, the Henry County Museum (housed in an 1886 Anheuser-Busch distribution building), and the historic downtown square are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine scale of Truman Lake and the Katy Trail’s status as the nation’s longest rail-trail are distinctive local facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Henry County Assessor – confirm current contact via henrycomo.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Clinton Animal Control – (660) 885-5561.
Clinton Animal Shelter – (660) 882-2335 (regional listing; confirm current status and hours via henrycomo.com).
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Henry County – confirm current contact via henrycomo.com.
NOTES: Henry County is the first county in the seventh batch of the Missouri v2 A+ sourced redo. Truman Lake’s status as Missouri’s second-largest lake and the Katy Trail’s western trailhead at Clinton are distinctive local facts. 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 Henry County
Henry County is west-central Missouri’s Truman Lake county – a Osage River community whose massive Army Corps reservoir provides recreation and waterfront development in an otherwise agricultural landscape.
Clinton (the county seat, population ~9,000) is the commercial hub for the Truman Lake region – boat dealers, marinas, and lake-service businesses supplement the agricultural service economy. Missouri State University-West Plains has a Clinton campus serving regional higher education needs.
Harry S Truman Lake – 55,600 acres on the Osage and its tributaries – is one of Missouri’s largest reservoirs. The lake provides crappie, bass, and catfish fishing, waterfowl hunting in the extensive backwater areas, and camping at Army Corps facilities.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Henry County Assessor at 100 W. Franklin Street, Suite 2, Clinton, MO 64735, phone 660-885-7205. MO residential assessed at 19% of true value. Appeal to Board of Equalization.
Courts & Legal
Henry County Circuit Court at 100 W. Franklin Street, Clinton, MO 64735, phone 660-885-5553, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
100 W. Franklin St., Clinton, MO 64735
(660) 885-7206
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Henry County Circuit Court, Probate Division (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Henry 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
Henry County Circuit Court, Probate Division 100 W. Franklin Street, Clinton, MO 64735 (660) 885-7232 Henry County is in west-central Missouri, seated in Clinton.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Missouri probate is governed by Title XXXI of the Missouri Revised Statutes (Chapters 470-475), the Probate Code.
Small Estate Affidavit (RSMo § 473.097) – available when the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $40,000. A 30-day waiting period after death applies, and only if no application for letters is pending. If the property listed is worth more than $15,000, the clerk must publish a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. A bond may be required. Once the court issues a certified small estate certificate, the affiant presents it directly to whoever holds the property to collect and distribute assets – avoiding full probate. Typical timeline: about two months to close, versus six months to a year or more for full probate.
Formal Administration – required for larger or more complex estates. A petition for Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without one) is filed with the probate division. After review, the court appoints the personal representative and issues the letters. Missouri offers both supervised and independent administration. Missouri requires an attorney to represent the personal representative in both types of administration.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a petition with the Probate Division of the Circuit Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The court appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and gives direct notice to known creditors. Creditors have 6 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
Within 30 days of appointment (unless the court extends the deadline), the personal representative files an inventory and appraisement of all estate assets.
After debts are paid and the creditor claim period expires, the personal representative distributes the remaining assets and files a final settlement with the court to close the estate.
What it costs
Missouri sets statutory minimum fees for attorneys and personal representatives based on a percentage of the estate’s value, though additional fees may be allowed for extraordinary services.
Missouri has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.
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
100 W. Franklin St., Clinton, MO 64735
(660) 885-2206
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
100 W. Franklin St., Clinton, MO 64735
(660) 885-7206
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MO Dept of Social Services — Henry
(660) 885-3431
Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare
gvmh.org (Clinton — quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Henry County Health Department – confirm current phone via henrycomo.com.
Hospital: Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare – 1600 N. Second St., Clinton, MO 64735 | (660) 885-5511; a 56-bed hospital recognized as one of the Top 10 Hospitals in Missouri.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
