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Ohio County
Lawrence County, Ohio
Ironton's iron heritage and the Tri-State's Ohio River crossing - from Ironton's founding as an iron-producing city (Lawrence County's iron ore deposits and charcoal furnaces made it one of Ohio's most important 19th-century iron production centers, with Ironton serving as the commercial hub for the region's furnace industry) to the Tri-State area's convergence of Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia at the confluence of the Big Sandy and Ohio rivers, and a southern Ohio river county defined by industrial decline and the resilience of an Appalachian Ohio community.
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Office: Lawrence County Emergency Management Agency – 715 Lane Street, Suite 300, Coal Grove, OH 45638 | (740) 533-4375 | [email protected]; Director Michael L. Boster.
911: Lawrence County 911 Dispatch – all EMS/fire calls dispatched via county VHF radio system from the Ironton dispatch center.
EMS: Lawrence County EMS – 715 Lane Street, Suite 400, Coal Grove, OH 45638 | (740) 237-1119 | Fax: (740) 237-1130 | [email protected]; operates 7 full-time paramedic-staffed ambulances plus dedicated units for large events like the county fair.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. Lawrence and Gallia counties recently gained access to 211, a free information/referral service connecting residents with local resources.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-52 and SR-93/141 serve Ironton, the county seat, along the Ohio River in Ohio’s southernmost county
Transit: No dedicated county-wide public transit system was found in this search – confirm directly with the county or your city
Notes: Lawrence County was formed December 20, 1816 from parts of Gallia and Scioto counties, named for naval officer James Lawrence (“Don’t give up the ship”). It’s part of the Huntington-Ashland (WV/KY/OH) metropolitan area.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Lawrence County Building/Permits – confirm current contact via lawrencecounty.org.
Notes: Ironton is genuinely, remarkably home to the oldest continuously running Memorial Day parade in the United States. The tradition began in 1868 – the same year the Grand Army of the Republic established May 30 as Decoration Day – and has continued unbroken every year since, reaching its 158th consecutive observance in 2026. The parade draws tens of thousands of spectators along a route with roughly 12 divisions and about 1,000 participants. The Lawrence County Courthouse in Ironton (built 1907, Neoclassical style, architects Richards, McCarty & Bulford) replaced an earlier courthouse lost to fire; downtown Ironton’s historic district and the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall are both listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Lawrence County Veterans Service Office – 1 Veterans Square, Ironton, OH 45638 | (740) 533-4360 | Fax: (740) 533-4387 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-4 PM. (A separate department listing also cites 4th Street, Ironton, (740) 533-4327/(740) 532-5290, [email protected] – confirm current address directly.)
State: Ohio Department of Veterans Services – dvs.ohio.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Briggs Lawrence County Public Library – serving residents since 1893; Ironton Branch (main), 321 South 4th Street, Ironton, OH 45638 | (740) 532-1124 | Fax: (740) 532-4948 | Hours: Mon-Thu 9 AM-7 PM, Fri-Sat 10 AM-5 PM. Branches: Chesapeake, 11054-A County Rd. 1, Chesapeake, OH 45619 | (740) 867-3390; South Point, 317 Solida Rd, South Point, OH 45680 | (740) 377-2288; Eastern (Proctorville), 410 Elizabeth Street | (740) 886-6697; Northern (Willow Wood), 14860 SR-141 | (740) 643-2086.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Ironton-Lawrence County Memorial Day Parade, downtown Ironton’s historic district, and the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall are the county’s signature attractions.
Notes: The genuine “oldest continuous Memorial Day parade in America” heritage is one of the most distinctive facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Lawrence County Auditor – 111 S. Fourth St., Ironton, OH 45638 | (740) 533-4329 | Fax: (740) 533-4387 | Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-4 PM.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Lawrence County Animal Shelter – 1302 Adams Lane, Ironton, OH 45638 | (740) 533-1736 | Fax: (740) 533-4370; open 10 AM-4 PM Mon-Fri (confirm current hours directly).
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Lawrence County Solid Waste – confirm current contact via lawrencecounty.org.
NOTES: Lawrence County is the second county in this batch (Lake, Lawrence, Licking, Logan, Lorain, Lucas, Madison) of the Ohio v2 redo. The genuine “oldest continuous Memorial Day parade in America” heritage is one of the most distinctive 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 Lawrence County
Lawrence County is southern Ohio’s most industrially significant Ohio River county – an iron-producing community whose 19th-century furnace industry and Ohio River position created one of the state’s more distinctive Appalachian urban centers.
Ironton (the county seat, population ~10,000) was named for the iron industry that drove its founding. The Lawrence County furnaces produced pig iron using local ore, charcoal from surrounding forests, and Ohio River water power – the industry peaked in the 1870s-1880s and declined as Pittsburgh’s coke-fueled steel industry overtook charcoal iron production. The city maintains its Ohio River character with a working waterfront.
The Tri-State area – where Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia converge – creates a unique metropolitan region centered on Huntington, WV just across the river, with Lawrence County as the Ohio component.
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Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Lawrence County Auditor at 111 S. Fourth Street, Suite 110, Ironton, OH 45638, phone 740-533-4310. Appeal to County Board of Revision by April 1.
Courts & Legal
Lawrence County Probate Court at 111 S. Fourth Street, Ironton, OH 45638, phone 740-533-4353, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
PROBATE COURT
111 South 4th St, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 533-4344
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Lawrence County Probate Court, Ironton (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Lawrence 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
Lawrence County Probate Court 111 South 4th Street (One Veterans’ Square), Ironton, OH 45638 (740) 533-4343 Lawrence County is in the southernmost tip of Ohio along the Ohio River, seated in Ironton.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Ohio has not adopted the Uniform Probate Code, but has incorporated some streamlined concepts into its own system under Title 21 of the Ohio Revised Code (ORC Chapters 2101-2131).
Summary Release from Administration (ORC § 2113.03) – available for very small estates valued at $5,000 or less. Lets the court release assets quickly, often to cover funeral expenses and support the surviving family, without a fiduciary being appointed.
Release from Administration (ORC § 2113.03) – Ohio’s broader small-estate shortcut. Available when the gross probate estate is $35,000 or less, OR up to $100,000 if the entire estate passes to a surviving spouse (by will or by Ohio’s intestacy law). No executor/administrator is appointed; the court releases the estate directly to the person(s) entitled to it.
Full Estate Administration – required when the estate exceeds these thresholds or the situation is otherwise contested or complex. The court appoints a fiduciary (Ohio’s term for executor/administrator), issues a Certificate of Appointment once any will is admitted, and the fiduciary inventories assets, publishes notice to creditors, pays debts, and distributes what remains under ongoing court supervision.
Step 2: filing for administration
File the will (if any) and an application with the Probate Court in the county where the decedent resided.
If pursuing Release from Administration or Summary Release, complete the applicable court forms (Form 5.0 for standard Release, Form 5.10 for Summary Release) along with a complete asset inventory and supporting documents.
For full administration, the court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration to the appointed fiduciary.
The fiduciary publishes notice to creditors; claims generally must be presented within 6 months of the date of death.
The fiduciary inventories and manages estate assets, pays valid debts and expenses, and distributes what remains according to the will or Ohio’s intestacy law, reporting to the court along the way.
The estate is closed once a final account is filed and approved by the court.
What it costs
Filing fees vary by county – check with Lawrence County directly for current fees.
No state estate tax, no state inheritance tax (repealed effective January 1, 2013). Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates ($15,000,000 per individual as of 2026).
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
PROBATE COURT
111 South 4th St, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 533-4344
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
1600 Solida Rd, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 532-3325
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
BOARD OF ELECTIONS
615 South 3rd St, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 532-6299
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
620 County Park Dr, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 532-3962
Job and Family Services
1600 Collins Ave, Ironton, OH 45638
(740) 533-4324
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Lawrence County Health Department – Health Commissioner Georgia Dillon; confirm current contact via lawrencecounty.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Ironton
Population: 59,000
Established: 1816
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Lawrence County residents.
