Douglas County land records dating back to 1866 are now digitally preserved and available online

Pictured: Douglas County Deputy Director of Recording, Luke Dechant, references a historic deed of sale for livestock from 1866

Douglas County’s historic land records are now digitally available at the public’s fingertips. The Recording Division of the Douglas County Office of Clerk and Recorder has completed a multi-year process of indexing and uploading Douglas County land records dating back to 1866.

“Digitizing the county’s records ensures these historic materials are safe from damage, available for the public to search online, and preserved for all time,” said Deputy Director of Recording Luke Dechant.

The effort to digitally preserve historic records like marriage licenses and subdivision plats began in 2009, with Douglas County Recording Office staff completing the work as they were able between customer transactions, using funding approved by the Board of County Commissioners. This work continued for years.

In 2016, the state legislature created Colorado’s Electronic Recording Technology Board (ERTB) to help fund county efforts to digitize historic paper documents, microfilm, and microfiche and create improved electronic filing systems.

Only land records are eligible for ERTB funding, and by 2024, with 375,717 pages of land records still left to digitize and index, Douglas County secured $440,000 in ERTB funding to outsource and complete the work.

There are now 3,877,662 unique public records scanned, indexed, and available online to search and view by visiting DouglasCOClerk.gov/Recording and clicking on Search Recorded Documents.

“The mission of our office is to serve all citizens and each other with respect, courtesy, transparency, and professionalism,” said Douglas County Clerk and Recorder Sheri Davis, “Working to ensure that all records maintained by our Recording team are available, searchable, and viewable online for the public is an important part of fulfilling this mission.”