Welcome to Howard County, Iowa
Recorder's Duties
The Office of the Iowa County Recorder was created by the First Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Iowa in 1839.
Since the creation of the County Recorder's office, numerous additional responsibilities have been added over the years.
Land and Records Management
The County Recorder is responsible for land and records management, maintaining and recording a wide variety of official documents affecting real estate and numerous other valuable miscellaneous documents. The office collects real estate transfer tax for the Iowa Department of Revenue and collects and reports the County Auditor's fee on transfer of property.
Licensing Agent for the Iowa
The Recorder's office serves as a licensing agent for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources by issuing fishing and hunting licenses, & registering and titling boats, snowmobiles, ATV's and ORV's.
County Registrar of Vital Records
As of July, 1997 the Recorder's office is the County Registrar of Vital Records and has the responsibility of issuing Marriage Licenses, registering Birth, Death and Marriage Certificates and issuing certified copies of Vital Records.
Passport photos
The Howard County Recorder's office DOES take passport photos.
The Auditor's Office is now the acceptance agent for passports. Click here for more information.
The Recorder's duties are defined by state statutes and established by state agencies through administrative actions.
The following Departments work with the County Recorder
Iowa Department of Natural Resources,
Iowa Department of Revenue,
Iowa Department of Public Health and the U.S.
Department of State Federal Passport Agency.
Detailed reports are filed monthly and annually to the county and to the state agencies.
The Howard County Recorder’s Office Does Not:
Provide Legal Services
Prepare Legal Documents
Accept Credit Cards
Vital Records Information
Real Estate Information
License Registration Information
Birth Certificate Exchange Offered for Small Certificates Issued from 1993 - 2009 -
The Iowa Department of Public Health Bureau of Health Statistics is taking steps to exchange any newborn birth certificate issued from May 1993 to October 2009, where the birth certificate is a small wallet- size card. The newborn birth certificate wallet cards issued during this time period did not contain enough vital record information to be used for identification purposes, essentially making them less valuable for the purpose they are intended to be used for.
Howard County Recorder's Contact
Howard County Courthouse
137 North Elm Street
Cresco IA 52136
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm
Phone number: (563) 547-9210
County Recorder: Cherri L. Caffrey
Deputy Recorder: Roxann Vokaty
PT Clerk: Lori Balik
Access all Forms and Documents used in the Recoder's Office