Columbia County, Pennsylvania Public Records

Investigations closed

104

Back wages agreed

$675,536

Workers due back wages

958

Civil money penalties

$76,498

Employers on the record

77

The 25 employers with the most back wages agreed, of 77 on the Columbia County record; 26 employers have a page of their own and open from the table, the rest show their whole record here. The 52 more with smaller records are on the Pennsylvania wage theft records page, whose search answers for every employer in the state.

Columbia County land indexes, court records and historical certificates

Identify which Columbia combined office holds the record

Columbia County combines Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds services in one office. Its published address is 35 West Main Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, and its telephone is 570-389-5632. Identify whether the inquiry concerns an estate record or a recorded land instrument before asking for a copy. A will, an estate administration and a deed can all concern the same deceased owner but remain separate records. Preserve the decedent name or recording reference already known, and specify the document needed so the office can identify the relevant collection. Register and Recorder contact.

The Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans Court are a separate combined court office, also at 35 West Main Street. Its telephone is 570-389-5614. Published office hours are Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; marriage-license and passport services have a narrower 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. schedule. A court-copy inquiry should name the case, parties and document. Sharing a courthouse address does not mean a deed-copy request and a divorce-order request go to the same custodian or use the same fee schedule. Prothonotary and court-record functions.

Read the newer Landex coverage list by record type

The Register and Recorder links a Landex coverage document dated August 10, 2025. It distinguishes index books, searchable data and document images. The data list begins deeds in 1966, miscellaneous instruments and mortgages in 1974, maps in 1977 and wills in 1916, continuing to the present in each listed series. An earlier document may therefore require a different search route from a modern indexed instrument. Record the collection and search method used, particularly when a name search does not return the historical document expected from a later reference. Published Landex coverage list.

The same document lists online images for deeds, miscellaneous records, maps, estates, ordinances and charters from 1813 onward, with mortgage images from 1974 onward. Image availability and searchable data coverage are different statements. For an older conveyance, use the appropriate historical index and retain its book and page before looking for an image. The index-book list also identifies older will and administration series. Ask the office which index applies to the date and record type when a modern name search cannot reach the entry. Do not treat an absent modern search result as proof that no historical record exists. Source: columbiapa.org.

Use Columbia recording and copy charges for their stated products

The Recorder fee bill effective November 17, 2025 lists a deed or mortgage at $87.75 for the first four pages, four names and one tract. Additional pages for those instruments are $4 each, additional names are $1 each and additional tracts are $1 each. These included quantities matter when estimating a new recording. A document containing several parcels or indexed parties cannot be priced solely from its first page. The schedule uses different supplements for some other instruments, so identify the document category before applying the deed or mortgage calculation. Recorder fee bill.

For copies, the Recorder lists $0.50 per page for letter or legal size and $1 per page for 11 by 17 paper. Certification is $1.50 plus the $0.50 per-page copy charge. That is a combined calculation, not a single flat certified-deed price. Specify the instrument, page count and certification requirement when ordering. A certification attached to a requested copy is different from recording a newly presented instrument. Keep the copy request and payment record with the resulting document so its source and requested form remain apparent when it is later supplied to another organization. Source: columbiapa.org.

Ask for an existing court record by case and document

The Prothonotary maintains civil case records including divorce, custody, foreclosure and other actions, together with judgments and court orders. Its description identifies records from 1814 onward and certain earlier miscellaneous material. It also explains that staff do not conduct general judgment or lien index searches except for specified statutory services. A requester should distinguish locating a reference from ordering a known document. Bring the parties, case number and document date when available, and ask which index or access route applies when the reference is incomplete. Preserve the actual court document separately from a search summary. Source: columbiapa.org.

The currently linked court fee bill became effective November 1, 2026. It lists ordinary copy fees at $0.50 per page and includes separate certification entries for different court services. A filing charge for a new divorce action or entry of a decree does not establish the price of copying an existing decree. For an order already on file, describe the requested pages and certification and ask the office to calculate that copy product. The court schedule should not be substituted for the Recorder schedule merely because both offices are in the courthouse. Current court fee bill.

Separate Orphans Court marriage records from historical birth entries

The Clerk of Orphans Court identifies marriage applications and licenses from 1885 onward. Its instructions for copies ask for the names used when applying and the marriage date. Those details can differ from names used later in life, so preserve the original spellings from family documents where possible. A completed marriage record is a different request from an appointment to apply for a new license. Explain whether the receiving organization needs a certified record and ask for the applicable copy charge rather than using the new-license amount listed in a filing schedule. Source: columbiapa.org.

The court office identifies county birth and death registrations for 1893 to 1905 and states that earlier events were not filed in the county series. It directs family-history research to the Columbia County Historical and Genealogical Society, care of Bloomsburg Public Library, 225 Market Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815. Use the event period to choose between a historical county entry and a modern vital-certificate request. Keep the historical source citation with the research result. An entry found for family history should not automatically be described as the certified state certificate required for an administrative purpose. Source: columbiapa.org.

Use the Main Street Annex for assessment and election questions

Assessment and Tax Claim publish a combined contact at 11 West Main Street, Main Street Annex, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, telephone 570-389-5642 and cctaxoffice@columbiapa.org. Their resources distinguish assessment information, tax-claim procedures and online real-estate tax payments. Identify the parcel and tax year and explain whether the request concerns a valuation entry, delinquency or payment. A recorded deed may help identify a transfer, but it does not itself answer every question about the assessment account. Retain the tax record and the land instrument as separate evidence in a property research file. Assessment and Tax Claim contact.

The Election Office also lists 11 West Main Street in the Main Street Annex, with a different telephone, 570-389-5640. It publishes election results, sample ballots, archived material and other election records. Preserve the status label on a result: an unofficial total is not a certified result. When asking for a record, identify the election date, precinct and document or dataset requested. A sample ballot, a returned-ballot summary and a certified result answer different questions. Keeping those descriptions distinct helps the office identify the existing material without inferring a broader request from a candidate name alone. Election Office records.

Send detention records to the prison and other requests to their custodians

The Sheriff lists 35 West Main Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, telephone 570-389-5622, with Monday to Friday hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Its resources include Sheriff sales and firearm-license information. Columbia County Prison has its own administration at 721 Iron Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, telephone 570-784-4815, and a separate Records Department number, 570-389-5718. Use that prison contact for a detention-record inquiry. A Sheriff sale, a prison custody record and a criminal court disposition are separate records, so identify the particular document instead of assuming the Sheriff holds every related file. Source: columbiapa.org. Sheriff office and services.

The county contact instructions identify an Agency Open Records Officer for Right-to-Know requests, at 570-389-5613 and dwitchey@columbiapa.org, and require the linked request form. Describe existing records by subject, date period and responsible office, with a preferred delivery format. This gives the custodian enough detail to distinguish a county administrative request from a routine court or Recorder copy order. Keep a copy of the request and any response, and use a referral if another office holds the material. Do not substitute a general county switchboard number for the published records-officer contact. County Right-to-Know contact.