Iowa, Shelby County
Where Harlan's records are kept. Harlan has its own city government; county and state offices keep its other public records.
Start here
The cards below include Harlan's own offices, along with State of Iowa offices; the Shelby County offices are on our Shelby County page. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.
Federal
Official Census Bureau profile for Harlan city, Iowa, listing its 2020 Census population of 4,893 plus 2024 survey figures on income (median $57,488), education, employment, housing and health coverage.
Open official site Census Bureau ProfileState records
The State Historical Society of Iowa opens its collection of more than 209 million items, with a catalog of government records, manuscripts, newspapers and photographs, research centers, reference requests and copy orders.
Open official site State Historical Society of Iowa ResearchCounty court
Serves southern Iowa from 111 Locust Street in Des Moines; the court posts 341 meeting and courtroom calendars, decisions and orders, takes copy requests and links PACER case information.
Open official site United States Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of IowaCounty court
Iowa's state court system online: find any county courthouse, search court records, fill in interactive court forms, eFile documents and follow Supreme Court opinions and oral arguments.
Open official site Iowa Judicial BranchVital records
Iowa's Department of Health and Human Services runs Medicaid, food and cash assistance and public health programs, and supplies certified copies of birth, death and marriage records.
Open official site Iowa Department of Health and Human ServicesPolice & jail
The Iowa Department of Corrections explains visiting, phone calls, messaging, mail, money deposits, care packages and voting rights restoration for families of people in prison, and links to its offender search.
Open official site Iowa Department of Corrections Inmate and Family ServicesPolice & jail
Clearinghouse set up in 1985 within the Iowa Department of Public Safety, listing missing persons with age, last contact date and the reporting agency; search by name, gender, race or physical traits.
Open official site Iowa DCI Missing Person Information ClearinghousePolice & jail
Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation registry, the central store of Iowa sex offender registration records since July 1995. Search registrants by last name, first name, alias or ZIP code.
Open official site Iowa Sex Offender RegistryPolice & jail
Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation record checks, on yourself or someone else, cost $15 per last name and need first name, last name and exact birth date; send online, by mail, fax or email.
Open official site Iowa DCI Criminal History Record CheckCity records
City of Harlan site with council agendas and minutes, the city code and permits, city hall, the fire department, library, municipal airport and yard waste site. City Hall: 711 Durant Street.
Open official site City of HarlanCity records
Department and staff directory 711 Durant Street P.O. Box 650 Harlan IA 51537 Phone: (712) 755-5137 Fax: (712) 755-5138
Open official site Harlan City AdministrationPolice & jail
The elected Shelby County Sheriff and deputies police the county and provide contract law enforcement to Harlan and other cities; the page covers civil and patrol divisions and the county jail.
Open official site Shelby County Sheriff's OfficeEverything else, organized
11 more Harlan sources not listed above.
Local record guide
Local profile
Harlan, a place of 4,893 people, is the seat of Shelby County. Court and property records sit with Shelby County, and birth and death certificates come from the State of Iowa. Harlan's own offices are in the cards above, and our Shelby County page lists each county office.
Abandoned mine records
What the records show here, and the office that holds the mine maps.
Harlan sits over the Western Region and the coal there is medium and high volatile bituminous, worked underground in many places. The USGS coal fields map is drawn at a small scale, so it shows the ground, not a parcel.
Nothing at all is on record inside the town limits: no mine, no shaft, no adit and no pit. That is what the files say, and it is not a clearance. Those files record a working only where one was catalogued or drawn on a survey sheet, and on coal ground the sheets are thin: the maps that show the rooms and the pillars are held by Iowa DNR Iowa Coal Mines map and that office is where to ask for them.
Iowa abandoned mine maps ranks every county and town in the state by the workings recorded inside it, names the office that holds the mine maps, and says what to do if the ground moves.
Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.
Labor Department file
The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division closed 11 investigations with a Harlan address since fiscal 2005 and recorded $6,603 in back wages agreed for 109 workers. Snapshot of April 22, 2026; a case here is a finding by the Division, not a court judgment, and the city is the one written on the employer's record.
| Employer | Cases | Back wages | Workers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concerned, Inc | 2 | $6,568 | 108 |
| Keast Ford Lincoln Mercury Inc. | 1 | $35 | 1 |
| Harlan Golf & Country Club | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| American Babtist Homes Of The Midwest | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| Harlan Builders Supply INC | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| Blair 5 LLC | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| Brickyard Orchard | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| Stephen P. Allen DDS, P.C. | 1 | $0 | 0 |
| Variety DISTRUBUTORS, INC. | 1 | $0 | 0 |
Every employer whose address on the record is in Harlan, by back wages agreed; 1 employer has a page of their own and open from the table, the rest show their whole record in this row. The Iowa wage theft records page ranks the whole state.
Straight answers
Open only the answer you need.
Voter registration in Iowa is run by the Iowa Secretary of State and local election officials. Its site lists the registration deadline, online voter registration, polling places and the local election office for Harlan.
Deeds for property in Harlan are recorded by the Shelby County Recorder, and the county office that assesses property keeps the tax values. Our Shelby County page lists the county offices.
Certified birth and death certificates for events in Iowa come from the state vital records office, Iowa HHS Vital Records. Its site lists who may order a copy, the fee and how to order.
Businesses that operate in Harlan register with the Iowa Secretary of State, which runs the state business entity search. A local business license, where Harlan requires one, comes from the town or Shelby County.
Same county
Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.