GREENE COUNTY: At a glance
Positioned on a large shale deposit in the Appalachian Mountain foothills, Greene County is home to the Warrior Trail, a path created by Native Americans over 5,000 years ago.

CHALLENGE: Heavy use, deteriorating records
With rich mineral deposits in the area, Greene County often receives land registry search requests that involve their older, hard-copy records. When combined with routine land records research, this additional mineral rights research created a large volume of inquiries for the office. The small office was often crammed with searchers. Donna Tharp, Greene County Recorder of Deeds, worried about wear and tear on the aging records.

SOLUTION: Intuitive and efficient searches
“I wanted a way for the public to access our records and not have to come into the office and be in the hard-copy books,” said Tharp. Greene County opted for an Online Index Books (OIB) solution using the existing images from Greene County’s previous vendor. By combining digital images of the indexes and related record books with unique retrieval software, OIB makes it possible for users to search and print digital copies from the convenience of their desktop. OIB software is fully customizable to meet each local office’s unique needs based on their individual indexing system.

RESULTS: Reduced time, effort, and cost
“OIB fills the need. Now searchers do not have to search through old records, pull the books, copy, etc. The program is user-friendly, and the service is excellent,” said Tharp. OIB complements Greene County’s existing land records management system to expand access to their historical records. The Greene County Recorder of Deeds now provides convenient online access to thousands of documents dating back more than 220 years. “The program is well used, and people can search from home and still get work done,” she said.