About the Adair County Clerk
Timothy Fishinghawk serves as the Adair County County Clerk. He took office on May 1, 2024, and represents District NE. His office is the recorder of land and county records for the county, based at the courthouse in Stilwell. A small staff runs the recording counter and the filing room. First Deputy John Fite, Second Deputy Tina Ketcher, and Deputy Sonja Workman handle daily intake, while Daniella Walker manages purchasing. Together they record instruments, index each one, print copies, and keep the county's permanent record books.
The office keeps steady weekday hours and skips the midday closure the court clerk observes. Doors stay open from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A recording, copy, or search fits anywhere in that window.
The county posts the office's contact details and a link to its land search on the official County Clerk page.
That page lists the phone line, the fax, and the address, and it sends visitors to the online portal where recorded images live.
Adair County County Clerk
County Clerk: Timothy Fishinghawk
P.O. Box 169
220 West Division
Stilwell, OK 74960
918-696-7198 Ext. 1
Fax: 918-696-2011
countyclerk@adaircountycourthouse.com
Hours: 8:00-4:30, Monday through Friday
Note: Unlike the court clerk down the hall, the County Clerk office stays open through midday, so a recording or copy request can be made any weekday from 8:00 to 4:30.
Adair County Clerk vs Court Clerk
Two offices in Adair County carry near-identical names, and the mix-up costs people time. The County Clerk records land: deeds, mortgages, liens, plats, transfer-on-death deeds, and other recorded instruments. The Court Clerk keeps court case files: criminal, civil, probate, divorce, marriage licenses, and traffic matters filed in the District Court. Nichole Cooper-Coiner holds the Court Clerk post in the same courthouse. Sending a request to the wrong counter is the most common delay, so match the record to the office first.
The table below sorts the most requested items by office. For case files, certified court copies, and marriage licenses, the Adair County Court Clerk page carries the detail, since those records belong to that office.
| Record need | County Clerk | Court Clerk |
|---|---|---|
| Deeds, mortgages, and liens | Yes | No |
| Plats and land records | Yes | No |
| Transfer-on-death deeds | Yes | No |
| Criminal and civil cases | No | Yes |
| Marriage and probate filings | No | Yes |
What the Adair County Clerk Records
The County Clerk is the county's recorder. Every instrument that affects land in Adair County can be brought here, stamped, indexed, and filed in the public record. Once recorded, a document is open for anyone to view or copy. The office also keeps county administrative records and a set of statutory filings that have nothing to do with court cases.
- Deeds, warranty deeds, quit claim deeds, and corrected deeds
- Mortgages, releases, satisfactions, and assignments
- Liens, tax liens, mechanic's liens, and warrant liens
- Plats, surveys, easements, and legal land descriptions
- UCC financing statements and fictitious-name certificates
- Transfer-on-death deeds and affidavits of surviving joint tenant
The index reaches well beyond simple sales. Sheriff's deeds, patents, judgments, lis pendens filings, guardianship deeds, and powers of attorney all land in the same record books. Staff can confirm whether a given instrument type is recorded here or whether it belongs with the court.
How to Search Adair County Land Records
Adair County land records sit on the OKCountyRecords portal, the official online home for the county's recorded instruments. Indexed data and scanned images reach back to January 1989, and new records post in real time as they are recorded. The basic search is free to run, and revenue from printed copies goes back to support the county.
- Open the OKCountyRecords Adair County search page in a browser.
- Enter a party name in "Last, First" or business form, then pick a party type to limit results to grantors or grantees.
- Narrow the search by book and page, instrument number, instrument type, or a recorded date range when you know them.
- For a property search, add the legal description fields: quarter, section, township, and range.
- Open a matching result to view the index entry, then order or print the recorded image to confirm the detail.
When a record predates 1989 or never made it online, call the office at 918-696-7198 Ext. 1. Staff can check the paper books and pull a copy from the vault.
Note: Older recorded instruments may be filed under a legacy book or series code rather than a modern year, so widen the series filter when an early search returns nothing.
Adair County Land Records Search Fields
The OKCountyRecords search screen offers more than a name box. Each field narrows the index a different way, and the advanced search adds a long list of book and series codes for older filings. The fields below cover both the basic and advanced views.
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name | text | "Last, First" or a business name, such as "Smith, John." |
| Party Type | dropdown | All parties, grantees, or grantors. |
| Book / Page | text | Pair a book with a page; "See all books" lists every volume. |
| Series | dropdown | All series plus year and legacy codes back through 1989 and older. |
| Instrument Number | text | Exact or partial recorded instrument number. |
| Instrument Type | dropdown | Deed, mortgage, lien, plat, UCC, transfer-on-death deed, and more. |
| Recorded Start / End | date | Limit results to a recording date range. |
| Legal Description | text | County format; sample descriptions are linked on the page. |
| Quarter / Section / Township / Range | dropdown | Locate land by its survey coordinates. |
Common Adair County Clerk Forms
The County Clerk publishes a set of ready-to-use forms on its forms and documents page. Most are land or estate instruments that a person records here after filling them out. The list also holds the county's public notices for jail and debt service.
- Transfer On Death Deed and Transfer On Death Affidavit
- Affidavit of Surviving Joint Tenant
- Affidavit of Cancellation of Lien
- Certificate of Fictitious Name for sole ownership
- Small Estate Affidavit and Notice of Tort Claim
- OAG 2024 Affidavits of Land Ownership and quit claim forms
Transfer-on-death deeds tie land to estate planning. A property owner records one so the land passes to a named beneficiary without a full court case. When an estate still needs court handling, the county probate records page covers case types and the filing steps.
Adair County Recording and Copy Fees
The County Clerk charges set fees for recording and copies, and the rates follow the state schedule. A flat first-page rate covers most recordings, with a lower charge for each added page. Copy and certification fees are modest and run by the page. The figures below come from the county fee schedule.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| First page of a deed, mortgage, or instrument | $8.00, including the preservation fee |
| Each additional page | $2.00 |
| Preservation fee per document | $10.00 added where it applies |
| Certification of a copy | $1.00 per page |
| Photographic or printed copies | $1.00 per page |
| Plat of one block or less | $10.00 |
| Plat of more than one block | $25.00 |
| Fictitious name partnership certificate | $5.00 |
| Mechanic's lien filing and release | $10.00 |
| Nonconforming first page / additional page | $25.00 / $10.00 |
| Documentary stamp tax | $0.75 per $500 of value |
Note: The documentary stamp tax applies to the price paid for a deed, charged at seventy-five cents for every five hundred dollars or fractional part of that amount.
Adair County Recording Standards
A 2024 change reshaped how documents must look before the County Clerk can record them. Senate Bill 57 took effect on November 1, 2024, amending Oklahoma Title 19, Section 298. The law now sets margin rules for every recorded instrument and confirms the preservation fee.
A document needs a top margin of at least two inches and other margins of at least one inch. Pages that miss those margins still record, but at the higher nonconforming rate. The bill also fixed the $10 preservation fee charged on each instrument filed. That money funds the archive that guards the county's older records for the years ahead.