Prothonotary office moves to more-accessible 1st floor
The Office of the Prothonotary of Butler County will be staying true to its root word meaning by moving to the first floor of the Government Center.
Pro means “first” in Latin. The civil clerk of courts moved Thursday to the first floor of the Government Center in an effort to make services more accessible, according to Kelly Ferrari, prothonotary.
As head of the department, Ferrari is a keeper of the county's records with paperwork dating back to the 19th century. The prothonotary's new location can be found by walking to the end of the first floor after entering the Government Center on West Diamond Street and turning left at the end of the hallway.
Family researchers can still access the department's historic records — including immigration paperwork — in the old courthouse where the prothonotary had been based. But for modern business, Ferrari said most of their documents have been digitized and can be accessed at their new location.Ferrari said that as a public service, her department offered uninterrupted access even as dozens of county workers transferred the prothonotary's paperwork and computers to the new office.“We have a lot of elderly people doing their passports and it was a long walk for them over there,” Ferrari said. “When I took office, I asked to be more accessible to the public and to have a safe, secure space.”She noted that the move is part of a larger effort by county officials to make the government center more accessible for the public.
