Reviewed and updated October 4, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. Every office link on this page was opened and checked against the office's own website at review time.
Hickory is a city in Catawba County, North Carolina, with about 45,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Its public records are split between the city and the county. The city keeps police reports, council records and its own licenses and permits; court cases, jail bookings, deeds and vital records are county or state records. This guide names the Hickory offices SearchSystems verified, links to each one's own website and gives the phone number and address where the office publishes them. SearchSystems verified 3 city office pages for Hickory, every one opened and checked.
In this guide: City or county, City Clerk, Police records, City Hall, Records requests, Other cities and Questions.
City or county record: where Hickory records are kept
- Kept by the City of Hickory: police reports, council and board meeting records, ordinances and the city's own licenses and permits.
- Kept by Catawba County or the state: court cases, jail bookings, deeds and property values and birth and death certificates. These are not city records; they are in the Catawba County public records guide under court records, jail lookups, property records and vital records.
Hickory City Clerk: council records and ordinances
The City Clerk keeps the official records of the city government: council and board agendas and minutes, ordinances and resolutions, and the city's contracts and other official documents. The office below is the one SearchSystems verified for Hickory.
- Website: hickorync.gov/city-clerk (page title: City Clerk | City of Hickory)
- Phone: (828) 323-7409
- Checked: September 25, 2026, the page answered.
Hickory police reports and records
Incident reports, crash reports and the other records of the Hickory police are requested from the department's records unit, usually in writing or through an online form. Reports on open investigations and the names of victims and juveniles are usually withheld or redacted, and some states limit crash reports to the people involved and their insurers. The page below is the one SearchSystems verified for Hickory police records.
- Website: hickorync.gov/police-faq (page title: Police FAQ | City of Hickory)
- Phone: 828-328-5551
- Address: 100 Governement Drive Newton, NC 28658
- Hours: Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Checked: September 25, 2026, the page answered.
Jail bookings and inmate lookups are usually handled by the county, not the city police. They are in the Catawba County public records guide under jail and inmate lookups.
Hickory City Hall: departments, licenses and permits
Business licenses, building permits, code enforcement cases and the city's other records are kept by the department that issued them. The city's own website below lists its departments and how to reach them.
- Website: hickorygov.com
- Checked: October 1, 2026, the page answered.
Public records requests to Hickory
North Carolina public records law applies to the city government of Hickory. A record that is not posted online is requested from the office that holds it: the City Clerk for council and city records, the police records unit for police reports and the department that issued a permit or license for its records. A request that names a date, an address, or a report or case number is the easiest to answer.
Other cities and towns in Catawba County
SearchSystems has a guide like this one for these other cities and towns in Catawba County. The Catawba County public records guide covers the records the county keeps for all of them.
Hickory Arrest Records
The Hickory arrest records guide covers the agency that reports Hickory's arrests to the FBI and the 1,687 arrests it reported for 2025. It also says where a person arrested in Hickory is held, how to find out about an arrest and how to get a copy of the report.
Hickory Records Guides
SearchSystems has eight more guides to Hickory, each written from the city's own offices and figures: Hickory warrants (who issues and serves them, where a person arrested on one is held, how to check for one), Hickory inmate search (the custody page of the Catawba County Sheriff's Office, the jail numbers and who books people), Hickory criminal records (the court file, the North Carolina criminal history and the local arrest records), Hickory court records (which court hears what, the case search and who keeps the files), Hickory police reports (which agency holds a report and what the North Carolina Public Records Act requires), Hickory DUI (the DWI law, the arrest, the court case and the license case), Hickory divorce records (which court holds the file and how a certified copy is had) and Hickory property records (deeds, assessed values, permits and evictions).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this the official Hickory website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records directory, online since 1997. It links to the official Hickory offices listed above, and the city's own website is hickorygov.com; SearchSystems does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.
How do I get a police report in Hickory?
Request it from the Hickory police records unit at hickorync.gov/police-faq, phone 828-328-5551. Reports on open investigations and the names of victims and juveniles are usually withheld or redacted.
Where do I find Hickory city council minutes and ordinances?
From the City Clerk at hickorync.gov/city-clerk, phone (828) 323-7409. The office keeps the official agendas and minutes, ordinances and resolutions.
Where do I find court records or jail bookings for Hickory?
Hickory cases are heard by the courts that serve Catawba County, and people arrested in Hickory are usually booked into the county jail. Both are covered in the Catawba County public records guide on SearchSystems.
How do I request a public record from Hickory?
From the office that holds it: the City Clerk for council and city records, the police records unit for police reports and the department that issued a permit or license for its records. North Carolina public records law applies to city governments.