How do I get a copy of an old birth, death, or marriage record?
The most common surprise in American genealogy
Many beginners assume birth and death certificates are federal records. They are not. In the United States, vital records — birth, death, marriage, and divorce — are created and held by the states, and before statewide registration existed, by counties, cities, and churches. The National Archives' vital records page explains this directly and points researchers to the state and local offices that actually hold the certificates.
Why the date matters so much
Statewide vital registration began at different times in different states, and in many places comprehensive coverage arrived only in the early twentieth century. Before that, your ancestor's birth may simply never have generated a government record. This is not a dead end — it just changes what you are looking for. Common substitutes include:
- Church records — baptisms, marriages, and burials, often predating civil registration by generations.
- County marriage books — marriage was typically recorded at the county level long before births and deaths were.
- Family Bibles, obituaries, and cemetery records — less authoritative, but often the only surviving statement of a date.
- Probate and pension files — which frequently state death dates and family relationships under oath.
To find out when registration began where your ancestor lived and what substitutes exist, look up the state and county pages on the FamilySearch Research Wiki, which catalogs record availability locality by locality.
How to make the request
Once you know which office holds the record, the process is usually straightforward: identify the state or county vital records office, check its website for the application form, fees, and identification requirements, and state clearly that you are requesting the record for genealogical purposes. Some states issue full certified copies to anyone once a record reaches a certain age; others restrict recent records to close relatives and offer informational copies to researchers. Rules vary enough that you should always check the specific office's current requirements rather than assuming.
Ask for the long form or full image when it is offered. An abstract gives you a name and a date; the full certificate can give you parents' names and birthplaces, the mother's maiden name, an informant's name, a cause of death, and a burial place — and the informant's identity is itself a clue, since it tells you who was close to the family.
Read critically
A death certificate is excellent evidence for the death itself, but the birth information on it was supplied by a grieving relative who may have been guessing. Treat each fact on a vital record according to who reported it and how they would have known. When a certificate conflicts with a census entry, record both versions and keep looking; the Library of Congress research guides include state-by-state help for finding the courthouse, church, and newspaper sources that settle such conflicts. For the records that come before civil registration, see our guide to county courthouse research.