Ohio Vital Records

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Ohio

Vital Records

Ohio Vital Records Dates

Government Registration	Births	Marriages	Deaths
County/Town	1867	County Formation	1867
Statewide Registration	1908*	1949**	1908*
General Compliance	***	County Formation	***
* In 1908, births and deaths are in certificate format, rather than the registers previously used by counties ** In 1949 county probate courts began forwarding copies of marriage certificates to the State ***Compliance was high, since county officials were keeping the records well before statewide registration began

Online Resources

Birth

• 1765-1947 Ohio Church and Civil Births and Baptisms, 1765-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1774-1973 Ohio Births and Christenings Index, 1774-1973 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1821-1962 Ohio Births and Christenings, 1821-1962 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1841-2003 Ohio County Births, 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1907-1998 Ohio Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1908-1998 Ohio Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1908-Onward Ohio Births at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1918-1953 Ohio, Stillbirths, 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1959-1998 Ohio Birth Index, 1959-1998 at MyHeritage — index ($)

Marriage

• 1600s-1900s US Marriages – Ohio at Findmypast — index & images ($)
• 1774-1993 Ohio County Marriage Records, 1774-1993 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1789-2016 Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1789-Onward Ohio Marriages at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1800-1958 Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1803-1900 Ohio Compiled Marriage Index, 1803-1900 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1849-1853 Certified Abstract of Marriages (Ohio), 1949-1953(*) at FamilySearch Catalog - images
• 1970-2003 Ohio Marriages, 1970-2003 at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1970-2007 Ohio Marriage Abstracts, 1970, 1972-2007 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1970-2011 Ohio Marriages, 1970, 1972-2011 at Findmypast — index ($)

Death

• 1833-1967 Ohio Church and Civil Deaths, 1833-1967 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1840-2001 Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1840-1908 Ohio Select County Death Records, 1840-1908 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1854-1997 Ohio Deaths and Burials, 1854-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index only
• 1908-2018 Ohio Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1908-1953 Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1908-2007 Ohio Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1908-2018 Ohio Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1913-1970 Search: Death Certificates, 1913-1944, 1954-1970 at Ohio History Connection — index
• 1913-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage — index ($)
• 1918-1953 Ohio, Stillbirths, 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1945-1954 Ohio, Death Certificate Indexes (1945-1954) and Death Certificates (1951, 1953); Ohio. Bureau of Vital Statistics at FamilySearch Catalog; — images
• 1959-2012 Ohio Deaths, 1959-2012 at Findmypast — index ($)

Divorce

• See Ohio Divorce Records for more resources.

Get Copies

Restrictions:

• Death records less than 50 years and birth records less than 125 years are restricted.
• Marriage records are public, and access to these records is not restricted by identity or purpose

Ohio Department of Health
Bureau of Vital Statistics
4200 Surface Road
Columbus, OH 43228
Phone: 614-466-2531
Contact Us
Website

• They maintain birth records from December 20, 1908 and death records 50 years ago to present

• Death records older than 50 years are transferred to Ohio History Connection.
• How to Order Certificates (birth and death) with details for online, by mail, and in-person

Ohio History Connection
Archives & Library
Ohio History Connection
800 East 17th Avenue
Columbus, OH 43211
Phone: 614.297.2510
FAX: 614.297.2546
Email: reference@ohiohistory.org
Website

• Vital Records at Ohio History Connection: Birth Marriage Death

• Copy Request Form

County Courthouses
If you know where the person was born, married, or died, you may contact the county directly.

• Any county or city health department in the State of Ohio can provide a copy of a birth or death record.
  

• Links to County Health Departments

• Marriage certificate copies can be obtained from the specific county probate court. In Ohio each county probate court maintains their own online contact pages and information.

• Ohio Court Links including to County Probate Courts

Coverage and Compliance

Births:
Physicians or midwives created the birth records and sent them to the country probate court. Parents also reported.

• Compliance to the law for registering births with the county was highest when midwives or doctors were used
• Birth certificates are now completed by hospitals, midwives, birthing centers, parents, etc., and collected by county clerks, who transfer copies to the state.

Marriages:

• Generally high compliance from county formation.
• County clerks created marriage licenses and the persons performing the marriages (usually ministers or justices of the peace) reported the "returns" to the clerks.
• Ohio was a common-law marriage state until 1991. No actual marriage record was created for those couples.

Deaths:

• Registering deaths soon after required by law was highest when doctors and funeral homes were used
• Death certificates are now completed by funeral home directors, medical examiners, physicians, hospitals, relatives, etc., (and collected by county clerks), who transfer them to the state.

Information in the Records

Birth Records

Ohio Birth Records May Include*
Name of Child	x
Birth Date/Place	x
Sex/Race	x
Parents' Names	x
Parents' Birthplace	x
# of Children Born/Living	x
Residence/Occupation	x
Midwife/Doctor	x
* Early records may have less information

• 1867-1908 County records of births and deaths were kept by the probate court.

• These records include the name, date of birth, sex, names of the parents and their place of residence.
• A few counties have records dating from the 1840s.

• 1908-current The counties started reporting of births and deaths to the state December 20, 1908.

• The state-level birth records usually contain a child's name, place and date of birth, sex, race, name and birthplace of father, and maiden name and birthplace of mother.
• These records are also in the county or city health departments.

Delayed Birth Records
Delayed birth records were created in the 1940s for adults without birth certificates in order to be eligible for Social Security benefits or for passports.

See also:

• Ohio Guided Research
• How to Find Ohio Birth Records
• United States Birth Records
• United States Delayed Birth Records
• How to Find Birth Information in the United States
• United States How to Use Birth Records

Marriage Records

Ohio Marriage Records May Include:*
Names of Bride/Groom**	x
Date/Place of Marriage	x
Presiding Official	x
# of Times Married	x
Dates/Places of Birth	x
Residences/Race	x
Parents' Names	x
* Early records may have less information ** May be previous married name of bride

County marriage records are the earliest and most complete vital records for Ohio. County probate courts kept the records, starting from the date of the county's creation.

• Marriage records show the names of the bride and groom, the date, the county, and the officiating individual. Sometimes there is information about the ages and residences of the bride and groom.
• Parents are not usually named in records dated before 1900.
• These records include applications for licenses, marriage licenses, and marriage returns.
  
• The couple or a parent provided information for license applications.

Gretna Greens. When eloping, couples would get married in alternate places instead of the county they lived in.
For those from Ohio, these locations include:

• Aberdeen, Brown, Ohio
• Cincinnati, Hamilton, Ohio
• Maysville, Mason, Kentucky
• West Alexander, Washington, Pennsylvania
• Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania
• Angola, Steuben, Indiana
• Evansville, Vanderburgh, Indiana

See also:

• Ohio Guided Research
• How to Find Ohio Marriage Records
• United States Marriage Records
• United States How to Use Marriage Records
• Ohio Divorce Records

Death Records

Ohio Death Records May Include:*
Name of Decedent	x
Date/Place of Death	x
Sex/Race	x
Occupation	x
Age/Date of Birth	x
State/Country of Birth	x
Length of Residence	x
Name of Spouse	x
Parents' Names	x
Birth Places of Parents	x
Physician	x
Cause of Death	x
Informant	x
Cemetery	x
* Early records may have less information

• 1867-1908 County records of deaths were kept in register books by the probate court.
• 1908-current The counties started reporting deaths on certificates and sent them to the state December 20, 1908.

• These records are also in the county or city health departments.

See also:

• Ohio Guided Research
• How to Find Ohio Death Records
• United States Death Records
• United States How to Find Death Records
• United States How to Use Death Records

Cause of Death

• Causes of Death - use this resource when trying to interpret a disease or medical condition listed on a death record or certificate.

Additional Information

See also:

• Ohio Vital Records Laws posted in Ohio Law and Legislation page
• United States Vital Records
• Locating United States Vital Records
• Ohio Genealogical Society
• Ohio GenWeb Site

Strategy

Tips for Using Vital Records

• Certificate or record is not found:

1. Couples often married in the county where bride lived or they may have eloped
2. Search the towns and cities where the event took place. Also search surrounding counties to locate the document.
3. The record may not exist because of record loss at the the county courthouse. See Burned, Lost, or Missing Records.
4. The event may not have been recorded by the government at that time. Substitute Records.

• Examine the record to determine accuracy:

1. Person providing information may not remember events accurately
2. Informant may not have been present at the time of the event
3. Informant may give false information to hide age, race, religion, or illegitimacy
4. Grieving relatives may not have remembered correctly

• Review the informant on the document:

1. Learn the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) of the record
2. See if records about the informant may have clues about the family
3. Verify vital information with other sources
   

See also:

• Ohio Research Tips and Strategies
• United States Basic Search Strategies
• United States Research Tips and Strategies

Burned, Lost, or Missing Records

The following counties had record loss. Click on the county for more information.

Adams Belmont Brown Champaign

Columbiana Crawford Delaware Fayette

Fulton Gallia Hamilton Henry

Licking Monroe Seneca Trumbull

See also:

• Burned Counties Research for strategies to find ancestors in spite of record loss.

Substitute Records

For other records that may give birth, marriage, or death information, see:

• Ohio Substitute Records
• Substitute Records for United States Birth Information
• Substitute Records for United States Marriage Information
• Substitute Records for United States Death Information

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