Michigan Research Tips and Strategies

Michigan Wiki Topics

Beginning Research

Guided Research Research Strategies Record Finder

Record Types

Adoption Bible Records Biography Cemeteries Census Church Records Colonial Records Correctional Institutions Court Records Crime & Punishment Directories Emigration & Immigration Genealogies Land & Property Military Records Naturalization & Citizenship Newspapers Obituaries Online Collections Periodicals Probate Records Taxation Vital Records Voter Records

Michigan Background

Biography Church History Further Reading Gazetteers History Law & Legislation Maps Migration

Cultural Groups

African Americans Indigenous Peoples Cultural Groups Swedish American

Local Research Resources

Archives & Libraries Societies Find a FamilySearch center

Moderator

The FamilySearch moderator for Michigan is Sallyrose1.

United States

Michigan

Research Tips and Strategies

Purpose of Research Tips and Strategies Wiki Page The Michigan Research Tips and Strategies page consists of links to specific research strategies for Michigan. It also contains general tips and other resources for finding your ancestors in this locality.

Michigan Research Strategies

Below are links to different research strategy pages to help you locate your ancestors in Michigan

• Michigan Online Genealogy Records
• How to find Michigan Birth Records
• How to find Michigan Marriage Records
• How to find Michigan Death Records

Michigan Research Tips

These tips will help you as you research your ancestors in Michigan.

• Birth information: Birth records for each county, with copies also sent to the state, began no later than January 1867, although registration of all vital records was certainly not enforced. A 1905 law required more effective record keeping and was generally complied with by 1915. A helpful substitute record to find birth information is a death record. However, date and place of birth on a death record is considered secondary information, as it was not recorded at the time of the birth event. The birth information should be corroborated with other substitute records to improve accuracy.
• Finding Parents: Death records for each county, with copies also sent to the state, began no later than January 1867, although registration of all vital records was certainly not enforced. A 1905 law was much more effective, and was generally complied with by 1915. They often will list the parents of the deceased and their birth information. Search Michigan death records
• Look in all censuses: Always look for your ancestor in every possible census. There are clues regarding immigration, naturalization, and occupation that can lead to other records. Sometimes parents can be found living with their children later in life. Search U.S. Censuses.

Michigan Record Finder

This brief Record Finder is designed to help you determine the best record to search for the type of information you are looking for. It is most helpful for post-1850 research. For a more complete Record Finder, covering additional research needs, see Michigan Record Finder.

1. What you are looking for:	2. Try these records first:	3. Other useful records
Birth information	Birth records Death records Obituaries Church records	Cemeteries Naturalization and Citizenship (after 1906) Bible records Military records
Marriage information	Marriage records Obituaries Bible records	Church records Probate records Military records
Death information	Death Records Cemeteries Obituaries	Probate Records Church Records Bible Records
Parents	Birth records Death records Obituaries Census Church records	Biography Genealogy
Maiden name	Marriage Records Obituaries Probate records	Church Records Military Records
Immigration date	Emigration and Immigration Naturalization and Citizenship (after 1906) Census	Obituaries Biography History
Naturalization	Naturalization and Citizenship (after 1906) Census Court Records	Voting Records Biography Periodicals
Physical description	Military Records Naturalization and Citizenship (after 1906) (after 1906)	Biography History

Further Michigan Research

• Remember, for a more complete Record Finder, covering additional research needs, see Michigan Record Finder.
• For online record collections, go to Michigan Online Genealogy Records.
• For more research on Michigan, including research at the county level, visit the Michigan page on the Research Wiki.
• Search all of the Michigan record collections at FamilySearch.
  

To access available information, first log into FamilySearch.