Vital Records: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 13:03, 9 April 2024

How to Find Vital Records?[edit | edit source]

What is a Vital Record?[edit | edit source]

Births, Marriages, and Deaths[edit | edit source]

Vital Records is a United States record type that consists of births, marriages, and deaths collected and recorded in a variety of formats (such as registers, certificates, or documents) by city, county, or state officials. Other countries may call this "Civil Registration."

While religions, organizations, and businesses (such as cemeteries, newspapers, funeral homes, and more) do collect records about births, marriages, or deaths, they were created for different purposes and are not considered official "vital records."

Divorces[edit | edit source]

Divorces are not considered a vital record but it is often combined with information about marriages as it can only happen if a marriage has occurred.

When did Vital Records Start?[edit | edit source]

Vital Records in the United States are created by the state government, and is not administered by the United States Government. Each state has a vital records office although they go by many different names including health department, vital statistics department, etc. Each state has a different set of laws regarding access to the records. Privacy laws keep individuals who are not the individual in the vital record in obtaining these documents.

Each state was different in instituting statewide registration of births, marriages, and deaths. Sometimes counties or towns kept this information before the state government took control.

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+==How to Find Vital Records?==
+{|
+|-
+<ul class="column-spacing-halfscreen" style="padding-right:5px; width:65%;">
+  <li>[[Alabama Birth, Marriage, and Death Records|Alabama]]</li>
+  <li>[[Alaska Vital Records|Alaska]]</li>
+  <li>[[Arizona Birth, Marriage and Death Records|Arizona]]</li>
+  <li>[[Arkansas Vital Records|Arkansas]]</li>
+  <li>[[California Vital Records|California]]</li>
+  <li>[[Colorado Vital Records|Colorado]]</li>
+  <li>[[Connecticut Vital Records|Connecticut]]</li>
+  <li>[[Delaware Vital Records|Delaware]]</li>
+  <li>[[District of Columbia Vital Records|District of Columbia]]</li>
+  <li>[[Florida Vital Records|Florida]]</li>
+  <li>[[Georgia Vital Records|Georgia]]</li>
+  <li>[[Hawaii Vital Records|Hawaii]]</li>
+  <li>[[Idaho Vital Records|Idaho]]</li>
+  <li>[[Illinois Vital Records|Illinois]]</li>
+  <li>[[Indiana Vital Records|Indiana]]</li>
+  <li>[[Iowa Vital Records|Iowa]]</li>
+  <li>[[Kansas Vital Records|Kansas]]</li>
+  <li>[[Kentucky Vital Records|Kentucky]]</li>
+  <li>[[Louisiana Vital Records|Louisiana]]</li>
+  <li>[[Maine Vital Records|Maine]]</li>
+  <li>[[Maryland Vital Records|Maryland]]</li>
+  <li>[[Massachusetts Vital Records|Massachusetts]]</li>
+  <li>[[Michigan Vital Records|Michigan]]</li>
+  <li>[[Minnesota Vital Records|Minnesota]]</li>
+  <li>[[Mississippi Vital Records|Mississippi]]</li>
+  <li>[[Missouri Vital Records|Missouri]]</li>
+  <li>[[Montana Vital Records|Montana]]</li>
+  <li>[[Nebraska Vital Records|Nebraska]]</li>
+  <li>[[Nevada Vital Records|Nevada]]</li>
+  <li>[[New Hampshire Vital Records|New Hampshire]]</li>
+  <li>[[New Jersey Vital Records|New Jersey]]</li>
+  <li>[[New Mexico Vital Records|New Mexico]]</li>
+  <li>[[New York Vital Records|New York]]</li>
+  <li>[[North Carolina Vital Records|North Carolina]]</li>
+  <li>[[North Dakota Vital Records|North Dakota]]</li>
+  <li>[[Ohio Vital Records|Ohio]]</li>
+  <li>[[Oklahoma Vital Records|Oklahoma]]</li>
+  <li>[[Oregon Vital Records|Oregon]]</li>
+  <li>[[Pennsylvania Vital Records|Pennsylvania]]</li>
+  <li>[[Rhode Island Vital Records|Rhode Island]]</li>
+  <li>[[South Carolina Vital Records|South Carolina]]</li>
+  <li>[[South Dakota Vital Records|South Dakota]]</li>
+  <li>[[Tennessee Vital Records|Tennessee]]</li>
+  <li>[[Texas Vital Records|Texas]]</li>
+  <li>[[Utah Vital Records|Utah]]</li>
+  <li>[[Vermont Vital Records|Vermont]]</li>
+  <li>[[Virginia Vital Records|Virginia]]</li>
+  <li>[[Washington Vital Records|Washington]]</li>
+  <li>[[West Virginia Vital Records|West Virginia]]</li>
+  <li>[[Wisconsin Vital Records|Wisconsin]]</li>
+  <li>[[Wyoming Vital Records|Wyoming]]</li>
+</ul>
+|}
 ==What is a Vital Record?==
+===Births, Marriages, and Deaths===
 Vital Records is a United States record type that consists of [[United States Birth Records|births]], [[United States Marriage Records|marriages]], and [[United States Death Records|deaths]] collected and recorded in a variety of formats (such as registers, certificates, or documents) by city, county, or state officials. Other countries may call this "Civil Registration."
+While religions, organizations, and businesses (such as cemeteries, newspapers, funeral homes, and more) do collect records about births, marriages, or deaths, they were created for different purposes and are not considered official "vital records." <br>
+===Divorces===
 Divorces are not considered a vital record but it is often combined with information about marriages as it can only happen if a marriage has occurred.
-While religions, organizations, and businesses (such as cemeteries, newspapers, funeral homes, and more) do collect records about births, marriages, or deaths, they were created for different purposes and are not considered official "vital records." <br>
+==When did Vital Records Start?==
+Vital Records in the United States are created by the state government, and is not administered by the United States Government. Each state has a vital records office although they go by many different names including health department, vital statistics department, etc. Each state has a different set of laws regarding access to the records. Privacy laws keep individuals who are not the individual in the vital record in obtaining these documents.
+Each state was different in instituting statewide registration of births, marriages, and deaths. Sometimes counties or towns kept this information before the state government took control.
 [[Category:United States]][[Category:Vital Records]]