Minnesota Research Tips and Strategies

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Minnesota

Research Tips and Strategies

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

Minnesota Research Strategies

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

Finding Minnesota Birth, Marriage or Death Records

• Finding Minnesota Births, Marriages, and Deaths using Guided Research

Finding Minnesota Records

• Minnesota Record Finder

Minnesota Statewide Databases

• Minnesota Online Genealogy Records

Minnesota Research Process

• Step-by-Step Minnesota Research, 1880-Present
• Step-by-Step Minnesota Research, 1850-1910
• Minnesota Descendancy Research
• How to Find Birth Records
• How to Find Marriage Records
• How to Find Death Records

Minnesota Research Tips

These tips will help you as you research your ancestors in Minnesota:

Birth and Death information:

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• Statewide registration: The state began registering births and deaths in 1919, with full compliance by 1928.
• Local regististration: Some cities recorded birth and death records as early as 1887, although registration was inconsistent.
  
• Access to records: See Minnesota Vital Records for more information about birth, marriages, and deaths in Minnesota.

Substitute Records:

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• Secondary source: Substitute records are used when primary sources do not exist for an event, such as birth, marriage, and deaths. Secondary sources list information about the event but they were not recorded at the time of the event and they are not an official record of the event.
• Accuracy: Because the information about an event in substitute records was not the official recording of the event (such as, cemetery or obituary records) inaccuracy may occur. Use other substitute records to help varify information.
• List of substitute records: See Minnesota Substitute Records for more information.

Finding Parents:

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• Death records: Death records created by the state starting in 1919 required information on parents of the deceased. Information was not always provided and the accuracy of the information was limited by the grieving relatives' memory.
• Obituaries: Official obituaries can also include the names of parents and other family members. See Minnesota Newspapers and Minnesota Obituaries for more information.
• Church records: Knowing the denominiation of the church the family belonged to helps in locating information about the parents. See Minnesota Church Records for more information.

Census Records:

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• Check all census years: Always look for your ancestor in every possible census to learn more about them and their family members. See Minnesota Census Records for more information.
• Clues to other records: There are clues in censuses regarding immigration, naturalization, and occupation that can lead to other records.
• Finding families: Starting in 1850, all members of the household were listed in the census. By 1880, relationship to the head of household was added.

• Birth information: Statewide registration of births began in 1908 in Minnesota and generally complied 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: Statewide registration of deaths began in 1908. General compliance followed shortly after in 1910. They often will list the parents of the deceased and their birth information. Search Minnesota 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.

Further Minnesota Research

• Minnesota Family History Library Research Outline
• MNGenWeb - Minnesota GenWeb Project
• Minnesota Genealogy Trails - collection of transcribed data for the state of Minnesota
• Cyndi's List - Minnesota genealogy websites
• Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness - State of Minnesota Records Guide