Alabama Vital Records: Difference between revisions

Starting in 1881, the State of Alabama required each individual county to register the birth of children. Because most counties were slow to comply, not all births were recorded. In addition many records from this time period are missing or were destroyed. Birth&nbsp;registers from this time period usually <u>do</u> <u>not</u> list the name of the child. <br>

Alabama law requires the creation of a new birth certificate after a legal adoption has taken place. The original birth certificate and evidence of adoption are then placed in a sealed file and the new certificate is substituted for the original birth certificate in the [http://adph.org/vitalrecords/ State Department of Vital Statistics] files. Starting August 1, 2000, original birth records (as well as all documents in the sealed file) became available to adoptees once they reached the age of 19. The [http://adph.org/vitalrecords/Default.asp?id=1563 Alabama Department of Public Health] has detailed information about obtaining copies of sealed birth records. See [[Adoption Research]] for more information.