Minnesota Vital Records: Difference between revisions

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[[United States Vital Records|Vital Records]] consist of [[United States Birth Records|births]], adoptions, [[United States Marriage Records|marriages]], divorces, and [[United States Death Records|deaths]] recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. [[Locating United States Vital Records|United States Vital Records]] has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/Minnesota.htm Minnesota Vital Records State Department of Health] or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.  

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Minnesota's vital records start the following years:  

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The following is a list of online resources useful for locating Minnesota Vital Records which consist of [[United States Birth Records|births]], adoptions, [[United States Marriage Records|marriages]], divorces, and [[United States Death Records|deaths]]. Most online resources for Minnesota Vital Records are indexes. After locating a person in an index always consult the original record to [[Contradictions and discrepancies|confirm the information]] in the index. '''<br>'''  

'''Birth Indexes:'''  

*'''1935 - 2002''' [http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=8742&cj=1&o_xid=0000584978&o_lid=0000584978 ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935-2002''] - $; Incomplete

'''Marriage Indexes:'''  

*'''1849 - 1950''' {{RecordSearch|1680832|Minnesota Marriages, 1849-1950}} - Free; Incomplete

*[http://www.MOMS.mn.gov ''Minnesota Official Marriage System - MOMS'']- Free; Incomplete

'''Death Indexes:'''  

*'''1850 - 2001''' {{RecordSearch|2185953|Minnesota, County Deaths, 1850-2001}} at [https://familysearch.org/search FamilySearch] — index and images

*'''1908 - 2002''' [http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=7316&cj=1&o_xid=0000584978&o_lid=0000584978 ''Minnesota Death Index, 1908-2002''] - $; Incomplete

'''Order a copy of the certificate:'''  

*Order [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/Minnesota.htm Minnesota Certificates] online

[[Minnesota Vital Records#More_Online_Minnesota_Vital_Records_Links|More Online&nbsp;Minnesota Vital Records Links]]

'''Early - 1908'''  

[http://people.mnhs.org/dci/Search.cfm?bhcp=1 Minnesota Death Certificate Index 1904-2001]. This database indexes the death cards from 1904 to 1907 and the death certificates from 1908 to 2001.  

Some counties began recording births as early as 1864 (Redwood County), but most counties began in 1870. Compliance was not good in the early years. The Family History Library has been acquiring microfilms of these county records from the earliest dates to about 1925. For examples, see the following:  

*Minnesota. Division of Vital Statistics. ''Delayed Birth Records, ca. 1942–1981''. <ref>Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1982. (On 3 Family History Library {{FHL|126917|title-id|disp=films beginning with 1314525 item 4}}.) </ref>Contains delayed birth records for Ramsey County and the city of St. Paul.

Wiki articles describing online collections are found at:<br>  

*[[Minnesota County Births - FamilySearch Historical Records|Minnesota County Births - FamilySearch Historical Records]]

There is no centralized registration for Minnesota marriage records. The state has kept a statewide index to marriages from 1958 to present. Each county generally began keeping marriage records soon after the creation of the county. Some county marriage records begin in the late 1840s. The Family History Library has been acquiring microfilms of these records. For example, marriage records of Ramsey County (including St. Paul) are in:  

::MINNESOTA, [COUNTY] – VITAL RECORDS

*[[Minnesota, Marriage Index - FamilySearch Historical Records|Minnesota, Marriage Index - FamilySearch Historical Records]]<br>

'''Wiki articles describing online collections are found at:<br>'''  

*[[Minnesota Municipal Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records|Minnesota Municipal Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records]]

Benton County death records were kept from 1867, but 1870 was the general starting date for most counties. Compliance was not good in the early years. The Family History Library has been acquiring microfilms of these county records from the earliest dates to about 1925. For examples, see the following:  

*'''1850-2001''' - {{RecordSearch|2185953|Minnesota, County Deaths, 1850-2001}} at [https://familysearch.org/search FamilySearch] — index and images

*'''1887-2001''' - {{RecordSearch|3398461|Minnesota Deaths, 1887-2001}} at [https://familysearch.org/search FamilySearch] — index and images

*[http://www.deathindexes.com/minnesota/index.html Minnesota Death Records &amp; Indexes] (deathindexes.com)

'''Online Index:'''  

Divorce and annulment records for each county are found with the civil cases of the district courts. The district courts have handled these cases since 1849. You can write to the court administrator of the district court at the county courthouse for copies or information. For a summary of the types of courts, see the “[[Minnesota Court Records|Minnesota Court Records]]” article.  

[[Minnesota Divorce Index - FamilySearch Historical Records|Minnesota Divorce Index - FamilySearch Historical Records]]<br>  

The Minnesota Department of Health has a divorce index from 1970 to the present.  

In many cases, children were raised by relatives or interested families without a formal adoption taking place and no official adoption records being created. <br>  

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*Privacy laws may restrict your access to some vital records.&nbsp; Copies of some vital records recorded in the last 100 years may be unavailable to anyone except a direct relative.<br>

[[Image:Fire.png|right|50px|Some records are just GONE]] For a list of record loss in Minnesota counties see the following:  

*[http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/?p=2424 Michael John Neill, ''Burned Counties'' in Family History Circle]

These links will take you to wiki pages describing alternate sources for birth, marriage and death records.  

*[[Minnesota History|History]]: Local histories, family&nbsp;histories&nbsp;and biographies can all be sources of birth, marriage and death information. Often this information is found in county-level records or in surname searches of the FamilySearch Catalog.

*[http://www.genealogybranches.com/minnesota.html Minnesota Vital Records Indexes &amp; People Finding Aids] &nbsp;Helpful resources for adoption searches and genealogy research

'''Wiki articles describing online collections are found at:'''  

*[[Minnesota Municipal Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records|Minnesota Municipal Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records]]

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