United States Genealogy Vital Records Search

Birth, marriage, divorce, and death records, known as vital records, are a foundation of genealogy research. Vital records can provide birth date, death date, names of family members, and location, and these records of an ancestor's life are the basis for the search of additional genealogy records.

Vital records are considered primary records and likely more accurate because they were recorded on or near the time of the event.

The U.S.A. does not have a nationwide system of vital records registration. Vital Records in the United States are recorded at the state level and the states did not begin to keep centralized vital records until the early 1900s. While more and more vital records databases have been placed online, there is still a long way to go.

Online Vital Record Databases

  • Vital Records at FamilySearch
    Birth, christening, marriage, and death listed by state at the Mormon genealogy web site.

  • Vital Records at Ancestry.com
    Birth, christening, marriage & divorce, and death, burial, cemetery & obituary records. Index and transcription is free, if an image is available there is a fee to download.

  • RootsWeb Birth Records
    User Contributed transcribed birth records

    First Name: (optional)

    Surname:

    Birth Year - YYYY (optional):

    State/County: (optional)



  • RootsWeb Marriage Records
    User contributed transcribed marriage records

    First Name: (optional)

    Surname:

    Year of Marriage: (optional)
    State:
    Search by:
     


  • RootsWeb Death Records
    User transcribed death records

    First Name: (optional)

    Surname:

    Death Year YYYY (optional):
    State/County: (optional)
        



Offline Vital Records




Related Vital Records Searches:  US. Social Security Death Records | Cemetery Records | Obituaries | FreeBMD of England & Wales