Death records
use in genealogy
In most states, records of deaths
that occurred before 1907 are available from the county clerk in the county in which the death occurred. After 1907,
most records (or certificates) are stored by the state. There is a fee to
obtain this information and, in some states, you have to show a relationship to the deceased.
Whether you should contact the county or state depends on the when the state
started keeping this information at the state level. The easiest way to find out
where to to make requests is to to use
the online advice feature of this site. Based on what you know about your
ancestry, this feature will recommend best next steps for
your research. Click
here to go to online advice.
If you do not know the exact year your ancestor died, most government agencies will search
only a ten-year period for each request. So it would be good to
narrow the time period at much as possible before requesting a
search.
