Minnesota Vital Records

State Records of Births and Deaths
In Minnesota, the state registration of births began in 1900 and was generally complied with by 1915. Death records have been registered by the state since 1908.

For copies of state records, write to:

Minnesota Department of Health Minnesota Department of Health Attention: Office of the State Registrar P.O. Box 64882 St. Paul, Minnesota 55164-0882 Telephone: 612-623-5121 Fax: 651-291-0101 Internet: http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/chs/osr/index.html

For an idea of fees for obtaining copies of the state’s records, check:

www.vitalrec.com/mn.html. The vitalrec.com site also shows state and county records office addresses, fees, and years covered and has some links to other internet resources.

County Records of Births and Deaths
Some counties began recording births as early as 1864 (Redwood County), but most counties began in 1870. 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:

Minnesota. District Court (Hennepin County). Birth Records, 1870–1915. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1983. (On 5 FHL films beginning with 1309389.)

Minnesota. Division of Vital Statistics. Delayed Birth Records, ca. 1942–1981. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1982. (On 3 FHL films beginning with 1314525 item 4.) Contains delayed birth records for Ramsey County and the city of St. Paul.

Mower County (Minnesota). County Recorder. Death Records, 1870–1993; Index, 1870–1993. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1993. (On 26 FHL films beginning with 1902894.)

For information about early county birth and death records, write to the court administrator of the district court or county recorder in the county.

County Records of Marriages
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. District Court (Ramsey County).Marriage Indexes, 1850–1917; Marriage Records, 1850–1916. Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1982. (On 54 FHL films beginning with index film 1314520 item 3.)

There is an index to many pre-1850 Minnesota marriage records on compact disc:

Marriage Records Early–1850. Orem, Utah: Automated Archives, 1992. (FHL compact disc no.9, pt. 227.) Although incomplete, this disc has many marriage records for various states west of the Mississippi.

There are also some Bureau of Indian Affairs marriage records on microfilm. An example is:

United States. Bureau of Indian Affairs. Red Lake Agency. Marriage Licenses, 1902–1922. Kansas City, Missouri: Federal Archives and Records Center, 1977. (FHL film 1204883 item 3.)

For copies of marriage records, write to the district court administrator’s office in the county in which the license was recorded. This office also has files for divorces. For information about Hennepin County marriages, write to:

Vital Records Office Public Service Level Government Center 300 South 6th Street Minneapolis, MN 55487  http://www.co.hennepin.mn.us/ 

For other birth, death, and marriage records, check the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under:

MINNESOTA, [COUNTY] – VITAL RECORDS

Divorce Records
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” article.

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

Websites

Minnesota Death Certificate Index 1904-2001:

http://people.mnhs.org/dci/Search.cfm?bhcp=1

Miscellaneous Death Records and Obituaries:

http://home.att.net/~wee-monster/deathrecords.html

Minnesota Birth Certificate Index 1900-1934:

http://people.mnhs.org/bci/search.cfm?bhcp=1

There is a large collection of Minnesota births, marriages, divorces, and deaths online at www.ancestry.com which is a subscription website.