Albany County, New York Genealogy

''This article is about an eastern upstate New York county in the United States. For other uses, including other similarly named localities, see Albany''.

United States New York  Albany County

Parent County
Albany County was one of the original twelve counties created by the British Province of New York on 1 November 1683.

Neighboring Counties
Columbia | Greene | Rensselaer | Saratoga | Schenectady | Schoharie

Boundary Changes
At the time of creation it included all of the present Bennington County, Vermont, all of New York state north of the counties of Dutchess and Ulster, and theoretically stretched west to the Pacific Ocean.
 * 27 May 1717: Albany County was adjusted to gain an indefinite amount of land from Dutchess County and other non-county lands.
 * 7 October 1763: King George III, King of England, as part of his proclamation, created new province of Quebec, implicity setting the northern limit of New York at the parallel of 45 degrees north latitude, from Atlantic-St.Lawrence watershed westward to the St. Lawrence River, but it was never mapped.
 * 20 July 1764: King George III established the boundary between New Hampshire and New York along the west bank of the Connecticut River, north of Massachusetts and south of the 45th parallel. Albany County implicitly gained present-day Vermont. Disputes broke out later and the dissatified colonists organized in opposition which led to the creation of Republic of Vermont in 1777 (lasted until Vermont joined in the American Revolutionary War.)
 * 13 July 1766: Cumberland County was partitioned from Albany County, covering all northern and eastern limits of the county, including what is now Windsor County, most of Windham County and parts of Bennington and Rutland counties in Vermont.
 * 26 June 1767: Albany County regained all of Cumberland County.
 * 19 March 1768: the county was repartitioned and Cumberland County restored.
 * 16 March 1770: the county was partitioned again to create Gloucester County (which includes all of present-day Orange, Caledonia and Essex counties, most of Washington County, parts of Orleans, Lamoille, Addison and Chittenden counties in Vermont.
 * 12 March 1772: Albany County was partitioned again, into Albany, Tryon (now Montgomery) and Charlotte (now Washington) counties.
 * 24 March 1772: a partition of 50 sq miles was handed over to Cumberland County.
 * 9 March 1774: Ulster County was set off from Albany County.
 * 1 April 1775: a partition of 60 sq miles was handed over to Charlotte County who then exchanged a like parcel with Cumberland County.
 * 15 January 1777: 300 square miles was lost to the Republic of Vermont.
 * 26 January 1781: Bennington County, Vermont attempted to annex a portion of Albany County (today's portions of Washington and Rensselaer counties) to form "The West Union." The Confederation (before there was the US Constitution) arbitrated this annexation, and condemned it, with Vermont ceasing the attempts on 23 February 1783.
 * 4 Apr 1786: Columbia County was set off.
 * 7 March 1788: New York refusing to recognize the independence of Vermont, with Cumberland County eliminated, tried to adjust the line that separated Cumberland County from Albany in present-day Vermont, but to no effect.
 * 7 February 1791: Rensselaer and Saratoga counties were set off. On the same day, town of Cambridge was transferred to Washington County.
 * 1 January 1795: Schoharie County was set off.
 * 5 April 1798: Ulster County took 90 sq miles to add to it.
 * 25 March 1800: Greene County set off.
 * 3 March 1808: Havre Island turned over to Saratoga County with no net loss of land.
 * 7 March 1809: Schenectady County set off. From this day Albany County exists in its present shape.

Record Loss
March 1911: Albany, NY fire destroyed the State Capitol Building including part of the State Library. Losses included twenty-three manuscript folio volumes of the famous official records of the governors of the city of New Amsterdam, covering a period from 1630 to 1674, the correspondence of Governor George Clinton, 5,000 pieces in all, and the original letters of Sir William Johnson, and Governor Daniel D. Tompkins.

Bible Records
William A. Brinkman, Bible and Family Records (Guilderland, N.Y.: typescript, 1943). . . 62 names, some with several families; surname index at back.

Biography
Some Albany county histories include biographies of the local citizens. See Albany County History. See also the New York Biography page for more biographical links. Other groups of compiled biographies include:


 * George Rogers Howell, Jonathan Tenny, and John H. Munsell, History of the County of Albany, N.Y., from 1609-1886: with Portraits, Biographies and Illustrations, Bi-centennial History of Albany (Microreproduction of original published: New York: W. W. Munsell, 1886).


 * Vol. 1 Google Books digital copy.
 * Vol. 2 Google Books digital copy.
 * Vol. 3 ..
 * Vol. 4 Google Books digital copy.


 * Rufus W. Clark, The Heroes of Albany: a Memorial of the Patriot-Martyrs of the City and County of Albany, Who Sacrificed Their Lives During the Late War in Defense of Our Nation, 1861-1865 (Albany, New York: S.R. Gray, 1867). Internet Archive digital copy.
 * Amasa Junius Parker, Landmarks of Albany County, New York (Syracuse, New York: D. Mason, 1897). Internet Archive digital copy.
 * Cuyler Reynolds, Hudson–Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs (New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co., 1911). Schenectady Digital History Archive with free online index. Google Books digital copy.
 * A.J.F. Van Laer, Settlers of Rensselaerswyck, 1630-1658: with Index to Biographical Notices (Baltimore: Genealogical Pub., 1965). ..
 * Category:Biography list of 1400 short biographies in the Helderberg Hilltowns wiki.
 * People of Albany County Live Here in New York State Museum online collection of 3,100 biographies of colonial residents.

Business Records and Commerce

 * Albany County Savings Bank, Fifty years of service, 1874-1924 (Microreproduction of original published: Albany: Albany Co. Savings Bank, 1925?) ..

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, death, relationship, military, and religious information. See the New York Cemeteries page for further details.


 * Albany County Jewish Cemeteries ($) JewishData.com


 * -1900-2002 Jewish People's Cemetery
 * -1850- 2001 Temple Israel, Sons of Abraham, Ohav Sholom Cemetery
 * -1894-2002


 * Some Albany County area cemetery records 18 alphabetical sets of gravestone transcripts and 1 death notices list.
 * Early Settlers of New York State 17 tombstone transcripts of Bethlehem, NY in Ancestry.com
 * The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Records has cemetery records from 1787 to 1997 for Albany Almshouse Internments, Evangelical Protestant Cemetery Plot Plan, Rensselaerville Cemetery, and Weterlo Cemetery on microfilm in their Historical Records.

Census
For information and tips on using and accessing online census records, see New York Census.

Federal Censuses

 * 1790 Rensselaerville census (Rootsweb)
 * 1790 Rensselaerville census index (RootsWeb)
 * 1790 Watervliet census (Rootsweb)
 * 1790 Watervliet census index (Rootsweb)
 * 1810 Ronald Vern Jackson, Computer index to Albany County, New York 1810 census (Bountiful, Utah: Accelerated Indexing Systems, 1973). . Heads of house only.

Church Records
Church records may give birth, death and marriage information and are most often found on a local city, town or community level. For more information, see New York Church Records.

General


 * Diane Snyder Ptak, Lost and found, Albany (NY) Area Church and Synagogue Vital Records, 1654-1925 (Albany, N.Y.: D.S. Ptak, 1993). . . Church and synagogue record inventory for Albany and Rensselaer counties arranged by denomination and county. Lists houses of worship, contact information, record types, years covered, and sources.
 * Albany County (New York), County Clerk, Church Patents with Index (Microreproduction of ms. at the County Courthouse, Albany, N.Y., 1968). . State legal certifications 1784-1880 naming some of each denomination's leaders at their founding.

Dutch Reformed


 * Early Church Membership of the Reformed Prot. Dutch Church
 * Albany Dutch Reform Church Baptisms 1683-1724 Courtesy Genealogytrails.com
 * Albany, New York Church Records, 1683-1700 This database predominately contains records of baptisms, marriages and deaths from the Dutch Reformed Church in the city of Albany as well as a list of members of the Holland Society who died between 1800-1904. Ancestry.com ($)
 * Records of the Reformed Dutch Church of Albany, New York, 1683-1809: Marriages, Baptisms, Members, etc. WorldVital Records ($). Free viewing site at Clarku.edu
 * Albany Baptisms of the Dutch Reformed Church of Albany, New York, 1683-1724
 * Excerpts from Dutch Reformed churches of Albany, Dutchess and Ulster counties of NY,
 * Record of marriages and a few baptisms, 1822-1877,
 * Reformed South Church (Albany County, New York) Members, baptisms, marriages, and deaths: 1844-1904 [Albany County, New York]

Lutheran


 * Lutheran Church, Albany, Baptisms, 1774-1785 Rev. Wilson served in Albany County between 1831-1835.
 * Dern, John P., Simon Hart, Sibrandina Geertruid Hart-Runeman, Harry J. Kreider The Albany protocol, Wilhelm Christoph Berkenmeyer's chronicle of Lutheran affairs in New York Colony, 1731-1750 ;

Presbyterian


 * History of the First Presbyterian Church of Albany, N.Y.
 * Early Settlers of New York State, Vol. 11 Contains early church records for the First Presbyterian Church of Albany County, Vol. 1] Ancestry.com ($)
 * Early Settlers of New York State, Vol. 11 Contains early church records for the First Presbyterian Church of Albany County. Ancestry.com ($)

Society of Friends (Quakers)


 * Frost, Josephine S.C. Quaker meeting records, state of New York: Ulster County, Columbia County, Albany County, Clinton County ;

The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Records has church records on microfilm in their Historical Records for towns and cities in Albany County 1683–1932 for the following churches:


 * Albany First Lutheran 1794-1932
 * Albany First Presbyterian 1785-1841
 * Albany Methodist 1806-1884
 * Albany Saint Peter's Episcopal 1756-1883
 * Albany Second Presbyterian 1815-1870
 * Albany State Street Presbyterian 1859-1883
 * Berne Lutheran 1790-1875
 * Berne Reformed Dutch 1763-1877
 * Bethlehem First Reformed 1794-1924
 * Coeymans Reformed Protestant Dutch 1846-1877
 * Delmar Reformed 1848-1899
 * Guilderland Center Dutch Reformed 1794-1925
 * Jerusalem Reformed 1842-1890
 * Knowerville Lutheran 1785-1868
 * New Salem Dutch Reformed 1786-1899
 * Reformed Dutch of Albany 1683-1809
 * Unionville Dutch Reformed 1825-1932
 * West Sand Lake Lutheran 1785-1868
 * Wynantskill Reformed 1794-1889

For details on these church records see the town or city wiki page.

Court Records
Original court records for Albany County are held in the office of the County Clerk. See New York Court Records for more information about using court records.

Copies of Original Records


 * 1652-1782 Court minutes
 * 1665-1685 Proceedings, justices of the peace
 * 1676-1695 Proceedings of commissioners, 1676-1680; notarial papers, 1660-1695
 * 1702-1849 Albany treasurer record, 1702-1712; ledger, 1808-1849
 * 1784-1880 Church patents, with index
 * 1827-1901 Lis Pendens, 1827-1901; index to maps, 1630-1904
 * 1849-1880 Judgement rolls
 * 1884-1919 Divorce decrees

Abstracts


 * 1648-1652 [Minutes of the Court of Rensselaerswyck] available at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1652-1656 Arnold J.F. Van Laer, Minutes of the Court of Fort Orange and Beverwyck, 1652 - 1656 (Albany, New York: Univ. of the State of NY, 1920) World Vital Records ($)
 * 1652-1660 New Netherland, Inferior Court of Justice (Beverwyck, New York), Fort Orange court minutes, 1652-1660 (Syracuse, New York: Holland Society of New York, c1990). ..
 * 1668-1685 Arnold J.F. Van Laer, Minutes of the court of Albany, Rensselaerswyck, and Schenectady, 1668- 1685 (Albany, New York: University of New York, 1926-1932). . . v.1 1668-1673 at World Vital Records ($)
 * 1797 Arthur C.M. Kelly, Book of the freeholders, 1797, Albany County, New York: persons qualified to serve for struck juries (Rhinebeck, New York: Kinship Books, c2000). ..

Crime and Criminals
The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Records (ACHOR)has County Sheriff/Jail records from 1825 to 1967 in their Historical Records. These records include Criminal Records books; inmate booking ledger; inmate commitment books; and registers of inmates, prisoners, and female prisoners. The ACHOR also has Albany Police department's History of Arrests from 1865 to 1940 on microfilm.

Directories

 * 1829–1935 Troy (New York) City Directories


 * 1902–1903 Albany County Officials Illustrated Directory, 1902-1903


 * 1912 Directory of the Cities of Albany and Rensselaer: General Directory of the Citizens, Business Directory(Albany, N.Y.: Sampson &amp; Murdock Co., 1912.)

Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups
Jacob I. Hotchkiss, The Diverse Backgrounds of Old Albany: a Concise History of Nationality Groups from Albany's Beginnings to the Time of the Erie Canal (Albany, N.Y.: The Institute, 1964). HeritageQuest LAR. ..

Gazetteers
1870-71 Hamilton Child, Gazetteer and Business Directory of Albany and Schenectady Co., N. Y. for 1870-71 (Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms International - Books on Demand, 1989). ..

Genealogy

 * Jonathan Pearson, Contributions to the Genealogies of the First Settlers of the Ancient County of Albany from 1630 to 1800. (Albany, N.Y.: J. Munsell, 1878). Internet Archive digital copy; WorldVitalRecords index; RootsWeb index A-B only; ; ;.
 * Albany County Sources A RootsWeb list of printed genealogical sources in nearby libraries.

History

 * Amasa Junius Parker, Landmarks of Albany County, New York (Syracuse, New York: D. Mason, 1897). Internet Archive digital copy.
 * Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration, Albany, Past and Present. ([Albany]: Works Progress Administration, State of New York, [1938?]). HeritageQuest digital PDF LAR. ..
 * Fort Orange Recording Bureau, Prominent People of the Capital District (Albany, N.Y.: The Bureau, 1923). HeritageQuest PDF LAR. ..
 * Joel Munsell, The Origin, Progress and Vicissitudes of the Mohawk and Hudson Rail Road: and the First Excursion on it (Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms, 1987). Google Books digital copy. ..
 * Louis Effingham De Forest, The Settlement of Manhattan in 1624 (Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms International-Books on Demand, 1989). ..

Land and Property
Original land records for Albany County are held in Hall of Records. See New York Land and Property for more information about using land records. The Albany County Clerk allows Online Access to Deeds and Mortgages from 1980 to the present.

Freeholders List for the city and county of Albany for 1720. No further information is available except the name and place.

The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Recordshas deeds and leases (1723 to 1898) for Albany city, county deeds (1654-1894), and mortgage records(1752-1980) on microfilm in their Historical Records.

Copies of Original Records


 * 1630–1894 Index to Mortgages
 * 1652–1660, 1765–1894 Mortgages
 * 1630–1966 Index to State of New York deeds
 * 1654–1901 State of New York deeds
 * 1630–1904 Index to maps in Lis Pendens
 * 1827–1901 Lis Pendens
 * Van Rensselaer Manor papers

Abstracts


 * 1768–1771 Laura Penny Hulslander, Abstracts of Deeds and Wills of Albany County, New York, 1768–1771 (Mililani, Hawaii: Sleeper, 1992).
 * 1656–1704 Arnold J.F. Van Laer and Jonathan Pearson, Early records of the city and county of Albany and colony of Resselaerswyck (Albany, New York: University of the State of New York, 1869-1919).
 * H. C. Burleigh, Confiscations, Albany, Charlotte, and Tryon Counties, New York (Toronto, Ontario: United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada, [1970]).
 * 1854 Land ownership maps

Additional resources for Albany County land and property may be found in the.

Maps
1890: Changes in names of streets in Albany. Courtesy NYGenWeb.

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Albany County for settlers included:


 * Hudson River pre-historic
 * Mohawk River pre-historic
 * Lake Champlain pre-historic
 * Richelieu River pre-historic
 * Saint Lawrence River prehistoric
 * Lake Champlain Trail pre-historic
 * Albany Post Road (or Queen's Road, or King's Road) 1669
 * Mohawk or Iroquois Trail 1722
 * Forbidden Path or Catskill Turnpike
 * Greenwood Road
 * Old Connecticut Path
 * Champlain Canal 1823
 * Erie Canal 1825
 * Chambly Canal 1843

Military
Civil War


 * United States, Adjutant General's Office, Town Clerks' Registers of Men Who Served in the Civil War in Albany County, ca. 1865-1867 (Microfilm of original records at New York State Archives and Records Administration, Albany, New York). . Bound registers containing printed forms handwritten by town clerks in Albany County of all soldiers furnished during the Civil War. Registers are alphabetical by name of county, then alphabetical by name of town. Includes an index at the beginning of a volume. Many records include full name, residence, date and place of birth , parents names , marital status, date of enlistment and muster and rank, discharges, death , or promotion. These Civil War town registers are also found at Ancestry.com($) and are indexed. The Town clerks registers include: Albany, Berne, Bethlehem, Coeymans, Knox, New Scotland, Rensselaerville, and Westerlo.


 * Service men in Albany County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed companies formed in Albany County:


 * - 2nd Regiment, New York Infantry, Company H
 * - 3rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 7th Veteran Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 9th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 17th Veteran Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 18th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 20th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 22nd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 30th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 34th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 43rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 44th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 61st Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 62nd Regiment, New York Infantry 
 * - 63rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 91st Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 93rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 104th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 113th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 138th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 148th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 175th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 177th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 179th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 184th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 186th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 188th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 189th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 192nd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 194th Regiment, New York Infantry

Naturalization and Citizenship
Original naturalization records for Albany County are held in the Hall of Records. See New York Naturalization and Citizenship for more information.


 * Albany County Clerk's Office, Naturalization Indexes online 1821-1991 used to find citizenship records with place of residence and place of origin.
 * Naturalizations after 1991 are located: Office of Immigration and Naturalization U.S. Post Office and Federal Court House Room 220 Albany, NY 12207
 * 1895–1906 Naturalization records(includes index, declarations, oaths and orders, and petitions)

Obituaries
Rootsweb has an ongoing resource of indexing obituaries of individuals born in Albany, New York. Maiden names are included if known.

Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.
The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Records has county Almshouse Records from 1870 to 1947 on microfilm in their Historical Records. These records include deaths, widow and orphan benefits, register of state poor, and interments.

Probate Records
Original estates and wills for Albany County are held in the Surrogate Court. See New York Probate Records for more information about using probate records.

Copies of Original Records


 * 1600s–1700s, 1700–1825 Original records of administrations of estates, inventories and accounts.
 * 1629–1828 Index to Record of wills recorded at Albany, New York
 * 1629–1802 Record of wills recorded at Albany, New York Most of the original wills were filed in what is now New York County prior to 1787 and recorded in that county's will books. The selections were retained and kept at Queens College in Flushing before transferred to state archives and filmed. See SAMPUBCO for the browsable index to this set of films.
 * 1691–1835 Wills
 * 1787–1796 Albany probate records
 * 1787–1902 Wills, letters testamentary, letters of administration, orders and index See SAMPUBCO for the browsable index to this set of films covering wills.
 * 1799–1848 Wills proved and recorded

Abstracts


 * 1626–1836 Berthold Fernow, Calendar of Wills on File and Recorded in the Offices of the Clerk of the Court of Appeals, of the County Clerk at Albany and of the Secretary of State (Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1965, 1967).
 * 1681–1765 Jonathan Pearson and Arnold J. F. Van Laer, Early records of the City and County of Albany and Colony of Resselaerswyck (Albany, New York: University of the State of New York, 1869-1919). (has Wills - translated from Dutch)
 * 1780 to Dec. 1, 1895 Martin Conway, Index to Wills and to Letters of Administration ([Albany?: s.n.], 1895). Family History Archive

More sources are described the Family History Library Catalog Place Search under.

Archives, Libraries, and Museums
Albany Public Library Main Library 161 Washington Avenue Albany, NY 12210 Phone: 518-427-4300 Call for hours. Albany History Room hours differ from regular library hours. Pruyn Collection of Albany History housed in the Albany History Room of the library. Collection includes city directories, newspapers, and census records on film and online.

Guilderland Public Library 2228 Western Avenue Guilderland, New York 12084-9071 Phone: 518-456–2400 Collection includes online databases with surname search, church index, cemetery list and transcriptions and land search.

Nassau Free Library–Genealogy 18 Church Street Nassau, NY 12123. Phone: 518-766-2715 Ralph Philllips Genealogical Collection. Online database of surnames.

New York State Museum/People of Albany County Live Here Online collection of articles and pages about Albany County. Includes biographies of early residents, early laws, military records, county census transcriptions, church records, maps, and will transcriptions.

New York State Archives Cultural Education Center 222 Madison Avenue Albany, NY 12230 Phone: 518-474-8955 archref@mail.nysed.gov

New York State Library–Genealogy Cultural Education Center 222 Madison Avenue Albany, NY 12230 518-74-5161 Local History/Genealogy desk Collection includes local histories, DAR records, church records, early newspapers, city directories, surname card files, and vital records.

Rensselaer, New York City History Research Center Rensselaer City Hall 62 Washington St. Rensselaer, NY 12144 second floor. Phone: 518-694-3126 Collection includes city and county histories, directories, newspapers, local family manuscripts, church records, and local society and business records.

Troy Public Library 100 Second Street Troy, NY 12180 Phone: 518-274–7071 The Troy Room Collection contains hundreds of books, pamphlets, and other local history and genealogy documents. Works by local authors, Troy City Directories, local newspapers, family histories, and census records are all part of this valuable collection.

Courthouses
Most historical records for Albany County are at the Hall of Records. For further information about where the records for Albany County are held, see the Albany County Courthouse page

Family History Centers
Family History Centers (FHCs) are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and are located all over the world. Their goal is to provide resources to assist in the study of genealogy.

The largest FHC for Albany County is Albany New York Family History Center, located in the city of Albany. For additional Family History Centers, search this online FHC directory.

Societies
Rensselaer County Historical Society Library 57 Second Street Troy, NY 12180 (518) 244-6846

Library, archives and research center.

Repository Guidebooks. Guides to Albany County record and repositories include:


 * Historical Records (.pdf) a complete eight-page inventory of the Albany County Hall of Records showing 55 record types, years covered, descriptions, and department or towns involved.
 * Guide to Historical Resources in Albany County, New York, Repositories
 * Guide to Records in the New York State Archives
 * Inventory of the County Archives of New York, no. 01, Albany County (Albany) 
 * A Sketch of the Life of Horatio Seymour, 1810-1886, with a Detailed Account of his Administration as Governor of the State of New York During the War of 1861-1865 FHLC
 * World Our Fathers Made: a Survey of the Records of Local Governments in the County of Albany, New York, During the Constitutional Era, 1783-1815

Social Groups Online
Rootsweb message boardfor Albany county has many information threads about families that resided in that county. There is a search engine that allows you to search by surname and topic.

Taxation

 * 1781–1789 Albany County Tax Records


 * 1781–1790 Albany County ledger of state taxes

The Albany County Clerk's Office Hall of Recordshas Tax Rolls for Albany County from 1813 to 1990 in their Historical Records for the following Municipalities: Albany (1813-1990), Berne, Bethlehem, Coeymans, Cohoes, Colonie, Knox, Green Island, Guilderland, New Scotland, Rensselaerville, Watervliet and Westerlo. See the town or city wiki page for details.

Vital Records
Vital Records of birth, marriage or death were first recorded at the local level in the village clerk, town clerk, or city clerk’s ledger book. The actual document was then forwarded to the Department of Health in Albany city. If you know where a birth, marriage or death took place, a copy of the certificate or record may be obtained by writing to the town, village or city clerk. These clerks are generally faster than the Department of Health in providing the copies of certificates. For instance, if you knew your ancestor died in the Rensselaerville, Albany, New York, in 1862, contacting the town clerk there would be helpful to see if they have records in their ledger book for that time period. Albany births and deaths 1848, births 1866 to present, and deaths 1870 to the present can be obtained for a fee from: Registrar of Vital Statistics. There is a fifty year restriction on death and marriage records, and a seventy-five year restriction on birth records. There is the additional restriction that you prove all parties are dead to obtain a birth or marriage record. The year restrictions are waived for a direct line descendant.Some marriage records may be kept at the Albany County hall of Records from 1870-1946.

See New York Vital Records for more information about Vital records in New York.

Birth
Substitute birth records


 * See Town clerks' Registers of men who served in the Civil War in Albany County in the Civil War section of Military for birth information.

Death
Substitute death records


 * 1654–1883 William Vanderpoel Hannay, Early Albany County NY Death Records, 1654-1883 (Rhinebeck, New York: Kinship Books, 2000).
 * See Town clerks' Registers of men who served in the Civil War in Albany County in the Civil War section of Military for death information.

Divorce
1884-1919 Divorce decrees

Additional Resources

Voting Registers
For details about the "Election Records" 1807-1969 including enrollments and results from 23 communities, see the Albany County Hall of Records' Historical Records (.pdf).