Oklahoma Vital Records

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Birth and Death Records
Some counties kept birth and death records as early as 1891, although most did not start until after statehood in 1907. The early records, which are quite incomplete, are at county courthouses. Contact details for county courts can be found at http://www.genealogy.com/00000265.html The Family History Library has copied some of the vital records of the Superintendent of Public Health in a few counties.

The statewide registration of births and deaths began in Oklahoma in 1908 and was generally complied with by 1930. The Family History Library has not acquired copies of these records, as of 2005. You can write to:

Vital Records Service Oklahoma State Department of Health 1000 Northeast 10th Street, Room 111 Oklahoma City, OK 73117 Telephone: 405-271-4040 Internet: www.health.state.ok.us

The current fees for obtaining copies of the state's records are listed on the Internet site above. Copies of birth records are restricted to the individual, their next of kin, or a legal representative. See the above Internet site for requirements for requesting records. Death records are not restricted.

Delayed registrations of births (for persons born before registration began in 1908) are available from the Vital Records Service mentioned above.

Marriage and Divorce Records
Marriage bonds, affidavits, licenses, and certificates were kept by each county beginning about 1890 or when the county was created. Many marriages in the territorial era were not recorded, and some were recorded in county courthouses in Arkansas, Kansas, and Texas. Write to the appropriate county clerk for information.

The Family History Library has marriage records for some counties. Published transcripts of marriage documents include:

Bode, Frances M. ''Oklahoma Territory Weddings. Geary, Oklahoma: Pioneer Book Committee, 1983''. (Family History Library book 976.6 V2bf; fiche 6104367.) This includes history, wedding albums, and marriage files from Blaine, Caddo, and Kingfisher counties.

Tiffee, Ellen. Oklahoma Marriage Records, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory. 10 vols. [Howe, Oklahoma]: E. Tiffee, N.d. (Family History Library book 976.6 V2t; film 1,321,223 items 11-16, vols. 1-6.) This includes marriages of white settlers, 1890-1907, found in U.S. court files for the eleven southeastern counties.

Divorces were granted after 1907 by the district courts or the circuit court in each county. You can write to the clerk of the court for information. The Family History Library has records from some counties.

Inventory of Vital Records
You can learn more about the history and availability of birth, marriage, death, and divorce in ''Guide to Public Vital Statistics Records in Oklahoma. Oklahoma City: Historical Records Survey, 1941''. (Family History Library book 976.6 A3hr; film 874,325 item 3.) This guide describes the records kept by the state, and each county.

Web Sites
http://www.searchforancestors.com/locality/us/oklahoma.html

http://www.rootsweb.com/~okgs/records.htm