Missouri Vital Records

United States   Missouri    Vital Records

Introduction to Missouri Vital Records
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. United States Vital Records has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Missouri Vital Records State Department of Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

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Vital Records Reference Dates
Missouri's civil records start the following years:


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Missouri Birth, Marriage and Death Records Online
The following is a list of online resources useful for locating Missouri Vital Records which consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths. Check Missouri Vital Records Online for more information about the resources listed below. Most online resources for Missouri Vital Records are indexes. After locating a person in an index always consult the original record to confirm the information in the index.  


 * Missouri State Archives Missouri Birth &amp; Death Records Database, Pre-1910, 1910-1959 Contains a birth index and digital images of death certificates.
 * FamilySearch Record Search under Canada, USA, and Mexico - Free
 * The Vital Records Search and Information Directory for Missouri - Free/$
 * Linkpendium Links for Missouri Genealogy and History, including individual Counties - Free/$
 * Search the Missouri Birth, Marriage &amp; Death Records at Ancestry.com - $
 * Order Missouri Certificates online - $
 * About.com
 * Birth, Death, Marriage and Divorce Information
 * Missouri Databases listed on Rootsweb.com - Free

County and City Records of Births and Deaths
Statewide registration of births and deaths began in 1863, but registration was not compulsory. Missouri has required registration in each county only during the years 1883 to 1893 and since 1909. The state did not achieve 90 percent registration of births until 1927 and of deaths until 1911.

Write to the appropriate county clerk for records before 1910. Those from 1883 to 1893 are also available from the Missouri State Archives.

The Family History Library has copies of most of the existing civil vital records in Missouri from about 1883 to the early 1900s. For example, records of Jefferson County births, stillbirths, and deaths from 1883 to 1892 are available.

State Records of Births and Deaths
The Missouri State Archives offer an online searchable Missouri Birth &amp; Death Records Database, Pre-1910, which is an abstract of births, stillbirths and death records from microfilm in the state archives. For the entries that exist, there is a wealth of genealogical information present.

Missouri Death Records are now online for the years 1910-1958.

Although the files are not open for public inspection, you can obtain copies of the state's births and deaths registered after 1 January 1910 by writing to:

Bureau of Vital Records P.O. Box 570 Jefferson City, MO 65102-0570 Telephone: 314-761-6387 (births) Telephone: 314-751-6376 (deaths) Internet: Department of Health and Senior Services Bureau of Vital Records. maintains Missouri birth, death, marriage and divorce records.

The current fees for obtaining copies of the state's records are listed in Where to Write for Vital Records: Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Divorces Copies of this booklet are at the Family History Library and many Family History Centers.

Marriage Records
Marriage records have been kept by Missouri county clerks from the earliest days of each county. Some records date from the early 1800s when the area was a territory without counties. Statewide registration of marriage began in 1881, and the files are mostly complete after that date. You can obtain copies of these documents from the various county clerks.

The Family History Library has copies of marriage records from each county. These often date to the 1920s. Most pre-1850 marriages in Missouri have been transcribed in publications such as the following:


 * Missouri Marriages to 1850.
 * Missouri Marriages Before 1840.

The Bureau of Vital Records (see address above) has an index to marriage records from July 1948 to the present.

Death Records
Missouri State Archives has created the Missouri Digital Heritage Website providing access to records from 1910-1958. Death certificates contain valuable information for family historians and researchers. The Missouri Death Certificate Database, containing death records created after 1910 and over 50 years old, makes that information available online through a searchable index that links to a digitized image of the original death certificate.

The index can be searched by first name and last name, county, and by year and month. Once a name is selected, a digitized image of the original certificate can be retrieved.

This is an ongoing project and additional records will be added as they are transcribed and imaged. If the image of the certificate is not yet available researchers can request a photocopy of the certificate by contacting the Archives Reference Desk. For death certificates less than 50 years old please contact the Missouri Bureau of Vital Records.

Missouri Corner's Inquest

Missouri Police Officers Deaths

Divorce Records
Divorce proceedings have been filed with a court of common pleas, a circuit court, or the state legislature. Most divorce records can be obtained by contacting the appropriate circuit court clerk in the county where the plaintiff resided. The Family History Library has some of these court records, which include divorce information. The Bureau of Vital Records has divorce records from 1948 to the present.

A published list of early divorce records is Lois Stanley, Divorces and Separations in Missouri, 1808-1853. This volume includes notices from newspapers.

Adoption Records
Nonidentifying information is available to adoptive parents, a child's legal guardians or an adult adoptee. This can include the physical description, nationality, religious background, and medical history of the birth parents or siblings. Identifying information is available to the adult adoptee.

An adult adoptee may make a written request for information identifying his or her birth parents. If the birth parents have consented to the release of identifying information, the court shall disclose the information. If the birth parents have not consented, the court shall notify in writing, within 10 days of receipt of the request, the adoptive parents and the child-placing agency or court personnel having access to the information. For adoptions completed prior to 8-13-1986, the adoptive parents must consent to contacting the birth parents unless there is proof that the adoptive parents are deceased or incapacitated.

The State Registrar files the original certificate of birth with the certificate of decree of adoption and such file may be opened by the State Registrar only upon receipt of a certified copy of an order as decreed by the court of adoption.

For further information contact: Missouri Division of Family Services Adoption Information Registry P.O. Box 88 Jefferson City, MO 65103 (800) 554-2222 Please mark the letter "Confidential."

Tips

 * Information listed on vital records is given by an informant. Learn the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) of the record.  The closer the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) and whether or not the informant was present at the time of the event can help determine the accuracy of the information found on the record.
 * If you are unable to locate vital records recorded by governments, search for church records of christening, marriage, death or burial. A family Bible may have been used to record births, marriages and deaths.
 * Records for African Americans may be recorded in separate files with separate indexes.
 * Privacy laws may restrict your access to some vital records. Copies of some vital records recorded in the last 100 years may be uanavailable to anyone except a direct relative.
 * Search for Vital Records in the Family History Library Catalog by using a Place Search and then choosing Vital Records. Search for Missouri to locate records filed by the State and then search the name of the county to locate records kept by the county.

Substitute Records
These links will take you to wiki pages describing alternate sources for birth, marriage and death records.


 * Church Records: Depending on the denomination, church records may contain information about birth, marriage and death.


 * Cemetery Records: Cemetery records are a rich source of birth and death information. These records may also reveal family relationships.


 * Census Records: Census records are a valuable source for birth and marriage information. You may also determine approximate time of death when the individual disappear from the census. This is a good place to begin a search.


 * Newspapers: Besides obituaries, local newspapers may contain birth and marriage announcements and death notices. Also check newspaper social columns for additional information.


 * Periodicals: Local genealogical and historical societies often publish periodicals which may contain abstracted early birth, marriage and death information.


 * Military Records: Military pension records can give birth, marriage and death information,  In addtion, soldiers' homes records can included this same information.


 * Probate Records: If no death record exists, probate records may be helpful in estimating when an individual has died. Probate records in the 20th Century often contain the exact death date.


 * History: Local histories, family histories and biographies can all be sources of birth, marriage and death information. Often this information is found in county-level records or in surname searches of the Family History Library catalog.

Lost or Missing Records
Barry 1872, Barton 1860, Bates 1861, Bollinger 1866, 1884, Caldwell 1860, 1896, Camden 1902,Cape Girardeau 1870, Chariton 1864, 1973 Christian 1865, Crawford 1873, 1884, Dade 1863, Dallas 1863, 1864, 18867, DeKalb 1864, 1878 Dent 1864, Douglas 1886, Dunklin 1872, Gentry 1885, Greene 1861, Harrison 1874, Hickory 1852, 1881, Holt 1965, Howard 1887, Howell 1866, Jasper 1863, 1883, McDonald 1863, Maries 1868, Mercer 1898, Montgomery 1864,1901, Morgan 1887, Newton 1862, Oregon during C.W., Osage 1880, Pemiscot 1883, Pike 1864,  Pulaski 1903, Randolph 1880, Reynolds 1872, Saline 1864, Shannon 1863, 1871, 1938, 1893, Stoddard 1864, Taney 1885, Texas 1932, Vernon C.W., Wayne 1854, 1892, Webster 1863, 1881, Wright 1864, 1897

Research Guides
To learn more about the history and availability of vital records, see Guide to Public Vital Statistics Records in Missouri.

More Online Links

 * Missouri Links from fhlfavorites.info - Free
 * USGenWeb.org Missouri Site - Free
 * The Vital Records Search and Information Directory for Missouri - Free/$
 * Wee Monster Links for Missouri Birth &amp; Marriage and Death Records - Free/$
 * Progenealogists Links for the United States. Press Ctrl + F on the keyboard to search for Missouri or MO - Free/$