Montana, County Births and Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
The collection covers the years 1861 to 2004.

Record Description
The collection consists of images of registers and certificates of birth and death records acquired from county courthouses. The collection includes the following counties:


 * Broadwater
 * Deer Lodge
 * Jefferson
 * Lewis and Clark
 * Powell
 * Silver Bow

Record Content
The birth records contain the following information:


 * Child’s name
 * Child’s sex
 * Birth date
 * Birth place
 * Race
 * Whether stillborn or living
 * Number of child in the family, 1st, 2nd, etc.
 * Parents' names
 * Parents' race
 * Parents' residence
 * Father’s occupation
 * Name and address of person reporting the birth

The death records contain the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Death date
 * Death place
 * Age in days, months, and years
 * Birthplace
 * Sex
 * Race
 * Marital status
 * Occupation
 * Birth place
 * Name of parents
 * Birthplace of parents
 * Occupation of father
 * Name of spouse
 * Cause of death
 * Name of person reporting the death
 * Address of person reporting the death
 * Undertaker
 * Undertaker’s address

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it is helpful to know the following:


 * The county where the birth or death occurred
 * The approximate date the event occurred
 * The place the event occurred
 * The name of the individual such as the infant, or the deceased

Compare the information in the record to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct person. You may need to compare the information of more than one person to make this determination.

When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

For example:


 * Use the birth record to find the parents' names.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records.
 * Occupations listed can lead you to other types of records such as employment records or military records.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * The name of the officiator may be a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county.
 * The name of the undertaker or mortuary could lead you to funeral and cemetery records, which often include the names and residences of other family members.
 * Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have been born or died in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Keep in mind there is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.

If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:


 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.

Record History
Some counties began recording births and deaths as early as 1864. These records have usually been kept by the clerk of the court in each county. Statewide registration of vital statistics began in Montana in 1907 and was generally complied with by 1920.

Why the Record Was Created
These records were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests.

Record Reliability
These records are generally reliable but can vary depending on the knowledge of the informant.

Related Websites

 * Montana GenWeb Project
 * Montana History and Genealogy

Related Wiki Articles
Montana Vital Records

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * “Delaware Marriage Records,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 4 March 2011), entry for William Anderson and Elizabeth Baynard Henry, married 23 November 1913; citing marriage certificate no. 859; FHL microfilm 2,025,063; Delaware Bureau of Archives and Records Management, Dover.
 * “El Salvador Civil Registration,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 21 March 2011), entry for Jose Maria Antonio del Carmen, born 9 April 1880; citing La Libertad, San Juan Opico, Nacimientos 1879-1893, image 50; Ministerio Archivo Civil de la Alcaldia Municipal de San Salvador.

Sources of information for This Collection
"Montana,County Births and Deaths,1861-2004." FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org). Montana Historical Society, Helena, Montana. FHL microfilm, 130 reels. Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.

The suggested format for citing FamilySearch Historical Collections is found in the following article: How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections.