Vital Records - State Offerings

 

This chart lists when ‘vital record keeping’ officially began in each U.S. state. (When counties started to collect birth, marriage and death information and report it to State offices…) Some counties or towns kept stats earlier and some were slow to comply with State laws. Check with your local government for record availability.

STATE BIRTH RECORDS MARRIAGE RECORDS DEATH RECORDS   STATE BIRTH RECORDS MARRIAGE RECORDS DEATH RECORDS
Alabama 1908 1936 1908 Montana 1907 1943 1907
Alaska 1913 1913 1913 Nebraska 1905 1909 1905
Arizona 1909 1909 1909 Nevada 1911 1968 1911
Arkansas 1914 1917 1914 New Hampshire 1901 1901 1901
California 1905 1905 1905 New Jersey 1848 1848 1848
Colorado 1907 1907 1907 New Mexico 1920 1920 1920
Connecticut 1897 1897 1897 New York 1880 1880 1880
Delaware ** 1861 1847 1881 North Carolina 1913 1962 1913
District of Columbia ** 1874 1811 1874 North Dakota 1907 1925 1907
Florida 1899 1927 1899 Ohio 1908 1949 1908
Georgia 1919 1952 1919 Oklahoma 1908 1908 1908
Hawaii 1842 1842 1859 Oregon 1903 1906 1903
Idaho 1911 1947 1911 Pennsylvania 1906 1885 1906
Illinois 1916 1962 1916 Rhode Island 1853 1853 1853
Indiana 1907 1958 1899 South Carolina 1915 1950 1915
Iowa 1880 1880 1880 South Dakota 1905 1905 1905
Kansas 1911 1913 1911 Tennessee ** 1908 1945 1908
Kentucky 1911 1958 1911 Texas 1903 1966 1903
Louisiana ** 1914 -- 1914 Utah 1905 1887 1905
Maine 1892 1892 1892 Vermont 1955 1955 1955
Maryland 1898 1950 1898 Virginia 1912 1912 1912
Massachusetts 1841 1841 1841 Washington 1907 1968 1907
Michigan 1867 1867 1867 West Virginia 1917 1964 1917
Minnesota 1900 1958 1908 Wisconsin 1907 1907 1907
Mississippi 1912 1926 1912 Wyoming 1909 1941 1909
Missouri 1910 1881 1910  

Note: **
Delaware’s statewide birth and death records stop in 1863 and resume in 1881
All Louisiana birth records are kept in parish clerk offices.
Tennessee has no statewide birth or death records for 1913
Washington, D.C.’s birth records go back to 1874, death records to 1855 and marriage records to 1811. There are NO death records filed during the Civil War.