Missouri Vital Records Locations
Births & Deaths
County clerks were required to register births and deaths from 1883 to 1893. Records still existent can be obtained from the county clerk or the Missouri State Archives, 1001 Industrial Drive, P.O. Box 778, Jefferson City, MO 65102.
State registration of births and deaths began in 1863, but did not reach full compliance until 1911. The records after 1910 can be obtained from the Bureau of Vital Records, P.O. Box 570, Jefferson City, MO 65102. To verify current fees for birth records, call (314) 751-6387.
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Marriages
Some marriages from 1825 to the present may be obtained at the office of the Recorder of Deeds in each county. some of the earliest land claims and grants have been published.
Records of the local land offices are in the Missouri State Archives, Tract book, plat maps, and land patents are at the BLM Eastern States Office, 350 South Pickett Street, Alexandria, VA 22304.
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Divorces
Divorce proceedings were filed with a court of common pleas, a circuit court, or the state legislature.
Most can be obtained from the circuit court clerk. Unfortunately, many of the county courthouses in Missouri, along with their records, have been burned.
The link for the information regarding the State Historical Society is: http://www.system.missouri/shs/procedures.html For more information you need to access this site. The homepage for the Society is: http://www.system.missouri/shs
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Missouri State Census
There was a fire that burned part of the state census and there are only a few counties left. Those counties are: Benton, Butler, Callaway, Cape Girardeau, Christian, Franklin, Greene, Holt, Howard, Iron, McDonald, Montgomery, Osage, Phelps, Reynolds, St. Francois and Texas counties.
The originals are in the individual county's Clerk of the County Court. There are also microfilm at the Missouri State Archives. There are also copies available through the LDS Family History Centers. This information was provided by a book by Ann S. Lainhart, State Census Records, published by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc.
This page was last updated October 4, 2008.