This page last updated on October 23, 2006
 

Records of births, marriages and deaths in Clay County date back to 1872.   Birth Records MN Birth Certificate Index (1900-1922) To obtain a birth record, you will need the name, date of birth, and parents' names, including the mother's maiden name. To order, contact the Clay County Recorder's Office. If you are uncertain of the exact date, call the Recorder's Office and ask if they will search for the information. Sometimes they are willing to help out with reasonable search requests. Note: Many Clay County residents were born in Fargo hospitals. For those persons, you would obtain birth records from the North Dakota Department of Health. Cost: $16 for certified* birth record; $13 for non-certified birth record.   Marriage Records Clay County Marriage Record Index (1872-1939) To obtain a marriage record, contact the Clay County Recorder's Office. Note: If a marriage license was purchased in another county, the record will be in that county even if the couple was married in Clay County. So if you don't find what you're looking for, that may be the reason. Unfortunately, the Minnesota Department of Health's state marriage index will only help if the marriage occurred after 1958. If you think the marriage may have occured in Fargo, you might want to look at information on website of the Institute for Regional Studies for information about Cass County marriage records. Cost: $9 for marriage record.   Death Records Clay County Death Record Index (1872-1980) To obtain a death record for Clay County, contact the Clay County Recorder's Office. You can also check the Cemeteries of Clay County to see if the person you are researching is listed there. MN Death Certificate Index (1904-2001) If you can't locate the individual you're researching, they may have died in another county. In that case, check the Minnesota Historical Society searchable death index. If your search is successful, you can order an uncertified* copy of a death certificate from the MNHS (see sample). For deaths not included in the database, see below. Note: Oftentimes, people are pronounced dead at a hospital. For this region, many of the hospitals are located in Fargo, North Dakota. Death certificates for persons pronounced dead in Fargo are available at the North Dakota Department of Health. Cost: $13 for death record.     *New Law Regarding Certified Birth and Death Certificates Effective August 1, 2000 Certifified birth or death certificates are only available to a person who has a tangible interest in the requested certificate. Tangible interest means: you are the subject of the certificate; you are the child, grandchild, spouse, parent, grandparent,legal custodian, or guardian of the subject; you are a personal representative of the estate of the subject.  Non-certified birth or death certificates are still available for genealogical purposes. The Minnesota Department of Health website has more information about the law regarding certified birth and death certificates.   Clay County Recorder 807 11th Street North P.O. Box 280 Moorhead, MN 56560 Phone: (218) 299-5031 Fax: (218) 299-7500  Email: recorder@co.clay.mn.us Website: http://www.co.clay.mn.us/Depts/Recorder/VitalSta.htm   Clay County Historical Society Box 501, 202 First Avenue North Moorhead, MN 56560 (218) 299-5520 Email: mark.peihl@ci.moorhead.mn.us Website: http://www.info.co.clay.mn.us/history/ Museum Hours: Monday to Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Thursday 10 am - 9 pm, and Sunday 12 noon - 5 pm. Archive & Office Hours: Monday to Friday 10 am - 5 pm; and Thursday 10 am - 9 pm. Information on material held at the CCHS Archives

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