VITAL
RECORDS RESEARCH in New Jersey
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IMPORTANT
NEW DEVELOPMENT!!!
As
of 1 January 2009, the NJ Dept. of Health has transferred vital
records through December 31, 1900 to the State Archives. YEAH!
Although these records were already at the Archives on microfilm,
now you no longer have to get records from 1878 to 1900 from
the Dept. of Health, which was $$$ and time consuming. Now the
State Archives will do the lookups for $10 each.
See:
http://www.state.nj.us/state/darm/links/reference.html#r1
Birth, Marriage & Death Records are maintained at
both the city/town/borough AND State levels. You should
contact the local clerk (see the state web site, municipalities section for contact info)
to see if they have records, or contact the State of New Jersey
(especially if you do not know the location of the event). ALSO
SEE a LIST OF REGISTRARS, by county, in New Jersey.
The
State Bureau of Vital Statistics and Registration maintains
birth, marriage, and death records from 1878 to the present.
Domestic partnership records are available from 2004 to the present.
Vital
records from May
1848-May 1878
may be ordered from the New Jersey State Archives (these records
also include some burial records). See the NJ State Archives online databases.
Death
Certificates 1904-today
New Jersey death certificates for the time period of 1904 and
forward are filed alphabetically by SURNAME. There are no certificate
numbers issued to them. The stamped number in the upper right
hand corner is
actually the page number for the particular volume that the certificate
has been bound into.
Also, the LDS Family History Library does not have any vital
statistics
for New Jersey after 1900. The NJ Dept. of Health has not released
the
microfilm to any agency beyond the NJ State Archives. And even
they are
not allowed to perform mail search requests. These films are
for
in-person use only.
Here
are the options for you to obtain a copy of a New Jersey death
certificate from 1904-today:
1) Write to the township vital records office:
Fee: Unknown (wait time unknown)
2) Write to the NJ State Dept. of Health:
Instructions: http://www.state.nj.us/health/vital/death.shtml
Fee: $25 (wait time 4-6 months)
3) Hire a professional researcher to search & copy the record
at the
NJ State Archives.
Average fee: $15-30 (wait time less than a month)
List of researchers hosted by the Genealogical Society of NJ:
http://www.rootsweb.com/~njgsnj/profresearch.html
Also
available at the New Jersey State Archives:
-- Marriage Records, 1666-1799 in New Jersey and County Marriage
Records for Burlington (1795-1878), Cumberland County (1795-1878),
Essex County (1795-1879), Mercer County (1832-1887) (gaps), Passaic
County (1838-1878), Somerset County (1795-1878), Sussex County
(1795-1878), Union Co. (1857-1878)
NJ
Marriages 1666-1799 (search
the index)
-- Obituaries from New Jersey Newspapers, 1778 -
mid-1900s; Cost: $5.00
from the State Archives' collection of microfilmed newspapers
when name, date of death and city/town are provided.
Social Security Death Index (free) - provides
birth date, death date, social security number, state or territory
where the number was issued, last known town/city and state of
residence.
Other
Resources & Suggestions for Locating Vital Records:
