View source for Montana Vital Records

''[[United States|United States]] &gt; [[Montana]] &gt; Montana Vital Records'' 

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== Montana Birth, Marriage and Death Records  ==

'''Introduction to Vital Records''' 

[[United States Vital Records|Vital Records]] consist of [[United States Birth Records|births]], adoptions, [[United States Marriage Records|marriages]], divorces, and [[United States Death Records|deaths]] recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. [[Locating United States Vital Records|United States Vital Records]]&nbsp;has&nbsp;additional research guidance&nbsp;on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be&nbsp;purchased from&nbsp;the [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/Montana.htm Montana Vital Records State Department of Health] or the&nbsp;County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. 

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| bgcolor="#ffffcc" height="35" valign="middle" align="center" | '''Birth Records''' 
| bgcolor="#ffffcc" height="35" valign="middle" align="center" | '''Marriage Records'''&nbsp; 
| bgcolor="#ffffcc" height="35" valign="middle" align="center" | '''Death/Will'''&nbsp;'''Records'''
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== Montana&nbsp;Birth, Marriage and Death Records Online  ==

The following is a list of online resources useful for locating Montana Vital Records which consist of [[United States Birth Records|births]], adoptions, [[United States Marriage Records|marriages]], divorces, and [[United States Death Records|deaths]].&nbsp; Most online resources for Montana Vital Records are indexes. After locating a person in an index always consult the original record to [[Contradictions and discrepancies|confirm the information]] in the index. 

*[http://fhlfavorites.info/Links/USA_States/States_Frames/Montana/montana.htm Montana Links] from [http://fhlfavorites.info/ fhlfavorites.info] -&nbsp;Free 
*[http://userdb.rootsweb.ancestry.com/regional.html#Montana Montana Databases] listed on [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ Rootsweb.com]&nbsp;- Free 
*USGenWeb.org [http://www.mtgenweb.org/ Montana Site] - Free 
*Search for Montana Collections on [https://www.familysearch.org/ FamilySearch.org] under [https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/list#page=1&region=NORTH_AMERICA Canada, USA, and Mexico] - Free 
*The Vital Records Search and Information Directory for [http://www.daddezio.com/records/room/RR-MT-NDX.html Montana] - Free/$ 
*Wee Monster Links for Montana [http://www.germanroots.com/vitalrecords.html#Montana Birth &amp; Marriage]&nbsp;and [http://www.germanroots.com/deathrecords.html Death] Records -&nbsp;Free/$ 
*Linkpendium Links for [http://www.linkpendium.com/genealogy/USA/MT/ Montana Genealogy and History], including individual Counties&nbsp;-&nbsp;Free/$&nbsp; 
*Progenealogists Links for the [http://progenealogists.com/genealogysleuthb.htm United States]. Press '''Ctrl + F''' on the keyboard to search for '''Montana''' or&nbsp;'''MT''' -&nbsp;Free/$ 
*Search the [http://www.ancestryinstitution.com/search/locality/dbpage.aspx?tp=2&p=29&categoryFilterID=34&showPaging=true Montana Birth, Marriage &amp; Death] Records at Ancestry.com - $&nbsp; 
*Order [http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/montana.htm Montana Certificates] online -&nbsp;<span id="fck_dom_range_temp_1247073573052_30" /><span id="fck_dom_range_temp_1247073573052_178" />$&nbsp; 
*[http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/Montana.htm The Montana Department of Public Health] has copies of marriage records from July 1880. They have an index to records after 1916.

== Birth Records  ==

=== County Records of Births and Deaths  ===

Some counties began recording births and deaths as early as 1864. These records have been kept by the clerk of the court in each county. A few of the early county records have been transcribed and published, and these are available at the Family History Library. 

=== State Records of Births and Deaths  ===

Statewide registration of vital statistics began in [[Montana]] in 1907 and was generally complied with by 1920. Delayed registrations of births are included in the indexes maintained by the state office.<br> 

<br> 

=== Montana Vital Records  ===

All of the records are available to relatives by writing to: <br> 

Office of Vital Statistics <br>Department of Public Health and Human Services <br>111 N Sanders, Room 209 <br>PO BOX 4210 <br>Helena MT 59604 <br>Telephone: 1-888-877-1946<br>Fax: 1-866-696-1912<br>[http://www.dphhs.mt.gov/ Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services] 

The current fees for obtaining copies of the state's vital records are also listed at [http://www.vitalrec.com VitalRecords.com]. 

=== Adoption Records  ===

open / closed/ state statutes 

== Marriage Records  ==

There is no centralized registration of marriage records. Each county generally began keeping marriage records soon after its organization. Write to the clerk of the district court for copies of marriage and divorce records. 

The State Department of Health has an index to marriages beginning in 1943. This index helps to identify the county in which the marriage occurred. The original records are available only in the county. The Family History Library has microfilm copies of&nbsp;many county marriage records. 

Early marriages for many of the counties&nbsp;are searchable online at no cost&nbsp;on the&nbsp;[[Western States Marriage Index|Western States Marriage Index]]. 

'''Family Search Historical Records''' 

[https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/show#uri=http://hr-search-api:8080/searchapi/search/collection/1675397 Montana Marriages, 1889-1947] 

[https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/show#uri=http://hr-search-api:8080/searchapi/search/collection/1609797 Montana, County Marriages, 1865-1950] 

*'''[[Gretna Greens in the United States|Gretna Greens]].''' When a Montana couple's marriage is not in their home county, search for it in alternate places like [[Kootenai County, Idaho|Coeur d'Alene, Kootenai, Idaho]].<ref name="Eakle1">&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;span&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;span&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Arlene H. Eakle, "Have you searched and searched for a marriage without finding it?" in ''Genealogy Blog'' at &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.arleneeakle.com/wordpress/2007/02/19/have-you-searched-and-searched-for-the-marriage-without-finding-it/"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;http://www.arleneeakle.com/wordpress/2007/02/19/have-you-searched-and-searched-for-the-marriage-without-finding-it/&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.arleneeakle.com/wordpress/2007/02/19/have-you-searched-and-searched-for-the-marriage-without-finding-it/"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;http://www.arleneeakle.com/wordpress/2007/02/19/have-you-searched-and-searched-for-the-marriage-without-finding-it/&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; (accessed 8 January 2011).&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/span&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/span&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;</ref>

Divorce Records 

== Death Records  ==

The Montana State Genealogical Society maintains the [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mtmsgs/death_records.htm Montana State Death Registry Index, Pre-1954 1954-2002] online at [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mtmsgs/death_records.htm Death Records.] Scroll to the bottom of the page to link to the time period you want to search. This database covers over 650 thousand records reported to the State from the 1800s through 2002.<br> 

== Substitute Records  ==

[[Montana Church Records|Montana Church Records]] 

[[Montana Cemeteries|Montana Cemetery Records]] 

[[Montana Census|Montana Census]] 

[[Montana Newspapers|Montana Newspapers]] 

[[Montana Military Records|Montana Military Records]] 

[[Montana Periodicals|Montana Periodicals]] 

[[Montana History|Montana History]] 

== Tips  ==

*Information listed on vital records is given by an informant.&nbsp; Learn the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) of the record.&nbsp; The closer the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) and whether or not the informant was present at the time of the event can help determine the accuracy of the information found on the record. 
*If you are unable to locate vital records recorded by governments, search for church records of christening, marriage, death or burial.&nbsp; A family Bible may have been used to record births. marriages and deaths. 
*Privacy laws may restrict your access to some vital records.&nbsp; Copies of some vital recores recoreded in the last 100 years may be unavailable to anyone except a direct relative. 
*Search for Vital records in the Family History Library Catalog by using a '''Place Search''' and then choosing '''Vital Records'''.&nbsp; Search for '''Montana''' to locate record filed by the State and then search the '''name of the county''' to locate records kept by the county.

== Archives, Libraries and Societies  ==

[[Montana Archives and Libraries|Montana Archives and Libraries]] 

Montana Societies 

=== Inventory of Vital Records  ===

More information about the history and availability of vital records is in ''Guide to the Public Vital Statistics in Montana'' <ref>(Bozeman, Montana: Historical Records Survey, 1941; Family History Library {{FHL|197151|title-id|disp=book 978.6 V2h; film 1036403 item 7; fiche 6046712}}). </ref> 

== Web Sites  ==

*[http://www.germanroots.com/deathrecords.html Death Records]

== References  ==

{{Montana|Montana}} <references /> 

'''Wiki articles describing online collections are found at:''' 

*[[Montana, Cascade County Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)|Montana, Cascade County Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)]] 
*[[Montana County Marriages (FamilySearch Historical Records)]] 
*[[Montana, Flathead County Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)|Montana, Flathead County Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)]] 
*[[Montana, Rosebud County Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)]]

[[Category:Montana|Vital]] [[Category:Record_Types_of_the_United_States]] [[Category:United_States_Vital_Records]]

For general questions on how to obtain a birth or death certificate, and individual marriage and divorce information, please contact:

Montana Dept of Public Health and Human Services<br>Office of Vital Statistics<br>HHSVitalRecords@mt.gov <br>(Note: Applications are not accepted via E-mail.)