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Where to Write for Vital Records This page was last updated 6 Aug 2011 |
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Where to Write for Vital Records This page was last updated 6 Aug 2011 |
Birth, Death and Marriage Records
OBTAINING RECORDS FROM THE TOWN CLERK OR EQUIVALENT - Old records held by the clerk of the town, village or city in which the event took place do not always survive today. In those local authorities which do still have some sort of record, many have only an entry in a crumbling old register book. In this case, the Town Clerk's office or equivalent is unable to supply you with a photocopy of a B, M or D CERTIFICATE. Instead, they will look in their register and record what they see there -- sometimes accurately, sometimes not accurately. They will then type up this information and send it to an applicant as a modern "certification". The main advantage of applying to a Town Clerk or equivalent for a B, M or D record is speed -- they often can respond to your request in a week or two. It is also possible to find out over the telephone whether a B, M or D record for someone of the same name as your ancestor is in fact your ancestor or someone else. HOWEVER, Town Clerks do not regard it as an obligation to share information with genealogical researchers by telephone, and the reaction you will get will vary from tremendously kind and helpful to downright rude. Since we cannot pick and choose what town, village or city our ancestors were born or married in or where they died, if the clerk of that location turns out to be one of the uncooperative ones, you have our great sympathy here on the Rensselaer Co. NY GenWeb site, but I'm afraid that there is little that can be done about it. In any case, the fee for obtaining whatever kind of record a Town Clerk or equivalent will send you is $22.00 per document, the same as the fee for obtaining one from
the NY State Dept of Health.
In 1880 the state government of New York began requiring thekeeping of vital records. This law is the basis for the recording of births, marriages and deaths (B, M or D) in New York today. The original record is made in the town, village or city in which the event took place, and a copy of the record is sent to Albany. The system did not become fully comprehensive for several years. Nevertheless, it is still worth checking to see if your ancestor who died in the early 1880s might be among those whose birth, marriage or death was recorded.
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Rensselaer County Clerk Frank Merola Records Room Department County Court House Annex 105 Third Street at corner of Congress Street Troy, NY 12180 |
City, Town and Village Clerks
| Berlin Town Clerk Anne M. Maxon P. O. Box 307 26 South Main Street Berlin, NY 12022 |
Brunswick Town Clerk Susan Quest-Sherman Brunswick Town Office 336 Town Office Road Troy, NY 12180
Phone: (518) 279-3461, Ext. 103 |
Castleton-on-Hudson Village Clerk Margaret C. Lill P. O. Box 126 85 South Main Street Castleton-on-Hudson, NY 12033 |
| East Greenbush Town Clerk Linda Kennedy East Greenbush Town Hall 225 Columbia Turnpike Rensselaer, NY 12144 |
East Nassau Village Clerk Diane Maguire P. O. Box 268 East Nassau, NY 12062
Phone: (518) 794-0289 |
Grafton Town Clerk Suzanne Putnam Grafton Town Hall 2379 NY State Highway 2 P. O. Box 80 Grafton, NY 12082 |
| Hoosick Town Clerk Susan Stradinger Hoosick Town Offices P. O. Box 17 New York State Armory 80 Church Street Hoosick Falls, NY 12090
Phone: (518) 686-4571 |
Hoosick Falls Village Clerk Ann Marie Bornt Hoosick Falls Village Hall 24 Main Street Hoosick Falls, NY 12090
Phone: (518) 686-7072 |
Nassau Town Clerk Rita M. Labrum P. O. Box 587 Nassau Town Hall 29 Church Street Nassau, NY 12123 Phone: (518) 766-3559, Ext. 1 Fax: (518) 766-4422 Website |
| Nassau Village Clerk Heather Werner P. O. Box 452 Nassau Village Hall 40 Malden Street Nassau, NY 12123-9354
Phone: (518) 766-3044, Ext. 2 |
North Greenbush Town Clerk Kathryn A. Connolly North Greenbush Town Offices 2 Douglas Street Wynantskill, NY 12198 Phone: (518) 283-4306 Fax: (518) 283-7621 Website |
Petersburgh Town Clerk Callie Crisp P. O. Box 125 Petersburgh Town Hall 65 Main Street Petersburgh, NY 12138 Tel: (518) 658-3777, Ext. 10 Fax: (518) 658-3770 Website |
| Pittstown Town Clerk Michelle A. Hoag Pittstown Town Hall 123 Tomhannock Road Valley Falls, NY 12185
Phone: (518) 753-4222 |
Poestenkill Town Clerk Sue Horton P. O. Box 210 Poestenkill Town Offices 39 Davis Drive Poestenkill, NY 12140
Phone: (518) 283-5100, Ext. 103 |
Rensselaer City Clerk Maureen G. Nardacci Rensselaer City Offices 62 Washington Street Rensselaer, NY 12144 |
| Sand Lake Town Clerk Barbara Biitig P. O. Box 273 Sand Lake Town Hall 8428 Miller Hill Road NY State Route 66 Averill Park, NY 12018 Phone: (518) 674-2026, Ext. 22 Fax: (518) 674-0441 Website |
Schaghticoke Town Clerk Janet Salisbury Schaghticoke Town Hall 290 Northline Drive Melrose, NY 12121
Phone: (518) 753-6915, Ext. 101 |
Schaghticoke Village Clerk Cheryl L. Jackson, Registrar P. O. Box 187 Schaghticoke Village Hall 163 Main Street Schaghticoke, NY 12154
Phone: (518) 753-6100 |
| Schodack Town Clerk Donna L. Conlin Schodack Town Hall 265 Schuurman Road Castleton-on-Hudson, NY 12033
Phone: (518) 477-7590 |
Stephentown Town Clerk Patricia M. Gallup P. O. Box 268 26 Grange Hall Road Stephentown, NY 12168 |
Troy City Clerk Cydne R. Brearton, Registrar Troy City Hall 1776 Sixth Avenue Troy, NY 12180
Phone: (518) 270-4587
Troy Bureau of Vital Statistics |
| Valley Falls Village Clerk Janet Weber 55 State Street Valley Falls, NY 12185
Phone: (518) 753-6131 |
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BY MAIL - The backlog of requests by mail at the NY State Dept of Health is such that the waiting time was said in December 2002 to be about five months. Even this is an improvement, as a few years ago the waiting time was as long as two years! To apply by mail, send your completed application form and your check for $22.00 to the following address:
| New York State Department of Health Vital Records Section Genealogy Unit P. O. Box 2602 Albany, NY 12220-2602 |
IN PERSON - Alternatively, you may call in person at the New York State Department of Health's premises. You will still need to fill in the form (obtainable at this office) and pay $22.00. This office will take your application and put it into a "fast track", and you will receive the photocopy of the requested document by mail seven to 10 days later. Here is is the location of this office:
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New York State Department of Health Vital Records Section Genealogy Unit Walk-In Services 800 North Pearl Street Second Floor - Room 200 Menands, NY 12204 |
WHAT IF I DON'T KNOW THE YEAR OF MY ANCESTOR'S B, M OR D? There is good news and bad news. The good news is that wonderful, WONDERFUL New York State Births, Marriages and Deaths Indexes exist. They include every B, M or D record in the NY State Dept of Health's possession from the first ones in 1881 until the latest year that has come into the public domain -- i. e., up to 50 years before the present time for marriages and deaths and up to 75 years before the present time for births. Each index entry gives the full name of the person; the exact date of the event; the town, village, hamlet or city in which the event occurred; and the number of the certificate in the Dept of Health's records. A few of the years also give ages. Some years are arranged in Soundex order; most years are in ordinary alphabetical order. A few years in the marriages index name the spouse; most years don't. The bad news is that this index can be viewed ONLY in person at the New York State Archives, located in the New York State Museum Building. If you go there in person, you can search year by year until you find the index entry for your ancestor. To look for a single event for a single individual, you can easily search 20 years in 10 minutes. There is a search service available, but if you have no idea when an event occurred, this search service can be very expensive -- and it might not even yield a result. If you have MANY people you want to look up, you might want to consider going to Albany to do this yourself -- it might even be cheaper. Details of the search-service fees can be found on the website of the New York State Department of Health Vital Records Section.
Divorce Records
Since 1847 divorce actions in New York have been handled in the Supreme Court for the county in which the divorce was heard. New York divorce files, however, are sealed for 100 years. In colonial times, petitions for divorce had to be made to the governor or legislature, and only a few were granted. The Chancery Court granted divorces from 1787 to 1847. These older records are in the state archives.
| New York State Archives New York Department of Education Room 11D40 Cultural Education Center Albany, NY 12230 Phone: (518) 474-8955 |
Naturalization Records
Anne Kiely kindly informs us by email that naturalization records are available at the Rensselaer County Clerk's office.
| Rensselaer County Clerk Records Room Department County Court House Annex 105 Third Street at corner of Congress Street Troy, NY 12180
Phone: (518) 270-4080 |
