Minnesota's birth and death records

The 1870 legislation called for local clerks in villages and townships to register births and deaths that were reported to them, and to report them to the county. Minnesota had become the 32nd state in May of 1858, but much of her area was as yet unpopulated with local government unformed. Until a system of government could be established in a locale, no births or deaths would be reported, except in church-related records.

With township and village clerks bearing the responsibility for such record keeping, a county could have a register for each township and each village within the county, as well as county registers. For example, Freeborn County began keeping records of births in 1870. Townships within that county began their record keeping at various points--Bancroft township, 1872; Bath, 1876; etc. with each of the twenty townships keeping separate records. Freeborn County also had at least ten villages that kept such records, including Alden, 1872; Albert Lea, 1889; etc. Similar differences appear in death records.

In 1911, when birth reports were required at the state level, some of the smaller local jurisdictions discontinued their records, and the counties took over the function. Others continued keeping records into the 1950s. This means that there are at least two, and sometimes three, separate records of births and deaths in some jurisdictions: the village or township, the county, and the state.

Remember, too, that such record keeping was done manually; that is, a person would actually write (or type) the information into a register or onto a form. If everything worked correctly, it would be reported and recorded by another level of government as well. The township or village clerk would send on the information to the county; the county (after 1910) would send it to the State Health Department. Papers could be lost, forgotten, or just not sent. The records at the different levels are not exactly the same!

In addition, the earlier legislation was not always practiced. A home birth, during planting or harvest time, might not be recorded for several months or at all. Immigrants who didn't speak the same language as the local clerk may not have reported the event because they didn't know they were supposed to.

Regardless, if you are searching for a birth or death record in Minnesota, a couple of guidelines will help you.

• The earliest governmental record is likely to be 1870, or the formation of the county, whichever happened first.
• Records exist at a minimum of two levels: before 1910, the township or village and the county, and after that date, at least the county and the state, with perhaps another at the township or village level.
• Remember that some censuses also provide some birth and death data. In narrowing down the places to look, censuses can be very helpful.

Finding governmental vital statistics records:

The Genealogist's Guide to Minnesota Vital Records: Volume 2 - Births and Deaths outlines on a county-by-county basis the records found in 1941 when the WPA surveyed vital records, and updates their availability. This Guide is available from Park Genealogical Books.

With the specific information you have about where your ancestor(s) lived, you can check easily to see if that jurisdiction's records are accessible.

© 2008, Park Genealogical Books, Roseville, MN

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