Alabama Public Records

First Name Last Name

Alabama Vital Records
An Act of 1881 provided that all births and deaths in the state of Alabama were to be registered with a county health officer, but the legislation was adhered to carelessly at best. State-level registration of births and deaths in Alabama began January 1st, 1908. The state, however, did not achieve a 90% completeness of birth registration until 1927, and of death registration until 1925. For birth and death records prior to 1908, and marriages prior to 1936, write to the clerk of the county in question. For birth and death records after 1908, and marriages after 1936, write:

Center for Health Statistics
State Dept. of Public Health
P.O. Box 5625
Montgomery, AL 36103-5625
Tel: 202-242-5033
http://www.alapubhealth.org/vital/vitalrcd.htm

Note: Birth and Death records are closed for 125 years except to family. Information for marriages prior to 1936 must be obtained from the probate office in the county where the marriage license was issued. Information for divorces prior to 1950 must be obtained from the circuit court in the county where the divorce was granted.

Alabama Land Records
Alabama is a federal-land state. Lands were generally bought from the government or from other individuals. For government purchases, consult the Bureau of Land Management, Eastern States Office's patent indexes available on CD-ROM through various genealogical vendors and through:

Government Printing Office
Superintendent of Documents
P.O. Box 371954
Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954

This patent index is also found among the database searches available at Ancestry's web site (ancestry.com). Land-entry case files for these patents are available at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.. Early settlers in Alabama received land under Spanish and British governments. Case files for most private land claims are housed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.. For transactions between individuals, consult the local county Probate Court. For further reference:

Hone, E. Wade. Land and Property Research in the United States. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, Inc., 1997.

Barefield, Marilyn Davis. Researching in Alabama: A Genealogical Guide. Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, 1988.

Alabama Court Records
Court records can be a complex source for any state. Their records entail probate records (which include wills), guardianship, naturalization, and a wide variety of other sources, ranging from criminal trials to simple road orders. All contain information about individuals within the area. It should be remembered that there are different levels of jurisdiction for courts in the United States, all of which should be considered for research under various circumstances. Court of Common Pleas, Orphan's Court, Probate Court, District Court, Superior Court, Supreme Court, and other titles are among those encountered. To study more about court records in general, see:

"Research in Court Records" by Arlene H. Eakle, found in Loretto Dennis Szucs and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, eds., The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy, rev. ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1997).

Alabama Military Records
The Alabama Department of Archives and History has made their military service surname files available on microfilm. These files include a series for Revolutionary War veterans residing in Alabama; service in the Indian Wars of 1812, 1813, and 1814; territorial service in 1818; the Indian War of 1836; the Mexican War in 1846; and the Spanish-American War in 1898. The series contains a card for each soldier indicating name, military unit, rank, and the source of the information. Most of the sources cited are unofficial as there are limited records for state military service. The state of Alabama also paid its Confederate veterans a pension. The original files are housed in the Alabama Department of Archives and History. The applications have been microfilmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah and are available on loan through the FHL.

DAR. Roster of Revolutionary Soldiers and Patriots--Alabama. Montgomery: Alabama Society DAR, 1979. Incomplete. Includes a statement on the soldier's military service; a brief biographical sketch including the names of his parents, wife, and children; and bibliographic citations to various sources used in compilation.

Dornbusch, C.E. Regimental Publications and Personal Narratives of the Civil War: A Checklist, 4 vols. New York: New York Public Library, 1961–88. (cites published accounts of Alabama regiments)

Evans, Clement Aslem. Confederate Military History, 17 vols. 1899. Reprint. Wilmington, NC: Broadfoot, 1987. (includes a separate volume on Alabama, which gives a brief history of each regiment, some biographical sketches, and unit citations found in the next citation)

U.S. War Department, Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies in the War of the Rebellion, 128 vols. 1901. Reprint. Gettysburg: National Historical Society, 1971.

Additional Sources
Barefield, Marilyn Davis. Researching in Alabama: A Genealogical Guide. Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, 1988.

WPA. Index to Alabama Biography: An Index to Biographical Sketches of Individual Alabamians in State, Local, and to Some Extent National Collections. Birmingham: WPA Project sponsored by the Birmingham Public Library, 1956.

Alabama Vital Records:

Event: Birth or death

Cost of copy: $12.00

Address:
Center for Health Statistics
State Department of Public Health
P.O. Box 5625
Montgomery, AL 36103-5625

Remarks: State office has had records since January 1908. Additional copies at same time are $4.00 each. Fee for special searches is $10.00 per hour.

Check or money order should be made payable to Center for Health Statistics. Personal checks are accepted. To verify current fees, the telephone number is (334) 206-5418. This will be a recorded message. Information on how to obtain certified copies is also available via the Internet at http://www.alapubhealth.org.

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Event: Marriage (State)

Cost of copy: $12.00

Address:
Center for Health Statistics
State Department of Public Health
P.O. Box 5625
Montgomery, AL 36103-5625

Remarks: State office has had records since August 1936.

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Event: Marriage (county)

Cost of copy: Varies

Address: See remarks

Remarks: Contact Probate Judge in county where license was issued.

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Event: Divorce (State)

Cost of copy: $12.00

Address:
Center for Health Statistics
State Department of Public Health
P.O. Box 5625
Montgomery, AL 36103-5625

Remarks: State office has had records since January 1950.

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Event: Divorce (county)

Cost of copy: Varies

Address: See remarks

Remarks: Contact Clerk of Circuit Court in county where divorce was granted.

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