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New Hampshire Public Records
| How
To Search Public and Vital Records -
Vital records are records of life events important enough that
some level of government acquires, organizes, and preserves
them. While the term "vital records" is often applied
to a wide variety of life events... Read
more |
New Hampshire Vital Records
The town or city clerk's office is the place where vital events are
officially recorded in New Hampshire. Today each town or city sends
copies of its vital events to the Bureau of Vital Records. Statewide
compilation, however, did not begin until a law was passed in 1866,
and total compliance was not accomplished until the 1880s. The Bureau
of Vital Records was not established until 1905, but holds records
from 1640 to the present.
For births, marriages, and deaths to present, write:
New Hampshire Division of Public Health Services, Bureau of Vital
Records and Health Statistics, 6 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301-6527
New Hampshire Land Records
New Hampshire is a state-land state. Lands were generally acquired
from proprietors during the British era or from other individuals.
All New Hampshire deeds for the provincial period before 1771 were
originally filed in Exeter, except for the Ipswich deeds and the
Old Norfolk County deeds, which were recorded in Salem, Massachusetts.
Microfilms of the first 100 volumes of those filed in Exeter, called
Province Deeds, now reside, along with a card file index, at the
New Hampshire Records and Archives. The original books are deposited
there as well.
Transactions were originally segregated by town. However, counties
were formed in 1769 and the county seat become the location for
recording land transactions, a practice that was in force by 1771
in most counties. Indexes at county offices are in grantor and grantee
volumes by time period, and they often include the name of the town
where the land is located. Since there are numerous towns in each
county, this detail in these later indexes can be helpful in searching
land held by those with a common surname or by narrowing a precise
town residence. When details of property description are given in
the deed, they are usually either metes and bounds or lot identification.
Because of geographic and boundary considerations, some early deeds
involving land transactions in the Cheshire County area might have
been recorded in Massachusetts; consequently, Hampden County Courthouse
in Springfield, Massachusetts, should be consulted. Conversely,
it is possible that land granted by New Hampshire in what is now
Vermont may be mentioned in the Province Deeds.
New Hampshire Court Records
Court records include 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, in Loretto Dennis Szucs
and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, eds., The Source: A Guidebook of
American Genealogy, rev. ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1997).
New Hampshire Military Records
Muster rolls, pay receipts, and other service records are complete
for New Hampshire residents from the colonial period through the
Civil War and are available in three published collections: (1)
Ayling, August D., Revised Register of the Soldiers and Sailors
of New Hampshire in the War of Rebellion, 1861–1866 (Concord,
N.H.:1895). (2) New Hampshire Provincial and State Papers (as mentioned
below in "Additional Sources") Vols. 5, 6, 14, and 16
include records of those who served in the French and Indian Wars
for New Hampshire. Vols. 14–17 include "Rolls of Documents
Relating to Soldiers in the Revolutionary War." Indexes are
available. (3) Potter, Chandler E. The Military History of the State
of New Hampshire, 1623–1861. 2 vols. (1866, 1868; reprint;
2 vols. in 1; Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1972).
The New Hampshire Records and Archives has Civil War enlistment
papers in a microfiche edition, also available at the New England
Historic Genealogical Society. The New Hampshire Historical Society
has a name index and abstracts in seventy-one volumes of all New
Hampshire residents who received pensions, regardless of residence.
A microfilm of these volumes and index is at the New England Historic
Genealogical Society. The original applications and records are
in Washington, D.C., at the National Archives, with microfilm copies
in the National Archives branch in Waltham, Massachusetts. For further
information, consult James C. Neagles's U.S. Military Records: A
Guide to Federal and State Sources (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1994).
Additional Sources
Jenks, George E. New Hampshire Provincial and State Papers. 40 vols.
Concord and Manchester, N.H.:1867–1943. (Although published
under various titles, its official title is Documents and Records
Relating to New Hampshire, 1623–1800, as described in R. Stuart
Wallace, "The State Papers? A Descriptive Guide," Historical
New Hampshire 31 (1976): 119–28.
Belknap, Jeremy. The History of New Hampshire. 3 vols. 1784–96.
(It has been reprinted many times and is available on microfilm.
The second edition (1812) included all three volumes, but John Farmer
revised the first two volumes in one (Dover, Del., 1831), with copious
notes added to the text. This one-volume edition was reprinted in
1862. Vol. 3 of the 1812 edition has been recently reprinted as
Gary T. Lord, ed., Belknap's New Hampshire History: An Account of
the State in 1792 (Hampton, N.H.: Peter Randall, 1973).
Haskell, John D., and T. D. Seymour Bassett, eds. New Hampshire:
A Bibliography of Its History. Hanover, N.H.: University Press of
New England, 1979.
Hunt, Elmer M. New Hampshire Town Names and Whence They Came. Peterborough,
N.H.: Noone House, 1970.
Dearborn, David C. "New Hampshire Genealogy: A Perspective."
New England Historical and Genealogical Register 130 (October 1976):
244–58.
Towle, Laird C., and Ann M. Brown. New Hampshire Genealogical Research
Guide. Bowie, Md.: Heritage Books, 1983. (Details of resources available
are provided.)
New Hampshire Vital
Records:
Event: Birth or death
Cost of copy: $10.00
Address:
Bureau of Vital Records
Health and Welfare Building
6 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03301
Remarks: State office has had records since 1640.
Copies of records may be obtained from State office or from City
or Town Clerk in place where event occurred. Additional copies ordered
at the same time are $6.00 each.
Check or money order should be made payable to Treasurer,
State of New Hampshire. Personal checks are accepted. To verify
current fees, the telephone number is (603) 271-4654. This will
be a recorded message.
Search All New Hampshire Records
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Event: Marriage (State)
Cost of copy: $10.00
Address:
Bureau of Vital Records
Health and Welfare Building
6 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03301
Remarks: Records since 1640.
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Event: Marriage (city/town)
Cost of copy: $10.00
Address: See remarks
Remarks: Town Clerk in town where license was issued.
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Event: Divorce (State)
Cost of copy: $10.00
Address:
Bureau of Vital Records
Health and Welfare Building
6 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03301
Remarks: Records since 1880.
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Event: Divorce (court)
Cost of copy: Varies
Address: See remarks
Remarks: Clerk of Superior Court where divorce was
granted.
Search All New Hampshire Records
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