Vermont Public Records
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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
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Vermont Vital Records
Vital record registration in Vermont is recorded at the town level.
The vital records are incomplete before mandatory registration began
in 1857. However, it is not uncommon to find an entire family recorded
as a family group before 1820. In some cases, although the event was
recorded in a particular town, it may have actually occurred in another
town or state where the family previously resided, and not all events
for a family were recorded. Marriages and deaths in the pre 1857 period
were less likely to be recorded.
For births, marriages, and deaths within the last
ten years, write:
Vermont Department of Health
Vital Records Unit
108 Cherry Street
P.O. Box 70
Burlington, VT 05402-0070
For earlier records, write:
Vermont General Services Center
Public Records Division
Route 2, Drawer 33
Middlesex, VT 05633-7601
Telephone:
802-828-3288
802-828-2794 (Public Records)
802-828-3286 (Reference/Research Center)
Fax: 802-828-3710
http://www.cit.state.vt.us/gsd/pubrec.htm
Vermont Land Records
Vermont is a state-land state. Land was generally acquired from
early town proprietors or from other individuals. Early grants were
at times in conflict with each other, originating in New York, New
Hampshire, and Vermont. When Vermont declared itself independent
in 1777, all land came under its jurisdiction. Consequently, there
was no other way to obtain an initial grant of land except through
the auspices of the legislature. In this process, land was first
granted for a town to a group of individuals called proprietors.
The proprietors then met, devised a plan for dividing up the land,
and drew lots to determine who owned which lots.
The town is the primary legal jurisdiction for land
records in Vermont. Consequently, original copies of land records
are at the town clerk's office. Each town has separate indexes for
the grantees and grantors. Very few women owned land in their own
right. They occasionally witnessed deeds but sometimes were asked
to release their dower's right. A few land records were recorded
by counties and are available at the county courthouse, although
they are primarily for those towns that had no formal organization.
With no statewide master index or abstract of land
records in the 251 towns, this valuable genealogical information
has to be searched for town by town, but it can be done centrally
with microfilm copies. Land records for towns whose records were
extant in the 1940s had those deed books and indexes microfilmed
from inception through 1850. They are available at the Vermont Public
Records Division, Route 2, Middlesex, Vermont (mailing address:
State Administration Building, 133 State Street, Montpelier, VT
05633-7601), and through the FHL. Only a few towns had lost their
land records in fires or floods by that time. The Vermont Public
Records Division is always expanding its microfilm holdings of town
records beyond those done in the 1940s, and its collection now includes
many town records from 1850 to the present. These are not necessarily
in the FHL microfilm collection.
Vermont 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:
Szucs, Loretto Dennis, and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking,
eds. The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy. Rev. ed. Salt
Lake City: Ancestry, 1997.
Vermont Military Records
Original service records for Vermont before 1920 were destroyed
in a fire. Printed lists of Vermonters who served in wars from the
Revolution through the Korean conflict were published by the Vermont
Adjutant General's Office. If you cannot find a copy in a library
near you, the office at 118 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05602,
will answer inquiries. A few records of Vermont militia for the
1820–30s can be found in some town meeting records. Muster
rolls in the Walter Sheldon papers of the Stevens Collection at
the Vermont State Archives contain information on some who fought
in the War of 1812. For further information, consult:
Neagles, James C. U.S. Military Records: A Guide
to Federal and State Sources. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1994.
Additional Sources
Bassett, T. D. Seymour, ed. Vermont: A Bibliography of Its History.
1981. Reprint. Hanover, N.H.: University Press of New England, 1983.
Eichholz, Alice. Collecting Vermont Ancestors. Montpelier:
New Trails, 1986.
Swift, Esther Munroe. Vermont Place-Names: Footprints
of History. Brattleboro,Vt.: Stephen Greene Press, 1977.
Hemenway, Abby Maria. Vermont Historical Gazetteer.
5 vols. Burlington, Vt., and others, 1867–91. (An index covering
all towns except those in Windsor County was published in 1923 by
Tuttle Company, in Rutland, Vermont, and indicates town as well
as volume and page number for the person named.)
Vermont Vital Records:
Event:
Birth or death
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
Vermont Department of Health
Vital Records Section
P.O. Box 70
108 Cherry Street
Burlington, VT 05402
Remarks:
State office has records for the latest 10 years.
Check or money order should be made payable to Vermont
Department of Health. Personal checks are accepted. To verify current
fees, the telephone number is (802) 863-7275.
Search All Vermont Records
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Event:
Birth
Death
Marriage
Divorce
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
Division of Public Records
U.S. Route 2--Middlesex
Drawer 33
Montpelier, VT 05633
Remarks:
Records prior to the latest 10 years. Check or money order should
be made payable to General Services. To verify current fees, the
telephone number is
(802) 828-3286.
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Event:
Birth
Death
Marriage (city/town)
Divorce (city/town)
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
See remarks
Remarks:
Town or City Clerk of town/city where birth or death occurred.
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Event:
Marriage (State)
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
Vermont Department of Health
Vital Records Section
P.O. Box 70
108 Cherry Street
Burlington, VT 05402
Remarks:
State office has records for latest 10 years.
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Event:
Marriage (town)
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
See remarks
Remarks:
Town or City Clerk in town/city where license was issued.
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Event:
Divorce (State)
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
Vermont Department of Health
Vital Records Section
P.O. Box 70
108 Cherry Street
Burlington, VT 05402
Remarks:
State office has records for the latest 10 years.
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Event:
Divorce (town)
Cost of copy:
$7.00
Address:
See remarks
Remarks:
Family court in county where divorce was granted.
Search All Vermont Records
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