Reference & Research
350 Rowe Boulevard
Annapolis, MD 21401
MD toll free (800) 235-4045
or (410) 260-6400
fax: (410) 974-2525
email:
ref@mdsa.net
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Maryland State Archives Reference & Research |
350 Rowe Boulevard
Annapolis, MD 21401
MD toll free (800) 235-4045
or (410) 260-6400
fax: (410) 974-2525
email:
ref@mdsa.net
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Birth Records Birth Records are restricted for 100 years.
The State Archives cannot
provide any copies of birth certificates after the year 1924.
The State Archives can provide certified copies of restricted birth certificates, where available,
There are no restrictions on ordering birth records over 100 years old. However, please note that modern birth
certificates begin only in 1875 in Baltimore City and in 1898 for the rest of the state. Incomplete birth records from the colonial period to 1884, taken from church and civil sources, exist prior to these modern birth certificates, but are not in any way comprehensive. The Archives can search for and, if available, provide copies from these early records, providing that a specific church or county circuit court and year is given. General searches in one or more counties or across multiple years cannot be performed. For such searches please consult the Researcher List at:
http://www.mdarchives.state.md.us/msa/refserv/forms/html/genealogistlist.html Archives' policy for ordering birth and death records.
Colonial Birth Records and Parish Registers
In 1654, Maryland's General Assembly passed An Act Concerning a Register
of Births Marriages & Burialls:
The Maryland State Archives holds church records for many churches in
Maryland. Please see the Religious
Records Project for a list of church records available at the Archives.
Another good resource is Edna A. Kanely's book Directory of Church Records
in Maryland published by Family Line Publications. This book lists
Maryland churches, the records that exist for them, and the institutions
that hold the records. It is important to note that the records for some
churches have been lost or destroyed over time. Also, not every Marylander
was associated with a church, and therefore the births and baptisms in
his or her family may never have been recorded at all.
The Maryland State Archives holds card indexes to the early civil birth
records described above and to some church records:
(Church Records, Birth and Baptism Index)
(Birth Records, Index)
County Circuit Court Birth Records 1865-1884
The next attempt by the Maryland General Assembly to make the
registration of births a civil matter occurred in 1865 with the passage
of An Act to provide for the Registration of Births, Marriages, and
Deaths (Chapter 130, Acts of 1865). This law required that all births be registered at the county circuit court. According to the law, the court clerks were to record "the date of the births, the place of birth, the name of the child, the names of the parents, the occupation of the father, the residence of the parents, and the date of the record." (Chapter 130, Acts of 1865). The clerks also usually recorded the sex and race of the child. Occasionally an entry will include the parent's names, but not the name of the child. The entries were arranged alphabetically by the first letter of the surname and then chronologically.
A number of birth registers were begun by the court clerks, but compliance with the law was poor. Very few citizens of Maryland took the trouble to register births with the circuit court, so present day researchers must still rely on church records for this time. Listed below are the circuit court birth registers held at the Archives, although many of them contain only scattered entries. Please note that the Anne Arundel County register contains births prior to 1865 that citizens wanted recorded. Both the Anne Arundel County and the Prince George's County birth registers are indexed by the card index MARYLAND INDEXES (Birth Record, Index) [MSA S1403,
Index 30].
In addition to the records listed below, be sure to check for recently
transferred
records, which may not have been accessioned.
(Birth Record)
In 1874 Baltimore City's Mayor and City Council passed an ordinance
for the registration of births in the city (No. 86, Ordinances of 1874).
Even after 1898 when the state Board of Health began regulating birth registration
for the 23 counties, Baltimore City continued to maintain its own records
until 1972.
The earliest certificates resulting from the ordinance contained the
sex, race, and number (birth order) of the child, date and place of birth,
names and birthplaces of the parents, occupation of the father, and the
name and address of the medical attendant. In 1903 the city's Bureau of
Vital Statistics revised the form to add a line for the child's name. However,
the certificates do not routinely include the name of the child until 1911.
Another revision of the form took place in 1910, adding the residence,
race, age and occupation of each parent and the number of children previously
born to the mother. In 1949, confidential medical information was added
to the form.
The certificates are arranged numerically by certificate number, making
them roughly chronological. To perform an efficient search, a researcher
should check the birth index first to obtain a certificate number. The
only exception to this arrangement occurs for the year 1972. Those records
are arranged chronologically by month and then alphabetically by the child's
name. The Baltimore City birth index covers 1875 through 1941. It is a
vowel index, arranged by the first letter and first vowel of the parents'
surname. Each entry gives the parents names (occasionally the mother's
maiden name), the date of birth, and the certificate number. The child
is not named. Although the index is open to the public, please note that
the birth certificates themselves are restricted for 100 years after
the date of birth.
The Maryland State Archives holds the Baltimore City birth records in
the following series:
(Birth Record, BC)
(Birth Record, Delayed)
(Birth Record, Index)
(Birth Record, Index, Copy)
In 1898, the General Assembly passed a law that initiated the
registration of births in the 23 counties (Chapter 312, Acts of 1898).
The law declared that "the secretary of the State Board of Health shall
be the State Registrar of Vital Statistics for Maryland; he shall. . .
prepare the necessary methods, books, and forms for accurate registration
of births. . .; and shall supply the local registrars, health officers,
ministers, physicians, undertakers, midwives and other persons. . . the
proper blanks, forms and books of record" (Chapter 312, Acts of 1898).
The law did not affect the city of Baltimore, because its Health Department
had been registering births since 1875.
At first, compliance with the law on the local level was incomplete.
As the State Board of Health gradually increased its control over the local
boards, registration became more reliable. Researchers should keep in mind,
however, that as late as 1914 the Board of Health was still working to
increase compliance with the law, and some births went unrecorded.
The 1898 law dictated that "the record of a birth shall state the date
and place of its occurrence, name in full, sex and color, and the number
of the child, whether living or still born, and the names, color, occupation,
birth place and residence of parents, name and address of the physician,
midwife or attendant at the birth" (Chapter 312, Acts of 1898). In 1970,
the only change to county birth certificates took place when confidential
medical information was added. The certificates are arranged chronologically
by year and month, then alphabetically by the name of the county, and finally
alphabetically by the name of the child. Because of this arrangement, one
can find a birth certificate by knowing the name of the child or the child's
parents, and the month, year, and county of birth.
The Archives also has indexing from 1875 through 1950. The early index
(1875-1919) is arranged alphabetically by the surname of the child (or
by the parents' surname if the child's name is not given). The index provides
the child's name (if given), the names of the parents, the date of birth,
and the county. The later index (1920-1950) is in Soundex order by the
surname of the child; within the Soundex classification it is alphabetical
by the father's first name. When no father's name is given, the card is
filed at the beginning of the Soundex class. Children of unmarried couples
are listed twice, under the names of both parents. This later index provides
the names of the child and the parents, the date and county of birth, and
the child's race and birth order. Although these indexes are open to the
public, please note that the birth certificates themselves are restricted
for 100 years after the date of birth.
The Maryland State Archives holds the following birth records for the
23 counties:
(Birth Record, Counties, Index)
(Birth Record, Counties, Delayed, Index)
On July 1, 1972 the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Division
of Vital Records took over the responsibility of registering Baltimore
City births from the Baltimore City Health Department, Bureau of Vital
Statistics. The separate series maintained by the two agencies became a
single series of records covering both Baltimore City and the 23 counties:
The certificates include the name and sex of the child; date and place
of birth; name, birthplace, race, age, residence, and occupation of each
parent; number of children previously born to the mother; name and address
of the medical attendant; and confidential medical information. The are
arranged like the earlier certificates: chronologically by year and month,
then alphabetically by jurisdiction, and finally alphabetically by the
name of the child. The index for these birth records is in electronic format
and is accessible only through the Division of Vital Records.
For further information on the history of the Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene please see the agency histories for:
(Birth Records, Index). 1649-1720, 1804-1877, 1898-1923, incomplete. Birth records restricted 100 years. Index 30. MSA S1403 (Church Records, Birth and Baptism Index). 1663-1967. various dates for 15 churches. Index 28. MSA S1401 Questions regarding Archives' collections and services should be directed to the Reference Services Department at: ref@mdsa.net |
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