Genealogists researching their Missouri families will want to visit the Missouri Digital Heritage website frequently. It contains a lot of interesting historical information, but there are two databases that are especially useful in genealogy. These are:
- Birth and Death Records Database, Pre-1910
- Missouri Death Certificate Database, 1910-1958
This database contains records of the births, stillbirths, and deaths that were recorded prior to 1909. The online images are taken from microfilm at the Missouri State Archives. You can search using either parent’s name and by county. The results are linked to the actual images of the records.
This database contains more than 185,000 records from 87 counties. Ordinarily you’ll find (for births and stillbirths) the name of the child, date and place of birth, sex, and race; nationality, residence, occupation of father, ages of parents, full name of father, maiden name of mother, name and address of medical or other person filing the form. For a stillbirth, the name of the undertaker and place of burial should also be noted.
Death records include the date of the report, name, sex, color, age, occupation, marital status, nationality, and birthplace of the subject; date, place, and cause of death; date and place of burial, addresses of undertaker and physician returning the certificate.
If the image has not yet been digitized, you can order a copy of the certificate for $1.00. There is a form on the Archives Reference Desk page.
Missouri Death Certificate Database (1910-1958)
This database contains records from the Bureau of Vital Records, although a 2004 statute transferred all death records more than fifty years old to the Missouri State Archives.
You can access this database via a simple search form that allows you to use any combination of first and/or last name, county, and year. The advanced search adds month of death and variations in the name fields. These records, too, are linked to digitized images of the original certificate.
For death certificates less than 50 years old, contact the Missouri Bureau of Vital Records. Records cost $13 for death certificates or $15 for birth and fetal death records.
Other MIssouri Heritage Records
While these birth and death records are invaluable, you’ll also want to explore other parts of the Missouri Digital Heritage site. Here you’ll find records about farming, ranching, and raising livestock; information on Missouri’s economic activities; documents related to artists, musicians, authors, architects and their works; books and diaries related to Missouri; topographic, highway, railroad, insurance, demographic and historical maps; documents concerning automobiles, aviation, railroads, river traffic, bridges and highways; and collections reflecting Missouri's varied scientific pursuits.
Also on this site are finding aids, guides and indexes with descriptions of specific groups of Missouri records; records related to local governments; territorial, state and federal records from the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government; documents on Native Americans, African Americans, immigrant groups and urban and rural neighborhoods; documents about French and Spanish settlers, fur traders, native tribes, explorers, land speculators, miners and other early residents; other genealogical resources that include marriage, church, and cemetery records, plus family papers; military records of Missourians; Missouri newspapers; photographs, artwork, and political cartoons; records on athletic events, hunting, fishing, tourism and tourist attractions; and collections that focus on the lives and activities of Missouri women.
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