Choose Which Records To Search

Four levels of records exist that will help you in your search. 

These are: city records, county records, state records, and federal records.  You can find a person through the military, Social Security Administration and many other agencies. 

Many records can be accessed by mail, some by phone, many of them online and some only in person.  The more information you have, the more likely you are to find the person you are searching for. 

Start by clicking on City Records in the menu on the right.

Once you identify the records you would like to access, you may send an Inquiry kit or use one of the online search sites.

Many of these records are available online for a reasonable fee and some sites combine multiple records searches into one fee schedule making it very economical in both time and money.

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City Records

Public Libraries

Public Libraries are the place to begin searching city records. 
Reference librarians are fountains of knowledge and it is wise to form a relationship with them, particularly at your main branch.  They are helpful and able to help you navigate your way around the records they can supply you with and best of all, this is a free resource.

Take advantage of the cardholder library, while a librarian would be hesitant to supply you with information held in their files, most are happy to address and mail a stamped postcard regarding your search. 

Keep in mind that most libraries are computerized now and this gives you access to library records across the country.

Law Libraries

Law Libraries are located near most courthouses and provide access to current literature on state and federal adoption and child relinquishing laws which may be of use to you and are another free resource.  Some of this information may be available on the internet but in this case, going to the source provides more up to date information.

Police Departments

Law enforcement departments are tied into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) computers in Washington DC.  Some of this information is available to you due to the Freedom of Information Act (Public Law 5 USC 552A) and the Privacy Act of 1974 (Public Law 5 USC 552B)  Copies of both acts are available at your public library. 

Read them and don’t be afraid to cite either or both when needed.  (see our sample letters page for help with this)

Each state has a licensing bureau and most of the information regarding which types of businesses require permits or licenses is online. Go to the state governmental website and look for this information. 

City/county requirements vary greatly and a phone call to the city/town office should tell you which, if any of these types of city records you might be able to access

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County Records

Sherriff’s Office

The Sherriff is an elected official and his/her office maintains county records regarding crime, subpoenas, warrants and extensive jail records. 

This information is difficult to get to without going through the district attorney and having properly prepared requests.  Be prepared to appear in person, with an attorney and do your research about procedure first. 

Birth, Death And Marriage

When searching for these records, they can usually be located at both the county and states vital statistics office.  They can be accessed in person or by mail but be prepared to pay a fee and have the following information handy:

• Subject’s full name
• Gender and race
• Subject’s parents full names including mother’s maiden name
• Date of birth
• Place of birth including hospital
• Purpose for which the information is needed
• Relationship to the subject

Birth

Anyone but an adoptee can request and receive copies of an original birth certificate. 

An adoptee will only receive an amended certificate which has all of the identifying information removed.  This includes: the names, ages and places birth of natural  parents, the name of the certifier (physician), and the name of the registrar (county). 

But for our use, there are two items which are usually not deleted and these are the official number that is filed by date of birth in each county.   An adoptee who has these two things from the amended birth certificate and knows what county he was born in may be able to search county records and match up the amended certificate with the original one and find out his/her natural birth name. 

This can be very helpful in discovering the natural parents names.

Death

To obtain death records, the first place to contact is the Social Security office.  If the subject died under normal circumstances, this is the first place contacted. 

If the subject died and was separated from his/her ID (ie driver’s license, Social Security card) the coroner’s office would make all attempts to identify him/her through fingerprints, dental records, X-rays, scars, etc.

If this fails, the subjects particulars are turned over to the  county and such records as there are remain there.  If the decedent is identified but is not claimed, the name is registered with the states vital statistics office and the information may also be retained at the county level. 

These are good places to check.

When applying for these records, plan to supply the basic information listed above except for place of birth.  Include the date and place of death if known.

Marriage

An application for a marriage certificate is the source of a lot of information:

• full names
• dates of birth
• ages
• number of marriages
• date of last marriage
• if the last marriage ended it will show the date
• if it ended in divorce, annulment or death 
• birthplace of a former spouse
• grooms present address
• occupations
• type of employment
• last grade completed
• groom’s father’s name
• mother’s maiden name
• where both were born. 

The marriage certificate itself has some of this information and also includes:

• type of ceremony
• both parties religions
• name of the person who performed the ceremony
• names of the witnesses.

These records are usually filed at the county where the marriage took place and in some states you can find them in the states vital statistics office. 

Unless the couple asks that they be sealed, these are public records and should be available for a fee.

You will need to supply the basic information listed above as well as:

• Names of both the bride and groom and any nicknames
• Their address at the time of the marriage
• date of marriage
• place of marriage

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State Records

Driver’s License Records

A driver’s license is the state record that has become the number one proof of identity in our country making it a great source of information to tap when trying to find people. 

In order to get this information, you will need the subject’s date of birth and correctly spelled full name.  Some states will not provide you with this information so it might be best to write to all of the states where you think the person might have held a license. 

Some states require the subjects written permission to release the records, and others require that you have the driver’s license number. 

With privacy laws being rewritten all the time, it is becoming more difficult to access this information without a legal reason and you might need to hire a lawyer.

Corporate Records

With the numbers of lawsuits against business rising every day, even small business owners have been forced to form corporations in order to protect their homes and families.  Limited liability corporations or LLC’s are easy to form and the state records of these as well as the larger types of corporations are accessible.  Two types of corporations exist, public and private. 

Public corporations sell shares on the stock market, private ones do not.  Contact the secretary of state in the state where the corporation is held for information on its owners.

Permits and Licenses

Most states have licensing requirements for professionals from barbers to doctors.  These state records are available if you contact the state board in writing.

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Federal Records

Freedom of Information and Privacy Acts

It is now our right to have access to all of the information the federal records that the government has accumulated on us if we can provide just cause. 

Go to your local library to read and copy the following: Public Law 5 USC 552A known as the Freedom of Information Act and also the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 USC 552B. 

See our sample letters page for a memo citing these acts that you can use to request information. include a copy of the acts with your letter.

Social Security

Most government agencies are less then helpful when it comes to accessing federal records.  It has been the policy of the Social Security Administration to allow mail contact for “humanitarian purposes” with anyone on their roster who has a current address. 

Send your inquiry kit, including your subjects profile and your forwarding postcard will be sent to your subject. 

Expect it to take some time for the file to be searched and try to make the message on your postcard as “humanitarian” as you can without lying. 

*see sample letters page.

U.S. Postal Service

If you know the address that your subject was using within the past 6 months, you can use the U.S. Postal Service to get the new address. 

Go to your local Post Office and ask how it can be done. 

One thing that has worked has been to send the last known address along with a dollar to Attention Postmaster at the town, state and zip of the address you have.  If they have the new address, you will be provided with it. 

U.S. District Court

Both civil and criminal cases are tried at this court and this is the path used in appeals to get to the U.S. Supreme court. 

To access these federal records, write to the clerk of the U.S. District Court in the federal courthouse nearest to where you think your subject is or has been. 

Bankruptcy Court

Also to be found in the federal courthouse are records regarding bankruptcy.  These are public records and available by writing.

Military Locators

If you think your subject may have joined the armed forces this website has the addresses you need, Official Military Records

It currently costs $3.50 to do a military records search and you can find out how to access all branches of service from this site. 
 
U.S. Marshal

This one is kind of tricky, if your subject might be a fugitive from the law, contact your nearest U.S. Marshal’s office and inquire. 

Give only the full name and date of birth and no other information.  The Marshal’s office knows they are not supposed to give out this information, but they don’t know that you know that, so if they come back to you asking for more information, that is an indication that your subject is among the wanted.  
 

Veterans Administration

The Veterans Administration can be very helpful source of federal records if your subject was in the military. 

If you send an inquiry kit and their files contain a recent address, it is likely that they will forward a postcard for you.  A sample letter is provided for this purpose.

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