Kansas Vital Records Research Guide

Kansas Birth, Marriage, Divorce as well as Death records, also referred to as vital records, provide you with details about crucial events in your ancestors life. Vital records, normally maintained by a civic authority, can provide you a far more comprehensive picture of your ancestor, assist you to distinguish concerning two people utilizing the exact same name, and help you find links to a new generation. They can include information and facts like the occasion date and place, parents’ names, profession and residence. The cause of death is also provided in many Kansas death records.

Kansas vital records are a cornerstone of Kansas genealogy and family history research because they were normally recorded at or close to the time of the occurrence, helping to make the document more likely to be correct. This page contains links, information that will help you request copies from Kansas state and county vital records keepers. Vital records (births, deaths, marriages, and divorces) mark the key events of our lives and are the framework of ancestors and family history research.

Kansas Department of Health, issues, documents, and stores certified copies of vital records including birth, marriage, divorce death certificates for occurrences that took place in Kansas.  To verify current fees or for information on how to expedite a document, call (785) 296-1400. State law also specifies that the initial $15.00 fee for all vital records is a five-year record search fee, one certified copy is issued if the record is found and if not found, the fee is retained. You will receive either the certified copy or a letter explaining the search conducted and that no record was located.

• Ordering Kansas Birth and Death Certificates: The State office has birth and death records from July 1, 1911 to present. The fee for a birth certified copy is $15 and additional copies of the same record ordered at the same time are $15 each, you will receive either the certified copy or a letter explaining the search conducted and that no record was located. Between about 1885 and 1911 births, deaths and marriages may have been recorded at the county or city clerk’s office in register volumes. Not all of these registers have survived. Click here to obtain a listing of all county clerk offices in Kansas
• Ordering Kansas Marriage Certificates: The State office has marriage records from May 1, 1913 to present. The fee for a marriage certified copy is $15 and additional copies of the same record ordered at the same time are $15 each, you will receive either the certified copy or a letter explaining the search conducted and that no record was located Vital records can also usually be found in the office of the Clerk of District Court at the county where the license was issued. The fee for the copy varies.
• Ordering Kansas Divorce Certificates: The State office has marriage records from July 1, 1951 to present. The fee for a divorce certified copy is $15 and additional copies of the same record ordered at the same time are $15 each, you will receive either the certified copy or a letter explaining the search conducted and that no record was located Vital records can also usually be found in the office of the Clerk of District Court at the county where the divorce was granted. The fee for the copy varies.

• Physical and Mailing Address: Office of Vital Statistics, Curtis State Office Building, 1000 S W Jackson, Suite 120, Topeka, KS 66612-2221; (785) 296-3253; Fax: (785) 357-4332. All mail orders should include a Personal check or money order made payable to Vital Statistics. Do not send cash.
• Website Address: http://www.kdheks.gov/vital/
• Ordering Vital Records Online – get the certificates within 2-5 days with a credit or debit card from USAVital.com or VitalChek.com
• Ordering Vital Records by Mail: You can download an application online for Kansas Birth Certificate, Marriage Certificate, Divorce Certificate, Death Certificate Applications. Please allow up to 4-6 weeks for processing of all type of certificates ordered through the mail.

Deaths and births in Kansas were not recorded and cataloged by the state until July of 1911. Marriage records were recorded from May 1, 1913 onward on a statewide level. However, divorce records were not recorded statewide until July 1, 1951. The Office of Vital Statistics at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment has each of those records on file. Any divorce records that were recorded before the 1951 statewide recording began can be found in the the court district in which the divorce paperwork was originally filed. That paperwork is on file in each district’s Office of the Clerk.

Quite a few issues of the Kansas Historical Quarterly (1960) volume 18 included death and marriage records from the Territory that occurred between 1854 and 1861. Volume 19, (August and September 1961) contained deaths and births. While volume 21 contained marriage records (Summer 1965) The Jefferson County Genealogical Society and the Midwest Historical Genealogical Society can each provide reprints of those volumes.

The State Board of Agriculture First Bicentennial Report also contains Kansas Territory vital statistics. Some counties kept death and birth records before they were required by the state. However, those records are incomplete and inconsistent. The Historical Records Survey – Kansas, Guide to Public Vital Records in Kansas is a good resource for information on where vital records not held by the Bureau of Vital Statistics can be found. The guide is divided by record type and county, for easy reference.

In 1987, a change in state law allowed access to records of deaths, marriages and births that took place from 1885 to 1913.