Vital Records & More
Michigan Vital Records Timeline
1812 - Divorces: Territorial legislature gave the Supreme Court jurisdiction over divorces.
1836 - Divorces: Court of Chancery established with jurisdiction over divorces. Court of Chancery held sessions in the circuit courts.
1837 - Michigan statehood - Vital records may have been recorded in township or county clerks’ offices, at churches. But not required.
1846 - County circuit courts take over duties of former Court of Chancery.
1867 - Townships and cities to required record births and deaths in each year. Officials were authorized to solemnize marriages and were required to record each marriage. Births, marriages, and deaths were then reported to county clerks, who recorded them in ledger books and sent them to the state.
1887 - Government marriage license law: to be married one must pay for a civil license from the county where either the bride or groom lived. County clerks’ offices created certificates and reported to the state.
1897 - Circuit court clerks required to record all divorces with state.
1897 - County clerks required to record more extensive information on death records.
1919 - Earliest year of birth records available from county clerks’ offices or the State of Michigan’s Vital Records Office.
1943 - Earliest year of death records are available online.
Records on Genesee MiGenWeb |
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| Obituaries | |||
| Census |
Genesee County Clerk's Office
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