Vital records,
as their name suggests, are connected with central life
events: birth, marriage, and death. Maintained by civil
authorities, they are prime sources of genealogical
information; but, unfortunately, official vital records are
available only for relatively recent periods. These records,
despite their recent creation in the United States, are
critically important in genealogical research, often
supplying details on family members well back into the
nineteenth century.
The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy,
by Loretto Szucs and Sandra Luebking.
Vermont Department of Health
Vital Records Section
Box 70
108 Cherry Street
Burlington, VT 05402 Cost:$7.00
Check or money order should be made payable to
Vermont Department of Health. Personal checks are accepted. To verify
current fees, the telephone number is (802) 863-7275.
Check or money order should be made
payable to General Services.. Personal checks are accepted. To verify
current fees, the telephone number is (802) 828-3286.
Vital records are maintained by two state agencies: the
Health Department and the Division of Public Records in Middlesex,
Vermont. The Health Department keeps the most recent five years of
records. After five years, records are transferred to Public Records.
Therefore, certified copies of births, deaths and other vital events that
occurred within the past five years are available from the Health
Department; older records are available from Public Records.
