Alabama Genealogy

USA (1,379,301) > Alabama (33,610)

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Overview of Alabama records

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Overview of Alabama Genealogy Records

• History: Alabama was first settled in 1783 and became a state in 1817.
• Birth records: Births were recorded by the government starting in 1881, though not all were recorded. State registration of births started in 1908 with most births recorded by 1927. Birth records for 1908 and later can be obtained from the Alabama Department of Public Health.
• Marriage records: Marriages were recorded by the government starting in 1799. Marriages were kept by the county orphans court previous to 1850 and by the county probate court starting in 1850. Statewide registration of marriages began in 1936. Marriages for 1936 and later can be obtained from the Alabama Department of Public Health.
• Death records: Deaths were recorded by the government starting in 1881, though not all were recorded. State registration of deaths started in 1908. Death records for 1908 and later can be obtained from the Alabama Department of Public Health.
• Divorce records: Divorce records are held by the circuit courts in the individual counties.
• Census records: The first federal census taken in Alabama was in 1830. There are federal censuses publicly available for 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (Perry County only), 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940, and 1950. There were partial state censuses taken in 1816, 1820, 1850, 1855, 1866, and 1890.
• County records: Court, land, probate, naturalization, and tax records were kept by the individual counties.
• Other records: Many cities and towns had newspapers, records kept by churches, cemeteries, histories, school, city directories, and other records that can be located on the city pages on this site. Records specific to minority groups can be found in the Minority Records section.
• All records: Online indexes and images of many of the above records can be found by using the links on this site.