Archive for the ‘About Birth Records’ Category

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How To Find Lost Parents

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010
Find Lost Parents

Find Lost Parents

Are you wondering how to find lost parents? An alarming number of people have no contact with one or both of their birth parents. Usually this happens when someone is adopted. In that situation, the birth parents are required to completely give up their rights to visit the child and be involved in his or her life. In most cases, an additional birth record is created listing the new adoptive parents with no mention of the biological ones, which can make it difficult to track these people down.

Much of the time adopted children have no idea that they are adopted until they turn 18 (or even older), and once they find out they are overcome with an overwhelming desire to find their real parents. This need is quite understandable.

In other cases, sometimes a father or mother will abandon their family, move far away and start a new life, without maintaining any contact at all with their old family. Many children feel betrayed and confused by this, and may wish to find their parent to reconnect with them or ask them questions.

Fortunately, finding lost parents doesn’t have to be a difficult task. If you can provide a name, you can get started on your search right away. It’s best to have as much information on hand as possible — such as location, birth date, and occupation. But if you lack additional details, it is still possible to find your birth parent… it just might take longer. Searching for a mother may be more difficult because it is possible she has a different surname due to getting married.

By far the best way to track down birth parents is to use a people search engine on the internet such as BirthDetails.com. It’s much faster, cheaper, and more convenient than using Vital Records or other government-based archives. You can perform a search and find the exact person you need in a matter of minutes! Not only can you find out their address and phone number, but you can also “sneak a peak” at their income, home value, and the names of their relatives.

It’s by far the best way to find lost parents. Once you have found out their information, you can contact them and begin to reconnect. It can be an emotional and frightening journey, but you’ll be glad you made it!

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Posted in About Birth Records, Find People, Finding Family Members, Free people search, find an address | 3 Comments »

How To: Quick And Easy Genealogy Research

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

When most people think of genealogy research, the phrase “quick and easy” doesn’t normally pop up in their minds. Making a family tree is usually thought of as a long, drawn-out process that involves many different areas of research. One must conduct interviews, sort through many photographs and documents, search through public records archives, and more. Fortunately, genealogy research has become much easier in recent years thanks to the internet!

By doing a simple search online, you can now find dozens, perhaps even hundreds of websites whose sole purpose is to help you build your family tree! You now have many tools and resources at your disposal, all from the comfort of your home.  Some of these tools may include printable family tree charts to help you better visualize your ancestry, archives of public records from long ago, and hard-to-find documents like ship logs and immigration records.

All of these resources will undoubtedly help you in your research. But an often-overlooked treasure chest are simple birth records search engines, such as the one found on BirthDetails.com. With only a few clicks of the mouse, you can find the exact birth records you need to compile a family tree with accurate facts and details. At a certain point in your research, you will find it absolutely necessary to rely on birth records searches to get the information you need. And doing it “the old way” could mean that your research will take ages, and will likely cost a pretty penny.

Genealogy-based websites are fantastic resources, but they often come with membership fees. If you want to find birth records for free, you’re already at the right place! Check out BirthDetails.com’s birth records search engine to get a jump start on your research today!

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Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Birth Records, Genealogy Research, birth records, genealogy | 1 Comment »

Wisconsin Birth Records

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Wisconsin Birth Records

Wisconsin Birth Records

Were you or one of your friends or family members born in Wisconsin? At some point, you may have to look up Wisconsin birth records. If you’re wondering how to obtain a birth certificate in Wisconsin, the most common suggestion is to visit the Wisconsin Vital Records office. You will have to visit the office in person, or mail in or fax a request with a signature and enclosed fee. You cannot order Wisconsin birth records by telephone, email, or website.

If you’re picking up the birth records in person, you’ll have to bring along photo ID, such as a driver’s license or a passport. In some cases, you may have to bring other identification documents, such as a utility bill, credit card statement, or health insurance card. If you receive your birth records in the mail, you won’t have to provide these documents.

The fee for Wisconsin birth records is $20 for one copy, and $3 for each additional copy. If you wish for expedited service, you’ll have to pay an additional $20 and $3 for each copy beyond the first. You will not get a refund if their search doesn’t turn up any results.

If you need a copy of your Wisconsin birth records to apply for a driver’s license or passport, you’ll have to deal with Vital Records, because it is the only place you can obtain a certified copy. A certified copy has a raised seal and can only be released to you if you are searching for:

  • Your own birth records
  • Your spouse’s records
  • Your children’s records
  • Your sibling’s records

OR if you have written, signed permission from the person who the birth records belong to.

Uncertified copies are freely available for anyone. Although you cannot use these documents to apply for government IDs, you can still use the information for genealogy projects, finding people, searching facts about your friends & classmates, etc. There are a wide variety of uses for uncertified Wisconsin birth records.

In that case, it is often a better idea to use the internet for your birth records search rather than Vital Records. On the internet, you can look up birth records for free (or almost free– much less than $20) and results are often instantaneous, emailed to you in a matter of minutes, where you can then print them out or simply keep the documents stored on your computer. It’s also much easier to find the birth records you need. Vital records sometimes takes a long time to get back to you, with no guarantee that they will even find the documents you need.

If you’re looking for uncertified copies of Wisconsin birth records, by far the best idea is to use an online birth record database like BirthDetails.com.

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Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Birth Records, birth records | No Comments »

Public Access to Court Records

Monday, February 15th, 2010

Public access to court records is generally available to all who seek it, with some notable exceptions. Federal court records are almost always accessible because they are considered part of the public domain. These types of court cases may involve marriage, divorce, annulment, separation, bankruptcy, child custody, criminal proceedings, or  adoption. Sometimes the court cases are sealed from the public, making it difficult or impossible to reveal the court documents. But most of the time, public access to court records is freely available.

Because the court records are public and federal, you can look up records from virtually any part of the country. However, a lot of people are unsuccessful in their search for public court records because they fail to include enough pertinent information. At the very least, you need a full name and birth date. This is the bare minimum requirement, and even if you do have this information, it may not be enough. The more information you can impart, the more focused and narrow your results will be, so you won’t have to sift through dozens of unrelated court files to find the one you need. Some examples of additional facts include location, address, and the names of all parties involved (when it comes to marriage, divorce, adoption, etc.)

Another issue that arises when it comes to public access to court records is the fact that you can only find records for the state in which they took place. What does this mean, exactly? It means that if Joe Bob (who you’re searching for) lives in Florida but he got a DUI in Louisiana, his DUI may not show up in the Florida database. You would have no way of knowing that his DUI exists unless you manually search through each state in the Union. Because of this it can be easy to overlook certain court proceedings. Therefore, it’s important to conduct a thorough search and try to think outside the box.

Definitely the best way to get public access to court records is through a court document database or a criminal background check website. These are incredibly easy to use. For a very small fee, you can find exactly what you’re looking for, and the databases will scan records in the entire country for the search terms you input, meaning that you will be able to find Joe Bob’s DUI in Louisiana even though he may not live there. The internet makes it incredibly simple to conduct your investigation, whether it involves crime, marriage/divorce, adoption, or bankruptcy.

Whatever you need to find is most likely available on the internet, making public access to court records simple and convenient.

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Posted in About Birth Records, Background Checks, Criminal Records, Public Records | 1 Comment »

MA Birth Records

Monday, February 8th, 2010

massachusetts_boston02Are you interested in looking up MA Birth Records? Massachusetts contains a large amount of public records that are widely available through a variety of sources, including courthouses, Vital Records offices, libraries and more. MA contains a vast, rich history, and the lives of its citizens throughout the centuries have been illustrated by the keeping of its valuable public records.

Looking up MA birth records is not particularly difficult. By going to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Vital Statistics office, you can request copies of birth certificates and other public records documents by mail, phone, or internet. However, Vital Statistics only releases certified copies of birth certificates. Having a certified copy may not be necessary in all cases, depending on your reason for looking up the birth records. It is also more expensive and you can only order certified copies if the person is in your immediate family.

If you need MA birth records to apply for a Passport or other government document, you should probably stick with Vital Statistics. These documents require that you have a “certified” copy. However, for any other use, you should instead use an online database of public records. You can look up anyone’s MA birth records (and you don’t have to be in their immediate family to do so). It’s also a lot cheaper and results are often instantaneous! This website, BirthDetails.com, is an example of one of these birth records databases. We store tons of MA birth records, death records, and marriage records, as well as records from the rest of the 50 states.

Massachusetts is also a great state to conduct genealogy research because public records date back hundreds of years, all the way to the 1600s. Many official and unofficial public records, including census records, have been kept in the various towns of MA since the Mayflower landed on Plymouth Rock. If your ancestors came from MA you will likely be in for some very interesting and exciting genealogy research.

Many genealogy databases are available online to help you in your attempts to compile a family tree. Online burial/cemetary records exist, as well as social security death indexes. Ancient census records, death records, birth records, and more will all help you gather accurate facts regarding your family. Prior to the late 1800s, most of these records were maintained by churches and occasionally hospitals. Luckily, most of these public records documents have survived throughout the centuries, and now you have the advantage of being able to look them up online with only a few clicks of the mouse.

BirthDetails.com is a great way to look up MA birth records for genealogy research or any other use. So start your search today!

Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Birth Records, Public Records, birth records | No Comments »

History of Birth Records & Certificates

Friday, February 5th, 2010

Ever wonder about the history of birth records & certificates?

Not long ago, I was wondering the same thing. After doing some research, I was intrigued to find that recording and archiving birth records is a practice that dates back thousands of years, particularly in Egypt, China, Greece, and Rome. Initially, birth records were used to calculate the amount of people they could recruit into the military. They also used birth records & certificates for tax purposes.

However, it wasn’t until 1853 that the United Kingdom made it mandatory to register certified birth records for each citizen. In the 1900s, the United States followed suit.

Prior to that time, birth records were generally written down by doctors, midwives, or priests. Documents were not certified or recorded by the government, and it was very common for documents to be lost or destroyed. Therefore, there was no “official record” of any citizens until they reached adulthood and started paying taxes or joined the military.

Now, hospital staff is required by law to submit birth records & certificates to the United States government. These documents are kept in large databases that store the records in type print or ledger. Throughout the years, this process has been improved and simplified. The invention of photocopying in the 1960’s made it easier to copy and transfer birth records. The invention of computers likewise made things incredibly easy, because documents could be stored as data, savings tons of space in office buildings and making it easier to manage and track the documents. However, to date most government agencies have not made the full transfer over to digital storage.

Probably the most prominent turn of events in the history of birth records & certificates is the invention of the internet. Not long after the internet went mainstream, websites started popping up offering access to all kinds of birth records and other public records. For the first time, visitors were able to look up the birth records of anyone in the country with only a few clicks of the mouse. Most of these websites involved paying a small fee, but some of them were, and still are, free.

What started out as a couple of websites soon multiplied into dozens. Now people may become overwhelmed with the choices they are presented with. Offering birth records & certificate websites online with state-of-the-art databases and search functions now allow people to retrieve the birth records they need in a very short period of time. No more waiting around for weeks just to see if Vital Records will ever get back to you (after sending them $30+). No more doing any actual physical work to get the records– no traveling to courthouses or government agencies.

It can all be done from the comfort of your own home, and by far the best place to conduct these searches is Birthdetails.com!

Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Birth Records, birth records | 2 Comments »

Birth And Death Records: Discovering My Grandparents

Monday, February 1st, 2010

This blog post was contributed by Stacey Hammond. She asked if she could share a personal story involving birth and death records and of course we had to oblige! Read her intriguing tale:

“Like many children, I grew up without a father. He stuck around until I was around three. That was when he left my mother and moved to another state across the country. He continued to send me birthday cards and occasional gifts and letters, but that was pretty much the only contact we had. By the time I was 12 or so, I stopped hearing from him altogether.

Of course this was a painful experience for me, but I had to stay strong and learn to take it one day at a time. I held out hope that one day I would reconnect with my father.

Years later, I found myself applying for a passport. I needed a copy of my birth certificate, and after some frustrating experiences with Vital Records, I tried going online to find it instead. I was very intrigued to learn how easy it was to look up birth and death records on the internet, as well as all kinds of other public records.

For a while I debated looking up public records on my father so I could find out exactly where he was staying and try to contact him. Later, I decided it might be a better idea to just leave him alone. I figured if he wanted to talk to me, he would seek me out. But my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to perform a little experiment!

I had never known my grandparents on my father’s side, so I thought I would use the information in public birth and death records to find out as much as I could about them! I started by looking up my father’s birth records. It was incredibly easy using BirthDetails.com. I found him almost immediately! I wrote down the names of his mother and father as they appeared on the birth certificate.

Then I performed a birth records search on each of them. I found out where and when they were born. I found out my grandmother was born in Florida and my grandfather in Indiana. Somehow, the two of them had met and moved to North Carolina, where my father was born. I looked up their names using a free address search but wasn’t able to find anything.

This led me to believe that perhaps they were deceased, so I decided to look up death records. Sadly, I found that both of them had passed away many years ago. But using the extensive information I found, I was able to find out the exact cemetery where they were buried.

A few weeks later, I took a small road-trip to the cemetery in North Carolina. I was able to view their graves. I talked to them a little bit, told them that I loved them, wished that I had gotten a chance to know them, and left flowers on their graves.

The whole experience was very fulfilling for me, and it wouldn’t have been possible without BirthDetails.com and easy access to birth and death records!

Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Family Members, Public Records, birth records | No Comments »

Public Florida Records: Easy To Find?

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

Public Florida records are remarkably easy to find if you know where to look. If you’re in desperate need of public records, whether they are birth records, death records, marriage and divorce records, or even criminal records, your search will likely pull up all of the details you could possibly need.

These records are available from a large number of sources. State and county government offices provide access to Florida records that the state has deemed publicly viewable. Most of these records are now available online, making it exceedingly easy to access. Depending on the exact information you’re looking for, your search may or may not yield immediate results.

Public Florida records are great to have on hand, as there are a variety of reasons for looking them up. Perhaps you want to investigate your new boyfriend or girlfriend, or perform a background check on a potential employee. Perhaps you are simply gathering information and facts to add to your family tree. The greatest part is that it is all public information, with some exceptions of course. In most cases, the government is required to provide this information to the public, so looking it up pretty much just boils down to performing a simple search, and perhaps paying a small fee. Generally, there will be no hoops to jump through (unless you’re trying to look up records that are sealed or private).

Records that you can NOT look up include juvenile records and social security numbers (for obvious reasons).

Depending on the public Florida records you need, you might have to consult several differing sources. For most records involving crime and lawsuits, you’ll have to check with the county’s court website. Therefore, if you don’t know the county of the person you are looking up, you might run into a few problems. Florida has sixty-seven counties, so you’ll be in for a long, time-consuming headache. However, there are websites such as BirthDetails.com that can help you perform these searches even if you’re not sure about the exact county.

If you want to look up birth or death records, you’ll have to consult the Florida Department of Health Vital Records office. Again, this process can turn into a headache if you don’t know what to expect. Generally, they won’t allow you to access the records of someone not in your immediate family. To bypass this rule, you simply have to use a website like BirthDetails.com to look up birth records instead. You’ll find that it’s much faster and very easy to navigate.

So if searching for public Florida records is your goal, why not get started today on BirthDetails.com?

Posted in About Birth Records, Criminal Records, Finding Birth Records, Public Records, birth records | No Comments »

President Obama’s Birth Certificate: Separating Fact From Fiction

Friday, January 15th, 2010

One of the biggest controversies surrounding our current presidency is Obama’s birth certificate. Many have asserted that Obama is not a natural born citizen of the United States and was likely born in Kenya or Indonesia. They claim that Obama has not been able to produce his original sealed birth certificate and that there is no proof of his citizenship. One of the requirements to being President of the United States is that you must have been born on American soil. Therefore, if he wasn’t born in the US, he may not even be eligible to hold office!

Unfortunately for conspiracy theorists, Obama’s birth certificate has in fact been produced. He released a certified copy of his Certification of Live Birth, which is Hawaii’s equivalent to a standard birth certificate. It was posted on Obama’s official website and proves that he was born in Hawaii in 1961. Skeptics state that this is not enough evidence and that a “long-form” birth certificate must be produced. However, Hawaii currently does not produce long-form birth certificates anymore, only the “short form” or Certificate of Live Birth documents are available.

Some people even believe that this Certification of Live Birth is a forgery created with Adobe Photoshop that lacks an official seal.  However, state authorities, the media, and fact-checking organizations have confirmed that the birth certificate is indeed original and does contain a seal. The director of communications for the Hawaii Department of Health stated, “I have seen the original vital records maintained on file by the Hawaii State Department of Health verifying Barack Hussein Obama was born in Hawaii and is a natural-born American citizen.”

One reason why the controversy continues is because skeptics want an official copy of Obama’s birth certificate to hold in their own hands, rather than simply viewing it on a website. However, according to Hawaii law, the only people allowed to look up and produce an official Vital Records birth certificate are family members and relatives of Barack Obama. Therefore, it’s against the law for these people to obtain an original copy.

Obama’s birth certificate is real, but conspiracy theorists will continue to criticize and try to find holes that they can exploit. Proper understanding of Vital Records and birth certificates will give people the knowledge to judge fact from fiction regarding this controversial matter.

Posted in About Birth Records, Public Records, birth records | 1 Comment »

How To Find A Birth Certificate Copy

Monday, January 11th, 2010

If you need a birth certificate copy, the internet is the best place to go. The online world contains huge databases stored with facts and documents. If you plan to search for public records information on the internet, it’s beneficial to first make sure you have a proper understanding of what public records are and how they can be used. Once you have become properly knowledgeable about the scope of public records searches, you’ll find it easier not only to search for the information you desire, but to properly utilize it.

Basically, while some records are considered personal and private (such as a Social Security number, insurance and medical records), most public records are categorized as freely available for the public to view. The Freedom of Information Act allows every citizen to access public records of their choosing, provided they are not classified or closed to the public in a court case. Thanks to the FOIA, birth records are generally considered part of the public domain, so finding a birth certificate copy shouldn’t be too hard.

To locate and order your birth certificate copy, one place you can go to is the Vital Records website. You will have to specify the state and county in which you were born. You will most likely have to print out a form, fill it out, and send it to the Vital Records office along with a fee. Processing time can take up to several weeks. In some cases, your information may not even be on record, but you will not be able to get your money (or your time) back.

A better option for tracking down a birth certificate copy is to simply use one of the many available birth records databases online such as BirthDetails.com. For much less than it costs to order from Vital Records, and for virtually no time investment at all, you can quickly pinpoint and access your birth certificate copy, which you can then use for any purpose.

Some people lose track of their birth certificates, but it is an extremely important document, and we should all keep a copy of it on hand. It serves as evidence of our identity and citizenship. It is a legal document that documents our parent’s names and our place of birth. You owe it to yourself to always keep a birth certificate copy close at hand, because you may never know when you might need it. You should encourage your family members and friends to keep a birth certificate copy as well, just in case.

Posted in About Birth Records, Finding Birth Records, Public Records, birth records | No Comments »

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