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Oregon Marriage, Death, Birth Records

The state of Oregon began recording births and deaths in 1903 and marriages in 1906. Divorces were recorded at the state level beginning in 1925. Vital records may be obtained by writing Oregon State Health Division, Vital Records Unit, P.O. Box 116, Portland, OR 97207-0116.

When ordering vital records from Oregon, the following information is required: name of record, name of spouse (death, marriage, divorce only), date of event, place of event, father's name, mother's first and maiden name, name of agency or person ordering record, your relationship to person on record, and your address and phone number. The cost for obtaining a record is $10.00 per copy.

Only immediate family members or legal representatives may order a birth record. Anyone with an interest may order a death, marriage, or divorce record. It takes about two weeks for a mail request to be returned after it has been received at the Health Division. It is possible to request a certificate in person and receive it the same day. According to Oregon State law, birth records (including indexes) have a 100 year access restriction. Therefore, birth indexes are not available to the public.

Some death, divorce, and marriage indexes have been microfilmed. They include: deaths from 1903-1989; divorces from 1946-1960 and 1966-1989; and marriages from 1906-1924, 1946-1960, and 1966-1989. A complete set is available at the Oregon State Archives and Oregon State Library. The Oregon Historical Society has a complete death index and the later divorce and marriage indexes. Other libraries throughout the state and the FHL in Salt Lake City have portions of the indexes.

The early death indexes are known to be incomplete, and other sources should be checked, such as the county clerk for the county where the death was recorded, the Oregon State Archives, newspaper indexes, and cemetery records.

The Oregon State Archives in Salem has vital records from 15 of the 36 counties. These include: Benton, Clackamas, Columbia, Douglas, Jackson, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Multnomah (and Portland), Polk, Tillamook, Umatilla, Wasco, Washington, and Yamhill. Pre-1903/06 vital records also exist for a few counties/cities at the state archives.

Below is a list of online resources for Oregon Vital Records.