How to Find New York Birth Records

Finding United States Births New York Births 

Looking for a birth record from New York State as part of your genealogy research? New York State briefly kept birth records from 1847 to about 1850 and started recording births again in 1881. Copies of all records can obtained from either the village, town, or city of birth or by contacting the state archives.

New York City keeps birth records separately from New York State. Go to How to Find New York City Birth records to learn more.

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Next Step: When did the birth occur?

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 * Choose a time period :
 * Before 1847
 * 1847 to 1853
 * 1850 to 1880
 * 1881 to 1914
 * 1915 to 1936
 * After 1936
 * I don't know when the birth is


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Births Before 1847
Before 1847, no births were recorded by the state. You must search substitute records to locate your ancestor’s birth date and place. Substitutes for birth record information:

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Births Between 1847 and 1853
In 1847, New York State passed a law requiring that doctors and midwives report births, marriages, and deaths to the trustees of local school districts. The school districts were required to compile and submit a copy of these records to the village, town or city clerk. Compiled records were then submitted to the county clerk who compiled and submitted records to the Secretary of State and the Secretary of State reported to the State Legislature. Due to the number of school districts (10,000 at the time) and the complexity of the law, few communities reported births after 1850 (with some communities only reporting births for the 1847-1848 year). All records for this time period are held by the local village, town, or city clerk. If you cannot locate your ancestor in the databases below, try searching for birth information in other records.

For births that exist during the time period, records are available from the village, town, or city clerk. Some records are also available on microfilm at the Family History Library.

Births Between 1850 and 1880
After the failure of the 1847 law, no births were recorded in New York between 1850 and 1880 Except for the towns of Albany, Buffalo, and Yonkers which started recording births in the 1870s. Substitutes for birth record information:

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Albany, Buffalo and Yonkers all started keeping births in the 1870s. [How to Find New York Birth Records#Births Between 1881 and 1914|Learn how to access these records].

Births Between 1881 and 1914
New York passed a law in 1880 that went into affect in 1881 requiring village, town, and city clerks to record births. Though most communities filed copies of births with the New York State Department of Health, Births recorded in Albany, Buffalo, and Yonkers were not recorded with State between 1881 and 1914 and can only be obtained from the local vital records registrar.

Births Between 1915 and 1936
Births recorded between 1915 and 1936 are recorded by the village, town, or city clerk where the birth occurred. Copies can also be obtained from the New York State Department of Health.

Births After 1936
Records for Births after 1936 (or less than 75 years ago) are limited by New York State law and can only obtained by