User:Laurenwake/SandboxOhio1

It is possible to find birth information in alternate sources. While the information in the following sources are not always as accurate as a birth certificate would be, they may provide the birthdate or birthplace of your ancestor.

Records that Give Birth Information
PUT IN ORDER OF RELEVANCE

Death Records may include the deceased individual's birthday. Other times the age at death is given, allowing researches to calculate an approximate birthdate by subtracting the age from the death date.

When searching death records:

Cemetery Records cover both tombstone inscriptions and the records created when a deceased individual was interred in a cemetery. Such records frequently include the individual's birth year.

Census Records No state sponsored censuses were taken for Ohio. Federal census records from 1800 and 1810 for the state of Ohio have been lost, excluding Washington county. The 1820 census was also lost, except for Franklin & Wood counties. Census records from 1830 onwards provide the ages of the recorded individuals, allowing researchers to calculate birth years.

Church Records include baptism records, which sometimes tell the day the individual was born. They also include death and burial records, which sometimes give the individual's age at death, which allows researchers to calculate approximate birth years. In order to access these records, researchers need to know the church their ancestor attended.

Newspapers contain obituaries. Before the 21st century, obituaries were almost exclusively restricted to leading members of a community or for individuals who died in an unusual manner. While the majority of the population did not have obituaries created at their death, such records often give the individual's age at death, and sometimes include birth information.

Military Records may provide the age and/or birthdate of the individuals who served in military positions.

Next Steps

 * Compare any new information in the record with what was known before to be sure details are consistent.
 * Search for a marriage or death record for the individual you are researching.