South Carolina Vital Records

United States   South Carolina    Vital Records

Introduction to Vital Records
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. United States Vital Records has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the South Carolina Vital Records State Department of Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

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Vital Records Reference Dates
South Carolina's civil records start the following years:


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South Carolina Birth, Marriage and Death Records Online
The following is a list of online resources useful for locating South Carolina Vital Records which consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths. Check South Carolina Vital Records Online for more information about the resources listed below. Most online resources for South Carolina Vital Records are indexes. After locating a person in an index always consult the original record to confirm the information in the index.  


 * South Carolina Links from fhlfavorites.info - Free
 * South Carolina Databases listed on Rootsweb.com- Free
 * USGenWeb.org South Carolina Site - Free
 * Search for South Carolina Collections on FamilySearch Record Search under Canada, USA, and Mexico - Free
 * The Vital Records Search and Information Directory for South Carolina - Free/$
 * Wee Monster Links for South Carolina Birth &amp; Marriage and Death Records - Free/$
 * Linkpendium Links for South Carolina Genealogy and History, including individual Counties - Free/$
 * South Carolina Marriages 1776-1782
 * Progenealogists Links for the United States. Press Ctrl + F to search for South Carolina or SC - Free/$
 * Search the South Carolina Birth, Marriage &amp; Death Records at Ancestry.com - $
 * Order South Carolina Certificates online - $

If you are aware of other online databases, please feel free to add them.

Birth and Death Records
Statewide registration of vital statistics began in January 1915. For information write to:

Office of Vital Records and Public Health Statistics 2600 Bull Street Columbia, SC 29201 Telephone: 803-734-4830 Fax: 803-799-0301 Internet: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

The current fees for obtaining copies of the state's records are listed in Where to Write for Vital Records: Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Divorces. Copies of this booklet are at the Family History Library and the Family History Centers. You can also write to the Office of Vital Records and Public Health Statistics (address above) for current information.

Copies of the state records are also available at the courthouse of each county starting in 1915. You can write to the county clerk for information. The Family History Library has not acquired these state records. The county clerks also have post-1915 delayed registrations of birth.

Earlier records were kept by some of the larger cities and are available from the appropriate county health department, except for a few major cities where the records are at the city health department. The Family History Library has microfilm copies of birth records, 1877 to 1901, and death records, 1821 to 1886, from the Board of Health for the City of Charleston.

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Death Records
South Carolina Death Records, 1821-1955 are available online through Ancestry.com (subscription service). The records are indexed and provide access to available death certificate images (after 1915).

Marriage Records
Statewide registration of marriages began in July 1950. These records are located at the Office of Vital Records and Public Health Statistics (address above).

Before the statewide registration of marriages, the ordinary of the province could issue a marriage license, or banns could be published in the parish church. There are some marriage settlement records at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History from the 1760s to the 1880s. Marriage information was sometimes recorded in the records of the probate court in the early 1800s.


 * Clemens, William M. North and South Carolina Marriage Records: From the Earliest Colonial Days to the Civil War. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1927. Digital version at World Vital Records ($). 1981 reprint: ; 1987 reprint:

Marriage settlements were legal agreements, primarily made by women who had been married previously. The Family History Library has some of these records, 1785 to 1889, from the Department of Archives and History.

Numerous South Carolina marriages have been abstracted from newspapers (see the “Newspapers” page). Of special note:


 * Holcomb, Brent H. South Carolina Marriages, Two Volumes. This covers 1688 to 1820.
 * Salley, A.S. Marriage Notices in the South Carolina Gazette and Its Successors, 1732 - 1801. Albany, N.Y.: A.S. Salley, 1902. Digital version at World Vital Records ($).

County marriage license records begin about 1900 to 1910 and are in the custody of the probate judge. The Family History Library has some county marriage records on film and in published form. Charleston marriage records are available only from 1877 to 1887.

Divorce Records
Divorce proceedings are kept by the county court. Divorce was illegal in South Carolina until 1949, and there are restrictions on the availability of the records. Write to the individual counties for information.

Tips

 * Information listed on vital records is given by and informant. Learn the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) of the record.  The closer the relationship of the informant to the subject(s) and whether or not the informant was present at the time of the event can help determine the accuracy of the information found on the record.
 * If you are unable to locate vital records recorded by governments, search for church records of christening, marriage, death or burial. A family Bible may have been used to record births, marriages and deaths.
 * Records for African American may be recorded in separate files with separate indexes.
 * Privacy laws may restrict your access to some vital records. Copies of some vital records recorded in the last 100 years may be unavailable to anyone except a direct relative.
 * Search for Vital Records in the Family History Library Catalog by using a Place Search and then choosing Vital Records. Search for South Carolina to locate records filed by the States and then search the name of the county to locate records kept by the  county,

Lost and Missing Records
Abbebille 1873, Beaufort 1865, Chesterfield 1865, Clarendon 1911, Colleton 1805, 1865, Darlington 1806, Georgetown 1865, Lancaster 1865, Lexington 1939, 1865,Oranageburg 1865, Richland 1865, Sumpter 1801,

Substitute Records
South Carolina Church Records Depending on the denomination, church records may contain information about birth, marriage and death.

South Carolina Cemetery Records Cemetery records are a rich source of birth and death information. These records may also reveal family relationships.

South Carolina Census Census records are a valuable source for birth and marriage information. You may also determine approximate time of death when the individual disappear from the census. This is a good place to begin a search.

South Carolina Military Records Military pension records can give birth, marriage and death information, In addtion, soldiers' homes records can included this same information.

South Carolina Periodicals Local genealogical and historical societies often publish periodicals which may contain abstracted early birth, marriage and death information.

South Carolina Newspapers Besides obituaries, local newspapers may contain birth and marriage announcements and death notices. Also check newspaper social columns for additional information.


 * Probate Records: If no death record exists, probate records may be helpful in estimating when an individual has died. Probate records in the 20th Century often contain the exact death date.


 * History: Local histories, family histories and biographies can all be sources of birth, marriage and death information. Often this information is found in county-level records or in surname searches of the Family History Library catalog.

More Online South Carolina Vital Records Links
  Obituary Index     This database contains obituary and death notice information from the Columbia, SC newspapers:

1. The State (1892-1928, 1940,1950-1955,1958-1979)

2. The Palmetto Leader (1925-1928, 1930, January-April 1931); Columbia's foremost African-American paper

The Palmetto Leader contains information about African-Americans from many different counties in

South Carolina. Many articles also mention individuals who migrated to different parts of the country.

3. Obituary Index to The State for World War II servicemen killed in action (1941-1949)


 * Obituary Index