Vital records

Register of Deeds

Each Register of Deeds has birth and death records from 1913, marriage and land records from 1771.  The marriage records can be obtained by writing a letter to the Register, including a fee of 25 cents per page (as of 2/8/2021) and a location to mail the copies.  They’ll do a few enquiries, but not a huge amount.

Online Vital Records

Online access to recent vital records available at NC Vital Records.  Available are:

• Birth Certificates: 1913-Present
• Death Certificates: 1930-Present
• Marriage Certificates: 1962-Present
• Divorce Certificates: 1958-Present
• Fetal Death Reports: 2001-Present

The webpage for NC Vital Records also suggests these research paths: Finding Old Records For records dated earlier than those found in our office:

• Birth Certificates: For births before 1913, contact the Register of Deeds office in the county where the birth occurred. Do not contact North Carolina Vital Records.
• Death Certificates: For death certificates prior to 1930, contact the North Carolina State Archives . A few delayed death records may exist back to 1909.
• Marriage Certificates: NC Vital Records has copies of marriage records dating back to 1962. For records prior to 1962, contact the county Register of Deeds where the marriage license was issued.
• Divorce Certificates: NC Vital Records has copies of divorce records dating back to 1958. For records prior to 1958, contact the county Clerk of Court where the divorce was filed.

Genealogical Research: To conduct genealogical research, check the records in the county where the event occurred or check with the North Carolina State Archives. The North Carolina Vital Records office should not be your first choice for information because we must have specific information before the search can begin, and we charge a $24 fee for each three-year period searched, whether or not the record is found.

If you know the area where your ancestor lived, check the records in the Register of Deeds where the event occurred. Otherwise, check with the North Carolina State Archives or the Genealogy Section of the North Carolina State Library . Note: Records of adoptees are not available to the public. See adoptions for more information. If you do request a copy of a specific record from North Carolina Vital Records, follow the directions on the Order a Certificate page and include a $24 certified check or money order for each three-year period searched.

If proper information and fees are received, we will provide you with an uncertified copy of the record located unless your request form indicates that you are legally entitled to a certified copy. (NCGS 130A-93 specifies who may receive certified as opposed to uncertified copies of vital records.)

Abstracts of Vital Records

NCGS has "Abstracts of Vital Records From Raleigh, North Carolina Newspapers 1799-1839," compiled by Lois Smathers Neal. Available at NCGS web site, and I have downloaded this to 04-Books and sources.

Digital NC Family Record Collection

The Family Records Collection is comprised of North Carolina family history materials from the holdings of the State Archives of North Carolina and State Library of North Carolina. The searchable online collection currently contains:

• Nearly 1,500 Bible records (lists of birth, marriage, and death information written in North Carolina family Bibles) from the 2000+ copies of various donated family Bibles held by the State Archives of North Carolina.
• Indexed marriage and death announcements from five North Carolina newspapers (Raleigh Register, North Carolina State Gazette, Daily Sentinel, Raleigh Observer, and News & Observer) from 1799 to 1893.
• Photographs of headstones and general views of the Raleigh Hebrew Cemetery and the Hebrew section of Historic Oakwood Cemetery in Raleigh.
• Copies of genealogical research donated to the Government and Heritage Library.

Birth records

• FamilySearch North Carolina Birth Index 1800-2000 County index birth abstracts
• FamilySearch North Carolina, Center for Health Statistics, Vital Records Unit, County Birth Records, 1913-1923 Original Birth Certificate Images
• Ancestry North Carolina, Birth Indexes, 1800-2000 Images

Marriages

• FamilySearch North Carolina Marriages 1759-1979 Abstracted Marriage records
• FamilySearch North Carolina Marriages 1762-2011 Marriage Certificates & Registers images for many counties
• Ancestry North Carolina, Marriage Records, 1741-2011 Images

Death records

• FamilySearch North Carolina Deaths 1906-1930 Death certificate images
• FamilySearch North Carolina Deaths 1931-1994 Death certificate images
• Ancestry North Carolina, Death Certificates 1909-1976 Images

Marriage Bonds

Descriptions of marriage bonds are in the State Archives holdings. Navigate to the Archives search page and search for "marriage bonds." It helps a lot to know in which county the marriage occurred.

Cohabitation Records

The NC State Archives have a collection of Cohabitation Records that record and legitimize the marriages of formerly enslaved people.

Bastardy Bonds

Bastardy bonds are collected in a book downloadable from the Internet Archive and is searchable.

Newspaper obituaries

Beyond the usual Newspapers.com, GenealogyBank.com and other paid sites, look at this collection.