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  • Records Requests
      • Connecticut
        • The Connecticut Genealogy IndexMore than 5.5 million genealogical records to search through...except for the ones the state still has locked up in an ancient FoxPro database they claim they can't use
          Records release mostly negotiated! But many still locked up in the state's archaic database system All received records online.
        • Close
      • Maryland
        • The Maryland Motherlode: Births, Marriages, Deaths, and NaturalizationsMore than five million records from the Maryland State Archives covering more than a century, both the basic text indices and full vital records certificates 🤩 most of them never publicly available online before
          Records released through successful Maryland Public Information Act request All received records online.
        • Close
      • Mississippi
        • The Mississippi State Death Index (1912-1943)One young genealogist's tenacity leads to thirty-one years of Mississippi state history finally going online
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • Missouri
        • Missouri Birth Index, 1920(ish)-2015They tried to charge us $1.5 million for a public records request. Then they decided to ignore the state Sunshine Law altogether.
          Litigation successful! Motion for Summary Judgment granted April 15, 2020
        • Missouri Death Index, 1968-2015They tried to charge us $1.5 million for a public records request. Then they decided to ignore the state Sunshine Law altogether.
          Litigation successful! Motion for Summary Judgment granted April 15, 2020
        • Close
      • Nationwide
        • Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death FileWhen a veteran dies, why was the index to their veterans benefits claims file locked up forever behind a $300/year commercial website's paywall?
          Litigation successful! All records online
        • Billions of Digital Images and Associated Text Metadata Created Through the United States National Archives and Records Administration’s Digitization Partnership ProgramWe want it all back.
          FOIA request filed with NARA on October 14, 2020
        • Social Security Applications and Claims IndexAlmost 100,000,000 public records have been available only through a $300/year paywalled commercial website. We're gonna change that.
          FOIA request filed with Social Security Administration on September 20, 2017
        • Close
      • Nebraska
        • The Nebraska Death Index (1904-1968)That time we successfully appealed to a state Attorney General while waiting to board an international flight
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • New Jersey
        • New Jersey Birth, Marriage, and Death Indices, 1901-1903 and 1901-1914We acquired and published the first public twentieth century vital records indices for New Jersey.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • New Jersey Death Index, 1904-2017Why should these records be available if you're onsite at the state archives, but not available on the Internet?
          Legal wrangling but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016We acquired and published the first-ever data set of everyone married in the Garden State
          Legal wrangling, but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • The New Jersey Geographic Birth Index and Delayed Birth Index, 1901-1929Homegrown in the Garden State
          Records release negotiated! No legal wrangling needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • New York City
        • All already-digitized New York City historical records and their associated text metadata. (Yes, all.)"Release The Kraken!"
          Litigation in progress! Case filed February 14, 2022.
        • Brooklyn (Kings County) “Old Town” RecordsWelcome to the single stupidest lawsuit we've ever had to file against a government agency
          Litigation in progress! Case filed October 15, 2018.
        • Geographic Index to New York City Births, late 19th to early 20th centuriesA new tool to find people born in New York City, especially if their birth records had spelling variants or poor handwriting
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York City domestic partnership records, 1993-2017?All people and all families deserve to have their genealogical records available to them.
          NY FOIL request in planning stage against NYC Clerk's Office
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1908-1929What do you do when a city archive won’t share its records with the public? Fight back. Read about our pilot project that started it all.
          Litigation successful! All records online.
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1930-1995Yes, you can fight city hall — and win! Of course, it helps if the city refuses to return your e-mails and calls until you take them to court.
          Litigation successful! All records online (minus Queens 1971-72 images)
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1996-2017Wait, you mean we’re gonna have to sue the same city agency again? Over the same records set? After they lost to us last time?
          Litigation successful! All records online
        • List of Registered Voters in New York City for 1924Historical voter data is often covered by Freedom of Information laws. We were the first to publish this often-overlooked resource online.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • New York City Birth Certificates, 1910-1917They're more than 100 years old, but NYC won't let us see them.
          NY FOIL request in planning stage against NYC DOH
        • New York City death certificates 1949-1968 and nullification of NYC DOH records access rulesRemember that time the NYC DOH ignored ~6,000 public comments unanimously in opposition to their terrible records access rules?
          Litigation in progress! Case filed April 17, 2019.
        • The FULL New York State Death Index, 1880-2017We beat the largest government agency in New York State in the highest court in New York to win the first-ever publication of this data
          Records ordered released through successful New York State FOIL request
        • Close
      • New York State
        • Index to Deaths in Albany, New York, 1880-1915Corruption's such an old song that we can sing along in harmony, And nowhere is it stronger than in Albany
          NY FOIL request filed with Albany City Clerk's Office on September 6, 2017
        • Index to Deaths in Buffalo, New York, 1852-1944These records were sitting on a hard drive in a city government's Inactive Records Center, not online for public use. We fixed that.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to Deaths in Yonkers, New York, c. 1870-1915"Out there, there's a world outside of Yonkers..."
          FOIL Appeal (constructive denial) sent March 13, 2019
        • Index to New York State Births (Outside of New York City), 1881-1942Finally, New York researchers can ditch the microfiche sheets and join the twenty-first century.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York State Deaths (Outside of New York City), 1880-1956It took us seventeen months of fighting with the government just to get a list of the names of dead people.
          Legal wrangling but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York State Marriages (Outside of New York City), 1881-2017NYS DOH gave us only half of the files we'd requested, and initially they didn't even explain why. So we sued them -- and won!
          Litigation successful! Case filed August 24, 2018, judgment rendered March 13, 2019. CASE ON APPEAL BY THE STATE as of May 1, 2019.
        • The FULL New York State Death Index, 1880-2017We beat the largest government agency in New York State in the highest court in New York to win the first-ever publication of this data
          Records ordered released through successful New York State FOIL request
        • Close
      • Washington
        • Washington State Marriage, Divorce, and Death Indices, c. 1907-2017The legislature now wants to lock away indices that have always been public. Nuh-uh.
          Washington PRA request filed with Dept. of Health, Secretary of State, and State Archives on January 30, 2019.
        • Close
      • Wyoming
        • Wyoming Marriage, Death, and Divorce Indices, 1900-1965Frozen in a snowbank outside of Laramie? We got your record. Thrown off your wagon team in Cheyenne? We got your record too.
          Coming soon...
        • Close
    • Close
Public data for public use
Skip NavigationMenu
  • About
    • Our Board of Directors
    • Our Activism
    • Presentations, Slides, Videos, and Webinars
    • Press
    • Close
  • Our “To-Do” List
  • Records Survey
  • Records Requests
      • Connecticut
        • The Connecticut Genealogy IndexMore than 5.5 million genealogical records to search through...except for the ones the state still has locked up in an ancient FoxPro database they claim they can't use
          Records release mostly negotiated! But many still locked up in the state's archaic database system All received records online.
        • Close
      • Maryland
        • The Maryland Motherlode: Births, Marriages, Deaths, and NaturalizationsMore than five million records from the Maryland State Archives covering more than a century, both the basic text indices and full vital records certificates 🤩 most of them never publicly available online before
          Records released through successful Maryland Public Information Act request All received records online.
        • Close
      • Mississippi
        • The Mississippi State Death Index (1912-1943)One young genealogist's tenacity leads to thirty-one years of Mississippi state history finally going online
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • Missouri
        • Missouri Birth Index, 1920(ish)-2015They tried to charge us $1.5 million for a public records request. Then they decided to ignore the state Sunshine Law altogether.
          Litigation successful! Motion for Summary Judgment granted April 15, 2020
        • Missouri Death Index, 1968-2015They tried to charge us $1.5 million for a public records request. Then they decided to ignore the state Sunshine Law altogether.
          Litigation successful! Motion for Summary Judgment granted April 15, 2020
        • Close
      • Nationwide
        • Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death FileWhen a veteran dies, why was the index to their veterans benefits claims file locked up forever behind a $300/year commercial website's paywall?
          Litigation successful! All records online
        • Billions of Digital Images and Associated Text Metadata Created Through the United States National Archives and Records Administration’s Digitization Partnership ProgramWe want it all back.
          FOIA request filed with NARA on October 14, 2020
        • Social Security Applications and Claims IndexAlmost 100,000,000 public records have been available only through a $300/year paywalled commercial website. We're gonna change that.
          FOIA request filed with Social Security Administration on September 20, 2017
        • Close
      • Nebraska
        • The Nebraska Death Index (1904-1968)That time we successfully appealed to a state Attorney General while waiting to board an international flight
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • New Jersey
        • New Jersey Birth, Marriage, and Death Indices, 1901-1903 and 1901-1914We acquired and published the first public twentieth century vital records indices for New Jersey.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • New Jersey Death Index, 1904-2017Why should these records be available if you're onsite at the state archives, but not available on the Internet?
          Legal wrangling but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016We acquired and published the first-ever data set of everyone married in the Garden State
          Legal wrangling, but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • The New Jersey Geographic Birth Index and Delayed Birth Index, 1901-1929Homegrown in the Garden State
          Records release negotiated! No legal wrangling needed! All records online.
        • Close
      • New York City
        • All already-digitized New York City historical records and their associated text metadata. (Yes, all.)"Release The Kraken!"
          Litigation in progress! Case filed February 14, 2022.
        • Brooklyn (Kings County) “Old Town” RecordsWelcome to the single stupidest lawsuit we've ever had to file against a government agency
          Litigation in progress! Case filed October 15, 2018.
        • Geographic Index to New York City Births, late 19th to early 20th centuriesA new tool to find people born in New York City, especially if their birth records had spelling variants or poor handwriting
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York City domestic partnership records, 1993-2017?All people and all families deserve to have their genealogical records available to them.
          NY FOIL request in planning stage against NYC Clerk's Office
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1908-1929What do you do when a city archive won’t share its records with the public? Fight back. Read about our pilot project that started it all.
          Litigation successful! All records online.
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1930-1995Yes, you can fight city hall — and win! Of course, it helps if the city refuses to return your e-mails and calls until you take them to court.
          Litigation successful! All records online (minus Queens 1971-72 images)
        • Index to New York City Marriage Licenses, 1996-2017Wait, you mean we’re gonna have to sue the same city agency again? Over the same records set? After they lost to us last time?
          Litigation successful! All records online
        • List of Registered Voters in New York City for 1924Historical voter data is often covered by Freedom of Information laws. We were the first to publish this often-overlooked resource online.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • New York City Birth Certificates, 1910-1917They're more than 100 years old, but NYC won't let us see them.
          NY FOIL request in planning stage against NYC DOH
        • New York City death certificates 1949-1968 and nullification of NYC DOH records access rulesRemember that time the NYC DOH ignored ~6,000 public comments unanimously in opposition to their terrible records access rules?
          Litigation in progress! Case filed April 17, 2019.
        • The FULL New York State Death Index, 1880-2017We beat the largest government agency in New York State in the highest court in New York to win the first-ever publication of this data
          Records ordered released through successful New York State FOIL request
        • Close
      • New York State
        • Index to Deaths in Albany, New York, 1880-1915Corruption's such an old song that we can sing along in harmony, And nowhere is it stronger than in Albany
          NY FOIL request filed with Albany City Clerk's Office on September 6, 2017
        • Index to Deaths in Buffalo, New York, 1852-1944These records were sitting on a hard drive in a city government's Inactive Records Center, not online for public use. We fixed that.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to Deaths in Yonkers, New York, c. 1870-1915"Out there, there's a world outside of Yonkers..."
          FOIL Appeal (constructive denial) sent March 13, 2019
        • Index to New York State Births (Outside of New York City), 1881-1942Finally, New York researchers can ditch the microfiche sheets and join the twenty-first century.
          No litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York State Deaths (Outside of New York City), 1880-1956It took us seventeen months of fighting with the government just to get a list of the names of dead people.
          Legal wrangling but no litigation needed! All records online.
        • Index to New York State Marriages (Outside of New York City), 1881-2017NYS DOH gave us only half of the files we'd requested, and initially they didn't even explain why. So we sued them -- and won!
          Litigation successful! Case filed August 24, 2018, judgment rendered March 13, 2019. CASE ON APPEAL BY THE STATE as of May 1, 2019.
        • The FULL New York State Death Index, 1880-2017We beat the largest government agency in New York State in the highest court in New York to win the first-ever publication of this data
          Records ordered released through successful New York State FOIL request
        • Close
      • Washington
        • Washington State Marriage, Divorce, and Death Indices, c. 1907-2017The legislature now wants to lock away indices that have always been public. Nuh-uh.
          Washington PRA request filed with Dept. of Health, Secretary of State, and State Archives on January 30, 2019.
        • Close
      • Wyoming
        • Wyoming Marriage, Death, and Divorce Indices, 1900-1965Frozen in a snowbank outside of Laramie? We got your record. Thrown off your wagon team in Cheyenne? We got your record too.
          Coming soon...
        • Close
    • Close

Civil Union Records

The Connecticut Genealogy Index

The Connecticut Genealogy Index

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@ReclaimTheRecs on Twitter
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

YOU GUYS! IT'S FINALLY ONLINE!

IT'S TOTALLY FREE!

IT'S THE NEW YORK STATE DEATH INDEX, 1880-2017!

Twitter 1996079903666790873
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

For 'Giving Tuesday' we're giving YOU GUYS a gift:
IT'S THE NEW YORK STATE DEATH INDEX, 1880-2017!

Ten and a half million records, now finally free and online and very very searchable!
-

Twitter 1996079376841011239
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

For Giving Tuesday *YOU* got a gift: THE NEW YORK STATE DEATH INDEX, 1880-2017 - FREE! -

Twitter 1996079372629880951
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

What's a #FOIA Appeal? What's some good language to use when you want to argue with the government about why they should be giving you the file you asked for, instead of some "genealogy letter"?

We got you. Check out our advice in our latest newsletter:

Twitter 1980474054747516985
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

✊ Always Appeal! ✊
Did the VA refuse to send you a full copy of a C-File (claims file) that you requested under #FOIA for a deceased veteran? Well, we now have some attorney-approved sample texts you can use to fight back!

Check out for the latest!

Twitter 1980472989151015396
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

Always Appeal! Here's what to do if the VA won't give you a C-File from BIRLS -

Twitter 1980472172196790632
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

We just published 1.5 million NEW BIRLS records for 2020-2023, ALL FREE -- but now the VA doesn't want you to see any of them! -

Twitter 1962300419536822674
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

First we fight and win a four year public records lawsuit, but *then* we really get to work making the data free and usable...

*cracks knuckles, goes back to coding*

Twitter 1960148378605482159
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

We just got notice that a Freedom of Information request we made for a certain state's vital records index in August 2020, heard as a contested case in August 2021, was finally decided in our favor...

That's nearly five years. FIVE YEARS! 😤

But we won. New data coming soon. 😊

Twitter 1950670066032521582
reclaimtherecs Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecs ·

RT @heritage_irish: Missed our Irish genealogy news round-up last month? The 1926 census will go online 18 Apr 2026. New records have been…

Twitter 1936163265329217984
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Reclaim The Records is an IRS-recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Our EIN is 81-4985446. Contact us at [email protected]

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