New York Genealogy Research Guide

The best free and official places to find New York ancestors, from state archives and vital records to newspapers and land records.

Statehood
1788
State vital records from
1880
Land system
State-land

Start with these

Key record dates

Statewide birth & death registration
1880
State-level marriage records
1880

Compliance was poor until about 1913. New York City kept its own records and is not part of the state index.

Births and deaths: the year New York began requiring them to be registered with the state. Compliance often took years, and earlier records may be in county, town or church records.

Marriages: the year marriages began to be recorded or indexed at the state level, or in a few states, the year a state law began requiring county marriage licenses. Either way, the original marriage records are usually kept by the county (or town) that issued the license, and most begin well before this date. Start your search there.

Dates are from Family Tree Magazine's vital records chart, with corrections. Laws, compliance and the years a particular office holds can differ, so confirm with the state vital records office. See Finding Ancestors Before Statewide Vital Records.

New York highlights

Newspapers

Land records

New York is a state-land state. The first land grants came from the colony or state, not the federal government, so start with the state archives or land office. Later sales are in county deed books.

New to land records? Read Land Records: The Paper Trail of Property.

Link directories

Research tip

Most pre-1900 records were kept at the county level. Before searching, confirm which county your ancestor's home was in at the time; boundaries changed often. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows every change.