Massachusetts, county records
Find the right office in Essex County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.
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Every card below goes to the government office responsible for that record. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.
Court records
Essex County Birth, Death and Marriage Certificates, the office that issues these certificates, with the application, identification and fee rules it publishes.
Open official site Essex County Birth, Death and Marriage CertificatesProperty records
Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds, the office that records deeds, mortgages and land documents, with its index and copy rules as published.
Open official site Southern Essex District Registry of DeedsPolice & jail
The Peabody Police Department explains NEMLEC, the regional council whose member departments in Essex County staff its Computer Crime Unit, SWAT and dive teams.
Open official site North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement CouncilVital records
Massachusetts Archives, 220 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, holds state copies of birth, marriage and death records from 1841 to 1935, issues certified copies and answers research requests by email.
Open official site Massachusetts Archives, Vital Records 1841 to 1935City records
Merrimack Valley Lawrence Municipal Airport, with the clerk records, meeting minutes and permit information the local government publishes.
Open official site Merrimack Valley Lawrence Municipal AirportState records
Essex County District Attorney's Office: Criminal investigations, prosecution and victims witnesses assistance.
Open official site Essex County District Attorney's OfficeFederal
United States Census Bureau figures for Essex County, Massachusetts, with population, housing, income and business counts from the latest estimates.
Open official site Essex County U.S. CensusCourt records
Essex Superior Civil and Criminal Courts, with the court location, contacts and the case records this office keeps.
Open official site Essex Superior Civil and Criminal CourtsProperty records
Merrimack Valley Planning Commission: Commercial land use zoning, permitting and development information.
Open official site Merrimack Valley Planning CommissionPolice & jail
Essex County Sheriff's Office, the elected county law enforcement office, with incident reports, warrants and jail information as the office publishes them.
Open official site Essex County Sheriff's OfficeCity records
Greater Essex Public School District, with the district, school and program information it publishes.
Open official site Greater Essex Public School DistrictState records
Essex County Licenses: Division of professional licensure, on the official site of the office that keeps it.
Open official site Essex County LicensesEverything else, organized
8 more Essex County sources not listed above.
Local record guide
County profile
Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Essex County Sheriff's Department is responsible for law enforcement in the unincorporated areas of Essex County and operates Essex County Correctional Facility.
Police Departments. Essex County is served by multiple law enforcement agencies, including Essex County Sheriff's Department and municipal police departments such as the Salem Police Department, Lynn Police Department, and Lawrence Police Department. Each city department is responsible for maintaining law and order within its jurisdiction, handling local crime, and working closely with the Sheriff's Department on county-wide issues.
Law Enforcement & Arrests. Essex County Sheriff's Department, headquartered at 20 Manning Avenue in Middleton, Massachusetts, operates under Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger and maintains jurisdiction over county correctional facilities and civil process service. The main detention facility is the Middleton House of Correction (978-750-1900), and inmates can be located through the Sheriff's Department website at www.essexsheriffma.org using the online inmate locator system. Essex County contains numerous municipal police departments serving its 34 cities and towns, including the Salem Police Department, Lawrence Police Department, Lynn Police Department, Haverhill Police Department, Gloucester Police Department, Beverly Police Department, Peabody Police Department, Methuen Police Department, and Newburyport Police Department, among others.
Criminal Records. These records are maintained by Essex County Superior Court and local police departments.
Arrest Records. Arrest records in Essex County are maintained by Essex County Sheriff's Department and the various municipal police departments within Essex County.
Jail & Inmate Records. Visitation rules are specific to the facility and require prior approval, with schedules available on the Sheriff's Department website.
Mugshots & Booking Photos. While the Sheriff's Department may provide an online portal for searching mugshots, availability can vary.
381 Common Street, Lawrence, MA 01840 • Phone: (978-683-2745 Essex County is served by multiple divisions of the Massachusetts Trial Court system. Essex County Superior Court has locations at the Salem Courthouse at 56 Federal Street, Salem (978-744-1135) and the Lawrence Courthouse at 2 Appleton Street, Lawrence (978-687-1116), handling felony criminal cases, major civil matters over $50,000, and appeals from lower courts. Property and land records for Essex County are maintained by two Registry of Deeds offices due to Essex County's division into Northern and Southern districts. The Southern Essex Registry of Deeds, located at 45 Congress Street, Salem, MA 01970 (978-741-0201), serves 23 communities including Salem, Lynn, Marblehead, Swampscott, Nahant, Peabody, Beverly, Danvers, Middleton, Topsfield, Wenham, Manchester-by-the-Sea. The Essex Probate and Family Court, located at 36 Federal Street in Salem (978-744-1020) and 45 Congress Street in Lawrence (978-687-1116), handles estates, wills, guardianships, conservatorships, adoptions, divorces, and family matters.
Abandoned mine records
Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.
From the old mine records
The mine records hold 65 named mine sites inside the county, 44 of them worked out or abandoned; the old survey maps add 206 holes drawn inside the county, 0 of them shafts or tunnels. The minerals the records name are construction sand and gravel; Granite; crushed stone.
A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area. No abandoned mine inventory is published; the survey's host does not answer this box, both urls are in the search index.
Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.
Straight answers
Open only the answer you need.
Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Essex County Sheriff or a city police department in Essex County. Ask that agency for its record.
The Massachusetts criminal history record comes from the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services (DCJIS). A personal CORI request online through iCORI with a MyMassGov account, or on a paper CORI request form by mail for people who cannot use iCORI. Fee: $25 per personal CORI request ($0 with an indigent fee waiver).
Search the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB), or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Register with the local election office (town clerk, election commission or Board of Registrars) or through the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Elections Division. You can also register online with the state online registration. The deadline to register, update your registration or change your party is 10 days before any election or town meeting; there is no Election Day registration now, and Question 4 on the 2026 state ballot asks voters whether to add it.
Deeds and other recorded land documents in Essex County are kept by the Registry of Deeds for the district. Property values are set by the city or town Board of Assessors, and tax bills come from the city or town collector. Source: official state page.
Certified birth and death certificates for Massachusetts come from the Registry of Vital Records and Statistics (RVRS), Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Certificates can also be requested from the city or town clerk's office where the birth, marriage or death took place. Online or by phone through VitalChek, by mail with the mail order form and a check or money order payable to Commonwealth of Massachusetts to Registry of Vital Records and Statistics, 150 Mt. Vernon St., 1st Floor, Dorchester, MA 02125, or in person at the Registry counter. Fee: $20.00 per copy in person; $32.00 per copy by standard mail; $54.00 first copy online or by phone through VitalChek.
Business entity filings are searched with the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Corporations Division. You file a business certificate (DBA) in the city or town where your business is located, and you check with the licensing boards in your city or town to see if your business needs a license.
Same county
Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.