Maryland Genealogy Search

Maryland family history is served by one of the best state archives in the country. The Maryland State Archives in Annapolis holds the colonial and state records from 1634, the county land, probate and court records of all 23 counties and Baltimore City, the church registers of the established Anglican parishes, and the vital records that have become public, and its online catalog and digitized series are extensive. Statewide vital registration began in 1898, with Baltimore City keeping records from 1875.

Maryland was a proprietary colony with land granted by the Calverts, so land patents and rent rolls from the 1600s name early families, and the parish registers record baptisms, marriages and burials before civil registration.

Official sources on this page were checked on September 25, 2026.

Maryland statewide genealogy links

• Archives of Maryland OnlineFind Government Archives
• Maryland Vital Records ArchivesHow to Obtain Maryland Vital Records
• Maryland State Archives and Libraries SearchMaryland Archives and Libraries Search
• Maryland State Archives Guide to Government RecordsState Archives Family History Research
• Maryland Historical Society Digital ResourcesGenealogy Records from the Historical Society
• Maryland Public Library Information NetworkMaryland Library Genealogical Resources
• USGenWeb Archives MarylandSearch Maryland GenWeb Archives
• National Archives Mid Atlantic Region for MarylandMaryland Genealogy Research at the National Archives

Maryland began statewide birth and death registration in 1898, with Baltimore City keeping births and deaths from 1875, and the Maryland Department of Health's Division of Vital Records in Baltimore holds recent certificates while the State Archives holds birth records over 100 years old and death records over 10 years old, with indexes and copies available. Marriage licenses were issued by the clerk of the circuit court of each county from the 1770s and earlier, and the State Archives holds them on microfilm with indexes. Divorce records sit with the circuit court clerk.

• Maryland State ArchivesPublic birth and death records, marriage licenses, county and colonial records, checked September 25, 2026
• Maryland Division of Vital RecordsRecent birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates, checked September 25, 2026
• Maryland Vital Records guideHow to order certificates and what is public

The State Archives holds land patents and rent rolls from 1634, the Anglican parish registers, Revolutionary War and War of 1812 muster rolls, Civil War records for both Union and Confederate Marylanders, Maryland Penitentiary registers, the Maryland State Colonization Society records, and the county records of every jurisdiction, with a free online catalog, digitized series and the Archives of Maryland Online. Maryland took no state censuses after the colonial period, so the federal censuses from 1790 and the tax assessments carry the family. The Maryland Center for History and Culture in Baltimore holds manuscripts and family papers, and the National Archives at Philadelphia holds Maryland's federal court and naturalization records.

• Archives of Maryland OnlineFree digitized colonial and state records and indexes, checked September 25, 2026
• Maryland Center for History and CultureManuscripts, family papers and genealogy collections, checked September 25, 2026
• National Archives at PhiladelphiaFederal court and naturalization records for Maryland, checked September 25, 2026
• FamilySearch Maryland research guideFree indexed Maryland records and images, checked September 25, 2026

Maryland's clerks of the circuit court are the county recorders and hold deeds and mortgages from each county's founding, with the statewide MDLandRec site providing free online images of every county's land records back to the 1600s. The registers of wills hold probate records, and the orphans' courts handled guardianships. The State Archives holds the older books of all these offices, and Baltimore City, independent of any county since 1851, keeps its own set. Courthouse fires destroyed early records in Calvert, Charles and Prince George's counties, so the land patents and parish registers are the substitutes.

• MDLandRecFree online images of Maryland land records for every county, checked September 25, 2026
• Maryland County Public RecordsCircuit court clerks and registers of wills for all 23 counties and Baltimore City
• Maryland Court RecordsMaryland Judiciary Case Search for circuit courts

These federal and national sources complement Maryland's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Maryland state records are incomplete or out-of-state activity matters.

NARA, National Archives The federal government's primary archive. Holds the U.S. census (1790, 1950), ship passenger lists, naturalization records, military service files, and land entry files.

FamilySearch Free online genealogy platform operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Digitized microfilm copies of many county and state records worldwide.

Library of Congress, Local History & Genealogy The LoC's research guides, city directories, newspapers, and Civil War records, most accessible free online through loc.gov.