Minnesota Genealogy Search

Minnesota family history has a rare tool: the Minnesota Historical Society's free People Finder, which indexes the statewide birth records from 1900 to 1934 and death records from 1904 to 2001, plus the state censuses taken in 1857, 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895 and 1905, all searchable by name online. Minnesota began statewide vital registration in 1900, with counties keeping records from 1870, and its counties, formed from 1849 onward, kept marriage, deed and probate books from the start.

The Historical Society's library in St. Paul holds the state's records, newspapers and church registers, including the Lutheran and Catholic parish books of the Scandinavian and German settlements.

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

Minnesota statewide genealogy links

• State Archives at the Minnesota Historical SocietySearch the Archives for Family History Records
• Minnesota People Finder Records SearchSearch for Minnesota Birth and Death Records
• Minnesota State Archives and Libraries SearchMinnesota Archives and Libraries Search
• Minnesota Historical Society Immigration RecordsTrace Immigration Minnesota Records
• University of Minnesota ArchivesSearch University Archives
• Minnesota State University Archives Obituary IndexObituary Index of Newspaper Death Notices
• Minnesota Historical Society Records for Military and VeteransMinnesota Military Records

Minnesota began statewide birth and death registration in 1900, with counties keeping records from 1870, and the Minnesota Department of Health's Office of Vital Records holds the certificates, with county recorders holding the county registers. Minnesota's People Finder indexes births from 1900 to 1934 and deaths from 1904 to 2001 free, and the Historical Society provides copies of death certificates. Birth records are restricted for 100 years unless the person is deceased. Marriage records are held by the county recorder from each county's founding and indexed statewide through the Minnesota Official Marriage System, and divorce records sit with the district court.

• Minnesota Historical Society People FinderFree indexes to Minnesota births 1900 to 1934, deaths 1904 to 2001 and state censuses
• Minnesota Official Marriage SystemStatewide index of county marriage records
• Minnesota Vital Records guideHow to order certificates and what is public

The Minnesota Historical Society holds the state censuses of 1857, 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895 and 1905, Minnesota's Civil War, Spanish-American War and World War I service records, the Dakota conflict of 1862 records, state hospital and prison registers, county records on microfilm, church registers from hundreds of congregations and the largest Minnesota newspaper collection, with the Digital Newspaper Hub free online. Federal land patents for Minnesota are at the General Land Office site, and the National Archives at Chicago holds Minnesota's federal court and naturalization records, while the Iron Range Research Center in Chisholm holds naturalization and mining records for northern Minnesota.

• Minnesota Historical Society libraryState censuses, church records, newspapers and county records
• National Archives at ChicagoFederal court and naturalization records for Minnesota

Minnesota county recorders hold deeds, mortgages and the birth, death and marriage registers from 1870, district court administrators hold probate, divorce and civil files and naturalization records, and most recorders post deed indexes online. The Minnesota Historical Society has microfilmed the older books of most of the 87 counties, and Hennepin and Ramsey county records, covering Minneapolis and St. Paul, are the largest sets. County historical societies across the state have indexed cemeteries and obituaries.

• Minnesota County Public RecordsCounty recorders and district courts for all 87 counties
• Minnesota Court RecordsMinnesota Court Records Online case and probate searches

• National Archives, genealogyCensus, military, immigration and land records
• Library of Congress, genealogy guidesResearch guides for family history