Vermont Genealogy Search

Vermont family history has an unusual advantage: the state's vital records from 1760 to 2008 are indexed and imaged online through the Vermont State Archives' partnership with Ancestry, free in Vermont libraries, covering the town records from before statehood through the modern era. Vermont towns have recorded births, marriages and deaths from their founding in the 1760s, the state began collecting copies in 1857, and the Vermont State Archives and Records Administration in Middlesex holds the state and county records.

Vermont took no state censuses, so the town records, the grand lists of taxable property and the federal censuses from 1790 carry the family.

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

Vermont statewide genealogy links

• Vermont Vital Registry SystemVital Records Registry
• Vermont Department of Health Vital Records
• Vermont Naturalization Records
• Family History Centers in VermontFamily History Centers in the State
• Bennington Museum Research LibraryHistorical Museum and Library
• USGenWeb Archives VermontSearch GenWeb Archives
• Vermont Historical Society

Vermont towns recorded births, marriages and deaths from their founding, the state required copies from 1857 and statewide registration from 1919, and the Vermont State Archives holds the statewide index cards and copies of records from 1760 to about 2008, with images online through Ancestry, while the Vermont Department of Health's Vital Records office holds recent records and the town clerks hold the originals. Vermont vital records are public except for a few recent restrictions, and copies are available to anyone. Divorce records sit with the family division of the superior court, with older files at the State Archives.

• Vermont State Archives and Records AdministrationStatewide vital records index 1760 to 2008, county and state records, checked September 25, 2026
• Vermont Department of Health Vital RecordsRecent birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates, checked September 25, 2026
• Vermont Vital Records guideHow to order certificates and what is public

The State Archives holds the land records of the Vermont land grants and the New Hampshire and New York grants that preceded them, Vermont's Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War records, the county court records from the 1780s, the Vermont State Prison registers and the manuscript Vermont state papers. The Vermont Historical Society in Barre holds manuscripts, family papers and the genealogy library, and the University of Vermont's Special Collections hold town and family papers. The National Archives at Boston holds Vermont's federal court, customs and naturalization records, and the Vermont Digital Newspaper Project's titles on Chronicling America carry town news.

• Vermont Historical SocietyManuscripts, family papers and genealogy library, checked September 25, 2026
• National Archives at BostonFederal court, customs and naturalization records for Vermont, checked September 25, 2026
• FamilySearch Vermont research guideFree indexed Vermont records and images, checked September 25, 2026

Vermont's 246 town and city clerks hold land records, vital records and town meeting records from each town's founding, and most post online land record indexes, while the probate division of the superior court holds wills and estates in each probate district, with older files at the State Archives. Vermont's 14 counties hold court records through the superior court clerks but no land or vital records, so the town is the unit of research, and the State Archives has microfilmed most town books.

• Vermont County Public RecordsTown clerks and probate districts across Vermont
• Vermont Court RecordsSuperior court criminal, civil and probate division records

These federal and national sources complement Vermont's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Vermont 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.