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The following lists are sources of genealogical information in King County and the State of Washington, along with links to websites which could be valuable. While we are posting this information for your convenience, King County does not endorse any website or institution, nor do we guarantee the currency of any website.
Vital Statistics
King County Administration Building
500 4th Avenue, Room 214
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-4768
Birth records are available for all persons born in Seattle or King County (all years). Also all Washington State births registered from 1927 forward. Death records are available for all persons who died in Seattle or King County only.
Recorders Office
311 King County Administration Building
500 4th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-1570
Marriage and property records. For marriage information, provide names of both parties and year of marriage; for deed and mortgage records, provide names and approximate signature date if possible. Indexes can be searched in person.
State of Washington Center for Health Statistics
Olympia, WA 98507
(360) 236-4300
Holds birth, death, marriage, and divorce records for the entire state.
Seattle Washington North
Family History Center
5701 8th Avenue NE
Seattle, WA 98105
(206) 522-1233
Some vital records available on microfilm.
For other regions: Check with county and state public health. They will be able to direct you to the right repository.
To Area Resources Index page
University of Washington Libraries*
UW Special Collections
Box 352900
Seattle, WA 98195-2900
(206) 543-1929
Washington State Library*
Temporary location:
Point Plaza East
Building One
6880 Capitol Blvd. South
Tumwater, WA 98501-5513
Library: (360) 753-5592
Washington State Archives*
Archives and Records Management Division
Office of the Secretary of State
Legislative Building
P.O. Box 40220
Olympia, WA 98504-0220
Record Center: (360) 753-5468
Archive Reference: (360) 586-1492
*These three facilities have King County census records, including all available Territorial Censuses (1857-1892).
Federal Archives and Records Center
Pacific Alaska Region
6125 Sand Point Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 526-6500 (informational recording)
(206) 526-6507
Here you will find all of the federal census records, soundex, miracode and Native American records. They have a microfilm copy machine.
SEE ALSO Family History Centers, Libraries, and Genealogical Societies
To Area Resources Index page
These facilities in King County are branches of the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City. The Libraries provide access to the three worldwide LDS indexes, the Ancestral File, the IGI (International Genealogical Index), and the Family History Locality Catalog. The IGI and Ancestral File can be searched at the centers or are available on-line at www.familysearch.com. Films are available from all over the world through the Family History Library Catalogue. There is a small charge for the rental of films from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. Librarians are on duty to help you find what you need. Call for days and hours that they are open.
Auburn FHC - 625 M St. N.E., Auburn, WA (253) 735-2009
Bellevue FHC - 10675 N.E. 20th St., Bellevue, WA (425) 454-2690
Bellevue North FHC - 4200 124th Ave. S.E., Bellevue, WA (425) 562-0361
Federal Way FHC - 34815 Weyerhauser Way S., Federal Way, WA (253) 874-3803
Kirkland FHC - 7910 N.E. 132nd St., Kirkland, WA (425) 821-3939
Maple Valley FHC - 26800 236th Place S.E., Maple Valley, WA (425) 413-7566
Redmond FHC - 10115 172nd Ave. N.E., Redmond, WA (425) 881-7488
Renton North FHC - 527 Mountain Side Blvd., North Bend, WA (425) 888-1098
Seattle (Burien) FHC - 14020 Ambaum Blvd. S.W., Burien, WA (206) 444-6017
Seattle North FHC - 5701 8th Ave. N.E., Seattle, WA (206) 522-1233
Vashon FHC - 9330 S.W. 204th St., Vashon, WA (206) 463-1863
To Area Resources Index page.
Eastside Genealogical Society
PO Box 374
Bellevue, WA 98009-0374
Seattle Genealogical Society
6200 Sand Point Way N.E. #101
Mailing Address: P. O. Box 15329
Seattle, WA 98115-0329
(206) 522-8658
South King County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 3174
Kent, WA 98032-0203
Puget Sound Genealogical Society
1026 Sidney Ave., Suite 110
Port Orchard, WA
(360) 874-8813
To Area Resources Index page.
Eastside Genealogical Society Library
Puget Sound Genealogical Society
1026 Sidney Ave., Suite 110
Port Orchard, WA
(360) 874-8813
Library Hours: Monday & Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Seattle Public Library
Central Library
1000 Fourth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 386-4636
The genealogical holdings at the central library are excellent. Genealogy resources are to be found on level 9 of the Books Spiral in the new central library.
South King County Genealogical Society Library
Located at the Auburn Public Library
9th & H St. SE
Auburn, WA
(253) 931-3018
A large collection of genealogical books and bulletins is available for use at the library. Be sure to check the vertical file located next to the book collection.
South King County Genealogical Society Traveling Library
This collection is available for use at each Society meeting. Check out for one month is for members only. Includes books, tapes, and videos.
Suzzallo and Allen Libraries
University of Washington Campus, Seattle, WA
Reference: (206) 543-0242
These collections have books including: biography, history, travel, law, genealogies, and much more. A map library is in the basement of Suzzalo. They also have a microform and newspaper collection.
Tacoma Public Library
1102 South Tacoma Way
Tacoma, WA
(253) 591-5666
Parking next to library, two hours free for library use. Get parking token at the main desk. They have a large collection of genealogical material.
Washington State Library
Temporary location:
Point Plaza East
Building One
6880 Capitol Blvd. South
Tumwater, WA 98501-5513
Archives: (360) 753-5485
Library: (360) 753-5592
Washington/Northwest Room of the library has Washington State material only (census, county histories, land records, death record index, and newspapers). In the Local History collection they have all known publications relating to Washington, its counties and cities. The staff indexes newspapers and periodicals for Washington State subjects, 1965 to date. They also have a name index to Washington State individuals mentioned in newspaper and periodical sources.
To Area Resources Index page.
Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle
910 Marion St.
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 382-4560
Christine Taylor, Archivist
Records prior to 1910 are open to researchers. Those after 1910 are closed to everyone. In addition, the registers are not open. Since the Catholic Church's records are not centralized, researchers must contact the parish where the records reside and request assistance. For the years 1838-1890, many sacramental records reside at the Archdiocese. Contact the Archdiocese by phone or letter for information from these records. There is a small fee for research services.
Episcopal Church Headquarters
1551 10th Avenue East
Seattle, WA 98102
(206) 325-4200 x332
Diane Wells, Office and Records Manager
There is restricted access to baptismal and death records at individual churches. The Records Manager is available to answer research questions on a case by case basis.
Websites for other faiths:
Lutheran Roots
Mennonite Genealogical Resources
Moravian Church Genealogy Links
Pennsylvania Dutch Genealogy
Quaker Collection: Significant Early Quaker Lines
Quaker Family History Society
Southern Quaker Genealogy
JewishGen
Louis Kessler's Jewish Genealogy Links
Southwest Jewish Archives
To Area Resources Index page.
Washington State Regional Archives
Puget Sound Branch
Pritchard-Fleming Building, Bellevue Community College
3000 Landerholm Circle SE-Building N
Bellevue, WA 98007
(425) 564-3940
Judicial Administration
King County Courthouse
Room E-609, M.S. 6C
516 Third Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104-2386
(206) 296-9300
To Area Resources Index page.
State of Washington Department of Health
Center for Health Statistics
1112 Quince St. S.E.
PO Box 47814
Olympia, WA 98504-7814
(360) 236-4334
Superior Court
Family Court Services
King County Courthouse
516 Third Ave., Room 203
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9350
Washington State Law provides:
Remember your rights vary from state to state. If you are researching outside Washington State, check that state's laws regarding adoption. Public libraries, university law libraries, government documents libraries and local government law libraries (i.e., city, county, parish, etc.) will be able to provide the current state laws. Please be aware that very few government agencies can or will be able to conduct this research for you. In addition, many charge a fee for research and/or copy services. Expect your research to be time consuming; in addition, be forewarned that the cost rises commensurate with how much research you have agencies or professional researchers do. If you are on a budget, learn to conduct the research yourself.
To Area Resources Index page.
http://www.familysearch.com/
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) web site. Includes search capability for the Ancestral File and IGI and links to other web sites.
http://www.cyndislist.com
Cyndi's list of genealogy sites on the Internet: 232,550 sites sorted by over 150 categories.
http://www.usgenweb.com/index.html
An all-purpose site providing genealogy links for most of the United States.
http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/
The National Archives' genealogy guide.
RAND Genealogy Club
Information for beginning genealogists, as well as links to numerous reference sources and special interest sites, such as medieval, royal, U.S. Presidents, and Civil War genealogy. Features searchable indexes of surnames and locations, and genealogists researching them.
To Area Resources Index page.
Missing Persons:
Salvation Army
Missing Persons Bureau
180 East Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA 90802
(800) 698-7728
The Bureau will perform searches for missing relatives, one person at a time. The fee is $25. Both the search requester and the person searched for must be over the age of 18. You must provide the full name if possible, date and place of birth. Please note, however, that, except in unusual circumstances, the Salvation Army will not undertake genealogical searches for individuals.
Bibliography - How to locate missing persons:
Culligan, Joseph J. You Too Can Find Anybody: A Reference Manual. Hallmark Press, 1994.
Ferraro, Eugene. You Can Find Anyone (3rd edition). Marathon Press, 1986.
Gunderson, Ted L. How to Locate Anyone Anywhere Without Leaving Home. Penguin Books, 1989.
Thomas, Ralph D. How to Find Anyone Anywhere. Thomas Publications, 1992.
Willard, Roger. Missing Persons USA: How to Hunt Down and Find Anyone, Anywhere. Paladin Press, 1994.
Zaglio, Michael J. Tracing Missing Persons. Tower Hill Press, 1980.
SEE ALSO Adoption information
To Area Resources Index page.
Federal Archives and Records Center
Pacific Alaska Region
6125 Sand Point Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 526-6500 (informational recording)
(206) 526-6507
Has ship passenger lists and naturalizations for this region.
Seattle Public Library
Newspapers & Magazines: (206) 386-4680
Quick Information: (206) 386-4636
Genealogy desk: (206) 386-4629
Passenger lists; microfilmed census records and newspapers; many published census indexes, histories, genealogies, gazetteers
Websites:
http://members.aol.com/rprost/passenger.html
Passenger lists on the internet.
http://www.immigration.gov/graphics/aboutus/history/teacher/resources.htm
A guide to immigration research produced by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS).
http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/natural.html
Information from the National Archives on naturalization records.
To Area Resources Index page.
Suzzallo and Allen Libraries
Room 150, First Floor
Box 352900
Seattle, WA 98155-2900
(206) 543-4164
They have a microform and newspaper collection.
Seattle Public Library
Microfilmed newspapers
Newspapers & Magazines: (206)386-4680
Quick Information: (206) 386-4636
Genealogy desk: (206) 386-4629
Washington State Library
Temporary location:
Point Plaza East
Building One
6880 Capitol Blvd. South
Tumwater, WA 98501-5513
Archives: (360) 753-5485
Library: (360) 753-5592
The staff indexes newspapers and periodicals for Washington State subjects, 1965 to date. They also have a name index to Washington State individuals mentioned in newspaper and periodical sources.
To Area Resources Index page.
Recorder's Office
KC Administration Bldg, Room 311
(206) 296-1570
The Recorder's Office has deeds, easements, land titles, liens, mortgages, plats, and quit claim deeds. Their indexes can be searched in person.
Washington State Archives
Puget Sound Region
Pritchard-Fleming Building, Bellevue Community College
3000 Landerholm Circle SE-Building N
Bellevue, WA 98007
(425) 564-3940
They have historical house photos prior to 1973. They also have some house plans. You need to call for an appointment.
Federal Archives and Records Center
Pacific Alaska Region
6125 Sand Point Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 526-6500 (informational recording)
(206) 526-6507
Here you will find all of the federal census records, federal records for Washington, Oregon and Idaho, which include ownership of land. They also have Oregon (1852-1902) and Washington (1855-1902) Donation Land Claims. They have a microfilm copy machine.
To Area Resources Index page.
Washington State Archives
Puget Sound Region
Pritchard-Fleming Building, Bellevue Community College
3000 Landerholm Circle SE-Building N
Bellevue, WA 98007
(425) 564-3940
Tax rolls from 1862 to 1940.
To Area Resources Index page.
Federal Archives and Records Center
Pacific Alaska Region
6125 Sand Point Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 526-6500 (informational recording)
(206) 526-6507
Here you will find military records from this area, Revolutionary War compiled military service records and pension/bounty-land-warrant applications; indexes to names of Union soldiers for many states and a catalog of other information available on military records. They have a microfilm copy machine.
To Area Resources Index page.
Updated: August 14, 2007
Links to external sites do not constitute endorsements by King County.
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