Where to look, by record type
The kind of record decides the kind of archive. This page lists the usual keeper for each and the official place to start. It's a companion to the record-type helper on the homepage.
OpenPasts isn't affiliated with any of the agencies below. Links go to their official pages; rules, fees and addresses change, so check the source before you send a request.
A general starting point for all federal records is the National Archives' resources for genealogists page.
Census records
Who holds them: the National Archives holds the federal population census from 1790 through 1950. Individual records stay closed for 72 years after each census, so 1950 opened in April 2022 and 1960 follows in 2032. Most of the 1890 census was lost after a fire in 1921. State censuses, taken by many states in between federal years, are usually at state archives.
Where to start:
- Census records at the National Archives: what's available and how to search online
- 1950 census website: free search by name and place
- Soundex coding system: for older indexes on microfilm
Read more: using the US census for family history.
Births, marriages and deaths
Who holds them: vital records are kept by states and counties, not the federal government. The state vital records office, usually in the health department, issues certificates. County clerks and recorders often hold marriage records and older registers. Older records are often transferred to the state archives, where they may be open to anyone.
Where to start:
- Where to Write for Vital Records: the CDC's directory of state and territory vital records offices
- Your state archives' website, for older registers and indexes
- Church registers, for events before statewide registration began
Read more: researching at libraries and archives.
Immigration and naturalization
Who holds them: passenger arrival lists are at the National Archives. Naturalization took place in courts, so older records may be with federal, state or county courts or their archives. Federal immigration files from the twentieth century, including naturalization certificate files and alien case files, are available for deceased immigrants through the USCIS Genealogy Program, and older case files are transferred to the National Archives over time.
Where to start:
- Immigration records at the National Archives
- Naturalization records at the National Archives
- USCIS Genealogy Program: fee-based requests for historical immigration files
Read more: FOIA basics for historical records.
Military records
Who holds them: the National Archives. Records of earlier wars, including compiled service records and pension files, are mostly in Washington, DC. Twentieth-century personnel files are at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis. Those files become archival, and open to anyone for a fee, 62 years after the service member left the military; before that, veterans and next of kin can request them. A 1973 fire at the St. Louis center destroyed many Army and Air Force personnel files.
Where to start:
- Military records at the National Archives
- Requesting military service records: for veterans, next of kin and the public
Draft registration cards from both world wars are a useful first stop for men of the right age.
Newspapers
Who holds them: the Library of Congress maintains a large free collection of digitized newspapers built with state partners. State libraries, local public libraries, universities and historical societies hold microfilm and bound volumes of papers that haven't been digitized.
Where to start:
- Chronicling America: free digitized newspapers through 1963, with a directory showing which libraries hold each title
- Your state library or state historical society, for local papers on microfilm
- Your public library, which may offer free access to commercial newspaper databases
Read more: finding historical newspapers.
Federal records in general
For anything else held by the federal government, search the National Archives Catalog, find a research room on the National Archives locations page, and if records are still at the agency, see FOIA.gov.