St. Louis Genealogy Records and Sources

This article was updated on 13 September 2020.

"Now you go through Saint Louie... Joplin, Missouri... and Oklahoma City looks mighty pretty..." (from "Route 66" by Bobby Troupe)

St. Louis is the home of Budweiser, the unbeatable St. Louis Cardinals, the Gateway Arch, and the S.S. Admiral (once upon a time a great way to take a cruise on the Mississippi, later a floating casino, now scrapped). And it's a hub on the fabled Route 66 from Chicago to LA.

Your host, the Genealogy Roots Blogger, was born in St. Louis. Here are some of my favorite online St. Louis genealogy sources that you might find helpful if you've got St. Louis ancestors.

Basic Online Guide
Here you can find links to online indexes and sources for military records, probate records, cemeteries, church records, ordering vital records, and more... St. Louis, Missouri Genealogy Resources

St. Louis Death Records
This webpage has more than thirty links to various online St. Louis death indexes, including St. Louis Post-Dispatch obituaries, Catholic, military and Jewish cemetery databases, and more... Online St. Louis, Missouri Death Records Indexes, Obituaries and Cemeteries

I've already blogged about this database, but here it is again... Missouri State Archives Death Certificate Database, 1910-1969

St. Louis Marriage Records and Marriage Licenses

• City of St. Louis Marriage Licenses - Ordering Information
• St. Louis City (and some county): Marriage Records of St. Louis City and County, 1806-1965 digitized microfilm from FamilySearch
• St. Louis County: Marriage Records, 1877-1928; Index to Marriages, 1881-1933 (St. Louis County Recorder of Deeds) digitized microfilm from FamilySearch

Missouri Military Records
The Missouri State Archives has a searchable database where you might find some of your Missouri military ancestors: Missouri Soldiers Database: War of 1812 - World War I

For more military records see: Online Military Indexes and Records

St. Louis Naturalization Records
There are some great online indexes for St. Louis naturalizations, done in the federal court or local courts. For information on these see... Finding St. Louis Naturalization Records

To New Orleans and up the Mississippi - Finding Immigration Records
Some immigrants to Missouri (and other nearby states) arrived at the port of New Orleans and traveled by riverboat up the Mississippi River to St. Louis. This was more common prior to the Civil War. After the Civil War many train lines were built, making it easier to travel from the East Coast to inland cities. The New Orleans Passenger Lists Quick Guide is a helpful starting place for locating New Orleans passenger records. For help with other ports see: Finding Passenger Lists 1820-1940s

St. Louis Genealogical Society
St. Louis Genealogical Society Members get access to a collection of online databases, including a large collection of St. Louis cemetery burials, indexes to some St. Louis church records and more.

Two Libraries
Both the St. Louis City and County libraries have genealogy resources within their walls and on their websites.

• St. Louis County Public Library: Genealogy
• St. Louis City Library - Digital Collections and Obituaries Index

Population Shifts from the City to the County
St. Louis City and County separated from each other on August 22, 1876. At this webpage you can see how the population of St. Louis has shifted from the City to the County over time: Population of St. Louis City & County, Missouri, 1820-2010

And... Our Beloved St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals Official Website

If you're just passing through, perhaps on your way from Chicago to L.A. on Route 66, be sure to stop at a Steak 'n Shake and order a Steakburger.

Happy Searching!

Searching for Death Records - A Brief Overview

Here's a brief guide to the kinds of genealogy records you might be able to find relating to a person's death in the United States.

Death Indexes and Records Online
For a directory of online death indexes (USA) see...
Online Death Records and Indexes

Death Certificates
Many states started recording and requiring death certificates in the early part of the 20th Century. Some states go back further.

Digitized copies of death certificates (or records) are available for online downloading for Arizona, Arkansas, California (Los Angeles and San Joaquin Counties), Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia. Coverage varies by place. For links to these see...

Online Death Certificates and Records

For information on ordering copies of death certificates at the state level see the "How to Order Copies of Vital Records" section at: Birth, Marriage and Death Records - Vital Records Research Guide

Newspaper Obituaries, Death Notices and Burial Permits
Obituaries can be helpful as they often give date and place of death and burial, and sometimes they name surviving and deceased relatives. In some cases you might find a death or burial notice instead of an obituary - these usually do not contain as much detail as an obituary. You will not always be able to find these kinds of newspaper listings for everyone who died. Local public libraries can be good sources for obtaining copies of obituaries. More recent obituaries can often be found online. For some tips see... Obituaries Research Guide

Cemeteries and Burial Indexes
If you don't know where someone is buried, death certificates often list place of burial. Some cemeteries have placed their burial indexes online, while others have been transcribed by volunteers.

Guide to Online Cemeteries and Burial Indexes

Probate Records and Wills
Wills and probate records can be helpful as they usually list a person's heirs - their spouse or children, or sometimes siblings or other relatives. Some counties now have recent probate indexes online. Try the death indexes directory or do a Google search for the particular county you are interested in. Some older probate records and wills can be found on digitized microfilm from FamilySearch. You might also be able to find probate records in the courthouse where the will was probated or a local or state archive or other repository if the records were moved there.

Social Security Death Index (SSDI)
Deaths reported to the Social Security Administration are listed in this useful index. It's available online at several websites and some of them update it each month. For a list of four online SSDIs (three of them are free to use) see...

The Social Security Death Index - Online Searching

Once you've found someone in the SSDI you can then order a copy of that person's Social Security SS-5 form - this is the form they filled out when applying for a Social Security Card, and it contains useful information about the person, usually including date and place of birth, and names of parents. (Names of parents may be redacted due to privacy restrictions.)

Census Mortality Schedules
Census mortality schedules are available for some states for 1850, 1860, 1870 or 1880. Basic details were recorded for people who died in the year prior to the census being taken. Be aware that some people who died in those time frames were missed, and these schedules are not available for all states. For more information see... U.S. Census Records Mortality Schedules 1850-1880

Happy Searching!
(article updated: October 2021)

Ancestry adds some World War II Draft Registration Cards

Ancestry has put some digitized images of World War II Draft Registration Cards online, and they are indexed by name (this database requires a fee-based subscription). These draft cards are from the Fourth Registration, which was conducted on 27 April 1942 - this is the only registration currently available to the public. This registration was for men born 28 April 1877 to 16 February 1897 (and not already in the military). It is sometimes referred to as "the old man's registration." These WWII draft cards are presently available online at Ancestry for the following states... Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, DC, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, New York City, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

NOTE: the Fourth registration ("old man's registration") records for the following states were destroyed and are not available: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

For a list of links to free and fee-based World War II indexes and records, including Ancestry's fee-based WWII Draft Cards database, see: Online World War Two Indexes and Records - USA

For information on World War ONE draft cards see: World War One Draft Registration Cards 1917-1918

This article was updated on 2 March 2018.

Old New Jersey Marriage Indexes

The New Jersey State Archives has put two marriage records indexes online. They cover 1666-1799 and May 1848 through 31 May 1867. You can find them at... New Jersey State Archives - Searchable Databases

Some more online marriage records indexes can be found listed in this directory... Online Birth and Marriage Records Indexes

Immigration Records for the Singing von Trapp Family

"How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?"

Over on the National Archives website you can find some reproductions of immigration records relating to Austria's famous von Trapp family who inspired the musical, the Sound of Music.

The photograph at left is of Maria von Trapp, the matriarch of the singing family, taken from her "declaration of intention" to become a citizen in 1944. She was played by Julie Andrews in the beloved film. You can find more von Trapp family photographs, along with naturalization records and passenger lists at... Movie vs. Reality: The Real Story of the Von Trapp Family

For more von Trapp family genealogy see: Maria von Trapp in the Social Security Death Index

For help finding immigration records for your ancestors see...
Finding Passenger Lists 1820-1940s (for arrivals at U.S. Ports)

Finding U.S. Naturalization Records

And if you don't know what a "declaration of intention" is click on over to... Types of U.S. Naturalization Records

Passports of Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio

"Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? Our Nation turns its lonely eyes to you..."

I'm sensing a new trend. Buddy Holly's passport was recently sold at auction. And now a sports memorabilia company has put passports for Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio up for auction. Marilyn Monroe's dates from 1954 and was issued to "Norma Jean DiMaggio known as Marilyn Monroe."

I'm no expert on memorabilia or auctions, but as a genealogist I like looking at old records and things like passports. You can have a look at these two famous passports at...

Joe DiMaggio's Passport - Auction Listing

Marilyn Monroe's Passport - Auction Listing

For information on obtaining passport records see the Passport Application Records section on the Finding Naturalization Records webpage.