Vital statistic records for Shiawassee county are available from 1867 to the present day. Marriage and death records are available to the public and have been indexed from 1867-1933 in ledger books. After that they are available on microfilm. Birth records are closed. They are however, available to the individual named on the birth record, the parents of the person named, a legal guardian, a legal representative or an heir of the person named on the record. An heir is defined as any relative of a deceased person. The date and place of death of the person must be provided when a copy of a birth record is requested by an heir. This is the law throughout Michigan. MCL 333.2882. The clerks for Shiawassee county are very willing and happy to help genealogists with their searches. Due to very limited space in the clerk's office only three genealogists are allowed at a time. Children are welcome. Genealogists are welcome Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit or write the county clerks office at:

OTHER RECORDS

Land records and deeds are available from 1834 to present. They are indexed in ledger books by both grantor and grantee. Copies are on microfiche and are available at a cost of $1.00 per page. Most land records are one or two pages in length. Platte maps for all townships are also available. These maps include the names of property owners at the time they were made. Several genealogists may do research at the same time. Clerks are available for assistance. A research room is available. These records may be found in the Land register's office on the lower floor of the county courthouse. See County Clerk's address above.

Tax rolls are available only for recent years. Records older than three or four years are in the possession of the Shiawassee County Historical Society. The records that are at the courthouse are located in the Accesser office on the main floor. For information on tax rolls in the possession of the historical society please write to;

Probate records are available to the public. They are not indexed however and it is better to request this type of information in writing. Provide the full name, date of death and place of death when requesting probate records. The clerks will notify you if a record is found. As most records are kept off-site, it will require approximately a week after records are located to be brought on-site. Copies are available at $1.00 per page. Most documents of this type can be quite lengthy. You may view documents on-site and chose those you wish to copy.

The Probate Court also has records pertaining to mental illness cases, guardianship and adoptions. Adoption records are closed as a rule. It is up to the court's discretion whether or not information may be made available to an adopted person regarding their file. Requests for this information should be sent directly to the Probate Court's Juvenile division at the address below.

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