Adoption Records Search Tips

Old Search Websites

2007-11-20T20:00:48Z

Have you ever gone to that web site looking for more genealogy information only to find it's not there any more? This is is where old web sites go to die. So if you are looking for a web site that no longer exists you can try the WayBackMachine http://www.archive.org. They may not have everything but it never hurts to look.

Request Copies of Veterans Military Personnel Records
www.archives.gov

Old Yearbooks

2007-11-09T20:23:10Z

Many birth parents have been found in old high school yearbooks. If you know the name you were given when you were born and before your adoption, your original last name is a place to start in those yearbooks from high schools in the state you were born in. Also ask your local librarians to check for the name in newspapers during that time frame or even go back and forward a couple of years either way. That name could either be your birthmother's maiden name or your birthfather's surname so check all possible leads with that in mind.

City Directories

2007-10-10T18:45:01Z

From the mid-1800s to the present day, most cities and counties have produced city directories (sometimes called farmers' directories, or business directories). In some towns, they even listed in the children and their occupation (remember in the early to mid-1900s, most folks did not have the privilege of graduating from high school, let alone attend college). It is not unusual to find 15-year-old boys listed in city directories with "laborer" or "tinsmith" as in the case of my husband's uncle in 1922. Also the directory might list children and say "student" indicating they were still in high school or college.

You can actually track a family throughout the years, showing addresses, occupations (even sometimes where they actually worked -- factory, shipyard, etc.). It also might show members of extended families who moved in and out of othe home over the years.

Start at the year you know the family lived at a certain address and begin working backward. Then come back and work forward. Don't give up if you find some years they weren't listed -- it might just mean they missed sending the forms back or they weren't at home when the enumerator called. There was no charge to be listed in the directory, but no compulsion, either; IOW it was not mandatory like the census. Compare these findings to the phone book, but remember that it wasn't until the mid-'50s or '60s that most folks had telephones, so don't be surprised if they aren't listed earlier.

When you have established what neighborhood(s) the family lived in, look for the appropriate schools. Go find the yearbooks (usually housed in one major library in town -- call around and ask) and look up pictures and more information about the family's children -- even the brothers and sisters of your B/Ps. You may be able to find through these siblings.

If you can establish when the B/GPs died, you can go look up obituaries, get death certificates, funeral home or cemetery records which give the decedent's next of kin and the "informant" -- usually spouse or child -- with address. If an estate was filed, you can look in the county Surrogate Court records (in NY State; Probate Courts in other states). That will show all heirs and their addresses as of the time the will was filed for probate.

Many of these directories have "reverse address" listings. If you only have an address, you can go to the alphabetic listing for the town, search for 123, and get not only who lived at that address, but also all the neighbors up and down the street.

Call the local library and ask them to check the city directory for the year that person was born plus the year before and year after. You can have them check by the address, then go to the alphabetical listing and see what else you can find.

Here are some links that will help you in your quest.

Effective use of City Directories at
http://www.progenealogists.com/citydirectories.htm

Inventory of CrissCross Directories and Street Address Directories at
http://www.loc.gov/rr/business/directories/crisscross.html
where city directories are listed by city nationwide, posted by the Library of Congress

http://distantcousin.com/Directories/

This information is courtesy of the nyadoptees yahoo group.

Deceased A-Parents / Church Groups

2007-10-06T19:01:25Z

If either of your a-parents is deceased you might try checking with the friends in the book people signed when paying their respects. If your a-mom belonged to any women's groups in her church, someone there may also have information or names. Old neighbors may have information as well.

Newspaper Ads

2007-10-06T18:14:18Z

I read a message from a group member post that said if you are lucky enough to have a name OR a place of birth that you should place an ad in the major local newspaper. She did it on a weekly basis and found her birth siblings this way.

Public Records

2007-10-02T22:21:37Z

Dog licenses are a matter of public record, and they are listed by the owners’ name and not the animal’s. Every person who cares as much about their dog as most people do will not only keep their dog licensed, but will give the correct information such as home address and telephone on the application, so that in the event the dog is missing they can be contacted.

The following link will take you to a free automated open records law letter generator that helps people obtain access to public records maintained by state or local government officials. www.splc.org/ltr_sample.html No department has the right to unilaterally and arbitrarily make a public record not public at the request of a citizen. The public is not the party to decide what is public information. Contact your local county attorney if your request is denied even though the information you request is a matter of public record.

Voter’s registration information is available upon written request. Write to the county you believe your missing person may have been or is registered in. If the party has moved, the new address may be registered as well. A small fee is required.

Address Changes

2007-10-02T22:08:26Z

To find someone who has moved, send mail addressed to them to the old address. In bold letters write ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED, DO NOT FORWARD, or use the postal request form and add “Please check expired files and refer to carrier if necessary.”

LDS Records

2007-10-02T19:35:39Z

If you are fortunate enough to know the name of the family that adopted your child and you know that they are LDS, try going to the Family History Center in Salt Lake City onto the records floor (2nd floor I think) where they archive all the family group sheets that have been submitted to them. When you find the name you are looking for it will list the children and say if a child has been adopted. There will be an address at the top of the sheet, and if the address isn't current, it will at least put you on the right path to seeking your family. You just might be lucky and find the address to be current as I did.

Hospital Records

2007-10-02T19:14:46Z

Hospitals may not keep records as far back as you need them to be. An alternate route is the maternity ward of the hospital who will have the records of all babies born, date and time of birth, and names of birthparents for all babies born on the day of your birth.

Catholic Charities

2007-10-02T18:53:29Z

Awhile back in one of the groups I belong to someone posted that often babies given up through Catholic Charities were baptized before being adopted out. I don't know how accessible Catholic baptism records are, but if they are available, babies born on your birth date and baptized in a parish in the city you were born in could be a possible source for your original birth name. Just don't mention you were adopted when you ask to see if you were baptised within a short time after your birth.