Learn what death records are available for Maryland, where to find them, and step-by-step tips on how to locate post-1875 death certificates online.
Accessibility
Civil death records in Maryland become public records after 10 years. Most publicly available death records are held by the Maryland State Archives (MSA) and are available on several websites as discussed below. Still restricted records (less than 10 years old) are available to specified individuals only and are held by the Maryland Division of Vital Records.
Timeline
In the 17th century and the mid-19th century, laws were passed to mandate statewide registration of deaths. However, relatively few such records exist due to poor compliance with the laws and/or the passage of time. Other government records addressing deaths during this early period include coroner's reports and Baltimore City interment records. Although limited in scope, all of these records should be checked if available for the time and place you are researching. View more information on what is available.
The majority of Maryland death records begin in 1875 for Baltimore City and in 1898 for Maryland's 23 counties. These records from the Department of Health of Baltimore City and the Maryland State Board/Department of Health are available (to varying degrees) on three websites as discussed in detail below.
Duplicates of some of these death records are available at MSA for some of the counties. These duplicate records can be consulted if an indexed certificate is missing or a certificate is illegible. View more information on what is available.
Board of Health (Death Record, Counties), Maryland State Archives, SE42-921
Note - the parents of the deceased are not listed on Baltimore City death certificates until about 1904.
The Maryland State Archives website page on Death Records provides further in-depth guidance about the history of death records in Maryland and FAQs.
Online Death Certificates
As shown below, death certificates and indexes for Baltimore City from 1875 and Maryland counties from 1898 are available on three websites - MyHeritage, the Internet Archive, and MSA. The first two have many more years of death certificates available online than MSA.
| MyHeritage | Internet Archive | Maryland State Archives | |
| Database | Yes | No, but indexes available. | No, but indexes available. |
| Certificates | Certificates through 2012. | Certificates through 2012. | Certificates available as they become 100 years old. |
| Indexes | Searchable database in lieu of original indexes. | Statewide indexes through 2014 (except for 1969-1972 in the counties). | Statewide indexes through 2014 (except for 1969-1972 in the counties). |
Death certificates after 2012 (the latest online) are available from MSA once they are 10 years old. They must be viewed onsite at MSA or copies may be ordered.
Step-By-Step Guidance for Finding a Death Certificate Online
STEP 1: Check MyHeritage
MyHeritage currently has the only searchable online database with images. Access to MyHeritage is by paid personal subscription or free through the MyHeritage Library Edition. Maryland residents can access the free library edition by applying for a Howard County LIbrary System library card. Upon applying online you get immediate six-month access to online databases pending picking up your card. (If you don’t eventually come to a branch to pick up your card, you will lose access after six months.) MyHeritage is accessed among the "Research Tools" in the Howard County "Digital Library."
Once on the MyHeritage site, use the "Search records by location" option to navigate to the Maryland research page. From the list of Maryland collections provided, choose “Maryland Deaths." On that collection's page, enter the information on the person you are researching using the Advanced Search option (to provide flexibility in searching).
Keep in mind when using the MyHeritage death certificate database that AI was used to read the original certificates, resulting in transcription errors. Also, the search function has limitations, particularly an inability to use wildcards.
If a search on MyHeritage is not possible or not successful, there are other options for finding and viewing a death certificate online, as outlined below.
STEP 2: Check the Baltimore County Genealogical Society (BCGS) Death Index
BCGS is creating an online Maryland Death Index database. The index does not link to images of the certificates, but provides the information needed to find the original certificate. A work in progress, the index currently includes all Baltimore City death certificates through 2014 and several decades of the county certificates (including 1969-1972, for which there is no other index).
If you locate an entry in the BCGS index, go on to Step 4. Otherwise, consult the original indexes as discussed below.
STEP 3: Check the Original Indexes
While the original death certificate indexes are available on the Internet Archive website (here for the counties and here for Baltimore City), the following indexes on the MSA website tend to be easier to navigate. For any index entry of interest you that locate, be sure to record the name, date, county/city, and certificate number (if any).
Maryland Counties Indexes (Baltimore City deaths for 1875-1972 are indexed separately from deaths in the Maryland counties - see indexes below.)
- 1898-1944: SE58 (MSA has posted a staff-developed spreadsheet of indexing errors for 1898-1911)
- 1945-1968: SE8
- 1969-1972: No index is available at the Maryland State Archives. However, these years are indexed in the BCGS Maryland Death Index database.
- 1973-2014: SE151
Baltimore City Indexes
- 1875-1942: CE42 (for a searchable database for 1875-1880, see S1483)
- 1943-1949: S1483
- 1950-1972: CE42
- 1973-2014: SE151
The Maryland State Archives has developed tutorial videos to explain two indexing systems used in some of the indexes, the vowel indexing system and the soundex indexing system. Also see, "Types of Indexes Found at the Maryland State Archives."
STEP 4: Locate the Death Certificate
First, use the following Maryland State Archives website links to find the batch of records that contains the certificate you need based on the date, county/city information, and certificate number (if any) you found in the index. Note the "MSA Citation number" for that batch of records. (Example MSA Citation numbers include SE43-9601 and CM1132-61.)
Maryland Counties Certificates
May 1898 - April 1910: SE42
May 1910 - June 1951: SE43
July 1951 - June 1969: SE44
June 1969 - 1972: SE45
1973 - 2014: SE46
Baltimore City Certificates
Baltimore City Health Department Bureau Of Vital Statistics (Death Record) CM1132-59.
The age of a certificate determines whether you can view it online and where.
- At least 100 years old: Either the MSA website or Internet Archive website.
- Not yet 100 years old: Only the Internet Archive website, through 2012.
Viewing Certificates on the Maryland State Archives Website
Batches of certificates at least 100 years old should have a "Links" hot link that you can select to move on to viewing the certificates. There will be options for viewing the certificates as part of large PDFs or as individual certificates. For more recent certificates that are available in person at the Maryland State Archives but not on the website, the notation will instead say "*Links" (with an asterisk).
Viewing Certificates on the Internet Archive Website
Follow one of the following Internet Archive links depending on the date and place of the death.
- Certificates for Maryland Counties (all years) and Baltimore City (1973-2012)
- Baltimore City Certificates (1875-1972)
From the resulting list of files, choose the link for the time period you are interested in. You'll then have access to batches of PDF files identified by MSA Citation number. The links will appear in the left-hand navigation bar. Select the correct MSA Citation number for the certificate you're seeking. Finally, scroll through that PDF to locate the certificate you need.