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BIRTH RECORDS                                   1867 THROUGH 1957

DEATH RECORDS                                  1887 THROUGH 1957

PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER REPORTS  1911 THROUGH 1941

CITIZENSHIP RECORDS                         1868 THROUGH 1926

         CEMETERY INDEXING (ONLY)               1850 THROUGH PRESENT

These original records are located in the Clerk-Recorder's Office in the Carson City Courthouse at   885 E. Musser Street, Suite 1025, Carson City, Nevada.  We are open Monday thru Friday 8AM to 5PM.  Our telephone number is 775-887-2084.

BIRTH AND DEATH RECORDS

The birth and death records that are listed on our website are not a complete or accurate list.  If you cannot find a record in our office, contact the Nevada State Dept. of Vital Statistics. 

Birth Records Indexing  (coded BIR)      1867 through 1957
Birth records include the names of the father and the mother.  The child, in some cases, was not named until later and the name did not appear on the birth record.  In that case, the father's last name was used and then "son" or "daughter".   Also, the mother may have been listed as Mrs. and no maiden name or first name.

Death Records Indexing  (coded DC /  BUR / COR)       1887 through 1957
Death records include mother and father names, if provided.  In some instances, a person's name was not provided on the death certificate, so these records will be listed as "unknown" male or female, "chinaman", "chinawoman", and/or "indian".

Other types of death records you might come across include Coroner's Report (COR), Burial Records (BUR), Physician's Certificate of Death, and other forms of documents.

Unusual Names
We have several entries that are a phrase, such as "One Arm Jim", "Indian Maggie", or "China Sall", and are indexed just as they appear.

Chinese Names
Chinese name indexing is difficult because you can't determine what the family name should be.  For example, with the name Loy Ah Chung, "Loy" should be the family name (they are usually at the front of the name) but it could be Chung, a common Chinese name.  If we assume it is Loy, then the name would be indexed as Loy, Ah Chung.  To make things even more complicated, there are incomplete chinese names.  Most often, the names are simply written as Ah Chung, Ah Jon, etc.  We file them under "A".  In some cases, we have indexed them twice - first with the obvious first name and second with what we believe is a last or family name.

PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER REPORTS

Public Health Officer Report Indexing    (coded PHB - for births & PHD - for deaths)

The Public Health Officer Report included a monthly listing of births, deaths, burial and removal permits, diseases, and other health conditions.  At one time there was a requirement for the County Health Officer to file this monthly report to the County Recorder's Office.  This report provided a presentation of the current health status for the county and identified current epidemics or contagious diseases.

CEMETERY INDEXING 

This database includes the names of people interred at Lone Mountain Cemetery and Empire Cemetery from the 1850's thru the present.  The index includes the burial date, death date, and birth date (if available), and location of the burial site.  If you find a record with the burial date "01/01/1700" the burial date was unknown or incomplete.

If you need further assistance in looking for a cemetery record, please follow the link below labeled "Lone Mountain Cemetery Information".

CITIZENSHIP DOCUMENTS

Citizenship Indexing  (coded CIT)      (1868 through 1926)

Citizenship records include names of people filing for citizenship in the United States through the county's court system.  Back in the early 1900's, a person could file for citizenship within the state rather than with the federal government.  There are various documents with each individual.

To become a citizen of the United States there was a lengthly process an alien would have to take.  There were many kinds of documents to be obtained and these kinds of naturalization records are mentioned by the National Archives.  Here is an excerpt from that description:

As a general rule, naturalization was a two-step process that took a minimum of 5 years.  After residing in the United States for 2 years, an alien could file a "declaration of intent"     (so-called "first papers") to become a citizen.  After 3 additional years, the alien could "petition for naturalization."  After the petition was granted, a certificate of citizenship was issued to the alien.  These two steps did not have to take place in the same court.  As a general rule, the "declaration of intent" generally contains more genealogically useful information than the "petition."  The "declaration" may include the alien's month and year (or possibly the exact date) of immigration into the United States.

Having stated this "two-step, 5-year" general rule, it is necessary to note several exceptions:

The first major exception was that "derivative" citizenship was granted to wives and minor children of naturalized men.  From 1790 to 1922, wives of naturalized men automatically became citizens.  This also meant that an alien woman who married a U.S. citizen automatically became a citizen.  (Conversely, an American woman who married an alien lost her U.S. citizenship, even if she never left the United States.)  From 1790 to 1940, children under the age of 21 automatically became naturalized citizens upon the naturalization of their father.  Unfortunately, however, names and biographical information about wives and children are rarely included in declaration or petitions filed before September 1906.

The second major exception to the general rule was that from, 1824 to 1906, minor aliens who had lived in the United States 5 years before their 23rd birthday could file both their declarations and petitions at the same time.

The third major exception to the general rule was the special consideration given to veterans.  An 1862 law allowed honorably discharged Army veterans of any war to petition for naturalization - without previously having filed a declaration of intent - after only 1 year of residence in the United States.  An 1894 law extended the same no-previous-declaration privilege to honorably discharged 5-year veterans of the Navy or Marine Corps.  Over 192,000 aliens were naturalized between May 9, 1918, and June 30, 1919, under an act of May 9, 1918, that allowed aliens serving the U.S. armed forces during "the present war" to file a petition for naturalization without making a declaration of intent or proving 5 years' residence.  Laws enacted in 1919, 1926, 1940, and 1952 continued various preferential treatment provisions for veterans.                                                 

Other Genealogy Links

Carson City Marriage Records

Lone Mountain Cemetery Information

State of Nevada Vital Records Office

State of Nevada Archives

National Archives and Records Administration - Genealogy Page

To assist you in researching your ancestors, we have provided a Record of Ancestry Chart (PDF) and a Genealogy Relationship Chart for your use in documenting your family history.