Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2016 April 13

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April 13

Are there any online public records or databases for birth dates and death dates?

Is there any websites online that offer public records for birth dates and death dates of individuals (in the USA)? I am looking for a free site, not one that I have to pay. Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 04:07, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

In the UK, the answer to this would depend on the approximate dates you are looking for. It might be helpful to state this.--Phil Holmes (talk) 14:14, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

In the US, as with EVERYTHING you could ever ask, the answer is "it depends on which particular state". Public access to records is governed by some federal AND state regulations, and records are only maintained by the individual states on their own, with no federal centralization or oversight. That means, whether or not you can access someone's birth and death records will depend on a) any federal laws (such as privacy laws) which only allow the release of records a certain number of years after a person's death, for example b) any state laws which may supplement or supplant the same c) the efforts that particular state has put in to making their records publicly accessible. c) is the kicker, really. It could be as simple as searching an online data base. Or, you may need to make a formal request to some agency. Or, you may need to show up in person to some archive building or state library. If you want to know what the status in EACH state is, this website looks like an excellent beginning. --Jayron32 14:35, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

In the United States, many states do not offer public access to birth records less than 75 years old, or birth records of living persons, for privacy reasons (since birth dates are one way to prove identity and could be useful to identity thieves). Marco polo (talk) 15:38, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks. To make a long story short, right now, I am trying to find the birth date for this guy: Kenneth Earl Fults. All I can find is that he was born in 1968. And, then, generally, I was wondering how to find birth dates in the future for similar reasons. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 16:07, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

@Joseph A. Spadaro: according to this spreadsheet attributed to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, November 12, 1968. Hack (talk) 17:13, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks. What spreadsheet? When I click that link you offered ("this spreadsheet"), it says "Google Drive: You need permission" (and so forth). Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 17:41, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Maybe try this link - [1]. Hack (talk) 17:42, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks. Yes, that did work. I was able to get access to that spreadsheet. What exactly is that and where did you get it? I opened the spreadsheet, but it is just a lot of data. There are no titles or headers or anything. Do you know what that list is a list of? Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 17:50, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

It's a list of people convicted of murder in Georgia between 1995 and 2004. You should be open the first link now - it has a more detailed explanation. Hack (talk) 17:54, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks. Yes, now it works (the first link). Where did you find all this? Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 18:01, 13 April 2016 (UTC)

Public records often list people in the format SURNAME, FIRSTNAME, so I searched "Fults, Kenneth E" AND 1968. Hack (talk) 03:35, 14 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks. Yeah, I tried similar searches but was coming up empty. Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 06:52, 14 April 2016 (UTC)

Thanks, all. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 06:53, 14 April 2016 (UTC)