Genealogy

New Jersey State Archives

The New Jersey State Archives is the Records Repository of the State of New Jersey.  Its large collection of Primary Documents include New Jersey Vital Records (Birth, Marriage, and Death), Military Service Records (pre-WWII), Wills and Inventories, Colonial Deeds, Court Records, and Naturalization Records.

Many genealogical collections owned by the Archives are available for order online or by mail.  You may use the searchable catalog to locate records sets of interest, or search the online databases.

If you are not a computer user, call (609) 292-6260 to request a Mail Reference Packet.  This printed guide contains collection descriptions and order forms for Vital Records and other collections available for order.

Note that the New Jersey State Archives is a separate entity from the New Jersey State Library.  If you have questions about any NJSA collections, services, or copy fees, please contact (609) 292-6260.

Vital Records

Current Holdings of State Vital Records owned by the State Archives (changes every January):  

• Births: May 1848-December 1923
• Marriages: May 1848-December 1940
• Deaths: May 1848-December 1940

Any of these records can be ordered remotely or viewed in person.

Current Holdings of State Vital Records Less than 100 years old available for in-person use only at the State Archives (changes infrequently):

• Marriages: January 1941-December 1948 
• Deaths: January 1941-December 1963 

Contact the Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry at 609-292-4087 to order these records remotely.

Revolutionary and Civil War Military Records

Revolutionary War Service Records:

• Compiled Service Cards (overall summary of a soldier's service based on the collection documents in which he was mentioned)
• Revolutionary War Slips (abstracts of individual documents where a soldier is mentioned)

A soldier will have one Compiled Service Card, and may have several Slips. Both the Compiled Service Cards and the Slips will lead the researcher to the original documents where the soldier is named. 

Stryker's Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Revolutionary War 

Civil War:

• Stryker's Officers and Men of New Jersey in the Civil War (muster rolls, pay records, various collections)
• Civil War Treasury Vouchers (include both pay records and some discharge papers)
• Cartes de Visite (photograph collection)

County Naturalization Records

Naturalization Records for the following counties are available to order from the New Jersey State Archives:

• Burlington (1790-1956)
• Camden (1844-1932)
• Essex (1792-1934)
• Hudson (1840-1948)
• Mercer (1838-1940)
• Ocean (1850-1966)
• Sussex (1817-1948)
• Union (1857-1931)

The Archives does have additional county naturalization holdings for in-person use only. Check the searchable catalog for details.

Databases: Early Land Records and NJ Supreme Court Case Files

Early Land Records and Supreme Court Case File Records can be surprising genealogical gold mines for researchers working on their Colonial or early 19th Century family history. Due to the nature of some of the land transactions or court cases, familial relationships, reports of birth, marriage, or death events, and details of personal wealth and property may be included.

State Archives Newspaper Collection

The Archives' newspaper collection holdings and date ranges vary from town to town. There is a printed newspaper holdings list by county and town available for in person use. There is not a name or subject index for the Newspaper Collection as a whole. However, there is a card file index for marriages and obituaries in Trenton newspapers 1776-1899. For questions about newspaper holdings at the Archives, call (609) 292-6260.

Marriage Record

Marriage of Nikkolai Aaros and Laurasine Leeise, April 28, 1906

Online Indexes to NJ Vital Records

 New Jersey State Archives

• Marriages May 1848-May1878
• Deaths May 1848-May 1878 
• Deaths June 1878-December 1900
• Colonial Marriage Bonds

FamilySearch.org

•  indexed State vital records May 1848-December 1900 (order records from State Archives)
• 20th Century Birth, Marriage, and Death indexes (various collections and years)  
• Digitized County Marriage Records

Ancestry.com:

• New Jersey Marriages 1901-2016
• New Jersey Deaths 1901-2017

Reclaim the Records:

• New Jersey Geographic Birth Index 1901-1929 and New Jersey Delayed Births 1901-1929.  
• New Jersey Marriage Indexes by Bride's name 1901-1948 and by both Bride and Groom's names 1949-2016 to Archive.org. 
• Index to New Jersey Deaths 1901-2017.  Note that the index 1920-1924 is incomplete and there is currently no index for 1904-1919 or 1930-1948.  Records 2001-2017 are searchable, all other indexes are browsable.

Probate Records 1670-1952

Order probate records 1670-1952 (filed with Secretary of State's office until 1901 and Superior Court 1902-1952)

Indexes and Abstracts:

• Index to New Jersey Wills ca. 1670 to 1901 (when ordering, you can include the citation from the index in your request)
• Calendar of New Jersey Wills (abstracts) ca. 1670-1817 (very useful if you have trouble reading 18th Century handwriting!)

Early New Jersey Land Records

Example of a Primary Document (Record)

Deed dated May 12, 1681 from Ameras and others to Cornelius Corson and others.  Liber 1 Part B p.147 (192)-148 (191)

Digital Image from the New Jersey State Archives Early Land Record Database