How to Obtain a Copy of a Birth, Death or Marriage Certificate

Certified copies of birth, death and marriage records are available from the Office of the Town Clerk in Townsend Town Hall and the state Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. The fee for vital records available at Townsend Town Hall varies.

Birth Certificates

The Townsend Town Clerk will have birth records of anyone born to parents who were living in Townsend at the time of the birth, regardless of where the birth took place.

A short form birth certificate is available for $4 .00.  The short form contains only the name and date of birth of the individual. The short form usually is accepted for common purposes such as proof of age, school registration, proof of citizenship, employment requirements and social security eligibility.

A long form birth certificate is available for $5 .00.  The long form is required for passports, immigration and other legal purposes.

Marriage Certificates

The Town Clerk will have marriage records of any couple who filed their intentions in Townsend.

A copy of a marriage certificate is available for $ 5.00 and can be used for most purposes.

Death Certificates

The Clerk will have death records of any death that occurred in Townsend or their residential address is in Townsend.

The fee for a copy of a death certificate is $5 .00 for a record which was filed more than a year ago.

 

Copies of vital records may be obtained in person or by mail. Cash and checks are accepted for payment. For further information, call 978-597-1704

The State Registry of Vital Records and Statistics

If you are not sure where the record you seek is filed locally, you may contact the state Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. The Registry maintains a central index and has copies of records for all births, deaths and marriages which occurred in the state.

Certified copies may be obtained through the Registry in person, by mail or by phone. Regardless of how you request copies, you should be prepared to provide the name of the subject(s) of the record, the date of the event and, if known, the city or town where the event occurred.

The fee for records obtained in person is $11.00.  Only cash or check is accepted for payment. The Registry is located at 150 Mount Vernon Street, 1st floor, in Dorchester.

The office is open from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and 2:oo p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday,  closed to the public on Wednesday.

The fee for records obtained by mail also is $11.00 for regular mail, and generally takes thirty days to process.  For a fee of $14.00, you may request that the records be sent by rush mail, which takes about a week to process. Only cash or checks are accepted for payment. Requests must include a stamped, self-addressed, business-size return envelope.

The mailing address for the Registry is located at:

Registry of Vital Records and Statistics
1st Floor 150 Mt. Vernon Street
Dorchester, MA 02125-3105

For phone orders, call (617) 753-8600.

The fee for records ordered by phone is $19.00 per certified copy. Visa, Master Card, Discover, American Express are the only acceptable forms of payment- Telephone requests are sent within two days of the call. You also may request overnight delivery for an additional fee.

For additional information, please visit the Townsend Town Clerk at 978-597-1704