Records that survive
These are the record series from St. Louis County that the Missouri State Archives has on microfilm, with the office that kept each and the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps.
Marriages, births and deaths
- Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1830–1959
- Index to Marriages · Recorder of Deeds1877–1980
- Register of Births · Treasurer1883–1895
- Register of Deaths · Treasurer1883
- Register of Stillbirths · Treasurer1883
- Permanent Record of Births · Treasurer1905
- Index to Deaths · Treasurer1910–1936
Deeds and land
- Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1805–1867
- Index to Deeds · Recorder of Deeds1805–1867
- Land Surveys · Recorder of Deeds1806–1851
- Mechanics Lien Index · Circuit Court1824–1875
- Mechanics Liens · Circuit Court1824–1875
- Real Estate Account Book · City Clerk1838
- Naturalization Index · Court Of Common Pleas1848
- Proceedings of Board Trustees · Circuit Court1850
- Abstract of Deeds · City Clerk1851
- Land Court Case Files Index · Circuit Court1853–1860
- Land Court Case Files Indexes · Circuit Court1853–1865
- Land Court Index · Circuit Court1853–1854
- Land Court Minutes · Circuit Court1853–1865
- Land Court Record Book Indexes · Circuit Court1853–1865
- and 14 more series in the full listing
Wills and estates
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1774–1826
- Guardianship Case File Index · Probate Court1802–1889
- Guardianship Case Files · Probate Court1802–1983
- Probate Case File Index · Probate Court1802–1876
- Administrative Records · Circuit Court1804–1892
- Probate Case Files · Probate Court1804–1966
- Probate Records · Probate Court1804–1971
- Wills · Probate Court1816–1969
- Index to Wards · Probate Court1870–1973
- Index to Deceased · Probate Court1876–1975
- List of Guardians and Wards · Probate Court1877–1925
- Notices · Probate Court1877–1955
- Will Index · Probate Court1878–1976
- Embalmers License Register · Probate Court1895–1938
- and 9 more series in the full listing
Naturalization
- Naturalization Index Cards · Circuit Court1816–1906
- Naturalizations · Court Of Common Pleas1841–1857
- Naturalization Index · Court Of Common Pleas1847
- Naturalization Index · Circuit Court1860
- Naturalizations · Circuit Court1868
- Citizen's Advisory Committee · County Clerk1955
- Special Citizens Committee · County Clerk1968
Military and pensions
- Minutes · City Clerk1956
Tax records
- Tax Records · County Clerk1816–1833
- Personal, Merchants, and · City Clerk1861
- Taxes · City Assessor1863–1864
- Taxes Uncollected · County Clerk1865–1888
- Assessments · City Assessor1867–1868
- Assessments · City Clerk1869
- Road Tax · County Clerk1878
- Merchants and Manufacturers · County Clerk1879–1903
Court records
- Circuit Court Case File Index · Circuit Court1804–1889
- Circuit Court Case Files · Circuit Court1804–1889
- Correspondence · Circuit Court1804–1877
- Docket and Records · Court Of Common Pleas1804
- Grand Jury Records · Circuit Court1804–1832
- Minutes · Court Of Common Pleas1804–1865
- Jury Records · Circuit Court1805–1863
- Reports · Circuit Court1805–1884
- Common Pleas Records · Court Of Common Pleas1806–1851
- Territorial Record Book · Court Of Common Pleas1806
- Chancery Records · Circuit Court1811–1848
- Circuit Court Records · Circuit Court1816–1875
- St. Louis Circuit Court Record · Circuit Court1819–1876
- Attorneys Roll · Circuit Court1820–1880
- and 60 more series in the full listing
Schools
- Miscellaneous School Records · Superintendent Of Schools1865–2000
- School Book Census · City Clerk1869
- Report to The Superintendent · Superintendent Of Schools1878–1882
- School Ledger · Superintendent Of Schools1880–1900
- School Warrants · Superintendent Of Schools1881–1937
- Cash Book · County Clerk1900–1948
- General Ledger · County Clerk1900–1955
- School Enumerations and · Superintendent Of Schools1912–1959
- Vandover School # 65 · Superintendent Of Schools1915–1918
- District Clerks Records · County Clerk1919–1939
- Specifications for the High School · County Clerk1921
- Voucher Register · County Clerk1924–1931
- Legal Questions · County Clerk1930
- Miscellaneous Transcripts · County Clerk1931
- and 52 more series in the full listing
Other records
- Index to Census of St. Louis · City Clerk1793–1827
- Financial Records · County Clerk1802–1881
- Fragments · County Clerk1803
- Licenses and Permits · County Clerk1804–1843
- Appointments and Oaths · County Clerk1805–1878
- Contracts and Agreements · County Clerk1805–1867
- Coroner Inquest Index · City Clerk1806–1839
- Coroner Inquests · City Clerk1806–1839
- Bonds · County Clerk1807–1842
- Election Records · County Clerk1817–1840
- Powers of Attorney · County Clerk1821–1847
- St. Louis County Census: St. · City Clerk1840
- St. Louis County Census: · City Clerk1840
- Accounts · City Clerk1849–1950
- and 81 more series in the full listing
Open the full roll-by-roll listing (PDF)
Source: Missouri State Archives, Guide to County and Municipal Records on Microfilm. Recorder of deeds records dated 1970 or later must be requested from the county. Counties kept birth and death registers under an 1883 law until its repeal in 1893, with coverage varying by county; statewide registration began in 1910.
Where to find the records
- St. Louis County official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the recorder of deeds, the probate court and the circuit clerk, and any online record search the county offers.
- The recorder of deeds
Deeds and mortgages, and marriage records, usually from the county's beginning. Licenses were required from 1881; earlier books record the marriages themselves.
- The probate court
Wills, estates, guardianships and curatorships. Since 1979 it has been the probate division of the circuit court.
- The circuit clerk
Civil and criminal cases, divorces and, in many counties, naturalizations.
- The Missouri State Archives
In Jefferson City: microfilm of county records from Missouri's counties and the City of St. Louis, and free online databases, including death certificates from 1910 that are more than 50 years old.
- Missouri State Archives: St. Louis County records on microfilm (PDF)free
Every roll the state archives holds for this county, with the office, title, dates and reel number.
- Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975free
Search the Missouri State Archives' death certificate index by name and view the certificates.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Missouri, St. Louis" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: One of the original districts of the District of Louisiana, before Missouri had counties
Later formed partly from St. Louis County: Franklin County, Howard County, Jefferson County, Washington County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1804, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Missouri's probate files often hold far more than a will: inventories, sale bills listing the buyers (often relatives and neighbors) and the receipts of heirs. Check the circuit court too, where heirs went to divide land.