Lancaster Death Records Lookup
Lancaster death records are kept by the Fairfield County Health Department in Ohio. Lancaster is the county seat of Fairfield County, so the health department office sits right in the city on Sheridan Drive. You can search for Lancaster death certificates at the county office, order them online, request them by mail, or contact the state health department. The Fairfield County office has records going back to December 1908 and offers several ways to get copies. Finding a Lancaster death record is straightforward once you know which office to contact and what details you need.
Lancaster Death Records Overview
Fairfield County Death Records
Lancaster death certificates are filed with the Fairfield County Health Department. The vital statistics office is at 1550 Sheridan Drive, Suite 100, Lancaster, OH 43130. You can reach the main line at 740-652-2800 and press Option 2 for vital statistics. The direct vital stats line is 740-652-2836.
The office keeps death records from December 1908 to the present. That covers well over a century of Lancaster death certificates. For deaths that took place before 1908, you need to contact the Fairfield County Probate Court at 740-652-7485. The probate court held death records before Ohio started its statewide vital statistics system.
The fee for a Lancaster death certificate is $32.00 per certified copy. The office accepts cash, check, money order, and credit or debit cards. Card payments come with a fee of $1.50 or 3%, whichever is greater. Walk-in requests are processed during regular business hours and often completed the same day.
Getting Lancaster Death Certificates
There are four ways to get a Lancaster death certificate from the Fairfield County Health Department.
In person is the fastest. Visit the vital statistics office at 1550 Sheridan Drive, Suite 100 in Lancaster during business hours. Bring the full name of the deceased and the date of death. The parents' names and place of death help the staff pull the right record quickly. Pay the $32.00 fee and you can often get your certified copy the same day. The office takes cash, checks, money orders, and cards.
By mail, send a written request with the deceased person's details to Fairfield County Health Department, 1550 Sheridan Drive, Suite 100, Lancaster, OH 43130. Include a check or money order for $32.00 payable to the Fairfield County Health Department. Put your return address and a daytime phone number on the request. Mail orders take about one to two weeks to process and return.
Online ordering is available through VitalChek. You can also order directly through the health department's website. VitalChek charges a processing fee on top of the base cost. Credit or debit card payment is required for online orders. You can also print a request form from the Fairfield County Health Department website and mail it in.
Note: Credit and debit card payments at the Fairfield County vital statistics office carry a surcharge of $1.50 or 3%, whichever is greater.
What Lancaster Death Records Show
A Lancaster death certificate lists the same details required on all Ohio death certificates. Ohio Revised Code Section 3705.16 requires every death to be registered with the local registrar. The funeral director fills in the personal information. A doctor or the Fairfield County coroner certifies the cause of death.
The certificate includes the full name, date of birth, date of death, place of death, cause of death, and the certifying physician or coroner. It also shows parents' names, marital status, home address, and social security number. Under Section 3705.23, the social security number is withheld for five years after the date of death. Only authorized people can see it during that window. After five years, anyone can access the full record.
Death certificates in Ohio are public records. Section 149.43 lets anyone request a copy without showing family ties or stating a purpose.
Historical Lancaster Death Records
The Fairfield County Health Department has Lancaster death records from December 1908 forward. For deaths before that date, the Fairfield County Probate Court is the right place to look. Reach the probate court at 740-652-7485. Pre-1908 records may be sparse since death registration was not uniform before the state system began.
The Ohio History Connection holds state death certificates from 1908 through 1953. Their free online death index covers records from 1913 to 1944 and 1954 to 1970. This index is searchable by name and is a strong tool for Lancaster genealogy research. Fairfield County records from that era are included in the state collection.
The Ohio Department of Health at 4200 Surface Road, Columbus, OH 43228 keeps records from 1971 to the present. Their phone is 614-466-2531. The state fee is $21.50 per search.
Lancaster Death Certificate Fees
The Fairfield County Health Department charges $32.00 for a certified death certificate. This is higher than the state minimum of $12.00 set by Section 3705.24 of the Ohio Revised Code. Part of each fee goes to the state office of vital statistics and the rest stays with the local registrar.
If you order through the Ohio Department of Health, the fee is $21.50 plus a $5.00 modernization surcharge per order. VitalChek adds its own processing fee on top of the base cost. The exact VitalChek charge depends on shipping speed. Call the Fairfield County office at 740-652-2836 to confirm the current local fee before you visit or mail in a request.
Lancaster Death Records Resources
The Fairfield County Health Department vital statistics page below shows the office that handles Lancaster death certificates.
The Fairfield County Health Department at 1550 Sheridan Drive in Lancaster processes all death certificate requests for the county.
You can also use the VitalChek online portal shown here to order Lancaster death certificates from home.
VitalChek offers credit card payment and home delivery for Fairfield County death certificates covering Lancaster.
Fairfield County Death Records
Lancaster is the county seat of Fairfield County. All Lancaster death certificates go through the Fairfield County Health Department. For the full county page with complete office details, see the link below.
Nearby Ohio Cities
Other Ohio cities near Lancaster where you can search for death records.