Access Hocking County Death Records

Hocking County death records can be accessed through the county health department in Logan, Ohio. If you are looking for a death certificate for someone who died in this county, the health department has records from 1908 to the present. You can request copies by mail, in person, or by contacting the office directly. Hocking County also has a records center with older vital records going back to 1867. Ohio law makes these records public, so anyone with the right details can get a certified copy.

Hocking County Death Certificate Office

The Hocking County Health Department is at 350 St. Rt. 664N, Logan, Ohio. Phone: (740) 380-3030. Email: efile.hchd@gmail.com. The office is open Monday through Friday. Each certified copy of a death certificate costs $25. They accept credit cards (with a 3.5% transaction fee), checks, and money orders payable to HCHD.

To get a Hocking County death certificate by mail, you need to fill out a Certificate Application and send it to the health department. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope and your payment. The office returns orders in the next business day's mail. For passports or any records after 1908, you must go to the Division of Vital Statistics on Chieftain Drive in Logan. The registrar is Shari Schorr and the deputy registrar is Lacee Roop.

Keep in mind that for recent death events, it can take up to three months for a record to be fully registered in the system. If you are looking for a death that just happened, you may need to wait before a certified copy is available. Vital records are public records in Ohio, so anyone who can submit the basic facts of a record can request a copy.

The Hocking County Health Department death certificate information page is shown below.

The page provides application forms, fee details, and instructions for ordering certified copies of Hocking County death records.

Older Hocking County Death Records

Hocking County has death records going back further than many Ohio counties. The Hocking County Records Center holds death records from 1867 to 1908 in Books 1 through 4. The Records Center is in the Huls Building basement at 51 E. Main St., Logan, OH 43138. Phone: 740-380-2457. Death records after 1908 are at the Division of Vital Statistics on Chieftain Drive.

The Records Center offers a helpful pricing structure for researchers. Your first search is free. Each additional assisted search costs $5.00 per name. Copies are $0.25 per page. A certified death record from the Records Center costs $10.00. A certified birth record is also $10.00. These fees are much lower than the health department's $25 charge for post-1908 records because they come from the older county archives rather than the state vital statistics system.

The Hocking County Probate Court at 1 East Main St., Logan, OH 43138 also has older vital records. Call (740) 385-3022 for questions about probate-era death records. FamilySearch has digitized some Hocking County death records and made them searchable online for free, which is a great starting point for genealogy research.

The screenshot below shows the Hocking County Courthouse records page with details about historical records.

This page covers the Records Center location, fees for searches and copies, and what types of vital records are available.

Hocking County Death Records and Ohio Law

Ohio Revised Code Chapter 3705 governs death records in Hocking County and across the state. Section 3705.16 requires that every death be registered with the local registrar. The funeral director files the personal details and a doctor or coroner certifies the cause of death. The Hocking County Health Department maintains all death records filed from 1909 to the present, while the Records Center holds the older records.

Under Section 149.43, death certificates are public records. You don't need to show a family relationship. Section 3705.23 does redact the social security number for the first five years after death. Only authorized people can see the SSN during that time. The state list includes spouses, descendants, attorneys, law enforcement, funeral directors, and estate executors.

Section 3705.24 sets a minimum fee of $12 per copy statewide. Hocking County charges $25 for certified copies from the health department and $10 for certified copies from the Records Center. The Ohio Department of Health charges $21.50 plus a $5 modernization fee for state-level copies.

State Resources for Hocking County Records

Beyond local sources, several state agencies can help you find Hocking County death records. The Ohio Department of Health ordering page walks you through the process of getting copies from the state office. They have death records from 1954 forward and charge $21.50 plus a $5 modernization fee. For older records from 1908 to 1953, the Ohio History Connection is the right source.

FamilySearch has digitized many Hocking County death records and made them searchable for free. This is a good starting point if you are doing family research and want to check what is available before paying for certified copies. Between the health department, the Records Center, the Probate Court, and online databases, Hocking County has one of the more complete collections of death records in southeastern Ohio.

Nearby Counties

Hocking County is in southeastern Ohio. If the death happened in a neighboring county, contact that county's health department for the certificate.