Putnam County Death Records

Putnam County death records are managed by the health department in Ottawa, Ohio. If you are searching for a death certificate from Putnam County, you have several options. You can visit the office, call with a credit card, send a mail request, or order online through VitalChek. The department holds records from 1909 to the present and searches up to 50 years back. Each certified copy costs $27.00. Ohio considers death records public, and anyone can request a copy with the name of the deceased and the date of death.

Putnam County Health Department Death Records

The Putnam County Health Department is where you get death certificates for Putnam County. The office is at 256 Williamstown Road, Ottawa, OH 45875. Phone is (419) 523-5608. Fax is (419) 523-4171. The local registrar is Jodie Lammers, who you can email at Jodie.lammers@putnamhealth.com. The deputy registrar is Laurie Meyer at Laurie.meyer@putnamhealth.com. The registration district number is 6900.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM. Walk-in service is fast. Certificates are usually ready in just a few minutes. A certified death certificate costs $27.00 per copy as of January 1, 2025. Fetal death certificates with cause of death shown are also $27.00. Stillbirth abstracts for pregnancies of 20 weeks or less are free, but only for birth parents.

The department can issue death certificates for anyone who died in Ohio, starting from 1909. They search the present date and previous 50 years only. If you need a record older than 50 years, you will need to try other sources like the Ohio History Connection. Requests submitted online or in person are searched and filled within five business days.

Below is the Putnam County Health Department website for vital statistics services.

This page has ordering details, fee schedules, and contact information for Putnam County death certificates.

How to Get Putnam County Death Certificates

There are four ways to get a death certificate from Putnam County.

Walk in during business hours at 256 Williamstown Road in Ottawa. Pay with cash, check, or credit card. Credit and debit cards have extra processing fees. The certificate is usually ready in minutes. You can also call (419) 523-5608 and order by phone with a credit card. Additional card charges apply.

For mail requests, fill out the Application for Ohio Certified Death Record Copies. Include a check or money order payable to Putnam County Health Department. Mail it to 256 Williamstown Road, Ottawa, OH 45875. Same-day processing happens when your request arrives. The Ohio Department of Health also accepts orders at $21.50 per copy.

Online ordering is available through VitalChek. They add processing fees but accept all major credit cards and offer expedited shipping. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 149.43, death records are public records. Anyone can request a copy.

Putnam County Death Record Fees and Rules

Each certified copy costs $27.00 at the Putnam County Health Department. If you pay more than $27.00 by more than $2.00, the excess is refunded when no record is provided. The state fee through the Ohio Department of Health is $21.50 under Ohio Revised Code Section 3705.24.

Payment methods include cash, personal checks, money orders, and debit or credit cards. Card payments have extra processing fees. For deaths within the last five years, the social security number is not included on the death certificate unless the requestor shows proper identification proving their authorized status under Section 3705.23.

The VitalChek ordering page for Putnam County is shown below.

VitalChek provides an expedited online option for ordering Putnam County death certificates from home.

Historical Death Records in Putnam County

Pre-1909 death records in Putnam County are at the probate court. Those records date back to 1867 when Ohio counties first started keeping vital records. The probate court also holds marriage records and estate files. Contact the Putnam County Probate Court in Ottawa for details on accessing these older records.

The Ohio History Connection at 800 East 17th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43211 has archival death certificates from 1908 through 1970. Their online index is free to search and covers 1913 to 1944 and 1954 to 1970. FamilySearch has digitized many Ohio death records from 1908 to 1953. Records from 1971 to the present are at the Ohio Department of Health.

Putnam County also has sub-registrars at local funeral homes who can approve burial permits. These include David Heitmeyer at Heitmeyer Funeral Home, (419) 943-2157, and Shanda Martz and Heather Love-Reynolds at Love-Heitmeyer Funeral Home, (419) 286-6586 and (419) 523-6586. They handle permits only, not certificate orders.

What Putnam County Death Certificates Show

A death certificate from Putnam County lists the full name, date of birth, date and place of death, cause and manner of death, parents' names, marital status, and usual address. The physician or coroner completes the medical section. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 3705.16, every death must be registered with the local registrar.

The funeral director files the certificate and gathers personal details from the family. Burial cannot happen until the death certificate is on file and a permit is issued per Section 3705.17. The local registrar numbers each certificate, signs it, and sends the original to the state per Section 3705.07. Falsifying a vital record is a crime under Section 3705.29.

Nearby Counties

Putnam County is in northwest Ohio. These neighboring counties have their own health departments that issue death certificates.

Cities in Putnam County

Putnam County has no cities with dedicated pages on this site. Ottawa is the county seat. All Putnam County residents get death certificates from the Putnam County Health Department in Ottawa.