Summit County Death Records
Summit County death records are available through Summit County Public Health in Akron. The office holds death certificates from December 1, 1908 to the present for deaths that occurred in the county. You can order a copy in person at the walk-up window, online through the county portal, by phone, or through VitalChek. The Summit County Probate Court keeps older death records from 1867 to 1908. The Akron-Summit County Public Library also has genealogy resources including death certificates on microfilm. Ohio treats death records as public records, so anyone can request a copy.
Summit County Death Records Overview
Summit County Public Health Death Records
Summit County Public Health handles death certificates for the county. The office is at 1867 West Market Street, Building A, in Akron, Ohio 44313. Call 330-812-3845 for the vital statistics line. The fax number is 330-812-3847. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Each certified death certificate costs $22.00. That is one of the lower fees in Ohio. You can pay with MasterCard, Visa, American Express, or Discover. A $1.95 credit card processing fee applies to each transaction. Summit County Public Health has an outdoor walk-up window and a self-service kiosk at the Fairway Center location. This setup allows for quick service without going inside the building. Same day copies are available for walk-in and walk-up requests.
Summit County death certificates cover deaths that occurred within the county from December 1, 1908 to the present. Birth certificates are available for anyone born anywhere in Ohio from 1908 onward. If the person died outside Summit County, contact that county's health department or the Ohio Department of Health.
How to Get Summit County Death Certificates
Summit County offers four ways to order death certificates. Walk in or use the walk-up window at the Fairway Center in Akron for same day service. The self-service kiosk is another in-person option.
The official online portal at vitals.scph.org is the county's own ordering system. Each copy costs $22.00 plus a $1.95 processing fee. You pay with a major credit card. Orders are processed within three to five business days and mailed to you. This is the portal Summit County Public Health recommends.
Phone orders are available by calling 330-812-3845 during business hours. You can also order through VitalChek. The VitalChek phone number is 866-221-6684. Their fax line is 888-985-6572. VitalChek adds extra fees on top of the base cost but offers expedited shipping.
The screenshot below shows the VitalChek ordering page for Summit County death records.
VitalChek is an authorized third-party service. The base certificate fee goes to Summit County, and VitalChek's processing fee is separate.
Under Ohio Revised Code Section 149.43, death records are public. You do not need to give a reason for your request. All sales are final and non-refundable. Summit County Public Health notes that vitals.scph.org and www.vitalchek.com are the only affiliated websites for online ordering.
Note: Summit County Public Health has an outdoor walk-up window and self-service kiosk for faster death certificate pickup at the Fairway Center.
Historical Summit County Death Records
The Summit County Probate Court holds birth and death records from 1867 to 1908. The court is at 209 South High Street in Akron, Ohio 44308. Call 330-643-2350. Marriage records from 1840 to the present are also on file, along with probate records for wills, estates, and guardianships.
The Akron-Summit County Public Library has a Special Collections Division at 60 South High Street in Akron. Call 330-643-9030. They hold Ohio death certificates on microfilm from 1908 through 1952. Census records, birth records, marriage records, and other genealogy materials are also available. This is a great free resource for family history research in Summit County.
The Ohio History Connection keeps death records from 1908 through 1970 with a free online index. FamilySearch offers Ohio death certificates from 1908 through 1953 at no cost. The Ohio Department of Health has records from 1954 to the present.
The state portal shown below gives Summit County residents another way to access Ohio death records at the state level.
The ODH portal covers statewide ordering options and fee information for all Ohio counties, including Summit.
Summit County Death Records and Ohio Law
The social security number on a Summit County death certificate is hidden for the first five years after death. Under Section 3705.23, only certain people can get the SSN during that time. The list includes the spouse, lineal descendants, executors, attorneys, legal agents, government investigators, private investigators, funeral directors, veteran's service officers, and accredited media members. You must show proof of your identity and relationship.
Ohio Revised Code Section 3705.16 requires every death to be registered with the local registrar. Section 3705.07 spells out what the registrar must do. They number each death certificate, sign it, keep a copy, and send the original to the state. Section 3705.24 sets the minimum search fee at $12.00. Summit County's actual fee is $22.00.
A burial permit costs $10.00 and cannot be issued until the death certificate is on file, per Section 3705.17. Forging or altering any vital record is a crime under Section 3705.29. Only a coroner or medical examiner can certify a death that was violent, suspicious, or sudden.
Note: After five years from the date of death, the full Summit County death certificate including the social security number is available to anyone.
Nearby Counties
Summit County is in northeast Ohio. These neighboring counties have their own health departments that issue death certificates.
Cities in Summit County
Summit County includes Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, both of which have dedicated pages on this site. Both cities get death certificates through Summit County Public Health.