Find Death Records in Boone County

Boone County death index records are maintained by the Columbia-Boone County Health Department and by the Missouri State Archives for historical records going back to 1910. This page covers the local health department, the state Bureau of Vital Records, the free Archives search database, and supplemental sources for older or genealogical research.

Columbia-Boone County Health Department Death Records

The Columbia-Boone County Health Department is the local office for certified death certificates covering deaths that occurred in Boone County. The office is in the Howard Municipal Building at 600 East Broadway, Columbia, MO 65201. Phone is (573) 874-7346. Hours run Monday through Friday. The fee is $13 per certified copy. For current hours and any changes to the application process, visit columbiahealth.org. The department issues records for deaths from 1980 forward.

For genealogy research or records involving non-natural death investigations, the health department directs requests to the state Bureau of Vital Records at (573) 751-6381. This is worth knowing before you make the trip to the local office. If your search involves an older record or a complex case, call the state Bureau directly to confirm which office can help you.

To request a copy in person at the local office, bring a valid photo ID and a completed Application for Missouri Vital Record. Acceptable IDs include a driver's license, state ID card, U.S. passport, military ID, school ID, or work ID. Without a primary photo ID, two alternate documents can be used in its place. Alternates include Social Security cards, W-2 forms, utility bills, court papers, insurance policies, or letters from government agencies.

The Missouri Bureau of Vital Records ordering page covers the statewide application process, fee schedule, and downloadable form for any Missouri county including Boone.

This page is the primary reference for ordering a certified Boone County death certificate from the state level by mail or through VitalChek.

Missouri Bureau of Vital Records and Boone County Deaths

The Missouri Bureau of Vital Records at 930 Wildwood Drive, Jefferson City, MO 65109 holds Boone County death records from January 1, 1910, through the present. Phone is 573-751-6387. Lobby hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Appointments are recommended for in-person visits. For deaths before 1980, the Bureau is often the better starting point since older records were registered centrally before the local Columbia-Boone County office took on its current role. The state fee is $14 for the first certified copy and $11 for each additional copy of the same record, as set by RSMo 193.265.

Under RSMo 193.255, certified copies of death certificates less than 50 years old are restricted to those with a direct and tangible interest. Qualifying parties include a spouse, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, and other close family members. Legal representatives and those with estate or property interests also qualify. Under RSMo 193.225, once 50 years pass, records transfer to the State Archives and become public at no cost.

VitalChek is the authorized online vendor for Missouri death certificates. Order at VitalChek any time of day or night. Delivery is 3 to 5 business days and no notarization is required. You can also call 1-877-817-7363. Boone County residents near the University of Missouri campus who need records for estate or legal purposes often find VitalChek the most convenient path.

The image below shows the VitalChek portal, which handles online orders for certified Missouri death certificates including those from Boone County.

Use this site to order a certified copy of a Boone County death certificate without visiting a government office in person.

Boone County Death Index in the Missouri State Archives

The Missouri State Archives has more than 2.5 million digitized death certificates from 1910 through 1975. Boone County death records from this period are searchable for free at the Archives Death Certificates portal. You can search by name, county, year, and month. For deaths from 1954 through 1975, searches by surviving spouse, father, or mother name are also supported. Each digitized certificate shows the decedent's full name, death date and place, birth date and state, both parents' names, spouse, occupation, cause of death, attending physician, funeral home, and burial location. Under RSMo 193.145, all modern Missouri certificates are filed electronically through MoEVR, creating a uniform statewide record.

Boone County was organized in 1820, one of Missouri's older counties. It has a long record history that predates formal state registration by many decades. The county is home to the University of Missouri in Columbia, which means more deaths from university-affiliated hospitals and medical programs may appear in the county's records than in a typical rural county. For deaths before 1910, the Missouri Birth and Death Records Database, Pre-1910 indexes microfilmed records from the early registration period of 1883 to 1893.

Residents of Columbia, the county seat and largest city in Boone County, can use the same state and local resources described here. Columbia-area deaths are recorded through the Columbia-Boone County Health Department for recent records and through the Archives for older ones.

The FamilySearch Boone County genealogy page lists what collections exist for the county, including early probate records at the Boone County Courthouse and digitized collections available online. It's worth checking before contacting the local office directly.

What Boone County Death Records Include

A certified Boone County death certificate lists the decedent's full legal name, date and place of death, date and state of birth, sex, race, marital status, and occupation. It also shows both parents' names including the mother's maiden name, the surviving spouse's name, cause of death and contributing conditions, the attending physician or coroner, funeral home information, and burial place. The informant who provided data at registration is named on the form. If you need the long form certificate with full medical certification language, that version is only available from the state Bureau in Jefferson City. Note that choice on your application when you order.

Records from 1910 to 1975 in the Archives database contain the same core data fields. Certificates from the early decades of registration may have fewer entries because the forms used then were simpler. Medical cause-of-death language from older records can be hard to interpret. The Archives offers a medical terminology guide and a historical reference tool to help researchers make sense of older entries. Terms like "dropsy," "consumption," and "marasmus" are common on pre-1940 certificates.

Certified copies of death certificates from within the last 50 years are restricted. Only eligible parties under RSMo 193.255 can receive them. For records more than 50 years old, anyone can access the Archives database free of charge. No relationship proof is required for those older records.

Nearby Counties

Boone County sits in central Missouri. If a person lived near a county boundary, the adjacent county offices below may hold the record you need.