Haines Borough Birth Records
Haines Borough birth records are filed and held by the State of Alaska, not by the borough itself. The borough sits in the upper Lynn Canal area of Southeast Alaska, and births that take place here are sent to the central state office in Juneau. To search for or order Haines Borough birth records, you go through the Alaska Department of Health, Health Analytics and Vital Records Section. You can ask for a copy by mail, fax, online, or in person. The search tool below is a quick way to start your lookup.
Haines Borough Birth Records Overview
About Haines Borough Birth Records
Haines Borough is a small home rule borough in the Alaska Panhandle. The seat is the town of Haines. The borough was set up in 1968 as a consolidated city-borough. It has about 2,000 residents and covers a stretch of the Chilkat River valley. The borough is also home to the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. While the borough runs its own local government, it has no clerk that issues birth certificates. All Haines Borough birth records are kept by the Alaska Department of Health.
The state office is the only place that holds birth records for events that took place in Haines Borough. Hospitals and clinics in the area file each new birth with the state. The state then logs it under the file number, the names of the parents, the date, and the place. You can read more about how the state runs the system on the Alaska Department of Health vital records page.
Most Haines Borough birth records are private. Under Alaska Statute 18.50, a birth record is closed for 100 years from the date of birth. After that, it can be ordered by anyone. The state set this rule to keep family info safe. Older records, the ones that are now public, can be found through the state archives or through FamilySearch.
The borough does not have its own court house for vital records. Locals who need a copy of a birth certificate must go through the state office in Juneau or the walk-in branch in Anchorage. Mail and fax orders are open to anyone in the borough. Online orders go through VitalChek.
Order Haines Borough Birth Records
You have four ways to order Haines Borough birth records. You can mail your form, send it by fax, place an online order through VitalChek, or visit one of the two walk-in offices. The state warns you to pick one method per request. Two requests for the same record may cause two charges.
Mail orders are the most common choice for people who live in Haines. You print the state birth certificate request form, fill it in, sign it, and send it with a copy of your photo ID and a check or money order. The fee is $30 for the first copy and $25 for each extra copy. Send the packet to Health Analytics and Vital Records, P.O. Box 110675, Juneau, AK 99811-0675. Mail orders take about two to three months to fill. Use the Alaska Department of Health vital records orders page to grab the form.
Online orders go through VitalChek for Alaska. This is the only online service that the state has approved. You fill in the form, upload your ID, and pay with a card. There is a small extra service fee. Orders ship in two to three weeks. This is the fastest way for Haines Borough residents to get a birth record.
Fax orders go to (907) 465-3618. The fee is the same. The wait is also about two to three months. Walk-in service is open in Juneau and Anchorage. Both can issue Haines Borough birth records the same day. The Juneau office is at 5441 Commercial Boulevard. Phone is (907) 465-3391. The Anchorage office is at 3901 Old Seward Highway, Suite 101. Phone is (907) 269-0991.
Note: The state will not refund duplicate orders, so pick one method per request and stick with it.
Who Can Order Haines Borough Records
Alaska is a closed-record state. Only certain people can order recent Haines Borough birth records. The state checks photo ID for each order. You must send a clear copy of a valid ID with your form.
The list below shows who can ask for a copy of an Alaska birth record under state rules:
- The person named on the record, age 14 or older with a school or photo ID
- A parent listed on the certificate
- A legal guardian with court papers
- A third party with a notarized letter from the person named on the record
- An attorney or a government agency with a letter on letterhead
Friends and other kin can order an heirloom birth certificate as a gift, but only for a person who would be eligible to order on their own. The state form has the full list of who counts as a valid requester. The fee for an heirloom is $55 for the first copy and $50 for each extra copy. Two artist designs are sold by the state.
Older Haines Borough birth records, those more than 100 years old, are open to anyone. Under Alaska Statute Title 18, Chapter 50, a birth record becomes public 100 years after the date of birth. AS 18.50.310 spells out the rules on disclosure. AS 18.50.160 covers birth registration in the state.
Historical Haines Borough Birth Records
Old Haines Borough birth records are useful for family history research. The state did not begin to file births in any formal way until 1913. Haines was a young town then, built up after a Presbyterian mission was set up in the late 1800s. Many early births in the area were noted in church books and mission logs, not by any state office. By 1945, most births were filed with the state.
FamilySearch and the Alaska State Archives have worked together to scan more than 1.1 million pages of vital records. Many old birth, death, marriage, and probate files for the Lynn Canal area are now free online. Use the FamilySearch Alaska Vital Records wiki to find indexes and digital scans.
Researchers can also plan a visit to the Alaska State Archives genealogy page in Juneau. The archives holds vital statistics from 1816 through 1998. Many of these old files name people who were born in or near the Haines area. The archives is at 141 Willoughby Avenue in Juneau.
Note: Older Haines Borough birth records are open to anyone, but the state still charges the same $30 fee for a certified copy.
Local Resources in Haines Borough
The Haines Borough offices are at 103 Third Avenue South in Haines. The borough clerk handles local records like meeting minutes, property data, and election files. The clerk does not issue or hold birth certificates. For Haines Borough birth records, the clerk will point you to the state office in Juneau.
The closest hospital is the Haines Health Center in town. The center files each new birth with the state. New parents can ask the staff to help them fill in the state birth worksheet. The state then prints the certificate and mails it back to the parents. The first copy is sent free with the new birth packet. Extra copies cost $25 each.
For family history work, the Haines Borough Public Library at 111 Third Avenue is a good first stop. The library has census books, old town records, and links to online vital records sites. Staff can also help with FamilySearch lookups. The Alaska record dates page lists what years are open to the public.
If you need help with a delayed Haines Borough birth record, the state Special Services Unit at (907) 465-1200 can guide you. A delayed record is made for a person who was born but never had a birth filed. This was common before 1930. The state charges $60 for this service, which includes one new certified copy.
Nearby Boroughs
Haines Borough sits next to a few other boroughs in Southeast Alaska. Each one uses the same state system for birth records. None of them issue local birth certificates. You can browse nearby borough pages below to learn more about Alaska birth records in each area.
Borough pages near Haines:
The federal CDC also keeps a quick contact list for Alaska vital records. You can read it on the CDC where to write page for Alaska. This page has the same Juneau address and phone, plus the current fee for a certified copy.