Minneapolis Death Records

Death records for Minneapolis residents are filed and maintained through Hennepin County Vital Records, not through the City of Minneapolis itself. Whether you need a certified death certificate for legal or estate purposes, or you are searching the Minneapolis death index for genealogy research, Hennepin County is the office to contact. Records go back to 1870 in various forms, and certified copies of deaths from 1997 onward can be requested from any county in Minnesota. This page covers where to go, how to request records, what to bring, and how to search historical Minneapolis death records online.

Where Minneapolis Residents Get Death Records

Minneapolis is the seat of Hennepin County, and all death records for Minneapolis are handled by Hennepin County Vital Records. The city does not maintain its own vital records office. When a person dies in Minneapolis, the death is registered with the state and a copy goes to the county. The county then issues certified and non-certified copies upon request. If you need a certificate for settling an estate, handling insurance, or any legal matter, Hennepin County is your starting point.

The main office is at the Hennepin County Government Center, 300 S 6th St, Minneapolis, MN 55487. You can also reach the office by mail at Vital Records Office, 300 South 6th St, MC-678B, Minneapolis MN 55487-0678. The phone number is (612) 348-8240. Email inquiries can go to vitalrecords@hennepin.us. Hennepin County also has service centers around the county if the downtown Government Center isn't convenient. Check https://www.hennepin.us/servicecenters for locations near you.

For deaths that happened in 1997 or later, you can actually request through any county in Minnesota, not just Hennepin. That flexibility was created to make access easier across the state. For deaths before 1997, you need to go to the county where the death occurred -- in this case, Hennepin County -- or contact the Minnesota Department of Health.

How to Request Minneapolis Death Certificates from Hennepin County

Hennepin County offers several ways to get a death certificate for a Minneapolis death. You can go in person to the Government Center downtown, send a request by mail, fax your request in, or drop off a completed application. Each method has slightly different steps.

In person, bring a valid government-issued photo ID. You'll fill out the application at the counter and pay at that time. Checks should be made payable to Hennepin County Treasurer. Credit cards are accepted in person. If you need the record the same day, that's generally possible, but if you want guaranteed same-day processing, you can pay a $20 rush fee on top of the base certificate cost. That extra fee gets your request moved to the front of the line.

By mail, you must notarize your request before sending it. Download the death certificate application form from the Hennepin County website, complete it, have it notarized, and mail it with a check or money order. Allow extra time for mail processing -- plan for at least one to two weeks. Fax requests are also accepted at 612-348-2010, but faxed requests add a $9.50 convenience fee, and payment must be by credit card.

When filling out any request, you'll need to provide the full name of the deceased, the date of death, the date of birth or age, the city or county where the death occurred, parents' names if known, and the spouse's name if applicable. The more details you can supply, the faster the search goes.

The Hennepin County website has full details at https://www.hennepin.us/. Look under residents, then licenses, certificates, and permits to find the vital records section.

Minneapolis Death Certificate Fees

The fee for a certified death certificate in Minnesota is set by state law. For Minneapolis deaths processed through Hennepin County, the cost is $13 for the first certified copy. Each additional certified copy ordered at the same time costs $6. Non-certified copies, which are informational and cannot be used for legal purposes, also cost $13 each. Veterans requesting records related to their own death benefit claims can receive copies free of charge.

If you request by fax, add $9.50 to your total. If you want expedited same-day processing in person, add $20. If you want USPS Priority Express shipping on a mailed order, there may be additional postage charges. Payment options vary by request method -- in-person requests accept checks and credit cards; mail-in requests require a check or money order payable to Hennepin County Treasurer.

For the most current fee schedule, check the Minnesota Department of Health fee page at https://www.health.state.mn.us/people/vitalrecords/birthnc.html.

Who Can Request Minneapolis Death Records

Minnesota law limits who can get a certified copy of a death certificate. Under Minnesota Statute 144.225, you must have a "tangible interest" to request a certified copy. People with tangible interest include the spouse, parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling of the deceased. It also covers the legal representative of any of these people, anyone who needs the record for a legal proceeding, and government agencies acting in official capacity.

Non-certified informational copies are available to anyone. These copies are clearly marked as not for legal use. They contain the same basic information -- name, date, place of death -- but cannot be submitted to courts, insurance companies, or government agencies as proof of death. If you are doing genealogy research and don't have a legal need for a certified copy, a non-certified copy works well and is easier to obtain.

Under Minnesota Statute 13.10, death records are generally public but certain information within them may be restricted. The cause of death, for example, becomes more openly available after a set period of time. When in doubt, contact Hennepin County to ask what level of record you qualify to receive.

Minneapolis Medical Examiner Death Records

Hennepin County has its own Medical Examiner's office, which handles deaths that are sudden, unexpected, violent, or otherwise suspicious. For Minneapolis -- a large urban area -- the Medical Examiner handles a significant number of cases each year. The office is a separate resource from Vital Records and keeps its own records on the cases it investigates.

The Medical Examiner can be reached at 612-215-6300. The office maintains a public information database that includes full name, age, race, gender, home address, and the date, time, and location of injury and death, along with brief comments on each case. This public data is available to anyone. More detailed records -- such as autopsy reports, detailed cause of death, and medical information -- are restricted to next of kin and authorized representatives.

The Medical Examiner also offers a Reportable Death List, which is a daily email notification service. Organizations and individuals who need timely information about reported deaths can subscribe to this list. Autopsy reports are available for a fee. For more information on what the Medical Examiner's office provides and how to make a request, see https://www.hennepin.us/residents/public-safety/medical-examiner.

The Medical Examiner's records are distinct from standard death certificates. If a death was investigated by the ME, both types of records may exist and each serves a different purpose.

The following screenshot shows the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's public records portal:

The Medical Examiner's office handles all deaths in Minneapolis and surrounding Hennepin County that require investigation, maintaining separate records from standard vital records.

Online Death Record Search for Minneapolis

Two main online tools exist for searching Minneapolis death records. The first is the Minnesota Department of Health's Verify a Death tool, which covers deaths from 1997 to present for the entire state. You can use it at https://www.health.state.mn.us/people/vitalrecords/deathsearch/dthSearch.html. This tool lets you confirm whether a death is on file, but it doesn't give you a certificate -- it just verifies the record exists. It's useful for quick lookups, especially if you're not sure of the exact date.

The second tool is the Minnesota Historical Society's people records search at https://www.mnhs.org/search/people. This covers death records from 1904 through 2001. For Minneapolis specifically, the MNHS holds a wide range of historical materials that go beyond the standard statewide death certificate collection. Minneapolis-specific death records from 1886 to 1915 are available through FamilySearch. The MNHS also holds Minnesota Soldiers Home death records from 1888 to 1987, which is particularly useful for researchers tracing Minneapolis veterans. City directories from 1887 to 1900 and 1901 to 1910 also contain death notices and can be searched for historical research purposes.

The full MDH death records resource page is at https://www.health.state.mn.us/people/vitalrecords/death.html for guidance on requesting certified copies and understanding what the state holds.

Historical Minneapolis Death Index Records

Minneapolis has one of the richer historical death record collections in Minnesota, partly because it was the state's largest city for most of its history. The death index for Minneapolis spans 1870 to 1959 in various forms. Statewide registration of deaths began in 1870 under Minnesota law, though compliance in early years was not always complete. By the late 1800s, Minneapolis deaths were consistently recorded.

The Hennepin County website links to the county's public health data resources, which include population and mortality information useful for understanding trends. The community health page at https://www.hennepin.us/your-government/research-data/public-health-data provides context for death data in the county over time.

For deep genealogy research, the MNHS holds rural death returns from 1870 to 1913, which captures deaths in areas that were then outside Minneapolis city limits but are now part of the metro. The index of Minneapolis deaths from 1870 to 1959 is among the most-searched records in the MNHS collection. Researchers who want guidance on using these records should check https://www.mnhs.org/search/people/about/deathrecords for detailed instructions.

The screenshot below shows the Hennepin County homepage, where residents can find links to vital records, the Medical Examiner, and other county services:

From the county homepage, navigate to residents and then licenses and certificates to reach the Vital Records section where death certificate requests are processed.

Minneapolis Death Records and Hennepin County Medical Examiner Details

Below is a screenshot from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's informational page, which explains what records are available and how the public can request them:

The Medical Examiner's office publishes information on what public records it holds. Families and legal representatives can contact the office directly at 612-215-6300 to request autopsy reports or detailed case information.

Minnesota Statute 144.221 at https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/144.221 outlines the registration requirements for deaths in Minnesota, including who is responsible for filing and when. This is the core statute that governs how Minneapolis deaths get recorded in the first place. Deaths must be registered within a set time after they occur, and the funeral director or attending physician is typically responsible for filing the certificate.

Additional Resources for Minneapolis Death Records

For more on Hennepin County death records, the county's full vital records services, and related resources, visit the Hennepin County Death Index page. That page covers the complete range of records held by the county, links to the county's service centers, and provides additional detail on the request process.

Nearby counties with death records relevant to the Twin Cities metro area include Ramsey County to the east (home of St. Paul) and Anoka, Dakota, Scott, and Carver counties ringing the south and west metro. If you're not sure which county handled a particular death, the MDH Verify a Death tool can confirm the county of record for deaths from 1997 onward.

Legal aid resources in Minneapolis can help low-income residents who need death certificates for benefits claims or estate proceedings. Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid serves Hennepin County and can be reached through the state's legal aid network. The county's social services division may also be able to assist with fee waivers in some situations.