Historian FAQ

Historian FAQ's

P.O. Box 1179, Southold, N.Y. 11971.

(631) 765-1981

Available Tuesdays and Thursdays, please call first for an appointment.

Q: Do you have records of births, deaths and marriages for the 17^th, (1600’s), 18^th, (1700’s) and 19^th, (1800’s) centuries ?

The short answer is NO. The long answer is that it was not until 1881 that New York State passed a law mandating that all municipalities (towns and villages) begin keeping records of vital statistics (births, deaths and marriages).

Q: Does this mean that I can find anyone who was born or died or was married after 1881 in Southold Town or Greenport Village?

Not really. First, the new law took a while to become institutionalized. That means it took a while for the municipalities to get organized. Second, not all births or marriages were recorded. Sometimes, a person who lived in Southold was born, died or got married somewhere else. There could be other reasons not to record such an event. Many death records were kept by undertakers and have been lost over time.

Q: Does the historian’s office have records of births, deaths and marriages in the 20^th (1900’s) or 21^st (2000’s) centuries?

No, the responsibility of keeping the records of births, deaths or marriages belongs to the Town Clerk. New York State sets the price for a copy of a birth, death or marriage certificate. Elizabeth Neville is our Town Clerk. You can call her office at 631.765.1801. Or write to: Southold Town Clerk, Southold Town Hall, P.O. Box 1179, Southold, N.Y. 11971. Please give them as much information as you can. If you have reason to think the person you are interested in might have been born in Greenport, our only incorporated village, you should contact Village Hall at 236 Third Street , Greenport, N.Y. 11944 or call 631.477.2391 and ask for the Village Clerk’s office. Just as in Southold Town, the State of New York sets the rate for copies of records of vital statistics like births, deaths and marriages.

Q: Does the historian’s office have records of land deeds?

No, deeds are registered (if they were registered at all) at the County Center in Riverhead. If you are online the Suffolk County Clerk has a good website. The Suffolk County Clerk is Judith A. Pascale. You can write to her at 310 Center Drive, Riverhead, N.Y. 11901 or call her office at 631.852.2000.

Q: What else can I find at the Suffolk Clerk’s Office?

Wills are registered at the Clerk’s office in Riverhead, they have a map room, and an archivist, Sharon Pullen. There’s lot more, I’m only mentioning things that most people who contact me want to know.

Q: Can I get information about houses from the historian’s office?

Sometimes. Not every old house in our town is on the SPLIA survey. That stands for the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities in Cold Spring Harbor. Southold Town paid for them to do a survey of old (about 100 years old or more) houses and historical sites in 1985-86. Many houses that were surveyed then have since been torn down as there is, as yet, no real protection for land-marked houses.

Q: How can I make my research as easy as possible?

I work part-time so please call first to make an appointment. My number is 631.765.1981 or you can even write a letter to Antonia Booth, Southold Town Historian at P.O. Box 1179, Southold, N.Y. 11971. Give me all the information you can. If you are already online you know how to reach me by email. I will do everything possible to help you.