Madison County Obituary Records
Madison County obituary and death records are on file at the county health department and Probate Court in London. If you are searching for a death certificate or trying to track down an old obituary from Madison County, the local offices have records going back to the 1860s. The county is in central Ohio just west of Columbus with a population of about 44,000. London is the county seat. The health department has death certificates from 1908 onward. The Probate Court holds earlier records dating to 1867. Madison County also has genealogical resources online through OHGenWeb and FamilySearch that can help with obituary research from home.
Madison County Overview
Madison County Death Certificates
The Madison County Health Department handles death certificates for deaths from 1908 to the present. The office is at 306 Lafayette Street, Suite B, in London. Call (740) 852-3065 for information. The fax number is (740) 852-5418. Fees follow the standard Ohio schedule at about $25.00 per certified copy.
You can request records in person or through VitalChek online. Mail requests may also be accepted. When you order, you need the full name of the deceased and the date of death. Under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 3705, Ohio started statewide death registration on December 20, 1908. That is why the health department's records begin around that time. For earlier death records, you need the Probate Court.
| Office | Madison County Health Department |
|---|---|
| Address | 306 Lafayette Street, Suite B, London, OH 43140 |
| Phone | (740) 852-3065 |
| Fax | (740) 852-5418 |
Probate Court Obituary Files in Madison County
The Madison County Probate Court is at 1 North Main Street, Room 40, in London. Call (740) 852-1234 for help. The court holds birth and death records from 1867 to 1908. Marriage records go back to 1810. Probate records including wills and estates also start from 1810. Naturalization records are on file too. There have been no major courthouse fires or disasters, so the collection is fairly complete.
These older records are critical for obituary research in Madison County. Death entries from the probate court ledgers often include the name, age, date of death, and sometimes the cause of death. Marriage records from the same era can help you identify spouses and in-laws. Probate files for estates may list all surviving heirs, their addresses, and their relationship to the deceased. All of this helps when you are trying to piece together a family history or find details that might appear in a newspaper obituary.
Note: Madison County has marriage records going back to 1810, which is among the oldest collections in central Ohio.
Searching Madison County Obituaries
Online resources for Madison County obituary research include FamilySearch, which has birth and death records from 1867 to 1908 for the county. The Madison County Obituaries page at OHGenWeb lists obituary transcriptions contributed by local researchers. The Ohio Death Record Index covers death certificates from 1913 to 1944 and 1954 to 1970, including Madison County deaths.
The Madison County Health Department site shown above has information on getting vital records from the county. It lists services, contact details, and links for ordering certificates.
Madison County libraries have local history collections that may include newspaper clippings, family files, and other materials related to obituaries. The county is small enough that newspaper coverage tends to be concentrated in a few local papers, which makes searching easier than in bigger counties. The Bellefontaine Examiner and London-area papers covered much of the county through the years.
Ohio Obituary Resources for Madison County
Several statewide resources cover Madison County. The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library in Fremont has the Ohio Obituary Index with over 3.7 million entries from newspapers across the state. It is free to search online. The Ohio Department of Health handles death records from 1971 forward at $21.50 per copy.
The Ohio History Connection Archives holds death certificates from 1908 to 1970 and can provide non-certified research copies. FamilySearch has digitized many Ohio death certificates from 1908 to 1953 for free online viewing. Between these statewide tools and the local county offices, you can search for Madison County obituaries and death records covering nearly every time period from the 1860s to today.
How to Get Madison County Death Records
Go to the health department for deaths after 1908. Visit the Probate Court for deaths before that date. For newspaper obituaries, try the OHGenWeb obituaries page or the Hayes Library obituary index. VitalChek is another option for online ordering.
Certified copies for legal use come from the health department or the Ohio Department of Health only. Other sources give research copies. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 3705.24, the state fee is $21.50 per search, whether a record is found or not. Local fees at the Madison County Health Department may differ slightly. Always call ahead to confirm the current cost before placing your order.
Cities in Madison County
Madison County includes London, West Jefferson, Plain City (partly), and several smaller villages. All death records go through the county health department or Probate Court in London.
Nearby Counties
These counties border Madison County. Make sure you check the right county for where the death happened.