Clifton Death Records and Index Search
Clifton is a city in Passaic County, New Jersey. It is one of 16 municipalities in the county. The Clifton City Clerk serves as the local registrar of vital statistics. This office keeps death, birth, and marriage records for people who died in the city. Clifton death index entries cover 1901 to 1903, 1920 to 1929, and 1949 to 2017. You can search these records through the free online index or contact state and local offices for copies of the full death records.
Clifton Death Index Quick Facts
Clifton Death Index Year Ranges
The Clifton death index has entries for 1901 to 1903, 1920 to 1929, and 1949 to 2017. Gaps exist in the data. The years 1904 to 1919 are not in the index. The years 1930 to 1948 are also absent. The Department of Health could not find these files when they were sought under an OPRA request.
The New Jersey Death Index lets you search all of these years for free. Enter a name and get a list of matches. Each match shows the death date, age, and file number. You use that number to get the full death record from the state or from the Clifton City Clerk.
For years not in the index, the actual death records may still exist on microfilm at the State Archives. The Clifton City Clerk may also have local files that cover years absent from the online death index. Call or visit their office to ask.
Note: About half of the 1920 to 1924 block is lost statewide, so some Clifton deaths from those years may not appear in the death index.
Clifton City Clerk Death Records
The Clifton City Clerk is the local registrar of vital statistics. This office holds death records for people who died in Clifton. You can visit in person to request a copy. Bring your ID and the name and date of death of the person you are searching for. The clerk will search the files. If they find a match, you can buy a copy.
The image below shows the Clifton City Clerk vital records page.
Local fees may differ from the state rate. Call the Clifton City Clerk to ask about costs and hours before you visit. The clerk can tell you which records they hold on site and which ones you need to get from the state.
The Passaic County vital records page lists all municipalities in the county, including Clifton. It shows contact details for each local registrar. This is a good starting point if you need to search multiple towns in Passaic County for a death record.
How to Get a Clifton Death Record
You have three main sources for a Clifton death record. The right one depends on the year of death and the type of copy you need.
The Clifton City Clerk is the local registrar. They hold records for deaths in the city. Visit with your ID. Give the staff the name and date of death. If they find a match, you can buy a copy right there.
The Passaic County vital records page below shows the full list of sources in the county.
The New Jersey Department of Health holds death records from 1901 to the present. The fee is $25 for one copy. Each extra copy at the same time is $2. You can order by mail, in person at 140 East Front Street in Trenton, or online. This covers any Clifton death after 1900.
The State Archives holds records from May 1848 through 1900 and microfilm through 1963. The lookup fee is $10. The Archives genealogy page has details on their collection. Visit the Search Room at 225 West State Street in Trenton to view old Clifton death records on film.
- Clifton City Clerk for local death records
- NJ Department of Health for records from 1901 to the present
- State Archives for records from 1848 to 1900 and microfilm through 1963
Who Can Get Clifton Death Records
New Jersey law sets rules for who can get a certified death record. The same rules apply in Clifton as across the state. Under N.J.S.A. Title 26, only certain people may get a certified copy.
The list includes the spouse, parent, child, grandchild, or sibling of the dead person. A legal rep or guardian can get one. State and federal agencies can get copies for work. A court order also works. If you are not on this list, you may get a copy with the cause of death and Social Security number blocked out.
For genealogy, records more than 40 years old have fewer limits. The Archives will issue these with less proof of your tie to the dead person. This helps with family tree work on old Clifton deaths.
Clifton Death Index for Genealogy
Clifton grew fast in the early 1900s. Families moved there from other parts of New Jersey and from abroad. The death index is a useful tool for tracing those families. Death records list names, ages, dates, and parents. This data helps link one generation to the next in Clifton.
Start at the free death index online. Search by name. Note the file number from any match. Then order the full death record from the state. The full record shows facts the index does not, such as the street address, cause of death, and both parents' names.
The Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness page for Passaic County can help with free lookup aid for Clifton death index work. FamilySearch and Ancestry also have New Jersey death indexes that cover years not in the free online index.
Note: Clifton is one of 16 Passaic County towns. If you are not sure where a person died, search the full county death index rather than just the Clifton records.
Passaic County Death Records
Clifton is in Passaic County. The county has 16 municipalities. For more on county resources, fees, and other death record sources in the area, visit the Passaic County death records page.