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Public records include birth and death certificates, marriage and professional license applications, and other official interactions with the state. Before states kept records of the lives of their citizens the church frequently did, and church records are a valuable resource for many historians. In twentieth century America, these records are stored by state agencies. In Rhode Island birth and death certificates are maintained by county health departments in their vital statistics files. Researchers often consult these records to confirm the basic facts about a person's life. These records occasionally contain inaccuracies, but are generally used simply to verify information initially discovered elsewhere. Birth certificates contain the date and time of a person's birth, as well as the names of their father and mother. They may also include information about the newborn's health (weight, size, etc.). Death records include the names and birth places of the deceased's parents, place and date of birth of the deceased, residence, place and cause of death, surviving family, professions, citizenship, etc. Most are indexed by decade. The indexes are generally found wherever serious genealogy is done, such as historical societies and some libraries. Tirocchi researchers used Rhode Island birth and death certificate records to learn more about Anna and Laura Tirocchi's extended family, the workers in the shop, and the clients the shop served. ^back to top
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