Frequently Asked Questions
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How do I order a copy of a record I found listed in your online
indexes? If you have searched our online indexes and found a specific record that you would like to obtain a copy of -- and are unable to visit our Reading Room in person -- the Archives staff will retrieve the record and copy it for you. The cost is $15.00 per record, with the exception of Government Publications. Payment must be received before we will work on your request. You can complete and print-out an Individual Record Search Request Form to mail with your payment. Checks should be payable to the Westchester County Archives, and requests sent to Archives Reference Desk, Westchester County Archives, 2199 Saw Mill River Road, Elmsford, NY 10523. Checks must be in U.S. Dollars, and drawn on U.S. banks. We do not accept credit card payment. Please include in your request all the index information about the record. For information on ordering copies of records not listed in our online indexes, visit our Research by Mail page. |
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When are you open? The Archives is open to the public on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except government holidays. Please note, the Archives will be CLOSED on Tuesday, November 4 (Election Day) and Tuesday, November 11 (Veterans Day), 2008. A photo I.D. must be presented when registering to do research in the Archives' Reading Room. If you are unable to visit the Archives in person, you can conduct your research by mail. |
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Where are you
located? The Archives is located at 2199 Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, NY. Click here for travel directions to the Archives. |
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Do I need an
appointment to visit the Archives? No, you do not need to make an appointment to visit the Archives, simply come to the Archives during our public hours, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. However, if you are traveling a distance, you may wish to contact the Archives prior to your visit to confirm that we will be open the day you are planning to visit and that we have materials that will be useful to your research. You can contact us by telephone at (914) 231-1500 or by e-mail. |
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What are your fees? There is no research fee for individuals who visit our Reading Room in person, although we do charge for photocopies and research done by mail. |
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Can I make
photocopies? Yes, photocopies can be requested of the materials held by the Archives, although the actual photocopying is performed by the Archives staff and volunteers. Photocopy fees start at $.50 a page. The Archives staff reserves the right to refuse to photocopy any materials it deems too fragile to withstand the photocopying process. |
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Can I get a copy of a
map? Yes, copies of materials from the Archives' extensive maps and plans collection are available for fees ranging from $7.00 to $30.00+, depending on size and color. However, the Archives staff reserves the right to refuse to copy any materials it deems too fragile to withstand the copying process. |
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Can
I use my digital camera or laptop computer in the Reading Room? Laptop computers are permitted in the Archives' Reading Room. The use of digital cameras is permitted under certain circumstances. To discuss your specific needs, please contact the Archives' staff at (914) 231-1500 or by e-mail. |
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Can I borrow materials in your collection? No. Given the unique nature of the records held by the Archives, they cannot be removed from the building. You can only examine them during the hours we are open to the public, and request photocopies to be made if you wish. |
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How can I purchase a copy of a picture I saw on
your website? If you would like to order a print of one of the pictures you saw on our website please contact the Archives Reference Desk for size and pricing information. The images used for the website were selected from the thousands available in the eight Photographic Collections housed at the Archives. |
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I need a copy of my
child's / my parent's / my own birth certificate. How do I do
that? Birth records are not available at the Westchester County Archives. In order to obtain a copy of the record, you need to contact the clerk of the local municipality where the birth took place. For contact information for local municipalities, try the Westchester County Government website's links to local governments. |
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I need a copy of
my marriage certificate. Can you help? With the exception of the years 1908-1936, marriage records are not available at the Westchester County Archives. In addition, we cannot provide certified copies of marriage records for these years. In order to obtain a copy of a marriage record for years other than 1908-1936, or certified copies for the years 1908-1936, you need to contact the clerk of the local municipality where the marriage license was issued. For contact information for local municipalities, try the Westchester County Government website's links to local governments. |
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I need a copy of my
parent's death certificate. How do I do that? Death records are not available at the Westchester County Archives. In order to obtain a copy of the record, you need to contact the clerk of the local municipality where the death took place. For contact information for local municipalities, try the Westchester County Government website's links to local governments. |
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Can I get a copy of my divorce
decree from the Archives? No. Divorce records are not held by the Westchester County Archives; you must contact the Westchester County Clerk to obtain a copy of a divorce decree (see Frequently Asked Questions on the Clerk's website). |
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Can I get a copy of my
misdemeanor
arrest record from the Archives? The Westchester County Archives does not maintain the arrest records of local police departments nor the Westchester County Police. You must contact the police department involved in order to obtain arrest record information. If you need to obtain a copy of a felony record, contact the Westchester County Clerk's office (see Frequently Asked Questions on the Clerk's website). |
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Do you have birth,
marriage and death records for genealogical research? Beginning in 1881 in New York State when towns were required to record births, marriages, and deaths, the records for such information has been kept at the local level, where the birth or death took place or the license for the marriage was issued. However, the Archives does have marriage records for a limited time period -- from 1908-1936 -- and an online index for some of these records (1908-1930) is available. |
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Do you have church
records? Although the Archives does not collect the records of individual churches from the County, it does have the incorporation records of religious organizations from the County dating back to 1784. (Series 78). The Westchester County Historical Society, which shares the Archives' Reading Room, does holds the records of a few individual congregations. |
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Do you have school records? Series 154 of the Archives' holdings contains statistical and narrative reports filed by schools within Westchester County from 1828-1968 reporting on their condition. For some districts for the years 1857-1879, 1893, and 1896-1904 the records include census schedules with student names. An index for the reports that are available in this series is available online. The Archives does not hold the records of any particular school, although the Westchester County Historical Society, which shares the Archives' Reading Room, does have some individual school records. |
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Do you have cemetery records? The most extensive cemetery records held by the Archives were created in the late 1930s by the Works Progress Administration and identify the graves of veterans buried in Westchester County (Series 181). These veterans served from the Revolutionary War through World War I. These records are accompanied by maps of most of the cemeteries in the county marked with the veterans' graves. The Archives also holds some cemetery deeds (Series 249). |
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I'm trying to research the history
of my house. What information do you have at the Archives that
would be of use to me? Building plans for individual houses are not available at the Westchester County Archives. If such plans are still in existence, they would be located at the local building department for the municipality where the house is located. For contact information for local municipalities, try the Westchester County Government website's links to local governments. The Westchester County Archives does have, however, atlases and other maps, as well as deeds that can be used to trace the ownership of the land that a house stands on. Series 214 in the Archives' collection contains inventory forms, including photographs taken in the 1970s and 1980s, for historic homes within many Westchester towns. An online folder index is available for this series. In addition, the Archives shares its Reading Room with the Westchester County Historical Society, which has in its collection historical information on Westchester's local communities that can also be of use in tracing ownership information as well as information about architectural styles. |
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Where can I
find more information about historic preservation and how to place a
property on the National Register of Historic Places? Westchester County's Planning Department has information on historic preservation on its website. Click here to access that page. |
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Do you have any online curriculum
resources for teachers? Yes. Check out the two school projects on our Teachers' Resources page; one is designed for junior high and high school students; the other for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. |
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Do you have any primary sources
available online? Yes, our collaborative Virtual Archives website relates various aspects of Westchester County's history through the display of primary documents. Our current offerings include: Westchester County and the Civil War; Historic American Engineering Record -- Bronx River Parkway Reservation; and Historical Treasures of Westchester County |
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