Frequently Requested Records
An alphabetical listing of various types of records frequently requested from the King County Archives. Many of these records are held elsewhere, and some of these links will take you directly to the repository that holds them.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Information on obtaining adoption records is available through King County Adoption Services.
General information:
Yesler Building, Room 240
400 Yesler Way
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-6800
Maps and information:
Department of Permitting and Environmental Review
King County legislation about annexations:
An apostille
(external link) is a document that authenticates the
signatures of notaries or state officials on vital records
documents (for example, birth, death, or marriage
certificates, or divorce decrees) that are being submitted
for foreign use (for example, foreign-born adoptions,
marriages overseas, foreign citizenship purposes, etc.)
To receive an apostille, you must obtain a certified copy
of the vital records document from the county of origin or
the State Department of Health, and then submit the
certified copy together with the filing fee of $15.00 per
document to the Office of the Washington Secretary of
State:
Secretary of State
Corporates Division
Apostille and Certificate Program
801 Capitol Way South
Olympia, WA 98504
Instructions can be found online (external link), or call the Apostille and Certificate Program at (360) 725-0344.
B
1951-present (U.S.):
U.S. Bankruptcy Court (external link)
Western Washington District
700 Stewart St, Room 6301
Seattle, WA 98101-1290
(206) 370-5200
Access to electronic files (PACER) (external link)
1889-1950 (Washington State):
National Archives and Records Administration (external link), Pacific Alaska Region, Seattle
1870-1877 (King County):
King County Archives
Case files for eleven bankruptcy cases from the 1870's. The cases were administered under the Bankruptcy Act of 1867 (repealed 1878).
Bankruptcy law research guide (external link)
Copies of birth certificates may be obtained from King County Vital Statistics.
Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file) is a comprehensive guide, written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
For historic information and photos of a house or other building in King County, the best place to start is with the King County Assessor's Property Cards, available through the Puget Sound Regional Archives branch of Washington State Archives. See also Historical House Photographs.
Businesses operating in King County come under the jurisdiction of State, County, and, where applicable, City regulations. The location of the business, as well as the nature and scope of the business, determines what types of business licenses are required. See King County Business Licensing for information.
See the Washington State Department of Licensing (external link) for business [trade] name registration, changes or updates (DBA).
C
See the Archives' guide, King County Census Records, 1857-present.
Certificates of No Marriage are filed with the Recorder. See Recordings.
Sometimes called "Polk directories," historical city
directories for the Seattle-King County area may be found
at the following locations:
King County Archives
(206) 296-1538
archives@kingcounty.gov
(The King County Archives has Seattle city directories for
1939, 1948/9, 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958 and 1994 and an Auburn
and Kent directory for 1958.)
Special
Collections Division (external link)
University of Washington Libraries
P. O. Box 352900
Seattle, WA 98195
(206) 543-1929
speccoll@u.Washington.edu
List of directories and dates (external link)
Seattle Public Library
Central Library (external link)
1000 Fourth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
206-386-4636
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives
(external link)
Pritchard-Fleming Building
3000 Landerholm Circle SE, MS-N100
Bellevue, WA 98007-6484
(425) 564-3940
archives@bellevuecollege.edu
|
Online City Directories:
|
For community property documents recorded with King County, see Recordings.
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents, includes a section on condominium and homeowner association records. See also Recordings.
Corporations currently operating in Washington State:
Office of the Secretary of StateCorporations Division (external link)
PO Box 40234
Olympia, WA 98504-0234
(360) 753-7115
Corporations: Registration Data Search (external link)
Online statewide corporation filings, 1855-2004:
Historical statewide corporation filings, 1869-1990:
Historical King County corporation filings, 1869-1971:
Historical King County corporation filings, 1869-1893:
To access or retrieve a Superior Court case file, you will need a case file number. Depending on the date of the case, there are several ways that you can obtain a file number:
Online indexes
1979-present:
Washington Courts (external link)
1938-1979 (criminal), 1935-1979 (civil, by name of plaintiff), 1966-1979 (civil, by name of defendant), 1968-1979 (domestic), 1940-1975 (name change), 1954-1977 (probate):
King County Superior Court Clerk - Note: these indexes are very large PDF documents.
1854-1979:
King County Superior Court Clerk - Indexes to court records on microfilm only. You may visit their office and search them in person, otherwise the Clerk will charge at least a $30 search fee.
1888-1978:
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external link), they have the following indexes:
- General indexes (defendant), 1890-1976
- General indexes (plaintiff), 1888-1975
- Civil case indexes, 1890-1892
- Criminal index, 1890-1902, 1962-1977
- Probate case files index, 1854-1977
- Juvenile index, 1959-1978
- Naturalization index, 1906-1928
- index of "In the Matter of," 1940-1975
1865-1906:
King County Archives - we have defendant indexes to civil case files from 1865-1906.
Case files
1854-present:
King County Superior Court
Clerk (all years)
Some court records (2004-present) can be
accessed online through
Electronic Court Records (ECR) Online.
There is a per-page fee to use this
system. Online information
includes a case summary, calendar
information, and a list of case activities
by case number. This system does
not include domestic cases
(divorce, legal separation, child support,
etc.), guardianship cases, or protection
orders.
1854-1972:
-
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external link).
They have: - Criminal case files, 1889-1972
- Civil case files, 1853-1983 (incomplete after 1972)
Other records
Criminal dockets held at the King County Archives:
- Prosecuting Attorney criminal case file dockets, 1906-1950, 1958-1959
Other historical court records.
District Court case files
Current District Court case files (2005-present):
Beginning in January 2005, the District Court changed to an all-electronic court records system. Case file information is accessed through the Washington Courts database (external link). For additional information contact:
516 3rd Avenue, Room W-1034
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 205-9200
Historical District Court case files (pre-2005):
Prior to 2005, case records were maintained by the division and court facility where the case was filed: South Division (Kent, Burien); East Division (Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond); and West Division (Seattle and Shoreline). Please contact the appropriate court regarding pre-2005 records. Many older district court records have not been kept.
Information about older, historical District (Justice) Court records can be found at the King County Archives Web site.
Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
D
See the Archives' guide, Historical King County Death Records.
Divorce records
For divorce decrees in King County for 1853-present, contact:
King County Superior Court Clerk
King County Courthouse
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "8" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomerservice@kingcounty.gov
For divorce certificates for all counties in Washington State from 1968-present, contact:
Department of
Health Center for Health Statistics (external link)
PO Box 9709
Olympia, WA 98507-9709
(360) 236-4300
contactchs@doh.wa.gov
For historical divorce case files in King County from 1853-1971, contact:
Puget
Sound Regional Archives (external link)
Pritchard-Fleming Building
3000 Landerholm Circle SE, MS-N100
Bellevue, WA 98007-6484
(425) 564-3940
PSBranchArchives@sos.wa.gov
Their records include:
-
divorce case files present in civil case files, 1853-1967
-
divorce case files present in domestic relations case files, 1968-1971
-
General indexes (defendant) to civil case files, 1890-1967
-
General indexes (plaintiff) to civil case files, 1888-1967
-
Domestic relations (divorce) index, 1968-1975
Online Divorce Searching Tools |
|
| 1854-1889: | The Washington State Digital Archives has citations for early divorce records from 1854-1889 included in their Frontier Justice collection. Make sure to mark Case Type as "Civil." Index will provide you with the names of the plaintiff and the defendant, the year of divorce, and the case file number. Request copies from the Puget Sound Regional Archives (external link). |
| 1935-1979: |
The King County Superior Court
Clerk originally kept large ledger books that
served as indexes to case files. These books
were microfilmed and are now
available online. To search, you must
browse through images of the original index
books, which are organized semi-alphabetically.
The case file number can be used to request
records from the King County Superior Court
Clerk. Warning: these online indexes are very large PDF documents (about 50 MB each) and can be virtually impossible to view unless you have a very fast internet connection. |
| 1968-2004: | The Washington State Library (external link) has a divorce index for 1968-2004 on microfilm. You can search these records in person, or you can request a lookup online (external link). You can use this information to request divorce certificates from the Washington State Department of Health Center for Health Statistics. |
| July 1979-present: |
Search online for case file information on the
Washington Courts (external link) website.
You can use this information to request divorce
decrees from the King County Superior Court
Clerk. Note: Search results will only provide you with the name of one party, the court of record, the case file number and the date of the record. For more detailed searches you will have to contact the court directly. |
E
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on locating easements. See also Recordings.
See the Archives' guide, Election and voter records
F
Tax foreclosure information is available from the King County Treasurer
G
Interactive map viewers, downloadable maps, map collections and more can be found through the King County GIS Center.
H
For historic information and photos of a house or other building in King County, the best place to start is with the King County Assessor's Property Cards, available through the Puget Sound Regional Branch of the Washington State Archives.
I
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA): information about researching naturalization records (external link)
1906 to present
U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS): information about requesting immigration and naturalization files (external link)
Selected regions of Washington State, 1900's to 1980
National
Archives & Records Administration - Pacific Alaska Region,
Seattle (external link)
Historical naturalization records in King, Pierce and Kitsap
Counties (dates vary for each county)
Puget
Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external
link)
J
King County's Jail Inmate Lookup Service allows you to search current King County Jail booking and release information.
King Count Jail records can be requested from:
Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention
516 Third Avenue, Room 245
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: 206-296-7625
Jail medical records may be requested from:
Public Health - Seattle and King County
401 5th Avenue, Suite 900
Seattle, WA 98104
206-205-5975
Compliance.Health@kingcounty.gov
Historical jail registers
The King County Archives collection includes jail registers, dates ranging from 1891-1897, 1928-1929, 1931-1937 (women only), and 1943-1978. Some volumes include both male and female prisoners, although the cover title indicates men only.
Final determination regarding rights of parties in an action or proceeding in a civil or criminal court case (all years) are on file with the King County Superior Court Clerk:
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "9" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomservice@kingcounty.gov
Recorded judgments (1878-present) may be accessed at the King County Archives.
Online Indexes:
Search for judgments in court case files from 1979-present on Washington Courts (external link).
For recorded judgments, see Recordings.
K
L
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on researching the ownership history of a property.
For guidance on researching the history of a building, including ownership, see Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file), a guide written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
Landmarks designation is overseen by the County's Historic Preservation Program.
Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
Liens are recorded documents. See Recordings.
M
To learn about different types of marriage records and how to obtain certified or uncertified copies, see the Archives' page Marriage Records.
N
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents, includes a section on locating name change records. See also Recordings.
O
Obituaries are privately published and are not government records. Increasingly, historical newspapers containing obituaries are available and searchable online through public libraries.
Researchers with a current Seattle Public Library card can access indexes to and images of Seattle Times newspapers from 1900-present (external link) and search for obituaries and other newspaper articles themselves from any computer. Staff of the Seattle Public Library (external link) also offer limited obituary searches to Library card holders. Call (206) 386-4636.
P
Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
For power of attorney documents recorded with King County, see Recordings.
Probate is the process of validating wills and distributing estates as provided in a will or required by law. The King County Law Library provides helpful probate resources and a wills & estate planning resource.
Filing and case files (all years):
King County Superior Court Clerk
King County Courthouse
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "9" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomerservice@kingcounty.gov
Online index to case files 1979-present on Washington Courts website (external link). Additionally, there is an online index to probate case files from 1954-1977 on the King County Superior Court Clerk website.
Historic probate records:
Probate case files, 1854-1961
Case file indexes 1854-1977
Puget
Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external
link)
Online probate records
FamilySearch.org (external link)
See the Archives' overview of resources for property research that includes information on recorded documents (deeds, easements, mortgages, etc.) and documentation of the natural environment (topography; rivers, lakes, streams, etc.) and built environment (homes; businesses and farms; transportation routes and systems, etc.).
For in-depth guidance on researching the history of a building, see Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file), a guide written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
With few exceptions, records in the King County Archives collection are freely and publicly available for review and are not restricted by copyright. For information on accessing records at the Archives, please see Accessing Archival Records.
To access other County records, you may first wish to contact the responsible department to determine if the records are already publicly available. To submit a public records request under the Washington State Public Records Act (RCW 42.56), please contact the King County Public Records Program < a href="mailto:PRA.Requests@kingcounty.gov">PRA.Requests@kingcounty.gov or call (206) 263-9772.
Q
R
The King County Recorder's Office provides an online search of documents recorded since 1976, with digital images available for most documents recorded from August, 1991 - present.
General information about King County Recordings is available on the Archives page, King County Recorded Documents.
See also the guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents.
A detailed list of different types of recorded documents and indexes in the Archives collection is provided here: Recorded Documents at the King County Archives.
S
Records relating to properties within the City of Seattle can be found at the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections.
The King County Sheriff's Office maintains the Sex offender search database for King County.
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on searching for short plats.
See also Recordings.The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on searching for surveys. See also Recordings.
T
Appeals to property tax assessments are made to the King County Board of Appeals/Equalization.
Tax parcel numbers and detailed parcel information can be found by address through the King County Parcel Viewer.
U
V
See the Archives' guide, Plat Records.
See the Archives' guide, Road Vacations.
W
Recorded water rights records can be located at the King County Archives.
Counties recorded notices of water rights filed prior to the establishment of the state water right permit system in 1917. These notices were not necessarily honored under the state water right system. Additionally, counties record state-issued certificates of water right issued under the state permit system. In researching water rights, researchers should also reference the state water right records of the Washington State Department of Ecology (external link).
Wills can be filed for safekeeping in the King County Superior Court Clerk's Will Repository by the individual who made the will. After the death of the individual who made the will, wills can be filed with the King County Superior Court Clerk.
Wills are not required to be recorded, but some individuals choose to do so. See Recordings.
X
Y
Z
Current and recent zoning information:
Department of Permitting and Environmental Review
Historical zoning information and records (1937- 1969):
King
County Archives Historical Zoning Records in King
County
An alphabetical listing of various types of records frequently requested from the King County Archives. Many of these records are held elsewhere, and some of these links will take you directly to the repository that holds them.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Information on obtaining adoption records is available through King County Adoption Services.
General information:
Yesler Building, Room 240
400 Yesler Way
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-6800
Maps and information:
Department of Permitting and Environmental Review
King County legislation about annexations:
An apostille
(external link) is a document that authenticates the
signatures of notaries or state officials on vital records
documents (for example, birth, death, or marriage
certificates, or divorce decrees) that are being submitted
for foreign use (for example, foreign-born adoptions,
marriages overseas, foreign citizenship purposes, etc.)
To receive an apostille, you must obtain a certified copy
of the vital records document from the county of origin or
the State Department of Health, and then submit the
certified copy together with the filing fee of $15.00 per
document to the Office of the Washington Secretary of
State:
Secretary of State
Corporates Division
Apostille and Certificate Program
801 Capitol Way South
Olympia, WA 98504
Instructions can be found online (external link), or call the Apostille and Certificate Program at (360) 725-0344.
B
1951-present (U.S.):
U.S. Bankruptcy Court (external link)
Western Washington District
700 Stewart St, Room 6301
Seattle, WA 98101-1290
(206) 370-5200
Access to electronic files (PACER) (external link)
1889-1950 (Washington State):
National Archives and Records Administration (external link), Pacific Alaska Region, Seattle
1870-1877 (King County):
King County Archives
Case files for eleven bankruptcy cases from the 1870's. The cases were administered under the Bankruptcy Act of 1867 (repealed 1878).
Bankruptcy law research guide (external link)
Copies of birth certificates may be obtained from King County Vital Statistics.
Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file) is a comprehensive guide, written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
For historic information and photos of a house or other building in King County, the best place to start is with the King County Assessor's Property Cards, available through the Puget Sound Regional Archives branch of Washington State Archives. See also Historical House Photographs.
Businesses operating in King County come under the jurisdiction of State, County, and, where applicable, City regulations. The location of the business, as well as the nature and scope of the business, determines what types of business licenses are required. See King County Business Licensing for information.
See the Washington State Department of Licensing (external link) for business [trade] name registration, changes or updates (DBA).
C
See the Archives' guide, King County Census Records, 1857-present.
Certificates of No Marriage are filed with the Recorder. See Recordings.
Sometimes called "Polk directories," historical city
directories for the Seattle-King County area may be found
at the following locations:
King County Archives
(206) 296-1538
archives@kingcounty.gov
(The King County Archives has Seattle city directories for
1939, 1948/9, 1954, 1956, 1957, 1958 and 1994 and an Auburn
and Kent directory for 1958.)
Special
Collections Division (external link)
University of Washington Libraries
P. O. Box 352900
Seattle, WA 98195
(206) 543-1929
speccoll@u.Washington.edu
List of directories and dates (external link)
Seattle Public Library
Central Library (external link)
1000 Fourth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
206-386-4636
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives
(external link)
Pritchard-Fleming Building
3000 Landerholm Circle SE, MS-N100
Bellevue, WA 98007-6484
(425) 564-3940
archives@bellevuecollege.edu
|
Online City Directories:
|
For community property documents recorded with King County, see Recordings.
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents, includes a section on condominium and homeowner association records. See also Recordings.
Corporations currently operating in Washington State:
Office of the Secretary of StateCorporations Division (external link)
PO Box 40234
Olympia, WA 98504-0234
(360) 753-7115
Corporations: Registration Data Search (external link)
Online statewide corporation filings, 1855-2004:
Historical statewide corporation filings, 1869-1990:
Historical King County corporation filings, 1869-1971:
Historical King County corporation filings, 1869-1893:
To access or retrieve a Superior Court case file, you will need a case file number. Depending on the date of the case, there are several ways that you can obtain a file number:
Online indexes
1979-present:
Washington Courts (external link)
1938-1979 (criminal), 1935-1979 (civil, by name of plaintiff), 1966-1979 (civil, by name of defendant), 1968-1979 (domestic), 1940-1975 (name change), 1954-1977 (probate):
King County Superior Court Clerk - Note: these indexes are very large PDF documents.
1854-1979:
King County Superior Court Clerk - Indexes to court records on microfilm only. You may visit their office and search them in person, otherwise the Clerk will charge at least a $30 search fee.
1888-1978:
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external link), they have the following indexes:
- General indexes (defendant), 1890-1976
- General indexes (plaintiff), 1888-1975
- Civil case indexes, 1890-1892
- Criminal index, 1890-1902, 1962-1977
- Probate case files index, 1854-1977
- Juvenile index, 1959-1978
- Naturalization index, 1906-1928
- index of "In the Matter of," 1940-1975
1865-1906:
King County Archives - we have defendant indexes to civil case files from 1865-1906.
Case files
1854-present:
King County Superior Court
Clerk (all years)
Some court records (2004-present) can be
accessed online through
Electronic Court Records (ECR) Online.
There is a per-page fee to use this
system. Online information
includes a case summary, calendar
information, and a list of case activities
by case number. This system does
not include domestic cases
(divorce, legal separation, child support,
etc.), guardianship cases, or protection
orders.
1854-1972:
-
Puget Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external link).
They have: - Criminal case files, 1889-1972
- Civil case files, 1853-1983 (incomplete after 1972)
Other records
Criminal dockets held at the King County Archives:
- Prosecuting Attorney criminal case file dockets, 1906-1950, 1958-1959
Other historical court records.
District Court case files
Current District Court case files (2005-present):
Beginning in January 2005, the District Court changed to an all-electronic court records system. Case file information is accessed through the Washington Courts database (external link). For additional information contact:
516 3rd Avenue, Room W-1034
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 205-9200
Historical District Court case files (pre-2005):
Prior to 2005, case records were maintained by the division and court facility where the case was filed: South Division (Kent, Burien); East Division (Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond); and West Division (Seattle and Shoreline). Please contact the appropriate court regarding pre-2005 records. Many older district court records have not been kept.
Information about older, historical District (Justice) Court records can be found at the King County Archives Web site.
Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
D
See the Archives' guide, Historical King County Death Records.
Divorce records
For divorce decrees in King County for 1853-present, contact:
King County Superior Court Clerk
King County Courthouse
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "8" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomerservice@kingcounty.gov
For divorce certificates for all counties in Washington State from 1968-present, contact:
Department of
Health Center for Health Statistics (external link)
PO Box 9709
Olympia, WA 98507-9709
(360) 236-4300
contactchs@doh.wa.gov
For historical divorce case files in King County from 1853-1971, contact:
Puget
Sound Regional Archives (external link)
Pritchard-Fleming Building
3000 Landerholm Circle SE, MS-N100
Bellevue, WA 98007-6484
(425) 564-3940
PSBranchArchives@sos.wa.gov
Their records include:
-
divorce case files present in civil case files, 1853-1967
-
divorce case files present in domestic relations case files, 1968-1971
-
General indexes (defendant) to civil case files, 1890-1967
-
General indexes (plaintiff) to civil case files, 1888-1967
-
Domestic relations (divorce) index, 1968-1975
Online Divorce Searching Tools |
|
| 1854-1889: | The Washington State Digital Archives has citations for early divorce records from 1854-1889 included in their Frontier Justice collection. Make sure to mark Case Type as "Civil." Index will provide you with the names of the plaintiff and the defendant, the year of divorce, and the case file number. Request copies from the Puget Sound Regional Archives (external link). |
| 1935-1979: |
The King County Superior Court
Clerk originally kept large ledger books that
served as indexes to case files. These books
were microfilmed and are now
available online. To search, you must
browse through images of the original index
books, which are organized semi-alphabetically.
The case file number can be used to request
records from the King County Superior Court
Clerk. Warning: these online indexes are very large PDF documents (about 50 MB each) and can be virtually impossible to view unless you have a very fast internet connection. |
| 1968-2004: | The Washington State Library (external link) has a divorce index for 1968-2004 on microfilm. You can search these records in person, or you can request a lookup online (external link). You can use this information to request divorce certificates from the Washington State Department of Health Center for Health Statistics. |
| July 1979-present: |
Search online for case file information on the
Washington Courts (external link) website.
You can use this information to request divorce
decrees from the King County Superior Court
Clerk. Note: Search results will only provide you with the name of one party, the court of record, the case file number and the date of the record. For more detailed searches you will have to contact the court directly. |
E
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on locating easements. See also Recordings.
See the Archives' guide, Election and voter records
F
Tax foreclosure information is available from the King County Treasurer
G
Interactive map viewers, downloadable maps, map collections and more can be found through the King County GIS Center.
H
For historic information and photos of a house or other building in King County, the best place to start is with the King County Assessor's Property Cards, available through the Puget Sound Regional Branch of the Washington State Archives.
I
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA): information about researching naturalization records (external link)
1906 to present
U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS): information about requesting immigration and naturalization files (external link)
Selected regions of Washington State, 1900's to 1980
National
Archives & Records Administration - Pacific Alaska Region,
Seattle (external link)
Historical naturalization records in King, Pierce and Kitsap
Counties (dates vary for each county)
Puget
Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external
link)
J
King County's Jail Inmate Lookup Service allows you to search current King County Jail booking and release information.
King Count Jail records can be requested from:
Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention
516 Third Avenue, Room 245
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: 206-296-7625
Jail medical records may be requested from:
Public Health - Seattle and King County
401 5th Avenue, Suite 900
Seattle, WA 98104
206-205-5975
Compliance.Health@kingcounty.gov
Historical jail registers
The King County Archives collection includes jail registers, dates ranging from 1891-1897, 1928-1929, 1931-1937 (women only), and 1943-1978. Some volumes include both male and female prisoners, although the cover title indicates men only.
Final determination regarding rights of parties in an action or proceeding in a civil or criminal court case (all years) are on file with the King County Superior Court Clerk:
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "9" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomservice@kingcounty.gov
Recorded judgments (1878-present) may be accessed at the King County Archives.
Online Indexes:
Search for judgments in court case files from 1979-present on Washington Courts (external link).
For recorded judgments, see Recordings.
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The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on researching the ownership history of a property.
For guidance on researching the history of a building, including ownership, see Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file), a guide written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
Landmarks designation is overseen by the County's Historic Preservation Program.
Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
Liens are recorded documents. See Recordings.
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To learn about different types of marriage records and how to obtain certified or uncertified copies, see the Archives' page Marriage Records.
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The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents, includes a section on locating name change records. See also Recordings.
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Obituaries are privately published and are not government records. Increasingly, historical newspapers containing obituaries are available and searchable online through public libraries.
Researchers with a current Seattle Public Library card can access indexes to and images of Seattle Times newspapers from 1900-present (external link) and search for obituaries and other newspaper articles themselves from any computer. Staff of the Seattle Public Library (external link) also offer limited obituary searches to Library card holders. Call (206) 386-4636.
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Check with the agency responsible for the citation or for maintaining the records. This can be a municipal agency such as the Seattle Police Department (external link) . Other agencies are the King County Sheriff's Department and the Washington State Patrol (external link). General Washington State information about law enforcement and criminal history records is here (external link).
For criminal case histories, see also the above sections, Court Case Files.
For power of attorney documents recorded with King County, see Recordings.
Probate is the process of validating wills and distributing estates as provided in a will or required by law. The King County Law Library provides helpful probate resources and a wills & estate planning resource.
Filing and case files (all years):
King County Superior Court Clerk
King County Courthouse
516 3rd Avenue, Room E-609
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 296-9300 (dial "9" to speak to a person)
clerksofficecustomerservice@kingcounty.gov
Online index to case files 1979-present on Washington Courts website (external link). Additionally, there is an online index to probate case files from 1954-1977 on the King County Superior Court Clerk website.
Historic probate records:
Probate case files, 1854-1961
Case file indexes 1854-1977
Puget
Sound Regional Branch, Washington State Archives (external
link)
Online probate records
FamilySearch.org (external link)
See the Archives' overview of resources for property research that includes information on recorded documents (deeds, easements, mortgages, etc.) and documentation of the natural environment (topography; rivers, lakes, streams, etc.) and built environment (homes; businesses and farms; transportation routes and systems, etc.).
For in-depth guidance on researching the history of a building, see Researching Building History in Seattle and King County (PDF file), a guide written in collaboration between the Seattle Public Library and the King County Archives.
With few exceptions, records in the King County Archives collection are freely and publicly available for review and are not restricted by copyright. For information on accessing records at the Archives, please see Accessing Archival Records.
To access other County records, you may first wish to contact the responsible department to determine if the records are already publicly available. To submit a public records request under the Washington State Public Records Act (RCW 42.56), please contact the King County Public Records Program < a href="mailto:PRA.Requests@kingcounty.gov">PRA.Requests@kingcounty.gov or call (206) 263-9772.
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The King County Recorder's Office provides an online search of documents recorded since 1976, with digital images available for most documents recorded from August, 1991 - present.
General information about King County Recordings is available on the Archives page, King County Recorded Documents.
See also the guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents.
A detailed list of different types of recorded documents and indexes in the Archives collection is provided here: Recorded Documents at the King County Archives.
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Records relating to properties within the City of Seattle can be found at the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections.
The King County Sheriff's Office maintains the Sex offender search database for King County.
The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on searching for short plats.
See also Recordings.The Archives' guide, Quick tips for researching recorded documents includes a section on searching for surveys. See also Recordings.
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Appeals to property tax assessments are made to the King County Board of Appeals/Equalization.
Tax parcel numbers and detailed parcel information can be found by address through the King County Parcel Viewer.
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See the Archives' guide, Plat Records.
See the Archives' guide, Road Vacations.
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Recorded water rights records can be located at the King County Archives.
Counties recorded notices of water rights filed prior to the establishment of the state water right permit system in 1917. These notices were not necessarily honored under the state water right system. Additionally, counties record state-issued certificates of water right issued under the state permit system. In researching water rights, researchers should also reference the state water right records of the Washington State Department of Ecology (external link).
Wills can be filed for safekeeping in the King County Superior Court Clerk's Will Repository by the individual who made the will. After the death of the individual who made the will, wills can be filed with the King County Superior Court Clerk.
Wills are not required to be recorded, but some individuals choose to do so. See Recordings.
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Current and recent zoning information:
Department of Permitting and Environmental Review
Historical zoning information and records (1937- 1969):
King
County Archives Historical Zoning Records in King
County
TTY Relay 711
The King County Archives building is currently closed, but our remote customer service hours are 9am-4pm, Monday through Friday.