Pennsylvania Divorce Records

Pennsylvania has been keeping divorce records since 1804. They’re kept by the Prothonotary clerk in the county where the divorce was granted. Before that time, only the legislature of Pennsylvania governor could grant a divorce and were extremely rare in the state. If you don’t know the county where the divorce took place, you may want to search through newspaper archives to find the information you need. After you locate the county of the divorce, you can apply for the record through the Prothonotary of that county. Various addresses for these courthouses can be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of Health. For more information, you might write or phone the following office:

Government Documents Library/Access/Systems
Bureau of State Library at the Pennsylvania Dept. of Education
607 South Drive
Forum Bldg.
Harrisburg, PA 17120-0600
Phone: (717) 787-2327

PA Divorce Records

After gathering all of this information, you must fill out an application to receive a copy of the decree. Be sure to fill out all of the fields in the application and find out if you should send a fee for the search before mailing the request. There are many reasons why you might need or want a copy of a divorce record. Making sure a person is telling the truth about his or her background is one reason. Another might be for legal or employment purposes – and the main reason, a search for genealogical data. Whatever your reason for wanting this information, it’s vital that you receive data that’s accurate, up-to-date and as complete as possible. For this reason, you might want to consider using a private, Internet search service. They have methods to search a wider area and gather more detailed information about the divorce than limited databases of the state. Information contained in the decree will be sent to your computer usually in a matter of moments and you can read it in the privacy of your home or office. Your private information is kept confidential, so you don-t have to be concerned that someone will find out that you requested the data. If no record is found based on the information you provided, no fee is charged.

Using a fee-based, Internet search service cuts the red tape that you have to go through in most states and you can be assured that the data you receive will be accurate and compiled in a report that-s easy to read and understand. The time factor alone can be a good reason for using an Internet search service. And, some states have privacy laws which prevent them from disclosing information they deem as private. An online search service has no such restrictions and will send you every detail of information about the divorce that you need to make an accurate decision. Click on the link to discover how easy it is to search through Pennsylvania divorce records.