Lincoln County Death Records and Obituaries
Lincoln County obituary records and death certificates are maintained by the county recorder's office in Ivanhoe and through the Minnesota Department of Health. Established in 1873, Lincoln County sits in the southwest corner of Minnesota and holds vital records for a small but well-documented rural community. Researchers can search death notices online, access historical records through the Minnesota Historical Society, or contact the local recorder directly for certified death certificates.
Lincoln County Overview
Lincoln County Recorder and Vital Statistics
The Lincoln County Recorder's office in Ivanhoe is the local source for certified death certificates and vital records tied to the county. Staff can process requests for both recent records and older historical ones. If you are not sure what the office holds for a given time period, a call ahead can save you a trip. The office handles in-person requests and can also process written mail requests for death certificates.
Deaths that occurred from 1997 forward can be requested from any county vital records office in Minnesota. You do not have to go to Lincoln County specifically for those. For deaths before 1997, the Lincoln County office is the place to start for locally held records. The recorder's office is part of the county government in Ivanhoe and can refer you to state resources when a record sits at the MDH level instead of the local one.
| Office | Lincoln County Recorder |
|---|---|
| Address | 319 North Rebecca Street Ivanhoe, MN 56142 |
| Phone | 507-694-1019 |
| Website | co.lincoln.mn.us - Recorder |
Certified death certificate fees are set by Minnesota Statutes section 144.226. The first copy costs $13 and each additional copy ordered at the same time is $6. These fees apply to both in-person and mail requests.
Search Lincoln County Death Records Online
The Minnesota Department of Health provides a free online search tool for deaths from 1997 to the present. Go to the MDH Death Search Index and search by name. The tool tells you whether a death record exists in the system, though you need to submit a separate request to get a certified copy. The MDH also has a full guide to ordering death records on its vital records death page, including information on mail, in-person, and online ordering options.
For deaths before 1997, the Lincoln County Recorder's office and the Minnesota Historical Society are your main options. MNHS holds a statewide death index from 1908 to 2001 that you can search through the MNHS People Search tool. Under Minnesota Statutes section 144.225, non-certified death record copies are public documents. That means anyone can request them. Certified copies have a more formal process, but it is not difficult to complete.
Note: For Lincoln County deaths before 1997, the online MDH index will not show a result; use the county recorder or MNHS instead.
Lincoln County Recorder Online
The Lincoln County Recorder's website covers available services, contact information, and details about requesting death certificates and other vital records from the Ivanhoe office.
The recorder's office in Ivanhoe handles vital records and death certificate requests for all communities within Lincoln County in southwest Minnesota.
Lincoln County Historical Obituary Records
The Minnesota Historical Society holds a statewide death index covering 1908 to 2001, which includes records from Lincoln County. You can search this collection at no cost through the MNHS People Search tool. Results include the person's name, death date, and county of death. For genealogy work focused on Lincoln County's farming communities and small towns, MNHS is one of the strongest free resources available anywhere.
MNHS also holds death cards from 1904 to 1907, which predate the formal statewide death registration system. These early records are rare but can be useful for research into the oldest Lincoln County families. Newspaper obituaries often contain far more personal detail than any official death record. The MNHS Newspaper Hub gives you access to a large archive of Minnesota newspapers going back to the 1800s. Local Lincoln County and nearby regional papers are part of this collection, and searching by name can turn up full obituary text with survivor lists and other details.
Lincoln County Genealogy Resources
The Lincoln County Historical Society at lincolncountyhistorymn.org maintains collections that include obituary files, cemetery records, and local history materials. For a small county, local historical societies often hold the most complete set of community records, including items that were never digitized or added to any state system. This is a key stop for anyone researching families from the Ivanhoe area and surrounding communities.
MNGenWeb has a volunteer-run page for Lincoln County at lincoln.mngenweb.net. Volunteers have compiled cemetery transcriptions, obituary records, and links to local resources. FamilySearch holds historical Minnesota vital and probate records that can fill in gaps. Their Minnesota Vital Records guide covers what is available and how to access it at no cost.
Cities in Lincoln County
Lincoln County includes Ivanhoe and several other small communities. None meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page. Death records and obituary records for all communities in the county are handled through the recorder's office in Ivanhoe.
Nearby Counties
These counties border Lincoln County. Each has its own vital records office for death certificate requests.