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Finding
Your Time of Birth
If you do not know your correct time of birth,
all is not lost—if you were born in the United States
of America or any of its territories (including American Samoa,
Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Canal Zone, or the
Trust Territory of Pacific Islands), you can obtain a copy
of your birth certificate with a correct birth time. Most
birth certificates from the past century do contain a time
of birth.
What you will need to do is to write a letter
requesting a certified copy of your birth certificate from
the Office of Vital Statistics in the state that you were
born in. The letter should contain the following information:
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The full name of the person whose record
is requested.
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Sex and race.
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Parents' names, including maiden name
of mother.
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Month, day and year of birth.
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Place of birth (city or town, county
and state; name of hospital if any).
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Purpose for which copy is needed. (Specify
that time of birth is required).
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Relationship to person whose record is
requested.
I have a list of the various agencies and
addresses, and it is far too long to publish here. I will,
however, be happy to provide the specific information via
e-mail.
There is usually (ok, always) a charge when
requesting a Birth Certificate, and it varies from state to
state, and although the information I have does list the prices.
The prices, however, are from 1978, and somehow, I doubt they
are good for anything more than a laugh at this point. I would
suggest calling the bureau first before sending your request
for updated prices. Also, I recommend sending a certified
check or money order as payment. I recommend it; they may
require it.
If all else fails, you may be able to obtain
a time of birth by contacting the hospital you were born in,
assuming, of course, that you were born in a hospital. Family
doctors also often keep birth records.
If none of the above options are possible,
a birth time can still be obtained by rectifying the chart.
Rectification is the process of working backwards with the
chart, of looking at the dates and times of significant events
in ones life and, based on the aspects at the time of these
events, finding a time of birth for the chart.
In order for me to be able to rectify a
chart, I would need a one to two page biography of an individual,
as well as a list of between six and ten major events in his
or her life, with accurate dates and locations, and with times,
if possible or applicable. Major events include the death
of any close relative or family member, the birth of children,
changes in residence, changes in career, marriage, divorce,
accidents, life-threatening illnesses, surgeries, etc. My
fee for rectifying a chart is $120.00. If you would like more
information on having your chart rectified, please fill out
the form below.
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