Genealogy question: everytime I seek information online I am directed to a site that requires money to join?

answers1: Websites are set up that google or other search engines will
direct you to those which are business based. With the exception of
ancestry.com, most of them are there to make money.. by providing you
a SERVICE. For most persons who type "genealogy" in the search
engine.. it hits sites that assume people want their history done and
cooked for them. If you search "Texas cemeteries" (example), it shows
more that you know the exact type of info, and more focused on finding
the puzzle pieces instead of ready made research. There are THOUSANDS
OF free sites out there (see www.cyndislist.com). It is ALL in how you
define them and search them. A library can be a research site. So can
a map. <br>
That is addressing why you keep getting directed to for pay sites.
Once you start using a few of the broader ones, you'll get a sense of
what to search. THINK.. all genealogical records were out there, pre
computer/ pre internet. <br>
Now, birth/death certs are a focused type of record, which are
required and maintained by the govt. They can't afford to spend tax
dollars for genealogy reasons (or even hardly for other reasons).
Yes.. there will be a fee, anyway you go about that. SOME older
records (over 40-50 yrs) can be released and input to look at online.
You have the legal right to both those records, but zero in on going
directly to the state office that holds them. The same as you would
have done, before computers. There are extra fees to process and mail
overnight (for those who need quickly for other than genealogy). USE
the computer to search for the state office, which will have
instructions and fees, and a mailing address. It is still going to
cost. If you live near the funeral home that handled services, you
might be able to get copies of the death certs as a courtesy to
family. <br>
As for birth certs..yes, I always suggest that you need them for
research. The question then comes up.. what is done for those who were
born pre required birth certs? They have not always been around.
People used the census to prove birth and age, and for the most part,
if parents were born pre 1930, they are open to searching. <br>
What I am saying.. govt documents will cost. I don't understand
brother but that is another issue. Getting information can sometimes
(not always) be done by other routes. And avoiding pay sites means
thinking outside the box, about WHAT RECORD you need, instead of a
site that wants to do the work for you.
answers2: You will find it very hard to get copies of original
certificates for free online. FamilySearch.org has a pilot program
and a person can print off copies of original Texas death certificates
through 1975. Texas actually didn't start recording vital
information until 1903 but they have a few that go back to 1890.
Still many people who were born at home or died at home did not get
recorded until after WW2. <br>
<br>
Ancestry.com isn't free but your pubic library might have a
subscription to it. They have lots of records but you cannot print
off copies of original birth or death certificates. <br>
<br>
You might be able to get a copy of the original from the state's vital
statistics or the county courthouse cheaper than $45. Now each state
in the U.S. has its own laws about who, when and where a person can
get vital info on another. <br>
So you need to find that out for the specific locality.
answers3: Maintaining any genealogy online site costs money. One way
to offset the cost is to have a header that directs you to a
subscription website. The owner of the initial website gets a certain
amount of money for each new subscriber their website directs to the
pay site. <br>
<br>
Now... for your question. The subscription websites overcharge for
vital records. You can get the records directly through either the
county or the state. <br>
<br>
Go to: <br>
<a href="http://www.vitalrec.com/"
rel="nofollow"class=Clr-b>http://www.vitalrec.com/</a> <br>
<br>
and choose your state, and see how much it would cost (and the
requirements) to get that death certificate directly. My guess is it
should cost no more than $15 or $20.