Pacific County Obituary Records

Pacific County obituary and death records can be found through state and local sources covering deaths from the county's earliest history to the present. Whether you are tracing a family member, researching coastal communities like South Bend, Long Beach, or Raymond, or trying to locate a death certificate for legal purposes, this guide walks you through every source available for Pacific County. You will find links to free online indexes, details on ordering certified copies, and pointers to historical collections held at the Washington State Archives and the county courthouse.

Pacific County Vital Records Office

The Pacific County Health Department handles death certificate requests for deaths that occurred within the county. For certified copies, you can also apply directly through the Washington State Department of Health, which holds all Washington death records from July 1, 1907, to the present. The county courthouse in South Bend is where historical records and the County Auditor are located. The Auditor's offices are in South Bend at 300 Memorial Drive and in Long Beach at the County Admin Building.

The Washington State Department of Health death records ordering page covers all three ways to get a certified copy: in person at a local health office, by mail, or online through VitalChek. Death certificates come in long form (with cause of death and social security number), short form (basic details only), and noncertified informational copies for genealogy. Qualified applicants must show valid ID and proof of their relationship to the person named on the certificate.

When you order, you will need the deceased's full name, an approximate date of death, and the city or county of death. Pacific County deaths can list South Bend, Long Beach, Raymond, or other coastal communities as the place of death.

The page shown below is the Pacific County government records portal for document searches in the county.

This portal lets you search the Official Records Index for documents recorded by the Pacific County Auditor, including miscellaneous filings and historical death records.

Washington State Death Index for Pacific County

The Washington State Digital Archives Death Certificate Index is a free, searchable database covering Pacific County deaths from 1907 through 1960 and again from 1965 through 2017. It holds over 2.3 million records statewide. You do not need an account to search. Just enter a name and optional year range to pull up matching records.

Records from 1907 to 1960 were transcribed by volunteers and tend to include more detail. You may find the cause of death, names of surviving family, and the place of burial listed on those older entries. The 1965 to 2017 records came directly from the Department of Health as a data extract, so they usually show the name, date, and county but less biographical detail. For Pacific County families from the mid-20th century, this is often the fastest place to start your search. Images of the actual death certificates are available for deaths up to 25 years ago.

If a record looks wrong or incomplete, the Washington Department of Health Center for Health Statistics can help. You can reach that office at (360) 236-4313 or (360) 236-4312. The index gap from 1961 through 1964 exists because those records are on microfilm at the State Archives in Olympia rather than online.

Note: The free digital index is a starting point. It does not replace a certified copy, which is needed for legal and official purposes.

Pacific County Historical Death Records

Pacific County was created from Lewis County in 1851. The county seat moved several times before settling in South Bend in 1893. Earlier seats included Pacific City (1851-1852), Chinook (1852-1855), and Oysterville (1855-1893). This history matters for researchers because the location of older records may shift depending on which office held them at the time a death occurred.

The County Auditor kept birth and death records starting in 1891. Those records, covering deaths from 1891 through 1907, were transferred to the Washington State Archives and are now searchable online. The Pacific County Auditor also has marriage records from 1868 and land records from 1851. The County Clerk holds court records from 1851 and probate records from 1878. Both offices are at the courthouse in South Bend. Staff will help you find materials, though the Clerk's Office does not do research on your behalf.

Many county land, probate, and court records have been moved to the Washington State Archives Southwest Regional Branch. For older Pacific County deaths that predate the 1891 auditor registers, census records and probate filings may be your only options. The Pacific County records guide at raogk.org lists what each courthouse office holds and what has been transferred to the state.

The Washington State Archives also holds a separate collection, the Pacific County Auditor Miscellaneous Recordings, which runs from 1996 to the present. That collection includes birth and death certificates recorded with the Auditor and is described in the Digital Archives collection listing. It contains about 20,961 records and is open for research online.

Pacific County Records at the State Archives

The raogk.org Pacific County page is a free community genealogy resource that pulls together record summaries for Pacific County research. It lists what each office holds and links to major databases. The site is run by volunteers and covers courthouse records, vital records, and online databases.

This resource gives researchers a quick reference for Pacific County death and obituary record sources, with links to courthouse offices and online archives.

The Washington State Library holds the Register of Deaths for Pacific County on microfilm (GEN MICRO 979.792 DEATH 1894-1917). That reel covers the Pacific County Auditor register from March 3, 1894, through October 18, 1917. It is available at the State Library in Olympia, and researchers can also submit a specific lookup request through the Ask-A-Librarian service. The Washington State Library Vital Records LibGuide explains how to use both options.

The FamilySearch Pacific County Genealogy wiki notes that the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries Fatal Accident Cards from 1915 to 1928 may contain records of workplace deaths in the county. Pacific County had an active logging and fishing economy during that period, and the accident cards can be a useful supplement to standard death certificates.

Ordering Pacific County Death Certificates

You have three options for ordering a certified death certificate for a Pacific County death. You can go in person to a local health office, submit a mail request to the Washington State Department of Health, or order online through VitalChek. Each method has different costs and wait times.

Mail orders go to the Washington Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics, P.O. Box 9709, Olympia, WA 98507-9709. The fee starts at $25 per certificate and is nonrefundable. Processing takes about 8 to 10 weeks after payment is received. To complete the request, include the full name of the deceased, the date or approximate date of death, and the city or county of death. You must also provide a copy of your photo ID and proof of your qualifying relationship to the person named on the certificate.

Online orders through VitalChek start at $40.50 per certificate and usually process within 3 to 7 business days. There is an optional $3.00 identity authentication fee on top of that. VitalChek is the only state-contracted vendor, so any other company charging to place an order on your behalf will add extra fees. For order status, contact the Consumer Resource Center at 206-464-6684 or 800-551-4636 (Washington residents only), open Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 3 PM.

Washington vital records law under RCW 70.58A governs who can request certified copies. Rules that took effect January 1, 2021, limit certified copies to people with a direct and qualifying relationship to the deceased. Noncertified informational copies are available more broadly and are useful for genealogy work.

Genealogy Resources for Pacific County Deaths

FamilySearch provides a detailed Pacific County Genealogy wiki that lists every major online collection relevant to the county. It notes that the County Auditor has birth and death records from 1891 to 1907, and the County Clerk has probate records from 1878. FamilySearch itself holds Washington County Death Registers from 1881 through 1979 as an indexed collection with images, and Washington Death Certificates from 1907 through 1960 as a searchable index. Both are free to view with a FamilySearch account.

The Washington State Library's Vital Records LibGuide also maintains a Washington State Death Index for July 1, 1907, through 2004 on microfiche and microfilm. Researchers who cannot find a record online can submit a lookup request through the Ask-A-Librarian service, which accepts requests with a name and date range and returns what the staff can locate from the microfilm collection.

For death records prior to state registration in 1907, the Washington State Archives Southwest Regional Branch in Olympia holds physical copies of many Pacific County records. You can also reach the branch at swbrancharchives@sos.wa.gov or (360) 753-1684. The Digital Archives also hosts the Pacific County Auditor Miscellaneous Recordings collection online for free research.

Note: If you are looking for a very early Pacific County death and cannot find it in online indexes, the county courthouse in South Bend may hold materials not yet digitized.

Cities in Pacific County

Pacific County communities include South Bend, Long Beach, Raymond, Ilwaco, and other small coastal towns. No cities in Pacific County currently meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site.

Nearby Counties

Pacific County borders several other Washington counties. Each has its own vital records system and courthouse resources.