Skamania County Obituary Records

Skamania County obituary and death records are available through local and state sources, spanning deaths from the county's earliest registration years to the present. Whether you need a certified death certificate, want to trace a family member who died here decades ago, or are looking for a death notice in a local newspaper archive, this guide walks through each option available to researchers and family members. Skamania County sits in southwest Washington along the Columbia River Gorge, with Stevenson as its county seat. Records are held both locally and at the Washington State level.

Skamania County Vital Records

Certified death certificates for deaths that occurred in Skamania County are available through the Washington State Department of Health. The Center for Health Statistics maintains death records from July 1, 1907 to the present for all Washington counties, including Skamania. Orders can be placed by mail, online, or by phone. Skamania County was created in 1854, and the county seat is Stevenson. For deaths that took place before July 1, 1907, contact the Skamania County Auditor or search the Washington State Digital Archives for early county death registers.

The state law governing vital records access changed on January 1, 2021. Under RCW 70.58A, only individuals with a direct and tangible interest in the record can receive certified copies. That means spouses, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, legal representatives, and authorized agents qualify. Everyone else can get a noncertified informational copy, which works fine for genealogy but cannot be used for legal purposes.

The Washington State Secretary of State's Library maintains a guide on locating obituary requests for Washington State. That page helps researchers find newspaper obituaries and published death notices, which can fill in details not found on a death certificate.

The Washington State Library obituary request page helps researchers locate published death notices and newspaper obituaries for Skamania County residents and other Washington decedents.

Washington State Digital Archives Death Index

The Washington State Digital Archives Death Certificate Index covers deaths statewide from 1907 through 1960 and again from 1965 through 2017. The full index holds more than 2.3 million records and is free to search for anyone. It is one of the best starting points when researching Skamania County obituary records, especially for deaths in the mid-20th century.

Records from 1907 to 1960 were transcribed by volunteers and tend to include more detail, sometimes listing cause of death, names of surviving relatives, place of burial, and the attending physician. The 1965 to 2017 portion came directly from the Department of Health and includes basic identifying data like the full name, date of death, and county. Death certificate images are available for records up to 25 years old. If you find an entry and need a certified copy, call the Center for Health Statistics at (360) 236-4313 or (360) 236-4312.

Note: Death index records for the years 1961 through 1964 are available only on microfilm at the State Archives in Olympia, not through the online index.

The Washington State Archives Northwest Regional Branch in Bellingham also holds physical records for the region, including some Skamania County materials. The Northwest Regional Branch accepts research appointments for records not available online.

The Washington State Archives Northwest Regional Branch holds original death records and historical materials for counties in the northwest and southwest Washington region, including Skamania County collections transferred from county offices.

Skamania County Historical Death Records

Skamania County was formed in 1854 from a portion of Clarke County. Death records from before July 1, 1907, were collected and maintained by the county auditor. Those pre-state records, covering deaths as far back as the late 1800s, have been microfilmed. Copies are held at the Washington State Library and can be found through the Washington State Digital Archives for any records that have been digitized.

The Washington State Library vital records LibGuide explains how to use the state's collections for research going back before 1907. The guide describes how county death registers worked, what information they typically contain, and how to submit a lookup request through the Ask-A-Librarian service if you cannot visit in person. Staff can search microfilm copies of the Skamania County death registers on your behalf.

FamilySearch holds Washington County Death Registers from 1881 through 1979 as an indexed collection, along with Washington Death Certificates from 1907 through 1960. Both are free to search with a FamilySearch account. These resources are particularly useful for Skamania County families who lived along the Columbia River Gorge in the early settlement period.

The Washington State Library also publishes a research handout on how to find Washington State death records. That guide walks through each layer of records, from pre-1907 county registers to modern state certificates, and is a solid overview for anyone new to researching deaths in Skamania County.

Ordering Skamania County Death Certificates

You can order a certified Skamania County death certificate three ways: by mail to the state office, online through VitalChek, or by phone through VitalChek. Mail orders go to Washington Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics, P.O. Box 9709, Olympia, WA 98507-9709. The fee by mail is $25 per certificate, and processing takes 8 to 10 weeks after the office receives your payment. Include the decedent's full name, approximate date of death, and city or county of death with your request.

Online and phone orders through VitalChek start at $40.50 per certificate. VitalChek is the only state-contracted third-party vendor. Other services that offer to help you order may charge extra fees on top of the state cost. VitalChek typically ships orders within 3 to 7 business days. You can also add an optional $3.00 identity authentication upgrade. Payment is accepted by major credit or debit card.

The DOH ordering page lays out all three methods in detail and includes links to the application forms. The Consumer Resource Center is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM at 206-464-6684 or toll-free at 800-551-4636 (Washington State only). For the most recent deaths, those in the current or prior month, contact the local health department in Stevenson rather than the state office.

The DOH death record ordering page specifies what information you must supply and what proof of relationship is required under the 2021 closed-records law. Informational copies, which are noncertified, can be requested by anyone and are useful for family history research when a certified copy is not needed.

Genealogy Resources for Skamania County Deaths

Researchers tracing Skamania County family history have several tools beyond the state archives. The Washington State Library maintains a statewide death index on microfiche and microfilm from July 1, 1907 through 2004. The library's vital records LibGuide explains how to search the collection and submit lookup requests. Most requests are answered by reference librarians within a few weeks. The Ask-A-Librarian service is free.

The CDC's Where to Write for Vital Records page for Washington confirms that the Center for Health Statistics telephone number is (360) 236-4300. That page explains what information to include in your request and what documentation to provide. It also confirms the fee schedule starting at $25 per certificate.

Local newspapers serving Skamania County, including publications covering Stevenson and White Salmon, have historically run death notices and obituaries. Some of those notices appear in online databases such as Genealogy Bank and Newspapers.com. For deaths in the early 20th century, the Gorge-area newspapers are worth checking when the death certificate alone does not include survivor or burial details.

FamilySearch is free to use and holds multiple overlapping Washington death record sets, including county registers from before 1907 and statewide death certificates from 1907 through 1960. For Skamania County deaths after 1960, the Digital Archives index and direct requests to the Department of Health are the primary routes. Combining these sources gives researchers the broadest possible coverage.

Cities in Skamania County

Skamania County communities include Stevenson, North Bonneville, and several small towns along the Columbia River Gorge. No cities in Skamania County currently meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site.

Nearby Counties

Skamania County borders several other Washington and Oregon counties. Each has its own vital records office and death record system.