Adoption in Florida & General Search Information
Originated September 1997Many states have laws similar to Florida regarding the release of adoption information. My pages might help you learn how to get started with your own search. I knew NOTHING when I started and in a little over a year, I am happy to announce that my birth mom and I had our telephone reunion
Feb. 19, 1998. We met face to face on June 3, 1998.
My step by step search:
1. I wrote to the Bureau of Vital Statistics, Florida Dept. of Health, PO Box 210, Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042 requesting my ORIGINAL BIRTH CERTIFICATE and my NON IDENTIFYING INFORMATION. I knew they would not send it, but I was hoping they could at least tell me where to start.
...I received a letter from the Records Administrator telling me that "following my adoption, a new birth certificate was prepared reflecting the adoptive information and the original b.c. was sealed." I was advised to contact FARR, who might have that information for me.
2. I wrote to FARR, Florida Adoption Reunion Registry at 1317 Winewood Blvd., Bldg. A, Room 102, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0700 and sent them a copy of my birth certificate and driver's license asking them for the non ident. info.
...They wrote back that my adoption was handled by Children's Home Society of Florida, and only they had that information for me. However, the case worker offered to write to HRS on my behalf and request the Finalization of Adoption with the date and name of the court . This is a FREE service and it took approximately three months to receive that information. She also explained that for a fee of $35.00, I could join the registry and if my birth mother also joined or joins in the future, they could match us. I have heard that their success rate is around 2% so I decided against it, but that decision is up to you.
3. I wrote to CHS, PO Box 10097, Jacksonville, FL 32247, again sending them a copy of my birth certificate and driver's license, requesting the same info. However, I also decided to call the local CHS office in the city of my birth and began to develop a relationship with the case worker there.
...I sent them the required charge of $95.00 (some offices charge less, some charge more) and within a month, she called back with some of my information. I wrote everything down and found that when I received the written report, it did not have a lot of the verbal information I had received over the phone, so TAKE NOTES.
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"If you don't climb the mountain, you can't see the view" ~ Book of Quotes.
Search Information and Links
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Find and join a support group in your area and try a few of the email support and search groups I have listed below. They can be a great source of knowledge and support.
Halcyon ~~is a mailing list designed to support triad members involved in adoption related searches. To subscribe to halcyon, e mail: listserv@tallynet.com Keep the subject line blank, and in the text put: subscribe halcyonyou@your address.
Alana's Birthmothers Mailing List~~send e mail to: majordomo@falcon.ic.net Keep the subject line blank, and in the text put, subscribe birth-mothers and your E Mail address.
LFL Mailing List ~~send mail to: Majordomo@MyList.net with the following command in the body of your email message: subscribe lfl "your email addy"
Write to Betsy at: betsyc@access.mountain.net, (owner of:) birthmomadopt@mylist.net, for instructions on how to subscribe
Bonnie at: BusterAndBabs@webtv.net, is one owner of: heartoftriad@Majordomo.net, she has instructions on how to subscribe to her list.
Mary is the owner of: FAMILIES-TOUCHED-BY-ADOPTION-L@listserv.Indiana.edu
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Register with every registry you can find. If your state has a reunion registry, start there. Next, send a SASE along with a request for their form to ISRR, PO Box 2312, Carson City, NV 89702. They are the largest reunion registry in the nation and they are FREE. To find out more click on:
ISRR - International Soundex Reunion Registry
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In Florida, start by contacting FARR (see address above).
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Online Registries & Information Sites
T.I.E.S Homepage for Terminally Ill searchers.
Ellen's Reuniting Families great pages
Alanamil's Home Page for birth mothers
Bastard Nation - Mission Statement
Adoptee Search Center Registry Online
Adoptees' Support Forum
Adoptees & Birthparents in Search
Free Adoption Reunion Registry
Missing person database
United States Adoptees Searching
30+ Reunion Registries
AOL Reunion Registry
VSN Info Page These are volunteer searchers.
Adoption Forum at AOL has message boards and other information.
Finding in Florida
Looking in Florida
In Search Of... for FL searchers
The Seeker Magazine
Reclaiming My Roots Reunion Registry
FindMe - Registry
Adoption and Search Dee's great pages
HOT - Heart of Triad Mailing List
All-in-One Search Page
ALMA - Adoptees' Liberty Movement
Reunions Online Adoption Registry
Who? Me? Search Form
Dig Dirt Inc. ($) fee
Owen's Quick-Links Adoptee Resources
Searchable Databases
Tina's State by State Adoption Information
Yourfamily.com - Long Lost Family Bulletin Bo...
DOACS - Consumer Services
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Phone look up links
AnyWho:Find Telephone Number, Email, Home Pages. ~ Enter a street name and get names of occupants living at an exact address. Great Site!
AnyWho: Reverse Telephone Number Search
Yahoo! People Search/EMail Addys
People Search Sites on The WEB
World Telephone Directories
The Ultimate White Pages
Reverse Lookup - InfoSpace
White Pages & Reverse Look up
People Find
Four11 Directory Services
Switchboard
WhoWhere?!
Internet Address Finder
HotSheet - www.hotsheet.com
Leads USA
WorldPages
Searching for someone
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Specific look ups
Ancestry Library Search
Ancestry Hometown -SSDI
The Corrections Connection
Federal Bureau of Prisons Homepage
Inmate information
Florida Department of Corrections
United States Postal Service
National Address and ZIP+4 Browser
Zipcode Database Search Service
USPS City State / ZIP Code Associations
Cong/Sen DC or Your State Reps E-Mails...
Congressional E-Mail -- C-SPAN
Government INFOMINE Search Screen
Internet Department of Motor Vehicles
On-Line Newpaper Obituary Search ...
CIS Investigative Resources
Lawyer Search
American Medical Association
Hospital Directory
Doctor Directory
AMA Physician Select
Bureau of Indian Affairs, BIA, DOI, Interior
American Indian Tribal Directory
See page 2 for Military, Genealogy,Cemetery sites and more.
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State Adoption Laws
Check out the adoption laws of your state and county at: US ADOPTION LAWS BY STATE & NAIC AdoptInfo - Searching for Birth Relatives
Other government info can be found at: StateLaw: State & Local Government
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FLORIDA Adoption records are sealed and may be opened only upon *order of the court*. However, FL Statute 63.162 Non-Identifying Information mandates that agencies provide non identifying information to adoptees, birth parents and adoptive parents of minors. Let the agency know that you are aware of this law. The information will not give you names, addresses or any other information that might be considered "identifying." Adoptees should ask about birth parents nationality, ages at time of birth, education, hobbies, medical history, professions and anything else that may be important to you and your situation. Ask for the "relinquishment date", the case number and the finalization of adoption date and court.
*You must petition the court that handled your Final Adoption for a court order to un-seal your adoption records. In some counties, this is a simple matter of writing a letter of request to the court and in Dade County Florida, did not cost any money. However it has been very difficult to get them opened, but the judge will take into consideration any serious medical concerns if you can get your doctor to document them in a letter enclosed with your petition.
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Under the Sunshine Law, hospitals are mandated to release all records to a patient. A birth mother should have no problem getting her records, however, the records for an adoptee must be requested in the birth name only. Don't mention adoption to the hospital, or they will insist on a court order before giving you the records.
Many of you have asked about Florida Birth Indexes. Florida record books are called: Docket Books, which describe events from the date of petition to the date of adoption finalization. They include the agency and/or attorney of record. Your birth name will not be listed. Sometime, a birth relative may be listed. This book includes the Chancery Order Book number and the page where the birth name and birth parents are listed and are rarely in the public domain. The Adoption Book, lists all of the information and is NEVER in the public domain. The Civil Index lists adoptive parents names.
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Some young women went to Florida to deliver their babies and then "went home". Some of these babies were adopted out of state and many to families in NY. Adoptees born in Florida and adopted in another state can sometime get the same information by contacting HRS at the FARR address. But before contacting FARR, write to HRS (at the address below) for your birth certificate as some out of state adoptees have not had their birth certificates sealed. If you were adopted in NY, try the information here: Vital Records Information/NY
NY.Birth Index & Information
See page 3 for BLACK MARKET BABY SELLERS
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Florida Adoption Hotline at (904)353-0679 is available to answer many of your questions and put you in touch with support groups throughout the country.
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Resources
United States Vital Records Information
How to Obtain Your Personal Vital Record
United States Counties
Important Florida Information
Florida Department of State Library Info
State of Florida Telephone Directory
Florida City Directories at the State
Vital records are normally available at county courthouses. (As of this date, there is no way to access them on the Internet.) They contain basic information such as birth, marriage, and death dates, plus occupations and parents' names. They do not contain names of adoptees, as those records are sealed. They may however contain the names of adoptees who were born in Florida and adopted out of state.
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Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS)
Office of Vital Statistics
P.O. Box 210
1217 Pearl Street
Jacksonville, FL32231
Marriage, Divorce, Birth or Death Records
Most of the above records date from January 1917. Fee includes one certification of record if found or certified statement stating record not on file.
Check or money order should be made payable to Office of Vital Statistics. Verify current fees by calling: (904) 359-6900.
Depending on the age and background of the person for whom you are searching, you might post messages to specific boards. If your birth parents are over 50, why not post to: AARP
If they are younger than that, try: Baby Boomers
Post to the Christian Message Boards if that is your background.
If Jewish, contact The Star of David. You can get information on them through: JEWISH (Community News) and at the same time, post a message.
Do you know where they went to school? Look it up in: ClassMates! ~ Reunion Hall ~ Alumni.net
Your interests and hobbies might be similar. Try posting to different "Lifestyle" boards. And don't forget chat rooms. No matter what room you are in, you can always ask if anyone is searching.
If you have a name and a birth date, check with the County Seat, Supervisor of Elections and ask if that person has ever voted . Send a SASE.
Check with the Driver's License Division and inquire about a driver's record on the person for whom you are looking. Internet Department of Motor Vehicles
Don't forget to check with your local Church of Later Day Saints. They keep excellent records.
LDS Family History Information
If you have trouble getting to my next page, try my other web site at: Geministwo's Home Page
Email me at: geministwo@aol.com or geminis2@gibralter.com
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