In all of us there is a hunger, marrow deep, to know our heritage - to know who we are and where we came from.
Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning.
No matter what our attainments in life, there is still a vacuum, an emptiness, and the most disquieting loneliness.
Alex Haley
Adoption research is a special type of genealogical study. It can be difficult and frustrating since names of birth parents are not always known. It can be emotionally draining. Yet, it is a search that many feel compelled to complete.
Patience, persistence, and knowledge are needed. The birth family can be located.
Read a genealogical "how to" book and an adoption "how to" book. These have helped others in their search:
Beginners Guide to Family History Research by Desmond Walls Allen. On-line at: http://www.arkansasresearch.com/guide.html
Lifeline: The Action Guide to Adoption Search, by Virgil L. Klunder, 1991.
This book explains the adoption process and how to organize your search, lists sources of information and records, and gives suggestions on how to identify and locate people. Government agencies, adoption help groups and legal issues are listed by state. Contains sections on searching internationally and searching for individuals of various ethnic backgrounds. Sample letters are included.
Cyndi Howell maintains a large list of Internet genealogical "links." http://www.Cyndislist.com/adoption.htm.
Learn adoption laws for your state. Three websites with links to adoption laws are
Interview everyone who may have some knowledge of your birth and adoption. Seek out people who were present when you were an infant. They have memories that you do not have. They may recall small items, like a birth name that you were given.
Register your search on a Reunion Registry.This is a system for matching persons who desire contact with their next of kin by birth.
The International Soundex Reunion Registry (ISRR) is the nation's oldest and largest mutual consent reunion registry, and it is a free service.
International Soundex Reunion Registry (ISRR)
PO Box 2312
Carson City NV 89702-2312
Obtain your "Non-identifying information" from the agency that handled your adoption. This file contains information about your adoptive family at the time of your birth. Names are deleted, so it is "non-identifying."
In Oregon, the agency to contact is:
Oregon Department of Human Services Adoption Services
Assisted Search and Registry Program
500 Summer Street, NE
Salem, OR 97310-1067
(503) 945-5651
If your adoption was through a private adoption agency, i.e. Catholic Charities, Boys and Girls Aid Society, Albertina Kerr Homes, look for their information at the Coalition of Oregon Adoption Agencies web site. If the adoption was through Waverly Children's Home, they may be reached at 503-233-0187.
Request a copy of your birth certificate. People who were adopted in Oregon may order a copy of their "pre-adoption" birth certificate from Oregon Vital Records. Go to their website to see the ordering instructions. If you were not adopted in Oregon, learn where you can order your birth certificate at Center for Disease Control, Vital Record Ordering Information.
Once you have a name of a birth parent, you need to locate them. They probably moved, and privacy laws limit your resources to trace living persons. Here are some Forum resources that will help:
City directories are similar to phone books. They contain names of adults,
their addresses, and occupations.
The Forum maintains a collection of R. L. Polk city directories for Portland,
East Portland, some other Oregon cities, Seattle, Washington, and some other
Washington cities. Polk city directories list residents by name, street
address and telephone number, and sometimes give occupation or employer.
You can trace a person through the years to see when they were listed in
the directories, their address, and sometimes where they worked.
The Forum has a collection of old Oregon phone books. Many towns that do not have a city directory are included in this collection. There are a number of phone directories on the Intenet. Cyndi's List has a section on telephone directories.
Your birth parents may have married - either to each other or to someone else. In most states, the marriage indexes and records are public record, and you can look at them.
The Forum has the following Oregon marriage indexes:
Marriage, 1971 - 1989, listed by bride and by groom.
Divorce, 1971-1989, listed by groom's name.
Other indexes are at Multnomah County Library (Central branch - 801 SW 10th, Portland) and the Oregon Historical Library (1200 SW Park Ave, Portland).
A death index is a list of people who have died, and it is arranged by last name. If you locate a relative, you can obtain an obituary that may give information on your person.
The Forum has the following death indexes:
Oregon, 1903-1970 (on microfilm) 1971-1992 (on microfiche)
Washington, 1907-1987 (on microfilm and fiche)
California, 1980-1984 (on microfiche)
Other indexes are at Multnomah County Library (Central branch - 801 SW 10th, Portland) and the Oregon Historical Library (1200 SW Park Ave., Portland).
Cemetery and funeral home records may help you locate death dates for older relatives. An obituary can lead to other relatives. Two books that will help locate addresses for cemeteries and funeral homes:
Kot, Elizabeth G. United States Cemetery Address Book. Vallejo, CA: Indices Publishing, 1994.
American Blue Book of Funeral Directors, 1990-1991. New York: American Funeral Directors, 1990.
Obituaries are a wonderful source of information about people. The Library Association of Portland's newspaper index includes citations for published obituaries (not death or funeral notices). It is on fiche at the Forum (1920s - 1987). Newspapers included in this index are:
Oregonian
Oregon Journal
Telegram
Portland Reporter
The above newspapers can be found on microfilm at the Multnomah County Library (Central branch - 801 SW 10th, Portland) and the Oregon Historical Library (1200 SW Park Ave, Portland).
© 2002-2006
Connie Lenzen, CG