Death Certificates

Our office has death records for home and hospital deaths beginning in 1881; 6 years before Middletown's first hospital (Middletown Hospital Association) opened its doors in December of 1887. Over the next 124 years, the Middletown Hospital Association would undergo a number of name changes - Thrall Hospital (Tuesday, May 10, 1892, to March 12, 1929), Elizabeth A. Horton Memorial Hospital (March 12, 1929, to September 1, 2002) and Orange Regional Medical Center - Horton Campus (October 5, 2002, to August 5, 2011).

On August 5, 2011, Orange Regional Medical Center officially closed its doors and moved operations to a new hospital, Garnet Health Center, in the Town of Wallkill. If your loved one passed away in the hospital after this date the certificate is on file in the Town of Wallkill, 99 Tower Drive, Middletown, NY 10940.

Our office still issues death certificates for individuals who are died within the boundaries of the City of Middletown.

The Middletown City Clerk's Office has gone paperless!  You can apply and pay for a death certificate through our web portal. We will either mail it to you or you can come to the office and pick it up.  You will receive a text and an email when it is ready for pick or has been placed in the mail.

Certified Certificates cost $10, plus applicable convenience fees.

Apply for a Death Certificate

Requirements

Who is eligible to get a copy of a death certificate?

  • The spouse, parent, child or sibling of the deceased
  • Other people who have a:
    • documented lawful right or claim
    • documented medical need
    • New York State Court Order

If you are not the spouse, parent, child or sibling of the deceased you must document a lawful right or claim. For example, you may need a death certificate to claim a benefit. You would need an official letter from the agency saying you need the death record to process the claim.

What identification needs to be submitted by the applicant?

Application must be submitted with copies of either A or B:

  1. One of the following forms of valid photo-ID:
    • Driver's license
    • State-issued, nondriver photo-ID card
    • Passport
    • U.S. Military-issued, photo-ID

OR

  1. Two of the following showing the applicant's name and address:
    • Utility or telephone bill
    • Letter from a government agency dated within the last six months

Please submit a copy of your U.S. passport in addition to the above ID if you are applying from a foreign country that requires a passport for travel.

Common Denial Reasons:

  • Applications without proper ID
  • Failure to submit a copy of their U.S. passport in addition to the required identifications when applying from a foreign country that requires a passport for travel