El Camino College Unveils Digital Archive

If your ancestor grew up in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County, perhaps he or she attended El Camino College, a community college located in Torrance.

The recently unveiled ECC Digital Archive (officially known as the El Camino College Student Media Digital Archive Project) provides online access to many resources in which you may find interesting tidbits about your ancestors’ experiences at the school. Included in the archive are all yearbooks and issues of the student newspaper and magazine from 1947-2012.

You can access the archives at http://digitallibrary.elcamino.edu/camino/guest.jsp.

Browse publications or search by name or subject to see what turns up!

Digital image, Denise Spurlock, 2013.

© 2013 Denise Spurlock, Ancestral Trees Research

Obtaining Vital Records in Los Angeles County

Entrance to LA County Recorder's Office
Digital image, Denise Spurlock, 2011.

Birth, marriage and death records for Los Angeles County are housed at the County Recorder’s Office located at 12400 Imperial Highway in Norwalk. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Los Angeles County provides both certified and informational copies of vital records. If you do not meet the requirements for a certified copy, you may request an informational copy. The only difference is that the informational copy is stamped “informational” across the face of the certificate so that it cannot be used to establish identity. For most genealogical purposes, informational copies are adequate.

If you have all the required information (dates, names, etc.) and want to order a copy of a certificate, I recommend using VitalChek; it is easy to use and, in my experience, turnaround time is 10–15 days. I have also found that if you order more than one certificate, you pay the VitalChek fee for only one.

Los Angeles County also permits viewing of vital records and indexes that are not exempt from public inspection from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. This can be a great alternative to purchasing an informational certificate; you can make a transcription instead! There is no charge unless you request that the clerk pull more than five records.

Records available for viewing include births prior to 1905 and from 1964–present, deaths from 1877–present, and marriages from 1852–present. Random searches are not permitted; an application must be completed for each record to be searched and identification shown to the clerk. After submitting the application, you will be allowed to search the indexes for the information needed for the clerk to pull the document (certificate number or marriage book/page). There are restrictions on use of the information; these are listed on the application.

Before placing an order for a certificate or visiting the Recorder’s Office, be sure to review the information posted on the agency’s website for hours of operation, applicable fees, restrictions, etc.

Happy searching!

© 2012 Denise Spurlock, Ancestral Trees Research

Los Angeles County Archives and Records Center

If you are looking for probate, divorce, or civil court cases more than five years old, you'll need to do some research at the Los Angeles County Archives and Records Center, located at 211 N. Hill Street, in downtown Los Angeles. For specific information about hours, records availability, copy charges, etc., see their website.

Here are some tips if you plan to visit:

1. Unless you love crazy traffic and exorbitant parking charges, take public transportation. The archives are just a short walk from the Metro Red Line Civic Center station.
2. I also recommend dressing in layers; it can be quite warm in the microfilm library, especially at the film readers.
3. It's easy to miss the entrance; see the image from Google Earth below. Although construction is going on right now, you can access the elevator down to the Archives from outside the building, which will save walking through a maze of corridors. The red arrow on the photo shows the location.
4. The archives are located on the 2nd lower level; the microfilm library is on the 1st lower level. 
5. Visit the archives on the 2nd lower level first to get the case number(s); then you will go to the microfilm library on the 1st lower level.
6. You will take a number and sign in at the microfilm library. Allow yourself plenty of time. My experience has been there is usually a two-hour wait to view microfilm or speak with a clerk about the documents you want.
7. There is a 30-minute time limit on the use of microfilm readers, and there are only 4 readers. If you want something specific, such as the final judgment on a divorce or just the will from a probate file, I recommend asking the clerk to copy it for you, rather than using a reader.
8. Once you have your documents, a clerk will write up a work invoice which you take the cashier on the 2nd lower level. Then you go back to the microfilm library to pick up your documents!

Elevator to Archives is located to the left of where the red arrow is pointing.

Good luck in your genealogy search!

© 2011 Denise Spurlock, Ancestral Trees Research