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Re: Taking Photographs of Microfilm Reader Images at NYC Municipal Archives #photographs #general

Jacob Heisler
 

You don't actually need to go to the NYC Municipal Archives to get a
copy of those records. FamilySearch has them digitized, and while you
do need to visit a Family History Center to access the digitized
images, once you're there you can freely print or download the
records. FamilySearch specifically has birth records up to 1909,
one-page marriage certificates up to 1937, and death records up to
1948. The Archives alone have the three-page marriage licenses up to
1949.

As for the legality of prohibiting taking a picture of a public
record, that is a very good question I hope a more legal-literate
person can answer. Is it in fact legal for them to prohibit taking
pictures of public records?


On Wed, Aug 5, 2020 at 8:04 PM <jedbrickner@...> wrote:

As many of us know, the NYC Municipal Archives charges about $15 for a certified stamped copy of a birth, marriage or death certificate, even if you go down to their office and find it yourself on their microfilm. I just care about the information and don't care about the certification. So taking a picture of the image on the microfilm reader screen would be fine for me. I called them and they said it was not allowed. Has anyone ever actually tried this in person? Any thoughts as to whether they can legally prohibit taking a picture of a public record?

Many thanks for your thoughts.

Jed Brickner
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