Records Department

The Lewis and Clark County Records department is responsible for the recording, scanning and indexing:

deeds
mortgages
surveys
mining work
resolutions
military discharges
and many other various documents

The department also files:

birth and death records
federal tax liens
notices of action
attachments
judgments
executions
and other miscellaneous documents

Additionally, the department processes realty transfer certificates which are used by the State of Montana, Department of Revenue, to determine the market value of real property.

To contact the Records Department, call (406) 447-8306.

Search of Public Records

Records recorded or filed since April 1, 2001 have been automated and are easily accessed by computer. The grantor/grantee index provided for you on this web site will enable you to search public records of the Lewis and Clark County Recorders Official records. Conversion of the older records is an ongoing effort.

Filing costs are $5.00 per document.

Recording costs beginning October 1, 2025, are:

Conforming documents are $20.00 for the first page and $10.00 for each additional page
Non-conforming document recording cost is the price per page above plus a $10.00 fee.
See MCA 7-4-2636 for further details

On May 8, 2025, House Bill 192, increasing the County Clerk and Recorder fees for recording documents, was signed into law. The last time these fees were adjusted was in 1985, with no account for inflation.

This adjustment allows the 1985 fee to be more in line with today’s economy. The recording fees are collected to help fund the County Records Department, the County Records Preservation Fund, the County Land Information Account, and the State of Montana Geospatial Information Account. The fees collected help support these vital services and will assist in all these areas in maintaining the integrity of the records while allowing accessibility to the public.

Subscription Access
Access to images recorded in the Lewis and Clark County Recorder's Office can be made available on a subscription basis. To subscribe to images please contact the Recorders Office at (406) 447-8337. When searching for Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filings, please be advised that Montana law was changed in 2001 requiring only those UCC's pertaining to real estate are required to be filed in the local Clerk and Recorder's Office. All other UCC's are now filed with the Montana Secretary of State.

Birth and Death Records

Birth and death records on file for Lewis and Clark County may date back to the late 1800's. The current State system enables all counties to issue State birth certificates since 1921 and death certificates since 2003, with continuing updates. The present county costs for a certified birth record is $8.00 and certified death records are $7.00, with genealogical copies $.50 each.

Fill out the form you need and save it to your computer. You can then print it out, sign it and return it to our office with the appropriate fee.

Birth Certificate Order Form(PDF, 322KB)

Death Certificate Order Form(PDF, 196KB)

To mail requests to Lewis and Clark County use the following address:

Lewis and Clark County, Records Department
316 North Park Ave. - Room #113
Helena, Montana 59623