County Clerk

Mary H. Melfi

countyclerk@co.hunterdon.nj.us
908-788-1214

Connecting the Clerk

An important message from the Hunterdon County Clerk, Mary H. Melfi:

"I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did,
but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou

The Hunterdon County Clerk's Office is open to the public 8 am to 4 pm.

County Clerk's Passport Division

To avoid unnecessary waiting during normal business hours (M-F 8am-4pm) we recommend calling (908)788-1221 to schedule an appointment. The U.S. Department of State currently announced processing time can take up to 13 weeks for Normal Processing and 9 weeks (plus mail time) for an Expedited Processing. We will be adding additional appointment hours through the end of the year to assist you. We strongly encourage you to check your documents now and plan accordingly.

Please call our office at 908-788-1221 to make an appointment, and to find out how to make sure your visit and time applying for your passport is organized and efficient.

Ident-a-Shred

IDENT-A-SHRED (PDF) is back for 2023. Our first event for 2023 will be held Saturday, April 22nd from 8am-11:30am (or until the trucks are full). We thank those residents who have participated in this popular program.

Notary Oaths

Notary Oaths are by appointment only. Please call 908-788-1221 to schedule an appointment.

Search Room

The Search Room is open to the public by appointment. Unless you are familiar with the records, we recommend holding off on historical or genealogical searches until it is safer to do so. Due to the social distancing requirements, staff assistance will be limited to providing verbal instructions on how and where to search for the reference materials and what is available within the Search Room Unfortunately, for their protection as well as your own, they will not be permitted to stand close to customers as in the past nor work with them throughout the Search Room. We ask that you maintain the recommended "6 feet" of social distancing when researching records.

Continue to stay safe. Please do not hesitate to contact our office if we can assist you in anyway.

Mary H. Melfi,
County Clerk and Staff

About the Clerk's Office

The County Clerk's Office is known as the "Keeper of the Records" and is one of the oldest offices in the State of New Jersey. The County Clerk is referred to as a "Constitutional Officer", elected by the voters of the County for a five year term.

The County Clerk's Office is responsible for recording all:

Assignments
Building Contracts
Certificates of Incorporation
Deeds
Financing Statements
Hospital and Physicians Liens
Maps
Mechanics Liens
Military Discharges
Mortgages
Releases of Mortgages
Trade Names
Vacation of Roads
Etc.

These documents are indexed, filed and digitally imaged. They are also microfilmed as part of a disaster recovery plan. The microfilm is stored off-site at the Hunterdon County Records Retention Center.

The older records are in the process of being redacted to protect the public from identity theft. Once the redaction process has been completed, the plan is to make the records available through an online process. All records from 1785 to date have been recorded and are available upon request. The Record Room of the County Clerk's Office is open daily Monday through Friday from 8 am to 4:00 pm to the public. Knowledgeable staff is always available to answer questions and offer assistance.