Find Umatilla County Records Office Files

Umatilla County Records Office

The Umatilla County Records Office, formerly presented as the County Clerk's Office, handles county recording and marriage-license services. It is not the clerk for Umatilla County Circuit Court case files. The office records documents that affect the conveyance, encumbrance, or division of real property, including deeds, deeds of trust, mortgages, easements, foreclosures, judgments recorded as land records, liens, plats, partition plats, subdivision plats, amendments, assignments, modifications, releases, re-plats, and satisfactions.

County Records also records or maintains several non-court county record groups. The research file identifies military discharges, mining records, oaths of office, powers of attorney, taxing district budgets, domestic partnerships, passport applications, notary public services, Property Value Appeals Board assistance, and the County Commissioners' Journal. The office also issues and records marriage licenses. Divorce, custody, and parenting-plan records remain Circuit Court records.

The official Records Office page shows the services and contact block used for Umatilla County recording work.

That distinction matters because using the Records Office for a court case request can delay access to a Circuit Court file.

What Umatilla County Records Handles

Recorded county documents are the core service. The office accepts in-person, mail, courier, and approved electronic recording channels for real property documents. Email documents are not accepted for recording. The county lists Helion/Simplifile, CSC, eRecording Partners Network, and Indecomm Global Services as e-recording options. The office cannot give legal advice, supply blank forms, tell a customer which form to record, or help fill out documents.

• Records deeds, mortgages, easements, liens, plats, releases, satisfactions, and other real property instruments
• Issues and records marriage licenses and provides certified marriage copies
• Maintains indexes for recorded documents and the County Commissioners' Journal
• Registers domestic partnerships and processes passport applications where available
• Directs court, divorce, custody, probate, traffic, fines, judgments, and criminal records to Circuit Court

For court files, the office gives the Circuit Court number, 541-278-0341. That includes divorce decrees, custody orders, probate case files, criminal judgments, traffic cases, court fines, and parenting plans. The Records Office may hold a recorded judgment or lien as a land record, but the underlying court case record remains with the court.

Request Certified County Copies

Certified copies from the Umatilla County Records Office are used when a recorded county document or marriage record must be proven as an official copy. Requests can be made in person, by email, or by mail. The office does not take credit-card copy orders over the phone and does not conform copies. For court-certified copies, use the Circuit Court records request process instead.

1. Identify the recorded document number, book and page, party name, recording date, or marriage record information before contacting the office.
2. Use the Digital Research Room to locate document details when an index search is enough.
3. Submit a copy request in person at Room 116, by email to recordings@umatillacounty.gov, or by mail to County Records, 216 SE 4th St., Pendleton, OR 97801.
4. Pay with an accepted method. In-person requests may use cash, check, or debit card; email requests receive a secure card-payment link; mail requests use check or money order.
5. Ask for certification if a bank, title company, agency, or other recipient requires an official certified copy rather than a plain copy.

The county's recording requirements and copy-fee page lists recording channels and copy costs.

Use those instructions for recorded instruments and marriage copies, not for Circuit Court certified judgments or divorce decrees.

Umatilla County Records Search Fields

The Digital Research Room is the county lookup tool for recorded documents. The research file notes that the public interface supports name, document number, and recording date search options, with advanced modes for document information, party information, map information, and display options. Online images are not available through the county page, so the lookup is best for finding index details before requesting a copy.

The Digital Research Room provides the recorded-document search entry point.

After locating an index entry, use the Records Office copy channels when an actual document copy or certification is needed.

Umatilla County Records Fees

Fees differ by record type and service. The county fee list includes a locate fee when the requester lacks a recording number or book-page reference, per-page copy charges, certification charges, and marriage-copy charges. Large computer research requests can be billed by the hour. Certified military discharge copies for an active veteran benefit claim are listed as no charge.

Marriage licenses have a separate nonrefundable license fee that includes one certified copy after the license is returned and recorded. The marriage license page states that cash and credit card are accepted and that personal checks are not accepted for the license fee.

Marriage and Recording Forms

Marriage license work runs through County Records. Couples apply online, then complete the process in person or by mail/email ID copy when eligible. Both applicants must provide proof of identity. The county states that the Hermiston office does not require a marriage-license appointment, while Pendleton marriage licenses are by appointment.

• Online Marriage Application - starts the Umatilla County marriage license process
• Marriage license instructions - explains appointments, fee, waiting period, eligibility, and certified copies
• Marriage license search - searches Umatilla County marriage license index records
• Recording a document - explains recording channels, requirements, copy requests, and fees

The Hermiston municipal court forms listing is a separate city court resource and is not the county recording system.

That separate form list is helpful when the file is a Hermiston Municipal Court matter rather than a county recorded document.

County Records Access Limits

Umatilla County Records access has a clear boundary. The Records Office is the right office for recorded instruments and marriage-license copies, while Circuit Court is the right office for court case files. A recorded judgment can appear in land records as a recorded instrument, but the case docket, court order, divorce judgment, criminal disposition, or probate file is still a court record.

For county administrative or sheriff records outside the recording office, Umatilla County uses the JustFOIA public portal. Sheriff records, warrant-related records, and county public-records requests may go there when they are not court files. Oregon public-records law under ORS Chapter 192 supports access to nonexempt public records, but exemptions, redactions, and separate court rules still apply.

Note: The fastest path is to identify the record holder first: Circuit Court for case files, County Records for recorded documents and marriage licenses, and JustFOIA for releasable county or sheriff records.