Town Clerk

Left to Right: Hope Vespia (Town Clerk) and Linda A. Lyons

The Office of the Town Clerk is the keeper of all records for the Town of Rye. Our records go back to the original settlers arriving in the territory of Rye in 1660. Early records contain documentation of land purchased from the Indian Tribes by the first settlers. Due to the Towns proximity to waters of the Long Island Sound, many settlers were attracted to this area. There are many volumes of recorded activities and transactions recorded on the minute books of the Town. In 1720, George, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, granted the Royal Patent for the Township of Rye. Being under English control, it was named after its counterpart, Rye, England.

In 1788 the State of New York created the Towns and by an act, the Town of Rye was incorporated on March 7th, 1788 and is still in existence to this day. The Town has a record center, in which all records are stored in special archival wrap and boxes. The Clerk’s office is currently working on a project which will create an up to date on line repository of all archival records. The position of the Town Clerk is the oldest recorded title in the Town’s documents.

The Clerk’s Office is the “doorway to local government”. Marriage licenses, hunting licenses and fishing licenses are issued from the Town Clerk's Office.  Dog licenses are issued to Rye Brook residents.  The Town Clerk is also the registrar of Vital Statistics for the Town of Rye and the Village of Rye Brook.  The Town's inventory of vital records (birth, marriage and death) go back to 1847.  Records for births or deaths that occurred in the Village of Port Chester may be obtained in the Village Clerk's Office. 

The Clerk's Office hours are 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM Monday through Friday.

DOG NEWS

New York State law requires that dogs over four months of age be licensed.  All dogs must receive a rabies vaccine before it is licensed.  The Town Clerk for the Town of Rye will be issuing dog licenses and license renewals to dog owners of dogs in the Villages of Port Chester and Rye Brook.

Effective January 1, 2011, the dog licensing fees for altered dogs shall be twelve dollars and fifty cents ($12.50) and for unaltered dogs, twenty dollars and fifty cents ($20.50).  The Town will offer the option of issuing a two-year license which shall be twenty dollars ($20.00) for altered dogs and thirty-five dollars ($35.00) for unaltered dogs. New tags shall be issued once and included in these fees. There shall be a charge of three dollars ($3.00) for a replacement tag if the original tag is lost or damaged.

Please contact the Town Clerk’s office at 939-3570 with any questions.

Important Forms:

Affidavit for Correction of Marriage Record

Application for Correction of Certificate of Death

Application to Town/City Clerk for Copy of Marriage Record

Freedom of Information Request

General Information and Application For Genealogical Services

FAQ's