How to Do An Obituary Search?

Answer 1

Locating an obituary can be as simple as conducting a quick internet search, but that isn't always the case, especially if the death wasn't recent. Not all deaths will be reported in an obituary and older records aren't always available on the Internet.

Gather Information about the Deceased Individual

Having details about the deceased person will make it a lot easier to locate their obituary. Important details, such as a full name, death date and the city where the person last lived, will aid you in your search. If the deceased is a family member, knowing their social security number would be very helpful in locating an older obituary.

Newspapers

Newspaper archives are a good place to search for an obituary online. Finding a newspaper obituary for a recent death is very easy; a quick online search should retrieve the record. However, finding an older obituary will probably require leg work offline. When searching for an obituary in newspaper archives, you need to know the city where the individual lived so you can search the appropriate newspaper.

Social Security Death Index

If you don't know the person's death date, or place of residence, the social security death index can provide you with useful information to make your search easier. The index can provide a social security number, the date of death and the county for which the social security card was issued. Armed with that information, you can conduct a thorough search online for better results.

Library

Libraries hold archival information from newspapers, including obituaries. If the obituary is for someone who lived in your town, visit your local library and search for information. If it's for someone who lived and died out of your state, the library probably won't help, but you can still try searching records for that library online.