Re: A bunch of lookups needed - can anyone help?
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In reply to:
Re: A bunch of lookups needed - can anyone help?
Jonathan Reeves 12/09/06
Jonathan, to the best of my knowledge, there is no free, huge database containing obituaries from all US newspapers for the last one or two hundred years where one can simply key in a name and miraculously the obit instantly appears. If there is one, I sure would love to know about it. Most libraries now subscribe to some sort of genealogical pay site such as Ancestry, Heritage Quest, etc. These companies do maintain databases of obituaries so perhaps you can call your local library to see what's available. You might mention that you are seeking obituaries so perhaps they can tell you what subscription level they have and whether obit databases are included. They might also subscribe to newspaper databases with search features so that's another possibility. In my experience, access to these sites is free although some libraries require a library card. Some libraries also have offsite access to such sites but just as many restrict access to onsite visits. Since you indicate that you don't have much time to search, maybe this is the best approach.
Finding an obituary, in my experience, requires time, patience, persistence and at least a little money. You are correct, an approximate death date, location and female's married surname will most likely be needed. Keep in mind that just because someone died, it doesn't necessarily follow that an obit was published. Also, an obituary might appear in a newspaper other than where the person actually died. Suppose Aunt Sally lived in Kingston, Tennessee for 67 of her 72 years but moved to California to be with her daughter. It's likely that her obit was published in the local Kingston paper since that is where she spent most of her life. The same obit could appear in both California and Tennessee newspapers. You just never know.
If you have a person's death certificate then maybe the funeral home that handled the burial might be listed. Assuming that they are still in business, you can always write or call them to see if they have a file on the person. These files sometimes contain a copy of the death notice or obituary.
There are many other approaches but they are all going to involve time and effort, unless you just plain luck into one. Example, I had been looking for my great-grandmothers obit for several years but just didn't have enough info on her to track it down. One day, in sheer desperation, I Goggled her name but used her nickname rather than her given name. Lo and behold, I had a hit! I went to the website and there was a full transcription, citation and the name of the person who was transcribing old obits from microfilms of old county newspapers. I emailed her and within a week, I received a photocopy of the original article. Pure luck.
I don't know if any of this helps but there is no one, quick and easy answer to your question.
Good Luck.