CEMETERIES, FUNERAL HOMES, AND OBITUARIES
UNDER CONSTRUCTION!
Two of the best resources available to us about our ancestors are obituaries from newspapers and cemetery records. Keep in mind that they are not 100% accurate as the information comes from someone in the family at a time of grief. However, it is important to look up these valuable resources.
Most State Historical Societies and/or State Genealogy Societies have microfilmed the state's newspapers in their entirety. And many have indexed the vital records from those newspapers - births, deaths, marriages, divorces etc. Your local public library will be able to tell you if they are on the interlibrary loan system. If so, they can access the index of microfilms and tell you what are available through the local library at a reasonable fee. The LDS Church has in their massive genealogy library thousands upon thousands of microfilms available for rental through your local LDS Family History Center. Their fees are reasonable. Stop by your local center and get to know their resources.
These different organizations have also microfilmed many, many cemetery records.One thing to remember is that when you locate a publication of the people buried in "ABC Cemetery" in "Anywhere, USA", more than likely it is a list of the graves with monuments. Many organizations have not been able to get into the actual cemetery records for one reason or another. You should always attempt to contact the current holder of the cemetery records and obtain a copy of the records that were completed at the time of burial for that person. At the very least you should find out who the informant was for the information.
You should also keep in mind that cemetery plots should be recorded in the public land records at a County Recorder's office. As an example, I have a Warranty Deed to a two-plot grave lot in a public cemetery in Colorado that was issued in 1925. The two lots contain approximately 80 square feet. It was purchased by my great grandparents. Although I have not checked the appropriate county office, I know from this document that the purchase of the grave plots was in fact a real estate transction.
More and more resources are becoming available on line. There are many good websites available for researching, and the list grows daily. Make it a point to recheck a resource every so often. The site may not have your area on line today, but might get it on line two months from now.
GENERAL RESOURCES
Coming soon - Tombstone symbols and initials!
At the moment there are 34 databases of cemetery and death
records at Ancestry, with more coming. Be sure to take a moment
and search for your ancestors there!
SPECIFIC STATE AND FEDERAL SITES
| FEDERAL
CUSTER BATTLEFIELD AND MUSEUM - PHONE 406-638-2621 |
MILITARY | CALIFORNIA | MONTANA BILLINGS GAZETTE OBITS ON LINE Has Montana and some Wyoming obits |
| NEBRASKA | TENNESSEE | WYOMING | |
Refreshing and uplifting story about a cemetery http://starnews.com/extra/features/99/dec/1207st_cemetery.html
Page created August 30, 2001 by Mary and Don Saban. Copyright 2001-2003. All Rights Reserved.
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