Utah, Cemetery Abstracts - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Utah

What Is in the Collection?
This collection includes images and an index of abstracts from cemeteries in Utah compiled between 1953 and 1955. Burial dates begin as early as 1850. These records were created by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and compiled by the Genealogical Society of Utah. This collection consists of type-written images of an index of death records and cemetery inscriptions in various cemeteries throughout Utah that was compiled between 1951 and 1955. The death and burial dates are from 1850 to 1955. The information is listed on each page according to the location of the grave site within the cemetery, followed by name of dead, age, date of birth, date of death, and parents, husband or wife information. Not all information is complete for all burials. The name of the dead is usually listed by first name with the surname following or sometimes only listed under the parent or spouse information. In some of the records the surname is listed first followed by the given name. There are occasional epitaphs or memorials written next to the person’s entry within the index. Name indexes are sometimes available at the end of each cemetery transcription and usually list the deceased alphabetically by surname.

What Can These Records Tell Me?
Cemetery abstracts may contain the following information:
 * Burial lot number
 * First name of deceased
 * Surname of deceased
 * Death date
 * Age at time of death
 * Birth date or estimated birth year
 * Cemetery of burial
 * Name of parents or spouse
 * Page number

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:


 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The county where your ancestor was buried.
 * The name of the cemetery where your ancestor was buried.

Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information in the list to what you already know about your ancestor to determine if it is the correct person. You may need to compare several persons in the list before you find your ancestor.

Search by Name by visiting the Collection Page:

View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page then: ⇒ Select the "County" category ⇒ Select the "Cemetery" category which takes you to the images.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members.

I Found Who I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Use the information to obtain the actual death certificate.
 * Use the information to locate the obituary.
 * Use the information to find other records such as birth, christening, marriage, census, land and probate records.
 * Use the information to find additional family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family.
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search.
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of Utah, United States Genealogy.
 * Search in the Utah Archives and Libraries.

Citing This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection citation:

Record citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image citation:

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