Obituaries

Guide to locating newspaper obituaries for ancestry, family history, and genealogy research.

What are obituaries?
Obituaries are brief biographies of deceased persons, usually published by newspapers or funeral homes. They are also used to announce funeral arrangements.
 * "An obituary (obit for short) is a news article that reports the recent death of a prominent person. Two types of paid advertisements are related to obituaries. One, known as a death notice, omits most biographical details and may be a legally required public notice under some circumstances. The other type, a paid memorial advertisement, is usually written by family members or friends, perhaps with assistance from a funeral home." Wikipedia: Obituary

What can you find in obituaries?
Some obituaries are very brief, merely announcing the death. More elaborate obituaries can contain some of the following elements:
 * Name of deceased
 * Date and place of birth
 * Father’s and mother’s names
 * Name of spouse(s)
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names of children, their spouses, and where they now reside
 * Date and place of death, occasionally cause
 * Time and location of funeral and place of burial
 * Occupation history
 * Church membership
 * Membership in clubs, lodges, associations
 * Educational accomplishments
 * History of different residences
 * Family members (parents and siblings) preceded in death and still surviving

Major Obituary Collections

 * GenLookups.com: STATEWIDE OBITUARY ARCHIVES LIST
 * Archives: Find Online Obituaries ($)
 * Ancestry.com: U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current ($)
 * United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014
 * Obituary Links Page

Online Genealogical Records Pages
On the main page for each U.S. State page and country page, a blue button leads to a listing of online record collections.


 * Also, all the available Online Genealogy Records pages are linked at Online Genealogy Records by Location.

Wiki Articles
Each country and state that has census records has a Wiki page discussing the censuses kept and how to access them.

FamilySearch Catalog

 * Obituaries collected by FamilySearch, usually digitized and online, are listed in the FamilySearch catalog. Enter the name of the country in the "Place Field" and click "Search". A list of record categories will be provided. Select "Obituaries".