Have you ever found yourself looking for someone? Have you been trying to find someone who hasn’t been a part of your life for a long time, perhaps a lost relative, a college friend, or trying to trace your family tree? Unfortunately, if you’re trying to find someone you haven’t seen in a while, you need to prepare for the possibility that they may no longer be alive. What many people find, however, is that they don’t know if the person is alive or not. While there are comprehensive databases for searching public death records, not many people know exactly where they are and how they can access them…
Basically, there are two ways to search for deceased people. The first is through the use of death records. These records are an official record of a person’s death and can contain very important information, especially if you are conducting research and trying to find out who a person is. This includes the names of surviving relatives, the name of your spouse, the date and time of birth, and the official cause of death. It will also contain their last official address, something that can help you find the next most important record of the person’s death.
An obituary is something that is completely unofficial. It is usually an account of the person’s life and is written by someone very close to the deceased person, usually a close friend or family member. In some circumstances, particularly with people who have been ill for a long time, the deceased person will write their own obituary. It can be an amazing resource if you want to take a look at the person’s personal life. You will learn who they are and what they have achieved throughout their lives. They will also provide a list of surviving family members, some of whom may be left off the official death record due to divorce or other legal circumstances.
As you can imagine, there is no specific place designated for obituaries. They are usually published in the local newspaper, but which one is variable. Sometimes they are published in the newspaper where the person was born and sometimes they are published in the local newspaper where the person last lived. Either way, it’s almost impossible to say for sure where it will be published.
Fortunately, there are sites that keep track of both of these types of records and you can search for them for free.