To find an obituary for a specific person, search the person’s full name in an obituary database such as The U.S. Will Registry. Include their city, state, and approximate date of death to narrow your results. If you cannot find a match, check funeral home websites, local newspapers, and genealogy resources. You can also search Google using the person’s name in quotation marks followed by “obituary.”
Finding an obituary can help you confirm a death, learn about funeral arrangements, or remember someone dear to you. However, finding the right notice sometimes takes several searches. The steps below explain where to look and how to refine your search.
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People look for somebody’s obituary for many reasons:
In summary, searching for someone’s obituary serves both practical and emotional purposes. It helps in handling grief and provides vital details needed for personal or legal matters.
When you are looking for an obituary for a specific person, the best advice is to arm yourself with as many details as possible. Of course, it’s best to be able to search for the exact legal name, birthdate, and date of death. But, if you don’t have the exact date of death try searching on a range of dates. If you know the place of death, that can help you, too. If the person whose obituary you are looking for is a married woman, search using her married name. You may even narrow down the search results if necessary, by using her maiden name.
An increasingly popular website that collects obituaries from various newspaper establishments located within the borders of the country.
On the U.S. Will Registry, however, you can search or post an obituary (or a death notice) for no cost. This service is available for free to the public, attorneys, and funeral homes.
Tributes.com is a website that provides a platform for creating and sharing online memorials and obituaries.
Provides details and memorials on obituaries provided by affiliated funeral homes.
Head to the webpage of the newspaper located in the area where your deceased person lived. Most of the websites of newspapers have these archives available for search.
Papers such as Newspapers.com and GenealogyBank.com have old newspapers which might have obituaries of deceased persons.
Funeral Home’s Website: If you have identified the funeral home that provided the services, visit their site and search for the obituary.
Ancestry.com: This is a subscription site where you can find many obituaries, especially among the records accessed by those searching for their families.
FamilySearch.org: FamilySearch is free, is run by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and allows you to search through various records including obituaries.
– Facebook: Other family or friends may have published this on their profiles or in other community groups.
– X (formerly Twitter): A few obits may be posted by the family or other local news.
Some of the administrative offices at the state or local levels may also have death registers or indexes of the death which also include obituaries.
Some families may not publish obituaries at all or limit access to their publication by keeping it private.
In some legal jurisdictions, personal data may not be published, or families may choose not to publish it because of privacy concerns.
Declining Local Newspapers: This has meant that there is no longer a traditional arena where obituaries can be posted leading to fewer records in some communities.
Shifting into the Digital Age: The use of online platforms to post obituaries might have been missed by the older generation who did not use them. Additionally, these digital platforms may not keep records indefinitely.
Poorly Indexed Records: Not all search engines index every obituary record. As a result, even when an obituary is posted online, it may not appear in search engine results.
Enormous Results: When searching common names there are always too many results from which one must sort through just to locate the right death notice perhaps.
Absence of Personal Knowledge: When the searcher does not have personal facts about the deceased person (e.g. full name, exact date of death, or location), it can be demanding to carry out a search that is more narrowed down appropriately.
These obstacles show how challenging it can be to find an obituary, especially when dealing with older records or incomplete information. However, you can overcome these challenges by using specialized databases and even contacting funeral homes.
If searching by the person’s name does not work, try these steps:
Finding an obituary can be a challenging task, especially when dealing with older records or incomplete information. People search for obituaries to find closure, conduct genealogical research, or settle legal matters. Others seek to connect with the community or explore historical and cultural interests. To improve your chances of locating an obituary, it’s crucial to gather as much information as possible, including the person’s legal name, birth date, and death date. To find obituaries, you can use various resources such as online databases, newspaper archives, and funeral home websites. Additionally, genealogy sites, social media, and vital records offices can also be helpful. However, challenges like family preferences, legal limitations, the decline of local newspapers, and search engine limitations can make the search difficult. Despite these obstacles, using specialized databases and contacting local libraries or funeral homes can help you find the obituary you are looking for.
How do I find an obituary for a specific person?
Start by searching online obituary databases like The U.S. Will Registry, Legacy.com, or Tributes.com. Use the person’s full legal name, birthdate, and place or date of death to narrow results.
Where else can I look if I can’t find the obituary online?
Check local newspaper archives, funeral home websites, genealogy sites like Ancestry.com, or contact local libraries and probate courts in the area where the person lived.
Why can’t I find an obituary for someone?
Not all families publish obituaries. Privacy laws, declining newspaper access, and incomplete online indexing can make searches difficult. Some obituaries are only shared privately or not at all.
What details do I need to search for someone’s obituary?
Try to have the person’s full legal name, birthdate, date of death, and city or state of death. If not, search by last name or partial names, or use a range of dates.
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This article was reviewed for legal accuracy by Shawn Patrick Wolf, Esq. Mr. Wolf is Board Certified in Wills, Trusts and Estates and in Tax Law. He serves on the Board of Directors of the East Coast Estate Planning Council and the Palm Beach Tax Institute.
