A Closer Look at Obituaries in Genealogy Research: Not Just a Death Date

A Closer Look at Obituaries in Genealogy Research: Not Just a Death Date ​

Did you know that when it comes to genealogy research, obituaries are fantastic secondary genealogy resources that can give you a plethora of information on your ancestors? Not only can you get your ancestor’s death information, but obituaries offer a tremendous amount of information and details that will often lead you to many of your next steps!
 
What You Can Find in an Obituary:

• Name
• Death
• Burial
• Cause of death
• Religion
• Birth
• Residence/Address
• Occupation
• Spouse’s name
• Children’s names, along with their residences and married names
• Parents’ names
• Siblings’ names, along with residences and married names
• Other family and friends
• Education
• Marriage
• Military service
• How many children
• Hobbies
• Character
• and much, much more!

 
Take a look at some of the examples below, and see what information I was able to get for my ancestors from them!

Obituary Example #1: My 2nd Great Grandfather, Samuel Steinman

Obituary for Samuel Steinman, Taken from an Original Clipping in the Albany Ledger

My 2nd Great Grandfather, Samuel Steinman, 1895; Colorized, Repaired and Enhanced in MyHeritage

What I found:

• Death Date
• Place of death
• Cause of death
• Residence at time of death
• Parents’ names
• Number of siblings
• Birth date
• Place of birth
• Residence Timeline for him and his family
• Spouse’s name
• Marriage date
• Number of children
• Children’s names
• Approximate death dates for deceased children
• Residences of living children
• Daughter’s occupation
• Daughter’s marital status
• Living sibling’s names and residences
• Sister’s married name
• Funeral
• Church
• Burial

Obituary Example #2: My 2nd Great Grandmother, Mary Harriet (Hulet) Steinman

Obituary for Mary Harriet (Hulet) Steinman, Albany Ledger, Newspapers.com

My 2nd Great Grandmother, Mary Harriet (Hulet) Steinman, 1895; Colorized, Repaired and Enhanced in MyHeritage

What I found:

• Death date
• Place of death
• Cause of death
• Middle name
• Length of illness
• Who found her
• Daughter’s residence
• Parents’ names
• Maiden name, inferred
• Birth date
• Place of birth
• Marriage date
• Name of spouse
• Spouse’s death date
• Number of children
• Names of children
• Names of children in order of birth
• Approximate death dates for deceased children
• Residences of living children
• Religion
• Church affiliation
• Residence timeline for her and her family
• Hobbies
• Character
• Number of siblings
• Name and residence of living sibling
• Number of grandchildren at time of death
• Number of great grandchildren at time of death
• Funeral
• Burial

 
Obituary Example #3: My 3rd Great Grandmother, Mary (Sherbern) Steinman

Obituary for Mary (Sherbern) Steinman, Taken from an Original Clipping in the Albany Ledger

My 3rd Great Grandmother, Mary (Sherbern) Steinman, ca. 1870; Taken from and Original Photo Plate and Colorized, Repaired and Enhanced in MyHeritage

What I found:

• Death date
• Cause of death
• Burial
• Length of illness
• Ethnicity
• Birth date
• Place of birth
• Residence timeline for her and her family
• Maiden name
• Spouse’s name
• Approximate marriage date
• Spouse’s birthplace
• Spouse’s approximate death date
• Total Number of children
• Number of deceased children
• Number of living children
• Names and residences of living children
• Married names of daughters
• Number of grandchildren
• Number of great grandchildren
• Religion
• Past and present Church affiliations
• Character
• Information of a four-generation photo
• Information of a family bible

Some of the information in this obituary had led my father to more resources in his research into this line, including a four-generation photo and a family bible. My father was able to track down the owners of the family bible and the four-generation photo mentioned, and he was able to make copies, which are shown below.

Four-Generation Photo, Mentioned in My 3rd Great Grandmother's Obituary, of My 3rd Great Grandmother With one of Her Daughters, a Granddaughter and a Great Granddaughter, 1896; Colorized and Enhanced in MyHeritage

A Copy of one of the Family Bible Pages Mentioned in My 3rd Great Grandmother's Obituary

​Research Tips:
Use obituaries to help you break down some of your genealogy brick walls by finding missing ancestors and their descendants, and so much more! Use ALL the details you find; everything is a clue in genealogy! Remember, these are SECONDARY sources and all the information in them may not be correct, but they can still lead you to other records and info. 😉


Interactive Questions:
What useful or interesting info have you found in an obituary? Let me know in the comments below; I'd love to hear what you’ve found!
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More Genealogy Records:
You can learn about more genealogy records and resources, under the Genealogy Records category and the Genealogy Resources category!
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Note: 
All photos are copyright protected and are owned by me and may not be downloaded, screenshot, or saved in any other way without my explicit permission

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