Hello all, I've joined this list to see if anyone here might be able to help find a date of death, via a newspaper article, obituary, or whatever, on my great granduncle (or first cousin, twice removed, depending on who this was), Albert Elliott. According to his living descendants, Albert and his wife were killed in Monterey Co. sometime between 8/20/1896 and 8/20/1914. These dates are the birth date and date of 18th birthday of one of their sons who was "under age" at the time of the accident, and so was adopted out. Apparently, all five children were in the car, but survived the crash. Both parents died. It would seem that an accident such as this would have been written up in some newspaper of the time. My great grandfather had a brother named Albert Elliott. The Idaho (where the family was based) marriage records show an Albert Elliott married to an Amanda Henderson. The descendants of the Albert who died in the car/train crash say that Albert's wife was Amanda Perkins. Hmmm. In the family bible, the Albert who was my great grandfather's brother died June 7, 1899 (b. 1848, and the age at death is correct to be my great granduncle, Albert). Right under that is an entry for Amanda Elliott, who is shown as having died Nov. 16, 1898. So, if this Amanda is the wife of my great granduncle Albert, and if he was the Albert in the crash, then I wonder why the death dates are not the same. Also in the death listings in this bible is the name Miles Elliott Burger, d. Feb. 7, 1936. (Miles was born an Elliott and adopted by a Burger family.) This listing piqued my curiousity, I found his descendants, and they told me this story about the car/train crash and subsequent adoption. They also have the married name of my great granduncle's sister, giving their whole tale added credibility. In any event, there is conflicting information about Albert, father of Miles, and I would like to order his death certificate from California. However, it would seem advisable to have a date of death for him first. So, I am hoping someone on this list might have access to some resource that could hold the answer as to when this crash occurred; or at least when Albert died. The information I have from Miles's grandson is that the crash occurred in the area of Salinas, CA, before Miles was "of age." I did try looking through the CA death index on film at our local (Helena, MT) FHC, but the index, on old film, was nearly impossible to read, and the column headers were hopeless (microscopic; couldn't even read with a magnifying glass); plus the CA death index available on film does not cover the whole period in question (starts in 1905). I am wondering whether Monterey Co. kept death records before 1905, particularly since it was formed in 1850. In any event, any help would be greatly appreciated. Many special thanks in advance, Annie (Elliott) Utick