Mike: Your Family line doesn't appear to be linked to mine but I found some information on a Lester Fleming, no birth date given, died December 1959 (which is close to your information). He was issued social security number 348-32-1139, and it was issued in Illinois. (info from SS Death Records). I found 2 Helen Flemings in the database who might meet your criteria. one (SS# 327-56-4395) was born August 27, 1890 and who died in September1982 who was living in Carbondale (southern IL) at the time of death, and the other (SS# 340-09-6921) who was born on March 9, 1893 (place not given) and died in January 1985 in Chicago. Both had social security numbers issued in Illinois and died in Illinois. These are the only two I could find in the 1980s. I used the criteria of being born before 1900 and dying in the 1980s in Illinois. I assumed, since Social Security numbers weren't issued until 1937, that your grandparents would have had their social security numbers issued in Illinois. Newman is a small town (about 960 people) in rural Douglas County, south-east of Champaign/Urbana. The County seat is Tuscola, IL You might want to contact the County Clerk c/o the Courthouse, Tuscola, IL to see what records they might have for births, deaths, and marriages. Good luck. -- Phil Philip B. "Phil" Fleming Canton, Illinois, USA [email protected]