Funeral home records are as varied as funeral homes. Location, time period, owners and many other factors play a significant role in the types and quality of records created and preserved. It's a good idea to check this underused resource when researching family members. Funeral home records can contain information about where a person died, perhaps even the cause. They often offer the names of surviving relatives, obituaries, birth information including parentage, information about military service, organizational memberships and details about religious affiliations. They can also, of course, help you find that grave you have been searching for, for years. Searching for funeral home records can be a large undertaking (no pun intended). To determine the name of the organization or individual who handled your research subject's arrangements, check the death certificate, obituary notice or death notice. If you already know where the grave is, check with the cemetery administration to see if the name of the funeral home is listed in administrative records. Depending on the area of death, it might be easiest to check town records to determine which funeral homes and undertakers were in business at the time of death - from there you can determine which handled your subject's arrangements through the process of elimination. Many funeral homes that passed on passed their records on to other functional operations. If you find the funeral home you search for is closed check with others in the area. Sometimes libraries store copies of early records in their special collections. Local genealogical societies are also often aware of where records are kept and just might save you loads of time. To find a genealogical society that specializes in the area that you are researching, check the Handybook for Genealogists, 10th edition. Donna Brown at [email protected] ********** Copyright 2003 Everton Family History Network. All Rights Reserved. Sally Rolls Pavia Sun City, AZ [email protected] List Owner: [email protected] "Without genealogy, the study of history is lifeless." All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus 2002