To anyone who may want more information on those Hoffpauirs listed in the postings of the CA death index and the CA marriage index: Many counties in California allow someone to hand copy the death or marriage cert's; some don't. There are quite a few volunteers that will go and get a hand transcription. If you don't need a certified copy, this is a great help. There are also a lot of volunteers in the various counties that will look up obits, too. (I do this for Kern Co. since they are one of the ones that don't allow transcriptions) The list for NORCAL on rootsweb is particularly helpful. If you decide to order a certified copy, DON'T send to the state for it. Send to the county. You will get it either way, but the state will take about 4 months and the county will take about 2 weeks. Here is where you may find the addresses of all the counties and where to order. <http://vitalrec.com/cacounties1.html#Alameda> Sharon Dulcich