At 04:47 AM 11/11/99 -0800, you wrote: >Date: Wed, 10 Nov 1999 13:22:43 EST >From: PatSalyer@aol.com >Thanks so much for the information about the loss of the burial records in El >Paso in1880, due to fire. <snip> >I have sent for death certificates for John and Elizabeth Myers. Do you have >any suggestions on where I could find an obituary ? They were Methodist ,so >I can try for a church record. > Thanks again and best wishes, > Pat Salyer Boy, you know how to pick 'em, Pat! From the El Paso Story: "The final service was held in the old frame [Methodist] church July 1, 1894, after which it was taken down and replaced by a much larger brick veneer edifice... It was dedicated, free from debt, December 2, 1894... Fire of unknown origin broke out in the new church on Saturday night, May 12, 1895, and by 1 A. M. Sunday morning the building was a mass of smouldering ruins, with almost none of the furnishings saved. Many of the church members knew nothing of this fire until they arrived from the country for services that morning. " But, records may have been kept in the parsonage rather than the church itself. The church's address is: United Methodist Church 125 N. Chestnut St. El Paso, IL 61738 (309)527-2222 I believe the library has copies or microfilm of many of the old newspapers. They don't have a big budget and their staffing is minimal, so I don't know how capable they are of doing look-ups, but the address is: El Paso Public Library 149 W. First St. El Paso, IL 61738 (309)527-4360 Incidentally, have you looked up your David McCutchen in the Illinois State Archive civil war database? (His name is mispelled "McCuthen" in the database.) The address is: http://www.sos.state.il.us/depts/archives/arc_home.html You can order a copy of his entry in the muster and descriptive rolls. The muster and descriptive rolls include rank, age, physical description, occupation, marital status, birthplace, residence, enrollment and mustering out information, and remarks concerning transfers, promotions, injuries, death, or special duty for each soldier. I got a copy of my wife's gggrandfather's record, and they contain quite a bit of info. If you haven't gotten his yet, I recommend you do before the archive burns down ;-) There is also a Rootsweb site of Illinois civil war veterans. It has a unit history for the 108th, but no roster yet. It's at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~ilcivilw/ Good luck with your search. Dan Steffen