Thanks to both Dave and Sue. I've got problems with two generations, actually. The first, born in 1840, does appear with his father and stepmother in the 1850 census. For him, in addition to his father's obituary, I have him in an 1887 local history. I've not been able to find original documentation of his marriage - he moved around a bit, and I've searched every county where I think he and his wive might have lived, with no luck. The year is on his obituary, and is engraved on a silver serving piece my wife has. I've not yet spent as much time on his son, but so far have less. He was born in 1882, and his mother died when he was four. So in 1900 he was living with his mother's sister and her husband. His father's obituary says only that he left a 15-year-old son. A 1979 local history in an article written by his daughter is so far the only documentation I have of his parentage. I've not yet found an original record of his marriage either. But, I've just found that the Arkansas Dept. of Health is supposed to have Little Rock birth records from 1881! I may luck out. Thanks for the encouragement. Terry Reigel On Sat, 21 Oct 2006 14:05:04 -0400, Sue Roser wrote: > Terry, > > Yes, if the obituary gives parentage and that's all > you've got, it should pass. The Historian General judges > each case on its own merit, therefore I can't tell you > that it would definitely be sufficient, however, since > she accepts parentage of a line carrier based on a > published family history, then in my opinion, an obituary > is just as good, if not better. > > Have you checked census records? If you could find the > family with the child in the census, then this combined > with the obit would strengthen your proof. Also - there > may not be a birth record for this person, however a long > form marriage or death record often names parents.