This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/pBC.2ACE/4095.2 Message Board Post: Here is the info from the Washington State Death Index on ancestry.com: Name: James V Ells Place of Death: Federal Way Date of Death: 31 May 1996 Residence: Federal Way Age: 87 years Gender: M SSN: 574-14-411 Certificate: 016184 You could get the death certificate from from Washington State Center for Health Statistics (I don't have the address at hand, but you should be able to google for it.) Since James V. Ells died in Federal Way, which is about 20 miles south of Seattle, if there is an obituary, it is probably in a Federal Way newspaper (the Federal Way Mirror, I think), and/or possibly in a Tacoma newspaper. I believe you might be able to get an obituary lookup through the Washington State Library in Olympia. Their website states: "State Library public service staff will conduct up to one hour of research. Such research includes: searching death dates,obituaries, city directories and other tasks related to the history and genealogy of Washington State." The website there is: secstate.wa.gov/library. I don't see instructions re how to obtain a lookup. But they have an email: askalibrarian@secstate.wa.gov; or a telephone number: 360-704-5221.