Public Records Lookup

By Melanie Ullman
Free death records are searched through public records look ups for a variety of reasons. Most commonly, it is to look up family history and genealogy, or to check rights and claims of ownership. Tracking down an inheritance or unclaimed funds are another common reason to search death records.

Their are numerous databases online allowing you to search death records free. Cemetery records or another source, although few of them are online. And while you won’t find actual death certificates or death records, cemeteries often provide enough information to continue the search online. This might include the person’s name, date of their death, and date they were buried. This information can help you to widen your search.

Death records, along with birth, marriage, and force, are considered vital records, and are typically kept at government agencies within the locality of where the deaths actually takes place, or the state capital of the deceased residence.

You may be able to obtain death records, free, as they are public documents. That being said, you may have to go through a fairly tedious process following specific procedures, and you’ll still often end up paying for these records.

You can access free death records through either the appropriate government agency or office, or through commercial information providers. Of course, the fastest and easiest way is to do a public records look up.

If you can’t access the right database online, you can usually write to, telephone, or fax create agency, or if practical simply walk in.

The SSA maintains the Social Security death index, a massive log of US citizens who have died. There are over 75 million records in the database. The death certificate contains the deceased’s social security number, which has encoded in the first three numbers information about where that person was issued their social security number, usually at birth.

There are basically two avenues to online death records, free and fee-based. For most Government sources, the death records are free, although again you may have to pay a nominal charge for copying, sending, etc. Commercial providers and Non-government sources can be free or paid. There are some websites which provide reasonably decent information free-of-charge but they are likely to have strings attached. Some commercial information providers will offer partial information, a free search, or “teaser” in order to promote their fee-based service. These paid services are usually by subscription.

A leading commercial provider of online death records is Government-Records. Their database offers excellent research tools making it easy to find:

• Search Death Records
• Find Name and Age of the Deceased
• Search for New & Old Obituaries
• Conduct Cemetery Searches

Though not free, death records are probably most easily obtained through their database, which you can reach by clicking here: Death Records Search.

Other information supplied on these records is vital especially if you are studying or trying to trace your own family tree genealogy. This information includes:

1. Family members
Obtaining records on an individual’s death can provide information regarding family members, from the parents up to the next of kin. Some records may provide complete information such as family members that are both living and deceased.

2. Source of death
If you are compiling or tracing a medical family history, you can use death certificates and other records pertaining to one’s death. These information include the actual cause of death. These are extremely helpful if the research or study involves police or legal investigation.

3. Occupation
You can also learn something about the deceased occupation. This additional data can be an interesting item to add up in your genealogy.

4. Place and date of birth and marriage

If you do not want to conduct a separate search for marriage and the only thing you want to know is the date and place, obtaining this type of records can provide the information you need.

Whether you go for paid or free death records, the availability of commercial and government databases makes this public records look up far quicker and easier than ever before.