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You've got questions about discovering, preserving and celebrating your family history; our experts have the answers.
Relative Research
A: First, try to obtain your relative's death certificate from the state vital records office. Check to see if the newspapers carried an obituary. Either of these sources should give the name of the funeral home. While most funeral homes have no problem accommodating genealogists in their requests for relatives'records, keep in mind that funeral home records are private records, and the funeral home is within its rights to restrict or deny access. Because funeral home records are private records, their content varies from one funeral home to another and from one time period to another. The following reference guides will help you locate funeral homes: American Blue Book of Funeral Directors (Kates-Boylston, published every even-numbered year), The National Yellow Book of Funeral Directors (Nomis, published annually) and The Red Book (National Directory of Morticians, published annually). One of these directories should be available in your public library's reference section. If not, your local funeral home should have a directory. Or go online to www.funeralnet.com and type in the locality where your relative died to find a funeral home in the area.
—Sharon DeBartolo Carmack
Sharon DeBartolo Carmack is the author of Your Guideto Cemetery Research (Betterway Books, $19.99).
Pose your questions to our family history experts.
Q. How can I access information from a funeral home listing
on a relative who resided in California and died in the area?
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