Obituaries
Obituaries are newspaper accounts of deceased persons' biography,
family members, funeral information and interment information. They
are not the same thing as a 'death notice' submitted by a funeral home.
Obits are a valuable resource for genealogists; but take warning, they are
not always accurate. Be sure to review several issues after an obit
publication to see if any corrections were printed. Some of the most
common errors are wrong cemetery cited and incorrect relationship to the
deceased besides spelling errors of names.
To properly cite an obituary as your source, the name of the newspaper and it's date of publication are required.
In olden times prior to official death records being required by the states, a person was not considered legally dead until their obituary had been published in a local newspaper.
We have included below sources for locating transcribed obituary collections, including Tri-State area newspapers on-line that have databases of current and archived obituaries. In our Newspaper section, we have listed all known newspapers both defunct and existing and where to find copies of them.
Every county has their "official publication" in which legal notices are published to constitute service upon individuals by publication and other general public notices required by law. County Courthouses must maintain a collection of these newspapers for future reference. Thus, obituaries are available from these same, stored newspapers.
Many transcriptions are stored within personal and surname web sites and we suggest that researchers supplement their search for these by using:
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Tip: Don't forget to also look for a wife's obit using her
husband's names: example, Mrs. John Smith
How to Write an Obituary
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Searchabe Databases: Access North GA - on-line local newspaper w/obits
Legacy.com
National
Obituary Archive [NOA]
The
Obituary Daily Times |
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GA |
NC |
TN |
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The News
Observer [Fannin Co.] The Cherokee County Herald [Cherokee Co.] The Clayton Tribune [Rabun Co.]
The Dahlonega Nugget Dawson News & Advertiser [Dawson Co.]
Times-Courier The Northeast Georgian [Habersham Co.]
The
Pickens Progress The North GA
News
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The
Macon Co. News The Franklin Press [Macon Co.]
Black
Mountain News Citizen-Times [Asheville, NC] Times-News [Hendersonville] The Daily Dispatch [Henderson Co.] The Highlander [Highlands, NC] The News Herald [Morganton, NC] The Cherokee Scout [Murphy, NC] The Graham Star [Robbinsville, NC] The Sylva Herald [Jackson Co.] The Enterprise Mountaineer [Waynesville, NC]
The Smokey Mountain
Times
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Chattanooga, Hamilton Co., TN Bicentennial Library
- Obituaries Database Monroe Co. Democrat & Advocate The Cleveland Daily Banner [Bradley Co.]
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On-line Transcribed Obituary Collections: Obituary Topical Message Board @ rootsweb.com - caution: multiple popups Several years ago, RootsWeb took over the popular GenConnect data posting boards which had a separate board for obits for each county and surname. They were then much easier to find and link to. Now, all 6 of the GenConnect data boards are stored in one single 'message board' for each county and surname mixed in with queries. You can view posts by type [obits, wills, deed, etc.] once you finally arrive at a county message board. Start your search for our tri-state area at the following link, then choose state, then county or historical county:
Geographical by State Message Boards @
rootsweb.com - caution: multiple popups
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Georgia Obituaries @ USGenWeb
Archives Access North GA - on-line local newspaper - searchable White Co. Obituary Index 1998-1999 - by James Garner Rabun Co., GA Individual Obits as well as 1991-2001 Index of The Clayton Tribune Rabun Co., GA - 1929 Obit Index of The Clayton Tribune Rabun Co., GA - 1925-1945 Obit Index of The Clayton Tribune - by Glenn Teffeteller Pickens Co., GA - Jan 1997 to Jan 1999 Index of Obits from The Prickens Progress - by Linda Geiger
Fannin Co., GA -
Gilmer Co., GA -
partial database, as submitted to GAGenWeb Project |
The Cherokee Scout Obit Index 1991-1999 - by
Glenn Teffeteller [Cherokee Co., NC Newspaper - includes obits of
folks in the entire Tri-State area.] North Carolina Obituaries @ USGenWeb Archives |
TN Newspaper Obit Indices found in Pulic Libraries -
@ TSLA Madisonville Democrat Obit Index 1890-1964 - by Glenn Teffeteller [Monroe Co., TN newspaper] Monroe Co., TN Obituary Index - by Dede Harrill The Daily Post Athenian - Athens, McMinn Co., TN The Maryville Enterprise Obits 1906-1960 - by Glenn Teffeteller |
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Books and CD: available for puchase on-line: |
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Marriages and Obituaries from Early Georgia Newspapers Early deaths in Savannah, Georgia, 1763-1803: Obituaries and legal notices Annotated Obituaries from the cherokee Advance, Canton, Georgia, 1880-1938 by John Carver |
Guide to North Carolina Newspapers on Microfilm |
Obituaries and Marriage Notices from the Tennessee Baptist:
1844-1862 Obituaries from Early Tennessee Newspapers |
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Death Notices from Freewill Baptist Publications, 1811-1851
Obituaries: A guide to sources
Death and obituary notices from the
Medical obituaries: American physicians' biographical |
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There are many obituary records that have yet to be transcribed. If you are interested in seeing more of these types of records on this web site, please contact us. We will help you locate the records for transcription. Thank you. For sources of off-line obituary collections, please visit our Books and CD section. |
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Design, Graphics, Photos & Content © Copyright 2004-2007 Carol Ann "C.A.T." Tindell, Blue Ridge, GA