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FamilySearch’s Top 10 Most Searched Record Collections:

3/11/2015

 

Collection 8—Texas, Deaths, 1890-1976

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 By Steve Anderson of FamilySearch
With more than 4.5 million death records, the Texas, Deaths, 1890-1976 record collection is a gold mine of information for anyone searching for their Texas ancestors in the 1900s. This record collection is # 8 in our list of the top 10 most searched record collections on FamilySearch.org and is a valuable source of when and where your ancestor died in Texas.
The collection consists of images of Texas statewide death certificates–including delayed certificates, foreign deaths, and probate obituaries–from the Texas Department of . . .

State Health Services in Austin.

Information pertaining to the death of an individual generally included:
  • Cause of death.
  • Name of the attending physician or medical professional.
  • Name and address of the funeral home used.
  • The exact date and place of burial.
  • Other information as provided by the informant.
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Tips to Keep in Mind When Using Death Records

  • Occupations listed can lead you to other types of records such as employment or military records.
  • The name of the cemetery may be a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county.
  • The name of the undertaker or mortuary could lead you to funeral and cemetery records which often include the names and residences of other family members.
  • Others with the same last name could be children, siblings, parents, or other relatives of the deceased who may have died or been buried in the same county or nearby.
  • When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
  • The information in these records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
  • Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800s.
  • There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.

If you can’t find the death record you are looking for by doing a general search from the FamilySearch homepage search feature, look in the Historical Records Collection for Texas records. Review each death record collection (there are 4 of them) individually to see if you can find the person you are looking for. If that doesn’t work and you know that your person died in Texas, try a search using the Family History Library Catalog. There may be record collections still on film in the library that have not yet been added to the FamilySearch website.

Visit the FamilySearch Wiki to learn more about what Texas Death Records from 1890-1976 has to offer. If you type that title into the text box when you go the FamiySearch Wiki, you will get a excellent list of links to use for further research. Click on Texas Death Records above to see this page.  It will provide a wide range of sources for this topic. This is a sample of the kind of information that is so plentifully available on the FamilySearch Wiki. 

Learn how to find this information again in FamilySearch without the help of the link above.  You have the method to use the FS Wiki above. This one will get you into Records and Collections. 

To be able to locate the Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 in FamilySearch without the link above, follow the steps below:

1. Click on "Search" at the top of a FamilySearch Page 
2. From the drop down list, click on "Records."
3. When the page comes up with a map on the right, look for the words "Browse All   
         Published Collections" and click on it.
4.  On the new page titled "Historical Record Collections," find the text box on the top left.    
         Type in the title of the collection you want to see, in this case "Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953."          If you know the exact title, the topic link will pop up under   
         the word "Title" near  the top  center.. If not, you may need to use the "Filters." on the    
         left side of the page. Click on the ones that describe your desired information.  
5.  For instance, if you remember Germany Birth records but nothing more, you would type   
         in "German Birth Records. If the listed information changes, scroll down until you find              what you want. If  nothing changes  at this point, go down to the first filter,  "Place,"                  and choose "Continental Europe." Then choose "Germany." Then choose a date                            range. Next from "Collections" filter choose "Birth, Marriage, and Deaths."  Click enter.            With that information nothing came up under "Title," but the list changed. Looking       
         down the list, the topic came up three times on the list. Once for births, once for Deaths,             and once for Marriages because of the working of the "Collections" filter. 
6. You now know how to find just about any topic in FamilySearch. This is an excellent    
           resource. As you play with it, you will become good at finding helpful information.


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