In the blog, I promised that in a future blog to provide some hints on how to get the best results when searching the index.
TA-DA! This is that blog!
Basic information;
- This is an INDEX and as such does not give you all the information that the original death notice would. It just points to where to find a copy of the original.
- The spelling in the index is as the name as it appears in the newspaper. If the newspaper got it wrong, the index will reflect that.
 |
| This obituary of my Mom appeared in the 25 June 1995 Marion Star. Her first name is misspelled. Although on her birth certificate her name is given as "Janette" she always spelled it as Jeannette - double n and double t. The nickname shown is "JJ" which some of her friends used. But by the majority of people called her "Jeannie". |
- Alternate spellings - try all the variations of spellings that can be applied to the name. Ex. SMITH, SMYTH, SMYTHE.
- The index covers all sorts of death notices, such as administrative & probate notices, news items and obituaries. It is called an OBITUARY index for simplicity. Not every entry is for a full biographical sketch.
- Periods, quote marks and hyphens are not used.
- If the name is hyphenated, it is entered under both names separately. Ex. PALMER-WILCOX, will have a listing under PALMER and a listing under WILCOX.
- If you are searching a common surname, like JOHNSON, it is best to also use the first name.
- For uncommon names just using the surname may suffice.
- The Ohio Obituary Index has over 3.5 MILLION RECORDS. Medina County District Library only has about 150,000 ENTRIES - or less than 5% of the records. So you will see many entries from other libraries in Ohio.
The index is found at: https://www.rbhayes.org/main/ohio-obituary-index/
SEARCHING TIPS
- List of Newspapers Indexed - 528 newspapers from around Ohio are indexed for obituaries. Maybe your ancestors' hometown is among them.
- Map of participating counties - 42 out of Ohio's 88 counties have participating libraries. See map below.
- Table of participating Libraries - 73 libraries participate in the indexing. Why is this more than the number of counties? Because some counties have multiple library systems participating - like MCDL and the Wadsworth Library!
- The Shopping Cart is only for items that can be ordered from the Rutherford B. Hayes Library.
 |
| Map of Ohio counties participating in the Ohio Obituary Index. |
BASIC SEARCHES
- A last name MUST be entered.
- Optional fields are; First Name, Middle Name and Year of Death.
ADVANCED SEARCHES - Requires patience. Fields are:
- Last Name - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- First Name - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- Middle Name - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- Nickname - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- Spouse's Last Name - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- Maiden Name - search as Exact Match or Begins With
- Anywhere in Notes
- Year of Death Between ______ and ______
LIBRARIES and NEWSPAPERS
- MUST enter a Last Name.
- Optional fields are; First Name, Middle Name and Year of Death.
- Choose one of the 73 participating libraries from the drop down menu and/or
- Choose one of the 528 newspapers.
LIBRARIES and OTHER SOURCES
- Some libraries have indexed other Sources on the Ohio Obituary Index.
- All of the other Sources indexed can be viewed on the menu.
ORDERING COPIES
If you have any questions not answered here, contact the MCDL Genealogy Team at:330-722-4257 or me-team.genealogy@mcdl.info or the staff at the Rutherford B. Hayes Library at: 419-332-2081 or hayeslib@rbhayes.org
No comments:
Post a Comment