It does not matter if you are settling a loved one's estate or if you are conducting research for a genealogy project, it is essential to secure the proper death records. As luck would have it, locating and gaining access to copies of death records is something that can be accomplished in a number of different ways. In fact, you may find that many of the resources that you seek are actually available locally.

If you are researching your family tree or preparing a family history, one of the first places that you need to look is at the cemeteries where you ancestors are buried. If your ancestors were members of a religious organization that maintained an onsite cemetery, you stand a good chance of finding documents that contain details regarding the individuals buried in that cemetery, such as the date they were laid to rest.

Even if the death records that you find at the cemeteries do not include an exact date of death, you will usually be able to find a space and lot number for the associated grave, which will make it easy to locate the actual gravesite to obtain data displayed on the marker.

Government agencies may be the place to go to find the death records that you need. It depends on the county, but you may be able to contact local agencies to assist in your research directly. Often times, parish and county records will include details related to the deaths and burials that have taken place in a specific jurisdiction. The death records obtained via this method may include copies of death certificates, which a coroner issues after both a government official and a licensed doctor have certified a person's death.

Should you find that the local records that you are looking for have been damaged or lost, it may be possible to find the information that you need by searching the death records that are logged with the national government. For instance, in the United States, you can secure information on deaths are far back as the nineteenth century.

The older records that you find may only contain small bits of information, death records from around the nineteen hundreds through to present times seem to include the most details. When death records are no longer obtainable by any other source, you can usually find copies of death certificates available through national government agencies.

Another avenue you may want to explore in your search for death records is to browse the databases of the various genealogical associations. Recently, the technology of computers have made it possible to scan original documents and store digital copies, which makes it easier than ever to retrieve the information that you need. In some cases, these societies will have copies of the county's death records on microfiche and microfilm that date back several years.

You may be able to find a host of valuable information available through these genealogical societies, such as listings of births and deaths, church cemetery logs and a wide variety of other public death records that may be kept by a number of towns and villages.