R E S E A R C H   G U I D A N C E

Utah
Research Outline
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Table of Contents
Records Of The Family History Library
Familysearch
Family History Library Catalog
Archives And Libraries
Biography
Cemeteries
Census
Church Records
Court Records
Directories
Divorce Records
Emigration And Immigration
Gazetteers
Genealogy
History
Land And Property
Maps
Military Records
Minorities
Native Races
Naturalization And Citizenship
Newspapers
Obituaries
Periodicals
Probate Records
Societies
Taxation
Vital Records
For Further Reading
Comments And Suggestions

OBITUARIES

Obituaries are usually the best source of biographical information about an ancestor. They usually include religion, birth, marriage, and death information about the deceased and names of parents, children, and other relatives. There are a few indexes to obituaries for Utah newspapers at the library. Some newspapers have indexes on-line through the Internet. The "Newspaper" section of this outline describes availability of the newspapers.

A combined obituary index for the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune covers from 1850 to 1970. This index includes names from early publications of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that recorded deaths listed from many areas of Utah. It is alphabetical by name of the deceased. The cards give the birth year of the deceased, date of the obituary, newspaper, and page.

Obituary Index File to The Salt Lake Tribune and Deseret News as of 31 December 1970. Salt Lake City: Church Historians Office, 1971. (FHL films 821636–99; computer number 350135.) This index is also available at the Salt Lake Public Library, the Church History Library of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Utah State Historical Society.

A similar index is available for the Ogden Standard Examiner:

Ogden Branch Genealogical Library. Obituary Index to Ogden Standard Examiner, 1888 to 1910. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1974. (FHL films 934251–57; computer number 51277.)

Local genealogical and historical societies and public libraries maintain clip files of obituaries. Some individuals keep scrapbooks of obituaries and then donate them to the Family History Library. Check the Family History Library Catalog in the Locality Search for other indexes or clippings from the newspapers under:

UTAH - OBITUARIES
UTAH, [COUNTY] - OBITUARIES
UTAH, [COUNTY], [TOWN] - OBITUARIES
If you find a reference to an obituary, look at the "Newspapers" section of this outline for information on obtaining a copy the newspaper. Also, you may want to search the newspaper for the time of death.

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