Arizona, Maricopa, Mesa City Cemetery Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Arizona Maricopa County

What Is in This Collection?
The collection consists of images of cemetery and other records from the Mesa City Cemetery, and covers the years 1885 through 1960. The collection includes:
 * Permits for graves
 * Tax roll
 * Block book
 * Sexton ledgers
 * Burial records
 * Funeral records

What Can These Records Tell Me?
These records usually contain the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Death date
 * Burial dates and places

In addition, they may also list the following:


 * Age
 * Cause of death
 * Residence
 * Birth year
 * Names of children
 * Mortuary or undertaker
 * Name of purchaser of the plot
 * Location of the plot

Sample Images
The Mesa city cemetery began keeping records when it was established in 1891. It is currently operated by the City of Mesa Parks, Recreation, and Commercial Facilities Department. The records were created to keep track of who had purchased the lots and who was buried there. The records are generally reliable, but the information depends upon the reliability and memory of the informant or purchaser of the burial plot.

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search you will need to know at least some of the following:
 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate burial or death date.
 * The names of other relatives or associates.

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the  Select first browse level
 * 1) Select County
 * 2) Select Record Type, Date Range and Volume to view the images.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?

 * Whenever possible, view the original records to verify the information and to find additional information that might not be reported. These pieces of information can lead you to additional records and family members.
 * In case you need to find this record again later, copy the citation below in the Citing This Collection section. It's always a good idea to keep your citation on a Research Log. This is an important tool to help keep track of what you have and have not found.  Family search wiki has a  Example Research Log that you can download and use.
 * Print or download a copy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed.

I Found Who I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Use the birth date or year to search for birth records.
 * Use the birth date along with relative’s names to find the family in census records.
 * Use the locality and relative’s names to locate church and land records.
 * The name of the undertaker or mortuary could lead you to funeral records which often include the names and residences of other family members.
 * Repeat this process with additional family member’s records to find more generations of the family.
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname. This list can help you identify possible relations that can be verified by records.
 * If you cannot locate your ancestor in the locality in which you believe they lived, then try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search.
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images.
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names. Try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of Arizona, United States Genealogy.
 * Pay special attention to how the name should have been pronounced and try variations on the pronunciation.
 * Search in the Arizona Archives and Libraries.



Citing This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

Image Citation:

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