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My father died 25 years ago and I've never been to his grave. I've done some random searches but can't find him. I have nothing but his name and that he died and is buried in Charlotte, NC to work with. Ideas?
First, try to get a listing of all the private and public cemeteries in the area. eliminate those that would exclude him, llike certain religions, families, etc.
Then start with the largest. They are the most likely to have plot ownership, who's buried there and you could elimate more if you didn't find him there.
Since it's beem only 25 years, I am sure that if he were buried in a public cemetery ( that's the most likely) there are records of his burial.
another source might be to see if a Charlotte Newspaper has archives back that far that would have his obituary.
My father died 25 years ago and I've never been to his grave. I've done some random searches but can't find him. I have nothing but his name and that he died and is buried in Charlotte, NC to work with. Ideas?
First, try to get a listing of all the private and public cemeteries in the area. eliminate those that would exclude him, llike certain religions, families, etc.
Then start with the largest. They are the most likely to have plot ownership, who's buried there and you could elimate more if you didn't find him there.
Since it's beem only 25 years, I am sure that if he were buried in a public cemetery ( that's the most likely) there are records of his burial.
another source might be to see if a Charlotte Newspaper has archives back that far that would have his obituary.
119 cemeteries here, and no info to narrow it down. Tried the paper, local government too. Sigh.
I am at a lost to understand why a cemetery doesn't have a listing for the ownership and the iternments of deceased. Perhaps you haven't talked to the right person.. This isn't the sort of information that's put out on the Interent. You are going to have to dig a little.
If he were buried in a city owned "potters field" for those that were without family etc. The city should have some sort of record. it's just a matter of finding that right person to ask.
One thing you didn't state is how close you live to Charlotte, NC. Is it feasible to spend a few days there? If so, you can go personally to the large, still active cemeteries, walk into the office during business hours, and ask if they have someone by that name buried there; having the approximate date of burial will be helpful too. Cemetery offices are used to that sort of inquiry. If the cemetery is no longer active (i.e., "full"), it may take some legwork to find a listing of graves at that place. Also, your father could be buried in a small church cemetery used only for members of that church. Not sure how many of those there could be in a city the size of Charlotte. Do you know if your father was an active member of a particular religion? If so, that would give you another place to start, such as looking for all the Methodist churches (for example) in the yellow pages and calling to see if they have their own cemetery. I would assume you have already tried to get information from any living relatives you can find?
Alternative: Try to find his death certificate. In California I believe death certificates are filed by county, and they are considered public records.
Have you tried locating an obituary? They usually say what cemetery the burial will be in. Most obituaries are on microfilm in city libraries but you could also start by asking all the older people in your family. Older people often keep copies of obituaries for their brothers, sisters and other close relatives. A copy of the death certificate could also lead you to the name of the funeral home used and changes are they'd still be in business. Obtaining a copy of my grandmother's 1918 death certificate actually listed the name of the cemetery and that information had been lost to our family for decades. My husband's death certificate also shows the cemetery and he just died this year. Ancestry.com is a good place to find stuff, too. Broaden out your search to all the little towns around Charlotte, too, because sometimes information passed down over the years gets twisted and you're looking in the wrong town. For example, "near Charlotte" turns into Charlotte. That's what happen in the my grandmother's case...couldn't find the grave because my dad had been looking one town over. from the actually burial place. The information is out there somewhere. You just have to keep at it.
Last edited by Wayland Woman; 07-09-2012 at 11:09 PM..
I live in Charlotte. Long story short is that he was estranged, and I had nothing to do with him for a couple years before he died. This is curiosity as much as anything.
Any chance he was cremated and doesn't have a grave site? If so, a death certificate would show that.
He was buried, no question. Death certs only go back to 1995 here, online, so it looks like I need to make some calls to get anywhere with this.
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