Uncovering the Romantic Lives of Ancestors through Obituaries

Seeking out family history can be one of the most interesting personal journeys one can take. While it often requires slow, methodical research backwards in time in a linear fashion, sometimes a lateral trip into the past is in order.

If an obituary is the starting point for research, as it often is, this little bit of information can often be used to uncover a treasure of knowledge. It might just lead to some interesting facts about a relative's love life, as well.

Should former marriages and divorces happen to be uncovered; these can lead to formerly unknown branches in a family tree. There could be a passel of children that were previously unheard of. These children could have had children of their own to uncover, and so on. In short, when obituaries are read for the lateral clues, they can really widen the net for a search.

How much or how little an obituary might reveal about a relative's love will depend on how extensively it is written. It can also hinge greatly on how well you manage to interpret the clues that are given. The things to look for in the wording that might tip off how and where to look for marriage and/or divorce records to uncover the romantic past (and any offspring and more branches for the family tree) include:

Blatant wording. While this doesn't happen that terribly often, it sometimes does. Some obituaries are just chockfull of milestones from a person's life. Statements such as "beloved wife of John, whom she married 50 years ago in Atlanta," "former wife of James Doe, with whom she had four children" are what to look for here.
Listed children. If children are listed in an obituary along with their last names, look for breaks in the family surname pattern. These can be very strong clues of a former marriage or marriages and they just might lead to some very interesting new turns in research. It's possible in the case of girls that different surnames are married names, but these name changes can be traced as well.
Other listed family members. In some cases, former in-laws and ex-spouses might also be listed. It is rare, but not out of the question.

If clues are found about a previously unknown marriage or divorce, finding the actual certificates of marriage and divorce can get a little tricky. If possible:

Try to narrow down a state, county or city where the legal action (marriage or divorce) might have taken place. Newspapers can sometimes be helpful in doing this, especially for marriage records. Those that have their past editions on microfilm can sometimes help confirm or deny a correct location match for a wedding through their old announcements.
Check with the governing authority to find out specific rules in that locale for getting copies of these records. The availability and access to records will vary from location to location.

Marriage and divorce records can help paint a clearer picture of the past. They can assist in helping make the ancestor being research a little more three-dimensional and they might even offer clues to new places to look for more branches to the family tree.

Searching for obituaries online? Beware of scammers. Read my report first.