How to Find Out if Someone Died in New York

If you are curious to know what has happened to a relative, a long-lost friend, or a distant family member, you will probably want to know the research skills needed to find out if someone has died.

The internet

If you want to know if someone has recently died, the first thing you would search is the internet.

Search engines

Google is the best search engine to use. Write the name of the person and the city or state of the person’s residence. This should provide you with a list of results to start your search.

Social media

Another way to know if someone has died is to check social media to review their online presence. Social media includes Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other similar networks.

Government Agencies

If the person died recently within the past 50 years, to obtain a death certificate, you need to prove your familial relationship. The death record is only available to the spouse, parent, child, or sibling. If you are not a family member, you will need a documented lawful right or claim, a documented medical need or a court order to obtain the person’s death certificate.

Deaths in New York

If you are searching for someone who has died in New York, the first thing you need to know (or estimate) is the year of death. It would help if you also knew the village, town, or county where the decedent last resided and died. This will narrow your search and direct you to the proper place to begin your search.

Deaths after 1963

As previously mentioned, deaths that occurred in the last 50 years are only available to close family members who can provide proof of relationship to the deceased.

Deaths from 1957 to 1963

For deaths between 1957 to 1963, you can search the New York State Health Department’s Genealogical Research Death Index in the Family Search website here: https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2285574

Deaths from 1880 to 1956

Beginning 1880, deaths were again required to be registered in New York with the State Department of Health. You can check the death records during this period with the New York State Archives here:

https://www.archives.nysed.gov/research/res_tips_001_vitalrecords.shtml

You can also check other online databases such as ancestry.com for death records.

Deaths from 1851 to 1879

Because of the law’s failure in implementation, no death records were registered during this period. You can check alternative sources such as census, cemetery records, newspapers, church records, and probate records.

Deaths from 1847 to 1850

A law was passed in 1847 requiring doctors to report deaths. However, the law was not implemented well. Death records during this period are sparse, but you can search the Family Search Catalog at https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog to see if there is a death record that has been microfilmed. You will need the surname and city, town, or county to complete your search.

Deaths before 1847 in New York

New York did not record deaths before 1847. If you are looking for deaths that occurred before this year, you need to check alternative sources such as newspapers, census, cemetery records, probate records, and tax records.

If you need your genealogy for probate purposes, we at the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin are here for you. We have offices in New York City, Brooklyn, NY and Queens, NY. You can call us at 212-233-1233 or send us an email at [email protected].

Why You Need This Information

The reasons people need to confirm whether someone has died vary widely:

• Inheritance concerns. A person may be entitled to an inheritance and needs to know whether the relevant relative has died to claim it.
• Kinship proceedings. Estates with distant heirs require proving the deaths of intermediate relatives. Birth, marriage, and death certificates are the core evidence.
• Estate administration. An executor or administrator needs to confirm the deaths of beneficiaries to determine whether substitute provisions apply.
• Closure for family. Someone has lost contact with a friend or relative and wants to know what happened.
• Legal proceedings. Various legal matters require proof of death — insurance claims, pension benefits, Social Security survivor benefits.
• Family history research. Genealogical researchers need death information to complete family trees.

The Authoritative Source: Certified Death Certificates

For most legal purposes, you need a certified death certificate from the issuing authority. In New York, certificates are issued by:

• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene for deaths within the five boroughs.
• New York State Department of Health, Vital Records for deaths in the rest of the state.

Death certificates are restricted documents. Categories of people entitled to certified copies typically include:

• The decedent's spouse.
• The decedent's parents.
• The decedent's children.
• The decedent's siblings.
• The decedent's grandchildren.
• The decedent's grandparents.
• The decedent's domestic partner.
• The decedent's legal representative (executor, administrator).
• Individuals with a documented lawful right or claim (insurance beneficiary, judgment creditor).
• Individuals with a documented medical need.
• Authorized government agencies.

The Social Security Death Index

The Social Security Administration maintains the Death Master File, which contains information about deceased individuals whose deaths were reported to the SSA. A subset of this database, the Social Security Death Index (SSDI), is publicly available through genealogical websites.

The SSDI typically shows:

• The deceased's name.
• The first three digits of the Social Security number (showing the issuing state).
• Date of birth.
• Date of death (often only month and year).
• Last known residence.

The SSDI is reasonably comprehensive for U.S. deaths since the 1960s, but coverage of recent deaths (since 2014) is limited by privacy restrictions. Older deaths may not appear if they were not reported to the SSA.

Genealogical Databases

Several commercial genealogical databases offer extensive death record collections:

• Ancestry.com. Subscription service with extensive U.S. and international records.
• FamilySearch.org. Free, operated by the LDS Church, with global records.
• Findagrave.com. Free, with cemetery records and photos of headstones.
• BillionGraves.com. Similar to Findagrave with GPS-tagged cemetery records.
• Newspapers.com and ProQuest Historical Newspapers. Searchable obituary archives.

For older deaths, these databases are often more useful than government records because government records were less complete in earlier eras.

Obituary Searches

Obituaries are an excellent source of death information. They typically include the date of death, age, residence, family members, and sometimes circumstances of death. Search strategies for obituaries:

• Google search with the name in quotation marks plus "obituary" and the relevant city or state.
• Legacy.com aggregates obituaries from many newspapers.
• Local newspaper archives (some free, some subscription).
• Funeral home websites that maintain obituary archives.

For older deaths, library databases of historical newspapers (often accessible with a library card) provide access to obituaries that have not been digitized for public access.

When You Cannot Confirm a Death

Sometimes despite thorough search, you cannot confirm whether someone has died. In these cases:

• The person may have moved without leaving forwarding information.
• The death may have occurred without proper reporting.
• The death may have occurred abroad without U.S. consular notification.
• The records may simply not be locatable through ordinary means.

For probate purposes, New York law allows a presumption of death after seven years of unexplained absence under specific conditions. The petitioner files a petition in Surrogate's Court, the court evaluates the evidence, and (if appropriate) issues an order presuming death as of a determined date. This order can then be used to administer the presumed decedent's estate.

Hiring a Professional Investigator or Genealogist

For difficult searches, professional investigators and genealogists can be engaged. Their fees vary but are often justified by the value of the information for inheritance, insurance, or other purposes. They have access to databases and techniques not available to ordinary searchers.