Indiana Substitute Records

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Vital Records

[Indiana_Substitute_Records

Background

From the beginning of record keeping, record loss has been a factor. Fire, flood, insects, weather, and other reasons impacted the survival of records. Below are substitute records that can be used in place of the missing records.

• Substitute records can include additional details and clues about an ancestor even if no record loss occurred
• Use records of neighboring counties to help when there is county record loss

Substitutes for Birth, Marriage, and Death Records

Records created by other organizations frequently give birth, marriage, death, or family information. They were created for a variety of reasons, resulting in clues to move research forward as well as information that adds a richness to family history. Substitute records can contain conflicting information compared to other sources.

Links below are to Indiana wiki pages describing alternate sources.
2Do: Suggestion: edit source in "Scratch" sandbox to copy to correct area of this page. Delete in "Scratch" if identical or after copied

Indiana Vital Records Substitutes
Bible Records	Family Bibles often give dates of birth, marriage, and death Seldom contain places of these events May have passed down through the family Family Bible records may be located at local libraries and repositories. Some are published on websites.
Cemetery Records	Cemetery records are a rich source of death information and often give birth date or age Seldom contain birth place May reveal family relationships and relatives may be buried nearby The sexton of an active cemetery may have more information
Census Records	Census records are a good place to begin a search. They: Locate the family - the place to search for other records about them Have clues to marriages and migration based on ages and birthplaces of children (Notice large gaps between) Clues to death, when someone disappeared from the census 1850 and later federal censuses give age and state or country of birth for each person in the household Indiana took state censuses for statistical purposes only - no names or information about individuals
Church Records	Depending on the denomination, church records may contain information about birth, marriage and death, may include witnesses (relatives?)
Coroner's Records	Coroner's investigate cause of death and records may include "John or Jane Doe's." From 1879 coroner's records were filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Courts in each county (slide down for links.) Before 1879, few records survive. The Coroner's Office was established in 1788 and continued under Indiana’s 1816 and 1851 Constitutions. See also notices in Newspapers
Funeral Records (US)	Funeral homes are private businesses whose records are a valuable resource. Early records include at least the person's burial date and place. Now they often give birth, burial, death dates and places and names of close relatives (living and dead). They often filed and kept the death certificate, obituary, funeral program, and more.
Local Histories	Local histories, family histories and biographies can all be secondary sources of birth, marriage and death information. Often this information is found at county-level under "Histories" or "Biographies" or in surname searches of FamilySearch databases
Military Records	Military pension records can give birth, marriage and death information. Soldiers' homes records can include this same information
Newspapers	Besides obituaries, local newspapers may contain birth and marriage announcements and death notices. Also check newspaper social columns for additional information
Obituaries	Obituaries found in newspapers can list the age of the deceased, birth date and place, names of parents, death date and place, and names of living relatives and their residences
Periodicals	Local genealogical and historical societies often publish periodicals which may contain abstracted records with early birth, marriage and death information
Probate Records	Probate records give a close estimate of when an individual has died. Probate records in the 20th Century often contain the exact death date
Social Security Records	In the 1940s, many adults applied for delayed birth certificates in order to be eligible for Social Security benefits. Major online resources are: 1) The United States Social Security Death Index and 2) Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT)

See also:

• Indiana Guided Research
• Substitute Records For United States Birth Information
• Substitute Records for United States Marriage Information
• Substitute Records For United States Death Information

Substitutes for Census Records

• Taxaton: Tax records may include the name and residence of the taxpayer, occupation, description of the real estate and name of the original purchaser, description of some personal property, number of males over 21, and other information. Annual tax lists can help establish ages, residences, relationships, and the year an individual died or left the area.

Substitutes for Land Records

• Probate Records: Probate records, including wills, inventories, and estate records, usually mention land and other items held by an individual at the time of death and names of those who inherit them.
• Taxaton: Tax records may include the name and residence of the taxpayer, occupation, description of the real estate and name of the original purchaser, description of some personal property, number of males over 21, and other information. Annual tax lists can help establish ages, residences, relationships, and the year an individual died or left the area.