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32 | LIFE IN SOLERA | MARCH 2024 | DEATH AS A SOUCE Just because an ancestor has died, it does not mean information on the deceased person and their families dies with them. A death can provide information, such as: decedent's full name, parents names, spouse of the deceased (if still living), cause of death, and the place of death (this may not be the home of the deceased). All of this is usually found on a person's death certificate issued by the city, county, or state, when and where a person died. It becomes a valuable document for its information, but as you go farther back on your tree this type of document may not be available. So, other sources of death information must be used. These sources can be a church record of the death, an obituary in a local newspaper, or the grave marker for the deceased. A computer website called findagrave.com can provide information on both the deceased, as well as their family members both alive or deceased. An obituary for the deceased can provide not only some historical information on them, but also information on family members of the deceased. This may also show who of the children married whom and provide valuable leads to pursue for your tree. As you progress further back on your family tree, you will begin to find that the data sources on the deceased become scarcer. Church records become a major source, or you can Google the deceased and potentially find an article or Wikipedia entry for a deceased, Especially if they had any historical notoriety. If you are fortunate enough to have a deceased ancestor that was a member of royalty or the Peerage of Great Britain, Ireland, or Scotland, then you have an easier way to find the familial data on an ancestor by looking in Burke's Peerage reference volume (many of these are online or in local libraries). Again, if an ancestor has some historical notoriety, check the name online or at the library to see if any books or articles were written on them or their overall family. There are other possible archival information sources for a deceased person, but these are more difficult to discover. So, in your continuing 'treasure hunt' known as building your family tree, do not dismiss a deceased ancestor. They may provide many 'nuggets' of family information to help you build your family tree. ~ Bill Cramsie ANCESTRY GROUP Join us March 4, 4:30 to 5:30 pm, in the Oakmont Rooms 1 and 2 as Solera resident Kelly Bock presents a 30-minute-video program: Operation Whitecoat. Kelly was a member of a U.S. Army unit called Operation Whitecoat during the Vietnam War. He trained in medical photography. He had experience working for the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and was assigned to making training films in both Japan and Viet Nam to film a variety of medical procedures to treat and save lives of U.S. servicemen wounded in action. The film he will show, Army Medicine in Vietnam, was filmed to augment the training of army medics. Kelly will both present the film and relate personal experiences in making the film. Warning: some scenes in the film show severe trauma. HISTORY GROUP

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