A Matter of Life and Death Certificates: What You Can Learn from Mortality Records

People die every day, and most of the ones who don’t die, fear dying. Sometimes someone else’s health scare or funeral can cause us to explore our own sense of mortality and even start so-called end of life planning. In the last year, three of my relatives within four degrees of separation have died, and three others had medical procedures that caused them and everyone around them to discuss the obvious concerns about risks and outcomes. We also became more sensitized to concepts like spiritual faith, the fragility of the human body, and the fact that trials and challenges happen to everyone. Inevitably, our thoughts and plans bounce around the technicalities of death – cemetery plots, caskets, cremation, the homegoing celebration, and the need for death certificates.

Between every day life and my genealogy research activities, I have plenty of occasion to think about or view death certificates, which are extremely valuable to family historians. In doing some leg work for the book I’m writing, I’ve been using information from several death certificates to understand and determine relationships between possible family members. One interesting record surfaced that presented some really interesting data, and I thought I should share it as an example of how a death certificate could be a goldmine in terms of understanding your family in context. Every record is different, but most states request that an informant provide details about the decedent’s birth, marital status, and occupation; parents’ names and birth. Sometimes, the informant might indicate their military status and relationship to the decedent. A physician describes his interaction with the decedent and his assessment of the cause of death, including contributory causes. A death certificate also indicates burial location and date as well as the caretaker’s name.

The death certificate referenced here is that of Nancy Turner, who, according to oral tradition, was the oldest daughter of George Wheaton and his wife Emmaline neé Robinson.¹ First, I’ll pose some of the questions I typically have about my relatives, and then I’ll share some of the information I gleaned from this death certificate. Where did this ancestor normally live, and where did she die? Who were her spouse and parents, and where were they from? Who was the informant, and how accurate would his/her report be given their relationship (e.g., familial, friend, medical records)? What was the cause of death? Is there a family history of a condition or disorder? Where was she buried, and could other family members be buried there as well?

Notice that this death certificate was provided by the Arkansas State Board of Health’s Bureau of Vital Statistics. Nancy’s usual residence is not indicated, but we see that she died in Magnolia, Columbia County, Arkansas (5). The informant, Ella Woodmore, lived in Magnolia, and it is likely that they were at least acquaintances if not neighbors or relatives. In any case, Ella seemed to know a lot abut Nancy. Ella reported that Nancy was born around 1882 in Homer, Claiborne Parish, Louisiana (1). Her parents were listed as George Wheaton of Virginia (2) and Emiline Robinson of Georgia (3). Nancy was a black female who was married to a man named Frank Turner (4). In terms of cause of death, acting coroner Clyde Fincher determined that she was “supposed to have frozen” after her body was discovered on February 10, 1930 (6). There is no information about how her remains were handled (7).

Based on the death certificates, there are some details that seem pretty accurate and others that are questionable or just plain wrong. The information about Ella’s parentage corresponds with the oral traditions shared in the family. Ella’s accuracy makes me think that she was a well-connected friend of the Wheaton family. Ella may have grown up with Nancy, or she may have had frequent contact with Nancy’s family who lived in Hempstead, Arkansas. It is also possible that she simply relayed information between Nancy’s husband Frank and the recorder. Since I have already researched this family, I know that Ella was mistaken about Nancy’s age; Nancy was listed in the 1880 census with a birth year of about 1870, making her closer to 60 years of age at the time of death.² She had married Frank Turner in 1893, but maybe their marriage was on the rocks.³ Why didn’t he serve as the informant; was he so aggrieved that he couldn’t provide the information himself, or were he and Nancy estranged? The language the coroner used to describe Nancy’s cause of death (i.e., she was “supposed to have frozen to death”) suggests that she died under suspicious circumstances. Why did Fincher have to suppose anything…did he actually examine her body, or was he relying on collateral, second-hand information? In the latter case, who would have provided the information?

Here are some follow-up research tasks I completed in order to answer my lingering questions:

• Search census, marriage, and death records for 1870-1930 for Ella Woodmore, in both Louisiana and Arkansas, to explore the nature of her relationship with Nancy.
• Research newspapers and local and county records to determine the circumstances around Nancy’s death and whether an inquest was conducted and what was discovered. Learning more about Clyde T. Fincher also could provide more information about Nancy’s case.
• Learn more about Frank Turner and his life after Nancy’s death.
• Search findagrave.com, newspapers, and other resources for information about Nancy’s burial or funeral service.

I hope this review of my relative’s death certificate helps you understand the benefit of analyzing mortality records. Please share your death certificate findings in the comments, and subscribe to this blog to read a future post on mining funeral programs for genealogical information.

Footnotes

1. Arkansas Department of Vital Records, death certificate 153 (1930), Nancy Turner; digital image, “Arkansas, Death Certificates, 1914-1969,” Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/269022:61777 : accessed 27 November 2014), citing Arkansas Department of Vital Records.
2. “United States Census, 1880,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MD6K-PRW : 14 January 2022), Nancy Wheaton in household of George Wheaton, Claiborne, Louisiana, United States; citing enumeration district 11, sheet 275C, dwelling 115, NARA microfilm publication T9.
3. “Louisiana Parish Marriages, 1837-1957,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QG1Y-917B : 4 April 2020), Frank Turner and Nancy Wheaton, 2 Feb 1893; citing Claiborne, Louisiana, United States, various parish courthouses, Louisiana.