Social Security Death Records

Another great article by Leo Talbot:

The Social Security Death Index (SSDI) contains the names and vital information of around 65 million deceased Americans. It is an extremely large and important database for genealogy enthusiasts. Information is archived in the SSDI when a death has been reported to the Social Security Administration (SSA), such as when a family member stops the Social Security Benefits (SSB) of a person, or applies for survivor’s benefits.

 

In the early 1960’s, the SSA began using computer technology to store vital records. Therefore, most records included in the SSDI have death dates of 1962 or later, and birth dates from the early 1900’s. Although there are a few birth dates as far back as the 1850’s, and death dates prior to 1960, not all earlier data has been entered into the current SSDI.

Social Security Death Records

Social Security Death Records (SSDR) usually contain the following data on a deceased individual:

• Last name
• First name
• Date of Birth
• Date of Death
• Where the last SSB was sent
• State of residence
• Where the SSN was issued
• Last known address

SSDI Search Tip #1: Use maiden names when searching for women. SSDI is a valuable genealogy tool. The SSDI can assist your genealogy research by providing data that will help you locate birth certificates and death certificates. By providing the names of parents, a female’s maiden name, people’s places of residence and their occupation, it may also assist in the search for marriage certificates and other vital records.

SSDI Search Tip #2 : Start your search on the SSDI with just a few facts. You can search on any combination of data. A last name and known possible birth period may be a good place to start. If the results are too large, add additional data and search again. Also, do not use middle initials – middle names are not recorded in the SSDI.

Soundex Search is a very useful feature that can assist where names may have been misspelled.

Leo Talbot writes genealogy articles such as the social security death index and others

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