I spent some time today with the Montana Death Index found at Ancestry.com. The site says that it runs from 1860 to 2007. I had folks who died there early in the 20th-century and didn’t locate any of them in the index – so I know right up-front that not everyone who died in Montana is going to be found there. However, the index does cover a whole lot of folks – and can be useful for Montana research.
According to the website, the database is made up of two indexes – that compiled by the Montana State Genealogical Society, merged with another index by the State of Montana Office of Vital Statistics. The Montana State Genealogical Society previously published their indexes on CD-ROM. In the Fall of 2008, they added index data for 1860-1907 and 2003-2007. Expect to see some duplicate entries, and maybe even slight differences in those entries. I found that the data fields vary from entry to entry – because of the fact that the data comes from merged indexes.
The following Information that may (note the word MAY) be found includes:
- Deceased’s name
- Gender
- Age at time of death
- Death date
- Death place
- Index/File number (death record number assigned by the Montana State Vital Statistics)/li>
- Marital Status
- Source (Which agency that portion of the index was obtained from.)
- Comments – on some entries
More information specific to Montana Vital Records can be found at the Ancestry.com website.
I searched on the surname of Canfield. Clicking on “Match All Terms Exactly,” I got 32 hits. The first 13 entries are in the screen shot to the left.
Clicking on the entry for Mrs. F, Canfield (# 10 on the list), I got the following info:
Name: F, Mrs. Canfield
Age: 49
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1870
Gender: Female
Death Date: 11 Dec 1919
Index Number: Hel 214
Source: MT Office of Vital Stats
Clicking on the entry for Melinda Canfield (# 10), I got the following info:
Name: Melinda Canfield
Age: 75
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1854
Gender: Female
Death Date: 17 Sep 1929
Death County: Deer Lodge
Index Number: DL2059
Source: MT Office of Vital Stats
Now – coming forward a few years, I clicked on the entry for George Canfield (# 13) and got the following:
Name: George Canfield
Age: 71
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1909
Death Date: 3 Dec 1980
Death County: Yellowstone
Residence County: Dawson
Social Security Number: 517120129
Marital Status: Married Or Separated (Married)
Index Number: 6470
Source: MT State Genealogical Society
In this case, the data for George Canfield was not only newer, but from the Montana Genealogical Society, instead of from the State. Note that we got a residence county, social security number, and marital status on this last entry, unlike the others.
The Death Certificate itself must be obtained from the State of Montana:
Office of Vital Statistics
Department of Public Health and Human Services
111 N Sanders Rm 209
PO Box 4210
Helena MT 59604
Now go check out the Montana Death Index at Ancestry.com.
