MainObitPage
Southwest Michigan Obituary Index


This obituary index is a work in progress and contains over 89,000 entries dating from Southwest Michigan's earliest history through the year 2000.  Thousands of entries will be added over the course of the next year or two.   Soon to come will be more databases indexing births, marriages, anniversaries, engagements, and miscellaneous.   Obituaries included pertain to residents of the Michigan counties of Allegan, Berrien, Cass, Kalamazoo and Van Buren.  They have been taken from a variety of resources including newspapers, published biographies, funeral records, etc.  The index includes the first and last name of the decedent, the issue date of the newspaper, a code representing the source, and a page number.  The page number corresponds to the hard copy of the obituary.  This page number is needed to order copies.  The source code table is as follows:
 
HP - Herald-Palladium, Benton Harbor
CL - Courier-Leader, Paw Paw
BCR - Berrien County Record, Buchanan
MN - Marcellus News, Marcellus
ACN - Allegan County News, Allegan
CE - Commercial Express, Saugatuck
NBT - New Buffalo Times, New Buffalo
SBT - South Bend Tribune, South Bend, Indiana
KG - Kalamazoo Gazette, Kalamazoo
DR - Decatur Republican, Decatur
TCR - Tri-City Record, Watervliet
NDS - Niles Daily Star, Niles
UE - Union Enterprise, Plainwell
DDN - Dowagiac Daily News, Dowagiac
SHT - South Haven Tribune, South Haven
CV - Cassopolis Vigilant, Cassopolis
FC - Funeral Home Card
BA - Bangor Advance, Bangor
HDS - Hartford Day Spring, Hartford
BL - Bloomingdale Leader, Bloomingdale
EA - Edwardsburg Argus, Edwardsburg
GN - Gobles News, Gobles
LL - Lawton Leader, Lawton
LT - Lawrence Times, Lawrence
MPC - Michigan Pioneer Collection
SE - Schoolcraft Express, Schoolcraft
SMU - Southwest Michigan University, Dowagiac
Surname Card - Private submission
WMU - Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo
OU - Otsego Union


In a few cases, when the item was taken from a more obscure source, the source is spelled out.

Please note that the current or last title (for those papers no longer in publication)
for each publication is used for each paper regardless of any earlier titles.  For
example, the Courier-Leader in Paw Paw has been known by many other names
such as the True Northerner and Free Press, but the CL code has been used in
every case to represent that continuous publication.  This was done to cut down on the number of codes in the database, but the true title is reflected on the obituary itself.

To order a copy of the obituary from the collection, please send $3.00 for each item by check, cash or money order and a self-addressed stamped envelope to:
VBRGS, P.O. Box 143, Decatur, MI  49045.   Please include the full entry from the index.  Orders that include incomplete information from the index will be returned for more information.  Some obituaries listed are transcriptions.  Please do not request lookups in the obituaries to determine if it is the appropriate person. Proceeds will be used to continue the project.

Requests for Southwest Michigan obituaries not yet included in the online indexmay be made with a name and complete date and place of and a self-addressed stamped envelope. Please do not send requests with a yearof death only.  Money will not be refunded if item is not located, but a full report of the search will be provided.

Some entries in the index do not have complete information, such as an issue date or source code. This is because the hard copy obituary was taken from an exisiting clipped obituary collection and information may have been omitted or cannot be determined.  In some cases, the year only is given on the hard copy or there is no date at all.  Only complete dates have been given in this index.

Disclaimer - VBRGS is not responsible for the completeness or condition of the hard copy obituary.  All efforts will be made to provide complete information and the best copy possible.  The Southwest Michigan Obituary index does not claim to index every obituary ever printed.

This index should not be reproduced or printed out in part or in its entirety for private or public distribution and is the property of the Van Buren District Library, copyright 2005.  All copyright laws apply.

VBRGS invites further submissions to the Southwest Michigan Obituary database and obituary collection.  Anyone wishing to make submissions may send obituaries (originals preferred, but good photocopies accepted - transcriptions accepted only in their entirety) along with citation information - date and source.  Clipped obituaries from any time period are accepted even without issue dates as long as they pertain to Southwest Michigan.  Citations without the hardcopy will not be accepted at this time.  To inquire about donating materials, to request a copy, or for general questions, please contact the Local History department of the Van Buren District Libary.

Corrections to the above database will be accepted if it is a typographical error.
Requests for corrections or additions based on personal information will not be
accepted.   If an item is listed without an issue date or source code, corrections may be submitted with proof to Toni I. Benson at [email protected]

This index should not be reproduced or printed out in part or in its entirety for private or public distribution and is the property of the Van Buren District Library, copyright 2005.  All copyright laws apply.
 
 

Alphabetical Index Page of SW Michigan Obituaries

Index of SW Michigan Marriages, Anniversaries, Engagements and Divorces

Return to Van Buren MIGenWeb Page