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  • Michigan obituaries
    • Main contributor: Craig Kanalley
    Michigan on a map
    Michigan on a map, surrounded by the Great Lakes and Canada to the north.

    Michigan obituaries are notices of death that provide information about recently deceased persons in the state of Michigan. They are typically found in the state's newspapers or through funeral homes. Online databases, local libraries, and archives house such records, including historical newspapers across Michigan's 83 counties.

    MyHeritage has several online collections with Michigan obituaries or death dates that can help find obituaries:

    Since Michigan shares more than 700 miles of border with Canada, with frequent migration between these places, you might also look for Canadian obituaries.




    Information contained in an obituaryInformation contained in an obituary

    Michigan obituary
    A short obituary on a prominent surgeon who died in Michigan in 1924.

    An obituary commonly includes the name of the deceased individual, the date of death and place of death. Age at death and surviving family members are also typically included. Those interested in genealogy can piece together family groupings by finding obituaries for direct ancestors and their siblings who may have died in Michigan.

    Older obituaries are less likely to have much information, unless the individual was well-known in the community or of a higher social class. Modern-day obituaries often include a portrait photo of the deceased, a life sketch or biographical details, and funeral or memorial service information. Details like trade or occupation, military service, interests or hobbies, memberships or affiliations, and immigration details (as applicable) are often found in 21st century obituaries.

    How to find obituaries in MichiganHow to find obituaries in Michigan

    library of congress in washington dc
    The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., has a digitized collection of historical newspapers, which include obituaries for the state of Michigan.

    Those interested in finding Michigan obituaries have several places they can look. In addition to the MyHeritage collections cited above, these are excellent resources:

    • Digital Michigan Newspapers: This collection from Central Michigan University allows you to quickly and easily search hundreds of Michigan publications with obituaries from the 1800s to early 2000s. You can search by surname or keyword, filter by decade, and even filter by publication or location. The collections include PDFs of original newspaper pages.
    • Michigan Newspapers from Chronicling America: This Library of Congress collection has 56 Michigan newspapers digitized online, dating back to 1836. These are searchable and even include publications in other languages besides English.
    • Library of Michigan Newspaper Resources: While some of these holdings are behind a wall that require a Michigan-based library card, there are also a series of links to additional online databases and collections that include obituaries for the state. It's worth a look through these resources.

    If you are unsure of a death date, you might consult Michigan's Health & Human Services. They house vital records back to 1867, including death certificates for the state of Michigan. There is a search fee to find a specific person, but this is one way to verify a death date and place of death. At that point, it becomes easier to find an obituary.

    For more recent obituaries, since about 2000, Legacy has Michigan death notices indexed by metro area, county, or city. They can also be searched statewide. For the Detroit metro area, the Detroit Free Press website has obituaries online.

    See alsoSee also

    Explore more about Michigan obituariesExplore more about Michigan obituaries

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    APA citation (7th Ed.)

    Craig Kanalley. (2025, January 11). *Michigan obituaries*. MyHeritage Wiki. https://www.myheritage.com/wiki/Michigan_obituaries