>> Golden Rule: Look at ALL the documents in the file, not simply the Death Notice & Will. Surprising nuggets of information may emerge in the most unlikely pieces of paper.

>> When finding an online index reference make a note of anything appearing under "Remarks" and look at those related files too. Leave no stone unturned. (The family historian's motto.)

>> A pre-deceased spouse's estate reference is usually supplied; if "No Trace" is mentioned, check the index for other provinces.

>> The Death Notice is the key which unlocks many doors - but some remain firmly closed e.g. when the space on the form next to "Parents" gives that dreaded word "Deceased", or more starkly, "Dead", instead of the hoped-for names; or under "Birthplace", simply "England" instead of at least a County as a starting point for the researcher. Nothing much one can do about that except swallow one's disappointment and plod onwards. The fullness and accuracy of the information appearing on the Death Notice is in direct proportion to the knowledge of the Informant, usually but not always the next-of-kin. It may be that a son either never knew, or has forgotten, the names of his overseas grandparents, or where his parents were married. These Notices are completed under stress of family bereavement: a widow may not recall precisely where her husband was born - if she ever knew. If the Informant is not a family member, details may be sketchy. However, additional information may be added after the completion of the Death Notice and this sometimes comes to light in later documents in the file - another reason for seeing ALL the papers.

>> More recent Death Notices give the SA Identity No. (which came into being in the mid-1950s): this can be useful when ordering Death Certificates through the Dept of Home Affairs. Unless you are addicted to documentary evidence (and which of us is not?), if the Death Notice is found, the Death Certificate may not be worth the effort: the only facts the latter will supply which the Death Notice doesn't, are the Cause of Death and the duration of the final illness. A copy of an Abridged Death Certificate is sometimes included in the Deceased Estate file, which gives the above details and may obviate the need for a Full Certificate. (While on the subject of certificates, a divorce file often ironically includes the Marriage Certificate of the once-happy couple.)

>> If the deceased was unmarried, yet names appear under "Children", these may be siblings of the deceased. A note usually clarifies this, but not always. Clearly, if a young man of 19 died as a result of military action, he is unlikely to have produced 3 children before that and the names listed are his brothers and sisters. They may be beneficiaries in his estate.

>> The deceased's daughters' married names are usually given (unless they were still single, of course) and this can be the start of an entirely new search for descendants under a different surname. Addresses given for children can lead to locating living descendants.

>> "Minor" children's dates of births are generally given on the Death Notice, which is most useful; "Major" children's d.o.b. are not given.

>> Finding two separate Death Notices in one deceased estate file may indicate that the first form was completed at the place of death e.g. during a military conflict (many examples during the Anglo-Boer War) and a later "official" Notice followed. Or the first Notice may have been issued in another area - a recent case being in Maseru - a second, more fully-completed Notice filled in later.

>> The Will is the next most significant document, many being in bland "standard format" and not particularly informative, though beneficiaries under the will are named of course and specific bequests e.g. the medals of a military man, may be included. Sometimes there are unpredictable additions to the list of beneficiaries: a favourite god-daughter, or an adopted or illegitimate child previously unknown to the family. Or even a mistress being rewarded "for services rendered during her lifetime". I've seen this happen. Check out all the names. She might have been the housekeeper.

>> Family rifts may become apparent from the last wishes of the deceased: recently I found an angry clause from a father who stated in no uncertain terms that his daughter, who had "taken her mother's side" in her parents' divorce, would not benefit under his will. Forgiveness, alas, remains Divine.

>> A child not appearing as beneficiary in the Will is not necessarily evidence of such a rift e.g. a father makes apology for non-inclusion of a son and says this shouldn't be taken as indication of disapproval or lack of appreciation for everything the son had done for the family business to date, but that this son was already well-established and other children were more in need.

>> Which leads on to the premise that its essential to see beyond the stated facts: a list of children on a Death Notice of 1903 shows 5 sons and 3 daughters, only 2 of them Majors and "all residing with their mother", the surviving parent. The 5 Minor children born 1889, 1893, 1895, 1897 and 1899 range in ages from 14 to 4 and obviously none of them wage-earning. The eldest Major son would be required to take on the role of breadwinner. The Death Notice reveals that the estate did not exceed a certain value and the deceased died intestate, leaving no immovable property and not much in the way of movables either. Reading between the lines, a parlous situation for this family.

>> Instructions in the will as to choice of burial or cremation can be helpful when seeking the ancestor's last resting-place.

>> We're fortunate in Natal that Will and Death Notice and other papers appear in one file - they're separated under the Cape system.

>> Where a deceased estate file isn't found, it may indicate that the ancestor had no assets, hence no estate - though there are cases where a minimal amount in PO savings is the only apparent asset and yet an estate was definitely filed. No reference to a deceased estate may simply mean that the ancestor died elsewhere - i.e. not in SA. Time to look at Census returns overseas or check another colony.

>> The title page may list events in the immediate aftermath of the death e.g. meetings of heirs etc. - it may also give a civil death register entry number and place of registry.

>> Signatures appearing on Death Notice, Will and other documents may supply appropriate illustrations (if digitally-photographed, photocopying of estate papers not being allowed) for a family history publication.

>> Estate Accounts may provide information not available at the time the Death Notice was signed.

>> One of the most intimate glimpses of our ancestor is offered in the Inventory: from the farm or house he owned to the porcelain basin and jug he used while shaving in the mornings. The full legal description of a piece of land can come in handy for searches in the Deeds Office. Its more difficult to quantify what is gained from details such as: "Machinery for Water Mill"; "Pair Cart Wheels, unmounted"; "Agricultural Implements old & worn out"; "Standing Wheat Crop 10 acres ... can't be valued as it is liable to so many risks & enemies" - but such clues reveal the fabric of the ancestor's life and times.

>> Typically grouped at the back of the file are various invoices e.g. from tradesmen claiming settlement from the estate. All are potential sources of information. The funeral parlour invoice merits special attention because frequently there is a note re burial place e.g. Stellawood, and sometimes even a plot number of the grave. This can be a helpful short-cut. The undertaker's invoice may also tell us who paid for the obsequies and how much: the high cost of dying then, as now, becomes apparent. Some idea of the scale of the funeral can be obtained from references to "procession of 2 carriages and a special tram car for mourners". With the tradeplate of the undertaker emblazoned at the top, the invoice can provide an illustration for the family history - gloomy? Possibly, but interesting and decorative nevertheless.

>> Other less obvious invoices mention the minutiae of the ancestor's daily life, such as what medicines he bought from his local chemist (perhaps in an attempt to stave off the inevitable). A seemingly innocuous list of garments turned out to be my great great grandmother's mourning clothes, plus some for her daughters, ordered from the "Silk Mercer, Milliner & Straw Bonnet Manufacturer", so the family would be correctly attired for my great great grandfather's funeral in 1869.

>> Miscellaneous correspondence may offer examples of the handwriting of relatives as well as throw light on arguments over division of property among the heirs - or who would pay for the tombstone.

>> Some letterheads are fine examples of the printer's art as well as giving intriguing bits of information about a family business, its street as well as telegraphic address, who the directors were etc. The prize find in one file was an engraved letterhead bearing a picture of the building where the ancestor in question had lived, worked and died - an unimportant structure in itself and not likely to be found in any museum photo collection, but with a unique link to the deceased himself and a perfect illustration for a proposed book. It doesn't come much better than this in family history.

© RDS Feb 2004