How To Find A Grave In A Cemetery (2025)

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If you're looking for a specific gravesite in a cemetery, it can be difficult to know where to start. Cemetery records can be helpful, but they may not always be easy to find. Additionally, what do you do if you don’t know in which cemetery the person is buried? What if all you know is their name and a rough date of when they passed? This guide will provide some tips on how to locate a grave in a cemetery, how to find out where someone is buried, and how to find cemetery burial records.

How to find out where a relative is buried

If you're not sure where a loved one's grave is and want to find out, there are a few steps you can take.

Check the obituary or memorial website

Start by looking for the obituary of the individual you're searching for. Obituaries often contain burial information or service information for the person who has passed away. This information is typically included at the end of the obituary and directs readers to where services will take place and where flowers can be sent. If there is no service information listed, you can still glean important information from the obituary, such as:

• The full name of the deceased
• The date of birth of the deceased
• The date of death of the deceased
• The location they last lived in or hometown

Having this additional information can make it easier for you to contact funeral homes and cemeteries in the relevant area. If the deceased has a memorial website set up for them, the burial location may be included on this site. In addition, you’ll be able to see other identifying information about this person (such as their date of birth, date of death, and location of death).

If you can't find an obituary for the person who passed away, there are a few places to look:

• Get in touch with the family directly to see if they can give you any information.
• Search for the name in online obituary databases.
• Check the local newspapers from the hometown of the person who passed.

Check with local funeral homes and cemeteries

If you know the hometown of the person who passed or the location where they died, you can contact the local funeral homes and cemeteries in those areas.

Funeral homes will usually have records of the funerals they've handled, so they may be able to tell you if they handled the funeral arrangements for the person you're looking for and, if so, where the burial took place.

Cemeteries should also have records of who is buried in their cemetery and where. They may even have a searchable database that you can use to find the information you need. If you're unable to contact the cemetery or funeral home online or by phone, it may be time to visit them in person.

Check genealogy websites

If you're still having trouble finding the information you need, try searching for it on a genealogy website. These websites are a great resource for finding cemetery records and obituaries. They may also have other information that can help you locate a grave, such as:

• Birth certificates
• Death certificates
• Marriage records
• Census records

Popular genealogy websites include:- Ancestry.com- FindAGrave.com- FamilySearch.org

How to find a grave location in a cemetery

There are a few ways that you can go about finding a grave in a cemetery. If you know the cemetery where the grave is located, you're already in a good spot. Here's how to find a grave location within a cemetery:

Browse cemetery maps

Check through Ever Loved's cemetery database to find information on the cemetery you're searching for. Some cemeteries will have an official website that may have a map of their cemetery that you can use to locate the right grave. You may also be able to find maps of cemeteries online that are created by the cemetery or by an individual interested in record keeping.

Contact cemeteries

If the cemetery you're looking at doesn't have a website or online presence, the next step is to contact the cemetery directly. You can call the front office or listed phone number and ask if they have a map of the cemetery or a way to locate a grave. You can also ask the staff member if they can help you find a grave by providing the name of the deceased.

Look online

If you're unable to get in touch with the cemetery or prefer not to contact the cemetery, sites like Find A Grave can come in handy. Finding a loved one's grave is made much easier by sites like these as they allow you to simply enter in the date of birth, death, and name of the individual who is buried and then populate results based on your search terms. The more information you input, the easier it'll be to find the plot in the cemetery, if they have that information on file.

Visit the cemetery

If all else fails, an easy step to take would be to visit the cemetery and simply ask the front office or any staff on site. You can also take a walk through the cemetery to see if you’re able to find the location on your own.

Start your search on Ever Loved by looking through online obituaries, browsing through funeral homes, and looking for cemeteries – all in one place. If the person you’re looking for has a memorial website set up on Ever Loved, you’ll be able to see valuable information and contact the person who set up the site with any questions.