Obituaries

The most effective way to locate recent and twentieth century Frederick County obituaries is through the Linton Obituary Collection, containing over 250 card catalog drawers of clippings, arranged by surname. Jacob Holdcraft, author of Names in Stone, began the collection, which extends back to 1932. Holdcraft clipped from the News-Post, as well as regional papers. The collection also includes notes from his research. Holdcraft also compiled the surname index to the 1967 reprint of the History of Frederick County by Williams.

In 1972 Holdcraft turned over his files to Frederick genealogists Jack and Betty Linton. In 2002 they donated this significant resource to the Maryland Room. The Lintons maintained the files until 2010, clipping exclusively from the News-Post. Maryland Room staff now compile the obituaries.

Patrons cannot access the obituaries without staff assistance. Due to high interest in the Linton Collection, and its delicate nature, we recommend writing or calling at least a week prior to your visit so that we can better ensure that your needs are completely met during your time with us. Please see "Using the Collection From Afar" and the Linton Obituary Request Form.

In 1975 and 1977 the Genealogical Society of Utah microfilmed the Linton collection. This collection of 59 microfilm reels is arranged by surname, and can be ordered at LDS Family History Centers. The 1975 film can be viewed at the Historical Society of Frederick County. Please remember that the microfilm only represents a portion of today's collection. Also it has been reported that all names that would have sat between Emma Turner and John H. Wachter do not appear in the microfilm. To locate obituaries pre-1930s, visit the "Finding an Article" section of the Newspapers page for information on local newspaper indexes.

Obituaries for the following families were missing from the collection prior to its arrival in the Maryland Room: Athey, Atkins, Atkinson, Aumen, Baugher, Baumgardner, Dennis, Derflinger, Hershberger, Hart, Hartman, Hess, Lane, Loy, Lucas, and Mantz. The collection will contain recent (late 20th Century) obituaries for these families.

Another Maryland Room Collection useful for locating twentieth century obituaries, in this instance from the Herald-Mail (Hagerstown, Washington County) and the Valley Register (Middletown, Frederick County), is the Clippings kept by Mrs. Paul Lighter (Naomi Routzahn) (M 975.2 LIG). These 957 photocopied pages cover over five decades, document births, deaths, marriages, and other milestones in the lives of 2,300 people. Unlike the Linton Collection, the Lighter Clippings are accessible without Staff intervention. We will search the collection for people who can not visit us. Please use the Lighter Request Form.