Genealogy - need information on Luke Kincaid B1876 in Indiana?

Question:

Genealogy - need information on Luke Kincaid B1876 in Indiana?

B1876 Indiana
lived in KS, after 1899
father George, mother Nancy Daugherty
Luke is my greatgrandfather and I seem to have hit a dead end in researching him. I can find information on his military records for WWI and some census records, but no death records or information on his decendents other than my grandmother.

Any information would be appreciated.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: You're in a very interesting quandry. Kansas was not early in the record keeping movement. Many of their records weren't kept until the early 1900s. More importantly, Luke hasn't been dead long enough to make it into the open databases, but he died too early to be in SSDI.

I would suggest two things to you. The first is to write to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. You have to know that Kansas is different than most states. They do not consider death records to be public records. You will have to send a cover letter explaining that you are a direct descendent of this person and requesting a copy of his death certificate. Give them his date of birth and names of his parents. Let them fill in the rest. Don't even guess on the dates of death because they'll limit their search to +/- 5 years of that date and look no further.
http://www.kdheks.gov/vital/death.html...

Next take a look at the Kansas State Historical Society website. They have all of the local resources linked and have the full breakdown on what is available...for which time periods it's available...and who is holding those records.

Finally, check around and see if you can find either where he is buried or which funeral home handled his burial. Both will have records that will help you identify his date of death and the circumstances of his death. With that information you can search the local newspapers in that town to find his obituary. From there you can also contact the county probate court and request a copy of his Last Will & Testament. The will and obituary should do a good job filling in information on his survivors.

I hope this was helpful to you. Let us know if you need anything.