West Virginia’s newspaper history begins in the 1790s, before the state existed. For obituary research, its strongest free resource is the state’s Vital Research Records site, which pairs well with newspaper notices.
West Virginia obituaries in historic newspapers
Newspapers were printed in the Eastern Panhandle towns of Shepherdstown and Martinsburg by the 1790s, when the region was still part of Virginia. Wheeling became the region’s newspaper center in the 1800s, and the Wheeling Intelligencer covered the statehood movement during the Civil War, when West Virginia separated from Virginia in 1863.
Coal, timber and railroad towns grew quickly in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and their papers reported mine disasters and industrial accidents as well as ordinary deaths. Notices for miners often name the mine and company, which helps when searching company records or mine-accident reports.
West Virginia newspapers are digitized through Chronicling America, and the West Virginia Archives and History in Charleston holds the state’s newspaper microfilm.
Where to find West Virginia obituaries
Obituary and death indexes
- West Virginia Vital Research Records — Free searchable images of West Virginia death, birth and marriage records.
Archives and libraries
- West Virginia Archives and History — State archives in Charleston, with West Virginia newspapers on microfilm.
- West Virginia Newspapers, FamilySearch Research Wiki — Volunteer-maintained guide to West Virginia newspaper archives, indexes and microfilm, with county-by-county links.
Nationwide newspaper archives
- Chronicling America, Library of Congress — Free digitized newspapers from every state. Narrow a search to West Virginia and the years you need.
- Google News Archive — Free scans of hundreds of older newspapers, browsable by title and date.
- Internet Archive newspapers — Free digitized newspapers and microfilm uploaded by libraries.
- FamilySearch — Free obituary indexes, death records and the Social Security Death Index (free account).
- Find a Grave — Volunteer-built cemetery memorials, many with transcribed obituaries.
- Newspapers.com — Large subscription archive of U.S. papers. Many public libraries offer free access.
- GenealogyBank — Subscription archive of historic newspapers and modern obituaries.
- Legacy.com — Obituaries published since about 2000 in most U.S. daily newspapers.
Tips for finding an obituary in West Virginia
- Pin down the date and place first. A death index or death certificate gives the exact date and county, and then you only need to search the local papers for the following week or two.
- Search more than one town. Obituaries often ran in the paper where the person was born or had lived before, not just where they died. Small-town weeklies sometimes published a notice weeks later.
- Look beyond the word “obituary.” Older papers reported deaths under headings like “Died,” “Deaths,” local news and personals columns, funeral notices and cards of thanks. See death notices vs. obituaries.
- Try every spelling. Search initials, nicknames and misspellings, and for married women in older papers, search the husband’s name (“Mrs. John Smith”). Digitized text often misreads old type.
- Ask a librarian. Many public libraries and state archives will look up an obituary for free or a small fee, and newspaper microfilm can often be borrowed through interlibrary loan.