Semi-Win for Fred Gerner's Death Announcement + Obit Magnet

If you are a genealogy blogger or reader of blogs, particularly Dick Eastman's blog, you will have read about Obit Magnet, a tool for finding obituaries.  I have a few ancestors for whom I have been unable to find obituaries, including my great-grandfather Fred Gerner.  I had only a notice that his will was being probated.  I dearly wish to find an obituary that gives a biographical information—place of birth, parents' names, etc.  So when I saw the announcement of Obit Magnet, I thought it was worth a search.

I did not find an obituary but I'll take whatever I can get regarding Fred's death.  This snippet, below, about his daughter, Leota Gerner Riss, visiting him for two weeks before he died and giving his death date is something I would never have found without the help of Obit Magnet.

This was published in the Noon Edition of the Youngstown Daily Vindicator on Saturday, April 3, 1926, on page 5, at the top of newspaper column 5.

     Mrs. Frank Riis was called to But-
   ler, Pa., where she spent two weeks
   with her father who was seriously
   ill.  He died Saturday.  Funeral was
   held Monday.  Fred Gerner was aged
   79 years, and is survived by his wife
   and 11 children, five children having
   died before him.


Accuracies and Inaccuracies in This Article

• Fred died on Friday, March 26, 1926, not on Saturday, which would have been March 27.
• Fred was 78, 5 months, and 27 days old at the time of his death, as stated on his death certificate.
• "Mrs. Frank Riis" was Fred's daughter Leota Riss.
  
• His funeral was, in fact, on Monday, March 29.
  
• The five children who died before Fred were Netta (1894, age 2 months), Ethel (1892, age 4), Ida (1904, age 31), Beulah (1913, age 24), and Edward (1917, age 40).
  

About Obit Magnet

Obit Magnet is a great finding aid for deaths that occurred between 1922 and the present, though if deaths were mentioned in "Back Then" or "Looking Back" articles, I think Obit Magnet would catch them.

To use this resources you must know the person's name and date of death.  However, the search extends for two weeks, so if you don't know the exact death date but know the year and are willing to search two weeks at a time, it's possible to find an obituary.  Also, make a list of all names the individual may have used, such as Fred Gerner, Fredrick Gerner, Fred K. Gerner, Fredrick K. Gerner, etc., so you catch all opportunities.

The newspapers it searchers are
> Google Newspapers at Google Books
> Newspapers.com (must have a subscription)
> NewspaperArchive.com (must have a subscription) and
> Chronicling America

I did not spend much time at Obit Magnet but I'm hopeful to find other obituaries when I continue searching.

—Nancy.

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