What has worked for you? Share your ideas and learn from others!


Place an ad in the newspaper in the town of the adoptee's birth, on the birthday -- and hit the library! Check old newspapers on that day for any personal ads.


On finding birth relatives -- check the birth announcements around the date of your birth in the newspaper archives. If you were adopted at birth -- occasionally 'mistakes' are made and they're submitted anyway. Also, you might be able to get an idea of the number of children born in that town on that day. If you were adopted at a later date but don't know your birthparents' names -- there is a good chance that a birth announcement may be listed.


On finding birth relatives -- Do you have the surname that was given to you at birth? Check the old phone books and city directories at the library.


On finding birth relatives -- Ask around, find out if there was an unwed mother's home in the city of the adoptee's birth.


When talking to librarians, medical records people, etc -- use 'genealogy search' instead of 'adoption search' until you get an idea of how supportive they may be.


When dealing with an unlisted number: Try calling information in that area. Ask for the senior supervisor. Explain to them you are trying to get in touch with someone who has an unlisted number. If you tell them it is an emergency, they usually give you the number you are looking for. If you tell them it is an important message, they usually get the message to the person with in 24 hours.


When calling the offices that hold your records -- call two or three times. Often, different people will tell you different things.


On finding adoptees' a-names -- go to the health department or courthouse and ask to see all the birth certificates issued for the adoptee's bday, or ask for a birth index. Adoptee's b. certs are usually easy to spot -- missing information or blacked out spaces.


If you find that the person you are looking for is deceased, call the newspaper in the town of their death and get a copy of the obituary. This will have lots of information such as their spouse, children, sisters, brothers, parents and the towns they lived in at the time of the death. I found my birthmother by contacing my "legal" father's sister. She told me my birthmother now lived in a different state and what type of job she worked. I called all the stores with that description....she was at the first one.

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LAST UPDATE 17 AUGUST 1999

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