The Forum Obituaries Database
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The Forum Obituaries Index database currently contains over 70,000 names for obituaries published in The Forum for the years Oct. 1892 - April 1908 and Nov. 1982 through 1995. Most obituaries are for persons who lived in or were affiliated with eastern North Dakota or northwestern Minnesota. This database includes the name, age (or year of birth), city, issue date, newspaper edition, and page number, if known, of the deceased. The date of death is not given.

Obituaries after 1995 can be searched as part of In-Forum Archives. Copies can be made of the complete obituary by the Institute staff.

To obtain obituaries from other North Dakota newspapers, contact the State Historical Society of North Dakota, State Archives and Historical Research Library, Bismarck, ND 58505-0830. They are the official repository for state newspapers. A complete listing of all North Dakota newspapers in their collection is available on-line.

Ordering copies

Please provide name, Forum issue date, and page number. The cost is $5.00 per obituary which includes mailing and handling. You can obtain copies of the obituaries found through the index by contacting the Institute via e-mail (archives@www.lib.ndsu.nodak.edu) or regular mail. A direct e-mail link to the Institute also appears at the bottom of each result screen. Pre-payment is not required. A university billing statement will be sent with the requested obituary copy via standard mail. If a request is sent via e-mail be sure to include your postal address and your birthdate (used to set up your account). Also include the full citation of the obituary as found in the index search results. For years not yet indexed, we will search for an obituary but, we need the complete date of death in order to search issues of The Forum.

The following sites can be used to locate an exact death date for deaths occuring in the Fargo-Moorhead area:
North Dakota Death Index
Minnesota Death Index
Social Security Death Index

Update history

First mounted September 1996.

3,387 new obituary entries for Jan. 1901 to August 1902, and January to July 1984 added November 2002.

1,861 new obituary entries for August to December 1984 added April 2003.

2,641 new obituary entries for 1903-1904 added November 2003. (57,184 total entries)

2,612 new obituary entries for 1895 - July 1899 added Dec. 2004 (59,796 total entries)

6,365 new obituaries for 1894, 1900-1902 & 1983 added September 30, 2005 (66,161 total entries)

1,679 new obituaries for Oct. 1892 - Dec. 1894, & Nov.-Dec.1982 added March 20, 2006 (67, 840 total entries)

1,609 new obituaries for Feb. 1905-Aug.1906 added Oct. 5, 2006 (69,449 total entries)

1,257 new obituaries for Sept. 1906-July1907 added Aug. 20, 2007 (70,706 total entries)

1,067 new obituaries for July 1907-April 1908 added April 3, 2008 (71,773 total entries)