Find a Grave Pennsylvania by Name —
Cemetery & Burial Records Search
From Benjamin Franklin’s grave in Philadelphia to Gettysburg’s 3,500 Union soldiers — Pennsylvania has 67 counties and centuries of burial records. Your complete guide to finding any Pennsylvania grave by name.
Pennsylvania is one of America’s oldest and most genealogically rich states — founded in 1681 by William Penn, it was home to the earliest Quaker settlements, waves of German, Scots-Irish, and later Eastern European immigrants, and two of the most significant military cemeteries in the nation. Benjamin Franklin is buried in Philadelphia. The Gettysburg National Cemetery holds over 3,500 Union soldiers. And the anthracite coal region of northeastern Pennsylvania has thousands of interment records for immigrant families that exist only in church burial registers and county death ledgers.
Statewide death registration didn’t begin until 1906 — meaning any ancestor who died before that date requires searching church records, county deed books, and the Pennsylvania State Archives’ WPA cemetery inventories. This guide gives you the exact system for every era, with verified working links at every step.
🔎 How to Search Pennsylvania Graves by Name — Micro Step-by-Step
- Go to findgraveusa.org — Pennsylvania and enter the person’s full name. Use exact spelling first.
- Apply the county filter immediately — Pennsylvania has 67 counties and common surnames like “Miller” or “Wagner” return hundreds of statewide results without it.
- Click any result to see the full burial record: cemetery name, address, plot number, burial date, headstone photo if available, and linked family members.
- No results on exact spelling? Try surname only — then try Anglicized and original spellings for German, Polish, Italian, and Eastern European names (e.g., “Müller” → “Miller,” “Kowalski” → “Kowalsky”).
- Still nothing? The grave may be in an unindexed church or family cemetery — move to Methods 3 and 4 for archival research.
- Visit findagrave.com — Pennsylvania Cemeteries. No account required for basic searches.
- Enter the surname and select Pennsylvania from the state dropdown. For common surnames, add the first name and approximate death year.
- Use wildcard operators:
?replaces one letter (e.g.Sm?th→ Smith, Smyth),*replaces multiple characters (e.g.Sch*→ all Sch- German surnames). Essential for Pennsylvania’s massive immigrant population with phonetically spelled names in 19th-century records. - Click “More Search Options” to filter by specific Pennsylvania county, birth/death year range, and whether a photo exists.
- No headstone photo? Click “Request Photo” — Philadelphia and Pittsburgh metro cemeteries typically have volunteer photos fulfilled within 48 hours. Rural counties may take longer.
- For notable Pennsylvanians: use the “Famous Memorials” filter to find historical figures from Benjamin Franklin to Andy Warhol.
- Visit www.phmc.pa.gov/Archives/ — the official Pennsylvania state archives and primary repository for pre-1906 records.
- Search the free online catalog for: WPA cemetery inventories (1930s surveys of thousands of Pennsylvania cemeteries), county death registers, and the Pennsylvania Genealogical Research Guide.
- For deaths 1852–1954: search the Pennsylvania Death Certificate database on Ancestry (free at PA library branches) — the Archives holds the originals.
- In-person research: Commonwealth Keystone Building, 400 North St., Harrisburg, PA 17120. Phone: (717) 783-1121. Hours: Mon–Fri 8:30AM–4PM.
- The PA State Archives is a FamilySearch Affiliate Library — free in-person access to restricted FamilySearch and Ancestry digital collections not available at home.
- Create a free account at familysearch.org — permanently free, no credit card needed.
- Go to Search → Records and search “Pennsylvania Deaths.” Key collections: Pennsylvania Death Certificates, 1906–1966 and Pennsylvania Deaths and Burials, 1682–1988.
- For pre-1906 records: go to Search → Catalog, type the Pennsylvania county name, then add “cemetery” or “church records” to find microfilmed burial registers.
- Pennsylvania has extensive German Reformed, Lutheran, Quaker, Catholic, Presbyterian, and Mennonite church burial registers — search “Pennsylvania church records” in the Catalog for county-level collections from the 1680s onward.
- Use Search → Genealogies to find user-submitted family trees with linked burial sources — always verify independently.
- Go to billiongraves.com and enter the name, selecting Pennsylvania from the location filter.
- Results display GPS-tagged headstone photos with the grave’s exact latitude/longitude — not just the cemetery name, but the specific row and section within the grounds.
- Click “View on Map” to see the precise plot position.
- Download the BillionGraves app before visiting large Pennsylvania cemeteries — it uses your phone’s GPS to navigate directly to any indexed grave. Especially useful at Laurel Hill (78,000 burials) and Allegheny Cemetery (125,000 burials).
- If the grave isn’t indexed, photograph and upload the headstone yourself — it auto-tags the GPS location for future researchers.
Pro Tip — Wildcard + Spelling Variants: Pennsylvania’s massive immigrant heritage makes spelling variation the #1 search failure. Always test three spelling variants: the original immigrant spelling, the Anglicized version, and a phonetic approximation. Use the * wildcard on Find a Grave (e.g. Smit* returns Schmidt, Smith, Smithe, Smyth). Then cross-reference the burial record with FamilySearch census entries to confirm the household — census records reveal the correct spelling used by that specific family.
📊 All Pennsylvania Burial Record Databases — Free vs. Paid
Every major database for searching Pennsylvania cemetery records, interment records, and burial indexes — compared by coverage, cost, and best use case.
Database | What It Covers | Cost | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
PA cemetery burial records searchable by name and county | Free | First stop; county-filtered name search | |
Millions of PA memorials; wildcard search; photo volunteers | Free | Headstone photos, family links, famous graves | |
GPS-tagged headstone photos; precise in-cemetery navigation | Free | Exact plot location in large cemeteries | |
PA death records 1682–1988; county microfilm; church registers | Free | Pre-1906 & historical records | |
Official PA archives; WPA cemetery inventories; county registers | Free | Pre-1906 research; WPA cemetery surveys | |
PA Death Certificates 1906–1966 (digitized full images) | Subscription / Free at libraries | Post-1906 death certificates with full images | |
County-organized transcriptions from original sexton registers | Free | High-accuracy transcriptions; rural cemeteries | |
Veterans in all PA VA national cemeteries; section, row, site | Free | Military and veteran burial searches | |
Certified PA death certificates (1906–present) | $20 first copy | Legal proof; parents’ names; cause of death |
🗺️ Search Pennsylvania Burial Records by County
Pennsylvania has 67 counties — all separate jurisdictions for vital records and court records. The Philadelphia metro (Philadelphia, Delaware, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester counties) and Pittsburgh metro (Allegheny, Westmoreland, Beaver counties) have the most thoroughly indexed cemetery records online. Rural counties in the north-central region (Cameron, Sullivan, Forest) have almost no online data and require direct contact with township offices.
Browse all 67 Pennsylvania counties at Find a Grave — Pennsylvania. For original sexton register transcriptions, use Interment.net — Pennsylvania — especially useful for Amish, Mennonite, and rural county cemeteries with limited Find a Grave coverage.
🪦 Notable Pennsylvania Cemeteries — History, Maps & Search Links
Pennsylvania’s historic burial grounds span from colonial-era Quaker meeting house cemeteries to industrial-era urban burial parks and Civil War battlefield graves. Verified contact details, Google Maps embeds, and direct search links for each.
- Founded 1836 — one of America’s first rural-style garden cemeteries; National Historic Landmark
- 78,000+ burials across 78 acres; Civil War generals, Philadelphia mayors, industrialists
- Has its own grave search database and guided tours — not just Find a Grave
- Phone: (215) 228-8200
- Open daily 8AM–5PM · Free admission to grounds · Guided tours available
- 3,512 Union soldiers buried here; dedicated by Abraham Lincoln with the Gettysburg Address in 1863
- 979 graves remain unidentified — NPS maintains a far more detailed burial database than Find a Grave
- Combined with the adjacent Gettysburg National Military Park (Confederate burial records separate)
- Phone: (717) 334-0141
- Open year-round · Free entry · Visitor Center with burial records on-site
- Founded 1844; 125,000+ burials across 300 acres — Pittsburgh’s largest and most historic cemetery
- Pittsburgh industrialists Carnegie, Frick, and Mellon family members; Civil War veterans; prominent immigrants
- Maintains its own online grave search at allegheny-cemetery.com — search here first for Pittsburgh burials
- Phone: (412) 621-8000
- Open daily 8AM–5PM · Free entry · Office open Mon–Fri 8AM–4PM for record assistance
- Established 1719 — one of the oldest surviving cemeteries in Pennsylvania; Colonial National Historic District
- Benjamin Franklin buried here along with four other signers of the Declaration of Independence
- Walled historic graveyard in Old City Philadelphia — viewing through the fence is free; paid entry for full access
- Phone: (215) 922-1695
- Open daily 10AM–4PM (seasonal) · Small admission fee for grounds access
📜 Official Pennsylvania Death Certificates — How to Get Them
A certified Pennsylvania death certificate contains data no headstone can: exact cause of death, parents’ full names and birthplaces (post-1906), the attending physician, informant’s identity, and the Social Security number. For genealogy research — especially for immigrant families — the parents’ birthplaces on the death certificate are often the only documentation pointing you back to the original country and village of origin.
Access Rule: Pennsylvania death certificates are restricted for 50 years from date of death. Deaths from 1975 and earlier are now publicly accessible. Records under 50 years require proof of qualifying relationship. Pre-1906 death records are at the Pennsylvania State Archives — not the Department of Health.
- Go to vitalchek.com or call 1-888-279-9888 (24/7). VitalChek is the official authorized online vendor for Pennsylvania.
- Select Pennsylvania → Death Certificate. Enter: full name at death, date of death, county of death, and your relationship to the deceased.
- Pay the $20 state fee plus VitalChek’s convenience fee. Rush processing and overnight delivery available for additional charge.
- Download the application at health.pa.gov/topics/certificates. Complete all fields — incomplete applications are returned and cause significant delays.
- Make a check or money order payable to “Vital Records” for $20 per certified copy. Never send cash.
- Mail to: Division of Vital Records, 101 S. Mercer St., PO Box 1528, New Castle, PA 16103. Phone: (724) 656-3100. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope.
- For deaths before 1906, contact the Pennsylvania State Archives at 400 North St., Harrisburg, PA 17120. Phone: (717) 783-1121.
- Search the free online death certificate index (1906–1963) at Ancestry.com — accessible free at any Pennsylvania public library branch.
- For 1852–1905: search county-level death registers held at the Archives — also available on FamilySearch under Pennsylvania Deaths and Burials, 1682–1988.
📚 Pennsylvania State Archives — Official State Records
The Pennsylvania State Archives at phmc.pa.gov/Archives/ is the official state repository for historical records — the essential resource for any research before 1906. Located at Commonwealth Keystone Building, 400 North St., Harrisburg, PA 17120 · Phone: (717) 783-1121 · Mon–Fri 8:30AM–4PM.
Key collections for Pennsylvania cemetery and burial research:
- WPA Cemetery Inventories (1930s): The Works Progress Administration surveyed thousands of Pennsylvania cemeteries during the 1930s Depression era, transcribing headstones county by county. These are often the only surviving record for small rural and family cemeteries. Available at the Archives and on microfilm at many county historical societies.
- County Death Registers (1852–1906): Pennsylvania’s first registration attempt — patchy coverage by county, but often the only source for this period. Indexed in part on FamilySearch under Pennsylvania Deaths and Burials, 1682–1988.
- Pennsylvania Death Certificates (1906–1963): Full digital images available at Ancestry.com — free at any Pennsylvania public library branch.
- Quaker Monthly Meeting Records: Pennsylvania’s founding religious community kept meticulous birth, death, and burial records from the 1680s onward. Friends Historical Library at Swarthmore College holds the most complete collection.
- German Church Records: Lutheran, German Reformed, and Moravian church burial registers from the 1700s survive for many Lancaster, Berks, Lebanon, and Lehigh county congregations — many indexed on FamilySearch and Archion.de.
The Pennsylvania State Archives is a confirmed FamilySearch Affiliate Library. In-person visitors get free access to restricted FamilySearch digital collections including Ancestry.com’s full Pennsylvania Death Certificate database. No FamilySearch account required for in-person use.
🎖️ Pennsylvania Veteran & Military Grave Search
Pennsylvania has two VA national cemeteries and the Gettysburg National Cemetery — plus hundreds of Civil War battlefield burial sites. These systems are independent; coverage differs significantly. Search all three.
🔍 Philadelphia National Cemetery
Established 1862; contains Civil War veterans from every northern state, plus veterans from later conflicts. Has its own NPS burial search at nps.gov/phna separate from Find a Grave.
NPS Philadelphia Cemetery →🎖️ VA Gravesite Locator
Search Indiantown Gap National Cemetery (Lebanon County) and Philadelphia National Cemetery by veteran name — returns section, row, and site number.
Search VA Gravesite Locator →⚔️ Gettysburg National Cemetery
3,512 Union soldiers with a more detailed NPS burial database than Find a Grave. Includes names, state, and company information. Search at nps.gov/gett directly.
NPS Gettysburg Burial Search →📋 FamilySearch Veterans Collection
Search “U.S. Veterans Gravesites, 1775–2006” free — covers both PA national cemeteries plus many non-VA military burial sites not in the federal locator system.
Search FamilySearch →📁 Military Service Records
Pension files often name the burial location. Request from NPRC at archives.gov/veterans — free for records over 62 years old. Pennsylvania Civil War records also at PA State Archives.
Request at NPRC →💼 PA Veterans Cemetery System
Pennsylvania operates 6 state veterans cemeteries separate from the federal VA system. Contact PA Department of Military and Veterans Affairs at dmva.pa.gov for locations and burial eligibility.
PA State Veterans Cemeteries →Pennsylvania-Specific: The Pennsylvania State Archives at phmc.pa.gov/Archives/ holds the most complete collection of Civil War pension records and muster rolls for Pennsylvania regiments — far more detailed than federal sources for PA-specific soldiers, including burial location data not found in the national databases.
🔎 Common Pennsylvania Burial Record Questions — Answered
Every major question people search when looking for Pennsylvania cemetery records, burial records, and grave locations — with practical, Pennsylvania-specific answers.
Find a Grave Pennsylvania by Name Free
Start at FindGraveUSA.org — Pennsylvania, then Find a Grave and BillionGraves. All three are completely free with no account needed for basic searches. For pre-1906 historical records, check FamilySearch — free — and the Pennsylvania State Archives.
Pennsylvania Cemetery Records Online
Pennsylvania has strong online coverage for Philadelphia and Pittsburgh metro cemeteries. For rural counties, use Interment.net — Pennsylvania for county-organized sexton register transcriptions. The Pennsylvania State Archives’ WPA cemetery inventories from the 1930s are the most comprehensive source for small rural and family burial grounds — ask for them specifically when contacting the Archives.
Pennsylvania Death Records Genealogy Search
Pennsylvania death records span: colonial church registers (1680s–1800s), county death registers (1852–1905, patchy), and statewide certificates (1906–present). FamilySearch has the most complete free index. Ancestry.com has full digital images of the 1906–1966 death certificates — accessible free at any Pennsylvania public library. Certified copies for legal use come from the PA Department of Health for $20.
How to Find a Grave in Pennsylvania
Start at FindGraveUSA.org with the county filter. If no result, try Find a Grave with wildcard operators (? and *) — essential for Pennsylvania’s immigrant surnames. If still nothing, search the Pennsylvania State Archives’ WPA cemetery inventories and contact the county historical society directly for rural and family cemetery records.
Pennsylvania Genealogy Church Records
Pennsylvania’s genealogy research is uniquely shaped by its religious diversity. Quaker Monthly Meeting records (1680s onward) are the gold standard for pre-1800 Philadelphia-area research. German Lutheran and Reformed church registers cover Lancaster, Berks, Lehigh, and Northampton counties. Catholic immigrant records (Irish, Italian, Polish, Slovak) are essential for 1850–1920 mining and industrial communities. FamilySearch and the Pennsylvania State Archives hold the most complete collections.
Pennsylvania Veterans Burial Records
Pennsylvania’s veteran burial record coverage includes: Indiantown Gap National Cemetery (Lebanon County), Philadelphia National Cemetery, and Gettysburg National Cemetery — each with independent search systems. Always search the VA Gravesite Locator, the NPS Gettysburg database, and the PA state veterans cemeteries as separate systems.
Free Pennsylvania Death Records Search
Free Pennsylvania death record databases include FamilySearch (PA Deaths and Burials 1682–1988), PA State Archives (online catalog and in-person access), and the Social Security Death Index (free at FamilySearch). The 1906–1966 death certificate full images are on Ancestry — free at PA public libraries. The certified death certificate adding parents’ names and cause of death is $20 from the PA Department of Health.
Pennsylvania Historical Cemetery Records
Pennsylvania’s oldest surviving burial records date to the 1680s in Quaker meeting records for Chester and Bucks counties. Christ Church Burial Ground in Philadelphia (est. 1719) is among the oldest well-documented cemeteries. The Pennsylvania State Archives holds county-level records from Penn’s original 1681 charter through the present — including the irreplaceable WPA cemetery survey of the 1930s that documented thousands of rural burial grounds before they were lost.
🌿 8 Insider Tips — Pennsylvania-Specific Genealogy Tricks
What experienced Pennsylvania genealogists know that casual searchers consistently miss. All eight apply specifically to Pennsylvania — not generic advice.
The WPA Cemetery Inventories Are Irreplaceable
During the 1930s Depression, WPA workers surveyed thousands of Pennsylvania cemeteries and transcribed every headstone they could find. These surveys document cemeteries and graves that no longer exist today. Ask the Pennsylvania State Archives specifically for the WPA cemetery inventory for your target county — it’s the best-kept secret in PA genealogy.
Death Certs Restricted 50 Years — But Libraries Have Images
Pennsylvania’s 50-year restriction sounds like a barrier, but full digital images of 1906–1966 death certificates are available for free on Ancestry.com at any Pennsylvania public library branch. No fee, no mail wait — just walk in with a library card and search directly.
Anthracite Coal Region Has Unique Church Records
Luzerne, Lackawanna, Schuylkill, Carbon, and Northumberland counties saw massive Eastern European immigration 1880–1920. Slovak, Polish, Ukrainian, Lithuanian, and Hungarian Catholic and Orthodox church burial registers often predate Find a Grave by decades. Contact the Diocese of Scranton or individual parishes directly — these records rarely appear in online databases.
Gettysburg Has Its Own NPS Burial Database
Find a Grave has only partial coverage of Gettysburg National Cemetery. The National Park Service maintains a more detailed burial database at nps.gov/gett with soldier name, state, regiment, and company information — always search the NPS database first for Gettysburg-era military burials.
Quaker Records Are the Best Pre-1800 Source
Pennsylvania Quakers kept meticulous birth, marriage, and death records from the 1680s — far earlier and more complete than any state registration system. Friends Historical Library at Swarthmore College (500 College Ave, Swarthmore, PA 19081, (610) 328-8496) holds the most complete collection. Many are also digitized on FamilySearch under “Pennsylvania, Quaker Meeting Records.”
Rural North-Central PA Cemeteries Are Off-Grid
Cameron, Clinton, Sullivan, Wyoming, and Forest counties in north-central Pennsylvania have almost no online cemetery data. For these areas, contact the county historical society directly, then call the township supervisor — in Pennsylvania, township supervisors maintain the official list of all cemeteries within their township, including abandoned family plots on private land.
German Records Span Two Countries
For Pennsylvania German ancestors, the burial record in Pennsylvania often connects to baptism records still held in Germany. Many Pennsylvania Lutheran and German Reformed church records are indexed on Archion.de and Matricula-Online.eu — free to search. The Pennsylvania State Archives holds microfilmed copies of church registers for major German immigrant congregations.
Call the Funeral Home — They Keep Records Decades Long
Pennsylvania funeral homes are required to retain burial records for many years. An obituary listing a specific funeral home is a goldmine — call them directly with the name and approximate death year. They can provide exact cemetery name, section, lot, row, and grave number — information that may never appear in any online database.