Because privacy laws limit the release of government records containing information about living people, it can be hard to find details about people who are living. There are some strategies that can help, though.
Strategies
Take an AncestryDNA® test. If you’re biologically related to a person you’re trying to find, it can help to take a DNA test. Even if the person you’re looking for hasn’t taken it themselves, they may have a family member who has, and who’s in touch with them.
Enter the person in your tree. Including living people in your family tree can help us provide better Ancestry Hints® both for them and for their deceased family members. Even in public family trees, people marked “living” on Ancestry® are hidden from the view of other Ancestry members who view your tree.
Check the Social Security Death Index. If the person you’re researching is American and may be deceased, search the SSDI to see if their name appears.
Search phone directories. Ancestry has a collection of national phone directories that contain information about people who are often still living.
Search for obituaries of the living person’s immediate family. Because obituaries often mention family of the deceased, they can contain facts that help you determine whether the person you’re researching is the person you’re finding.
Interview people who know the person. Add any details you find to your family tree.
Search social media. Search Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, and even just Google using the person's name and any other information you have. Expand the search to family members of the person you're looking for.
Searching phone directories
- From any page on Ancestry, click the Search tab and select All Collections.
- Under Special Collections on the right, click Schools, Directories & Church Histories.
- On the right under Narrow by Category, click City & area directories.
- Enter information and click Search.
Other resources
