Find Obituary Records in Pulaski County

Pulaski County obituary and death records are available through the Circuit Court Clerk in Pulaski, the Virginia Department of Health, and the Library of Virginia. This page covers how to search death certificates and historical obituary records for this New River Valley county in Southwest Virginia, and what you need to request copies from each source.

Pulaski County Circuit Court Clerk

The Pulaski County Circuit Court Clerk holds land records, probate files, will books, and court records going back to the county's founding in 1839. The clerk's office does not issue death certificates, but probate and estate records can help document deaths, especially for periods before consistent statewide registration. Will books and estate inventories name decedents, list heirs, and often note dates of death. These are important sources for tracing deaths in Pulaski County from the 1800s.

Death registers from 1853 to 1896 on microfilm for Pulaski County are held by the Library of Virginia. Statewide registration lapsed from 1897 to 1911. Consistent death certification resumed in June 1912. For deaths during the gap period, local newspaper obituaries and probate records at the courthouse are the best available sources. The Southwest Times in Pulaski has published local obituaries for many years and is a useful resource for regional death research.

Pulaski County Death Certificates

Death certificates for Pulaski County deaths from 1912 to the present are held by the Virginia Department of Health Office of Vital Records. Each certified copy costs $12. Under Code of Virginia Title 32.1, Chapter 7, deaths within the last 25 years are restricted to immediate family. Eligible requesters must provide valid photo ID and sign a request form. After 25 years, records are public and open to anyone.

You can request copies in person at the VDH office in Richmond at 8701 Park Central Drive, Suite 100, Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The phone is (804) 662-6200. Online ordering is available at vdh.virginia.gov/vital-records. The New River Valley Health District serves Pulaski County and can assist with local questions about vital records.

The New River Valley area has a solid network of local funeral homes, many of which maintain online obituary archives. Searching funeral home websites for Pulaski and Radford can turn up death notices going back several decades.

The VDH vital records page at vdh.virginia.gov/vital-records provides ordering instructions and current fee details for Pulaski County death certificates.

This page explains how to order certified copies of Virginia death records including those for Pulaski County, with options for online, mail, and in-person requests.

Pulaski County Obituary Records and Historical Sources

The Library of Virginia holds the main historical death records for Pulaski County. Death registers from 1853 to 1896 on microfilm are available through Interlibrary Loan from your local public library. Death certificates from 1912 to 1939 are also held on microfilm. The Library's guide at lva-virginia.libguides.com/bmd/death describes exactly what is available and how to request it.

The Henley Marriage and Obituary Index covers Virginia newspapers from 1736 through 1982. It includes obituary notices from Southwest Virginia papers and may include entries from Pulaski County. You can search it through the Library of Virginia's online catalog at no cost.

Radford University's McConnell Library holds some local Southwest Virginia collections. The New River Valley region also has active genealogical societies that have indexed local cemetery records and obituaries. Checking with the New River Valley Genealogy Society can yield finding aids specific to Pulaski County deaths.

The county courthouse holds will books and estate records going back to 1839. These can be valuable for tracing deaths before formal death registration began, or for filling in details missing from death certificates. Estate papers often list surviving heirs, which helps reconstruct family history around a death.

The Library of Virginia guide at lva-virginia.libguides.com/bmd/death explains what historical death records exist for Pulaski County and how to access them.

This guide covers microfilm death registers, certificates from 1912 to 1939, and Ancestry.com access for Pulaski County obituary research.

Search Pulaski Death Records Online

Find It Virginia at finditva.com gives free access to death records from 1912 to the present through Ancestry.com. You need a Virginia public library card. Once signed in, you can search the full Virginia vital records index and download certificate images at no cost. The Pulaski County Public Library participates in the Virginia library system and can issue a card if you live in the county.

The Virginia Genealogy Society at virginiagenealogy.org/obits lists obituary indexes and newspaper archives from across the state. Southwest Virginia is included, with links to local collections and funeral home databases relevant to Pulaski County.

Find It Virginia also connects you to the Virginia Death Index for the period 1912 to 1988. This is searchable by name and year and is a good starting point for Pulaski County death research when you have a name but not a specific date or certificate number.

Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act at Section 2.2-3700, death records older than 25 years are public. More recent records require family documentation.

Virginia Death Record Laws

Virginia's vital records law under Code of Virginia Title 32.1, Chapter 7 sets the rules for death certificate access and issuance. Section 32.1-272 requires the State Registrar to issue certified copies upon request for $12 each. Deaths within the last 25 years are restricted to immediate family with valid ID. The law sets out what information must appear on a death certificate and the role of local registrars in filing and forwarding records to the state.

The Virginia Freedom of Information Act under Section 2.2-3700 broadly makes government records open to the public. Death records over 25 years old are accessible to anyone who submits a proper request. If you believe a request was improperly denied, the FOIA Advisory Council at (804) 698-1810 can help.

Certified copies are legal documents used for estate proceedings, insurance, property transfers, and name changes. Plain copies may work for personal genealogical research but are not accepted for official legal purposes. When you place your order, ask whether you need certified or uncertified depending on how you plan to use the record.

Cities Near Pulaski County

Pulaski County is in the New River Valley of Southwest Virginia. There are no independent cities within the county that meet the qualifying population threshold for this site.

The town of Pulaski is the county seat. The county also includes Dublin and other smaller communities. The independent city of Radford borders Pulaski County and has its own court system. All death records for communities within Pulaski County go through county and state resources.

Nearby Counties

These counties are adjacent to or near Pulaski County in the New River Valley and Southwest Virginia. Each has its own Circuit Court Clerk for death records and obituary research.