A New Meme: How Many of Your Ancestors Are In The SSDI?

Blaine Bettinger 4 Comments

The Social Security Death Index (SSDI) is a searchable database created from the U.S. Social Security Administration’s Death Master File, which contains the name and social security number of deceased persons reported to the Social Security Administration since roughly 1962.  In addition to being used by genealogists, the Death Master File and SSDI are used by financial firms and government agencies for various reasons such as preventing identity fraud.

A Genealogy Meme Using the SSDI

Michael Neill at RootDig has two posts – “Have You Searched for All Your Ancestors in the SSDI?” and “My in-laws in the SSDI” – that list his and his wife’s ancestors in the SSDI.  Michael has 7 ancestors, while his wife has 6.

This led me to wonder how many ancestors I have in the SSDI, and a very brief search led me to conclude that I currently have a total of 8:

  1. Theodore LaBounty 1927-1983
  2. Jane (Garcia) LaBounty 1931-1984
  3. Theodore LaBounty 1903-1963
  4. Goldiah (Blanchard) LaBounty 1906-1996
  5. Roy Bettinger 1916-1975
  6. Marley (Johnson) Snell 1889-1983
  7. Victor Mullin 1901-1972
  8. Clara (Fitzgerald) Mullin 1907-1997

Eventually I will have a total of 11 ancestors in the SSDI, but my parents and a grandparent are still, thankfully, living.  My wife also has a total of 8 ancestors in the SSDI:

  1. Harlon Conger 1921-2005
  2. Lois (Finney) Conger 1891-1975
  3. John Alden 1900-1971
  4. Margaret (Wolford) Alden 1902-1991
  5. Inez Simmons 1891-1979
  6. Albert Bacon 1895-1963
  7. Guy Simmons 1921-1989
  8. Margaret (Bacon) Simmons 1929-2007

Other Questions

Out of your ancestors in the SSDI, who had the earliest date of birth?  Mine is Marley (Johnson) Snell who was born in 1889, and my wife’s is a tie between Lois (Finney) Conger and Inez Simmons, both born in 1891.

How many of these ancestors did you meet (whether you remember it or not)?  I met 5 of my 8 ancestors in the SSDI, and my wife met 4 of hers.

How many ancestors do you have in the SSDI?

4 Responses

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  3. Victor J. Mullin 5 September 2010 / 11:19 am

    I Remember Marley, She use to Baby sit us when the others were busy. I also remember Grandpa Fitzgerald.

  4. Pingback: How Many of Your Ancestors Appear in the SSDI? « Planting the Seeds

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