Making the decision is Step 1

Every journey starts with the first step.  When you are looking for a lost loved one, birth parent/adoptee search or someone who owes you money and has skipped town, the first step is to make the decision to search. 

Making the decision to find a person can be very emotional and can have repercussions for your life and theirs. 

In Step 2 you will plan your strategy. 

Make your search fit into your life. You can choose to do your search primarily through the mail, visit the places you think the subject has been or do an internet search with the many public records that are available online.

Choosing records is Step 3

Your subject has left a paper trail.  Records are the best tool to help you find people.  Birth, death and marriage records are only the beginning. From city to federal records, there will be a trail you can follow to your subject.

Step 4 – Begin your search

Put it all together and combine your strategy with the records and use the resources in step 4 to begin your search.
We provide Sample letters, links to the addresses of  government offices who might have the records you need and great online resources for locating these same records very quickly.

One note here, we are not responsible for the outcome of your search, only for giving you many of the resources you need. Please use this information wisely and for the betterment of yourself and others. 
You are ready to find a person without leaving home, select step 1 from the menu on the right and begin your journey.

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Federal Records

Freedom of Information and Privacy Acts

It is now our right to have access to all of the information the federal records that the government has accumulated on us if we can provide just cause. 

Go to your local library to read and copy the following: Public Law 5 USC 552A known as the Freedom of Information Act and also the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 USC 552B. 

See our sample letters page for a memo citing these acts that you can use to request information. include a copy of the acts with your letter.

Social Security

Most government agencies are less then helpful when it comes to accessing federal records.  It has been the policy of the Social Security Administration to allow mail contact for “humanitarian purposes” with anyone on their roster who has a current address. 

Send your inquiry kit, including your subjects profile and your forwarding postcard will be sent to your subject. 

Expect it to take some time for the file to be searched and try to make the message on your postcard as “humanitarian” as you can without lying. 

*see sample letters page.

U.S. Postal Service

If you know the address that your subject was using within the past 6 months, you can use the U.S. Postal Service to get the new address. 

Go to your local Post Office and ask how it can be done. 

One thing that has worked has been to send the last known address along with a dollar to Attention Postmaster at the town, state and zip of the address you have.  If they have the new address, you will be provided with it. 

U.S. District Court

Both civil and criminal cases are tried at this court and this is the path used in appeals to get to the U.S. Supreme court. 

To access these federal records, write to the clerk of the U.S. District Court in the federal courthouse nearest to where you think your subject is or has been. 

Bankruptcy Court

Also to be found in the federal courthouse are records regarding bankruptcy.  These are public records and available by writing.

Military Locators

If you think your subject may have joined the armed forces this website has the addresses you need, Official Military Records

It currently costs $3.50 to do a military records search and you can find out how to access all branches of service from this site. 
 
U.S. Marshal

This one is kind of tricky, if your subject might be a fugitive from the law, contact your nearest U.S. Marshal’s office and inquire. 

Give only the full name and date of birth and no other information.  The Marshal’s office knows they are not supposed to give out this information, but they don’t know that you know that, so if they come back to you asking for more information, that is an indication that your subject is among the wanted.  
 

Veterans Administration

The Veterans Administration can be very helpful source of federal records if your subject was in the military. 

If you send an inquiry kit and their files contain a recent address, it is likely that they will forward a postcard for you.  A sample letter is provided for this purpose.

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Begin with a few basic tools

First the US Postal Service. 

Most government agencies are zealous in protecting people’s privacy and will be hesitant to give up information.  You will need to make them aware that you only want to contact this person and not invade their privacy. 

The mailing device which allows you to do this is called a letter of inquiry.  Many agencies will not respond to a phone call from someone trying to find a person but most will accept and answer your letter of inquiry. 

Sample letters are provided in our tools to help you begin to create an inquiry kit.  This is what you will send to various agencies. 

Many of these records are now online and links are provided on our resources page.

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Putting It All Together

Now that you know what agencies to use, the question becomes, what tools  do I use to contact them. 

Remember that you must respect your subject’s right to privacy in all correspondence. 

You have the right to search for someone, and they have the right not to be found. Their personal information should never be divulged to the people you talk to during your search. 

One of the best tools are a letter of inquiry along with an inquiry kit. 

Decide which public or private agency might have information and choose one of our sample letters.

These agencies could include:

• Veterans Administration
• Social Security Administraton
• a state vital statistics office
• an insurance company
• licensing bureau

 Most government agencies will not give you any information directly, but will usually forward to the subject the stamped postcard you will provide them with. 

• Write a short, clear letter of inquiry (*see sample letters) addressed to the director or supervisor of the agency.
• Enclose a copy of your subject profile and any information that would relate directly to the agency you are contacting, such as military background for the Veterans Administration.
• Enclose a plain, stamped postcard with  a short, clear message to your subject.  Include your contact information including phone number and leave the front of the card blank so that the agency can fill in the address. 

The letter of inquiry a subject profile and postcard make up an inquiry kit. 

It is best if you handwrite or print your letter and postcard because it will get the attention of the agency official quicker than printed material will.  Make sure it is legible. 

Handwritten letters seem more heartfelt and this will highlight the personal nature of your search.

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