People finding tools

A teacher in our district recently asked for help finding online tools that could assist him in locating his  estranged half-sister. (Their father had recently died.) Not having conducted such a search myself, I turned to LM_Net and MEMO-L library lists for expert guidance.

Below is a compilation of suggestions list members sent me. Thanks to everyone who responded. I will update this entry if I hear that our teacher finds his sister:

People locators:

• http://www.searchbug.com
• http://whowhere.com
• http://www.infospace.com>
• http://classmates.com
• http://dexonline.com
• http://www.argali.com
• http://people.yahoo.com
• http://www.411.com
• http://www.emailaddresses.com/email_find.htm
• http://www.theemailfinder.com
• http://www.privateeye.com/
• http://switchboard.com
• http://www.virtualchase.com/people/
• http://qwestdex.com
• http://zabasearch.com
• http://www.daplus.us
• http://www.metacrawler.com/
• http://find.intelius.com (search public records)
• http://www.referenceusa.com/ (Reference USA"subscription database)
• http://www.ancestry.com (subscription database)

Other observations and hints:

• He may need to pay for a search if his half-sister has an unlisted phone number.
• I would try the Google phone book as explained below.......

To find listings for a US residence, type any of the following combinations into the Google search box:
first name (or first initial), last name, city (state is optional)
 first name (or first initial), last name, state
 first name (or first initial), last name, area code
 first name (or first initial), last name, zip code
 phone number, including area code
 last name, city, state
 last name, zip code

• How about the places that you can go for family tree help?
• I have heard of people being found by the organization of their profession--e.g.. teacher's associations, etc.  
• College or high school alumni records are sometimes useful (class reunions and all tha).
  

Thanks again to all who responded. The collective wisdom of this profession is amazing.

Comments

[Jude]

I didn't send anything on LM_NET, although I saw the post.

We found a long-lost relative through Social Security. My cousin contacted them and asked if he was alive. They confirmed that he was. She then asked if they could forward a letter to him. They agreed to do it as long as she kept the letter unsealed so they could read it first. When we found my missing cousin, he was in a wheelchair, living in a suburb of Denver. Since money was involved, he contacted my cousin right away. Within a year of finding him, he died. Anyway, if all else fails, this *might* work.

[Doug Johnson]

I thought you might like to know that the teacher who originated the request DID find his half sister. But here is how:

Just a quick note of thanks for all who sent suggestions as to how to locate my half sister. We were able to find and speak with her. Even though we found her via a freaky coincidental chain of events and not through the internet, I still appreciate all the help that was offered to me.

As Paul Harvey would say, the rest of the story.

[Sam Gibson]

I had no idea that there were so many websites dedicated to help people locate their loved ones. I know I've used ancestry.com but I didn't know about all these other sites. My wife is adopted & she has seriously thought about searching for her birth parents. Does anyone know if these sites are free, or do you have to pay for access? (Commercial link removed.)