Locate Someone Free

You can locate someone free by searching the White Pages.  These are available free via the Internet as well as hard copy telephone books.

Our researchers often use free online telephone directories and telephone books to locate someone and verify their address and phone number information.  We have our own library of telephone books covering cities all over the USA as well a list of our favorite online white page web sites. 

So, why do we use hard copy telephone books instead of online white page directories to locate someone free?  Good question!  We mainly use older telephone books to conduct historical research.  Sometimes, in order to locate someone at a current address, we need to obtain historical address information first and then work our way forward year by year. 

For instance, in Oregon, an adoptee can obtain their original birth certificate, which will list their birth mother’s name and address at the time of the adoption.  So, if the adoptee provides us with a copy of their birth certificate, we can search an old telephone book for the year of the adoption and verify the birth mother’s old address and phone number (we can also verify the spelling of the birth mother’s name which sometimes is spelled incorrectly on the birth certificate).  Then, year by year, we can search other, more current telephone directories, to see when the birth mother underwent any address and name changes.  At the very least, we can determine when the birth mother moved out of the area, which can also be helpful when trying to locate someone free.

You can visit a local library and they’ll likely have a collection of telephone books for you to access.  If they do not, contact the local genealogical society or historical society and see if they can assist you. 

Sometimes an old phone book can help you obtain your subject’s unlisted phone number.  Even if they currently have an unlisted phone number, their number at one time may have been listed and may still be in use.  

Free online directories can also help you find birth family members.  If you are an adoptee searching for your birth mother and have her maiden last name (and the name is a bit unusual), you can research online directories to determine where in the USA the majority of persons with this last name reside.  Then you can contact these potential relatives by phone or by mail to see if they have any information on your birth mother.  (The Social Security Death Index can also help you with this type of research by observing where the majority of persons with a particular last name have passed away.  Then you can search for living persons in the same area to help you locate someone free.)

Online directories often have a reverse search function.  So, if you happen to have an old address or phone number of someone you need to locate, you can input that address and/or phone number and obtain a current listing.  The current resident may have information on prior residents.  You can also look up listings of persons who live nearby who can assist you.   

Make sure that you search for all possible spellings of a name.  If you are searching for, let’s say our company president–David Betz, and find no listing, next look up David Betts, then David Bets.  Try different first name variations and nicknames as well:  David or Dave.  Other examples are:  Richard or Dick or Rick | Charles or Chuck | William or Bill or Billy.  Be creative and search as many name varations as possible.  Also search for initials (e.g., D.R. Betz or D. Betz instead of David Richard Betz or David Betz). 

When trying to locate someone free and you know they are associated with a business, you can search the white pages for the business name.  Check out the yellow pages when you just know the type of business and don’t have a name. 

Be sure to choose the correct telephone book when trying to locate someone free.  Some directories cover a single town and others cover an entire county or more.

If you are trying to locate someone free who may be married, be sure you search for the names of both the husband and the wife.  You may also want to look under the wife’s maiden name in the event the couple are trying to not be found.

If you have no luck finding the one you seek in the white page listings, try searching the yellow pages.  The subject might be listed there, particularly if he/she has a home office, is self-employed or is a licensed professional such as a doctor or lawyer.  If you have a business name, search in both the white and yellow pages for a listing. 

If you find a listing for your subject, make sure the listing is current by checking other white page resources or calling directory assistance. 

If you have a last known address of your subject and notice that there is someone with your subject’s same last name listed at a similar address (e.g., 23123 State Rd. 7 instead of 22123 State Rd. 7) you should give that similar listing a call.  There may have been a typo in your original information.

We hope this post helps you locate someone free.  Of course, if you need additional search help or simply would like a FREE search consultation with one of our OmniTrace Search Advisors, please email us or call toll free at: 

 888-965-6696.