Guide to the Allegheny County, Pa. Coroner's Office Records, 1884-1976 AIS.1982.07

Table of Contents

Summary Information

History

Scope and Content Notes

Administrative Information

Controlled Access Headings

Previous Citation

Collection Inventory

Series I. Coroner Case Files

1. Coroner Case Files1887-1973

2. Notable Case Files

Series II. Morgue Reports

Series III. Administrative Records

Summary Information

Repository

ULS Archives & Special Collections

Title

Allegheny County, Pa. Coroner's Office Records

Creator

Allegheny County (Pa.). Coroner's Office.

Collection Number

AIS.1982.07

Date

1884-1976

Extent

1087.5 linear feet (870 boxes)

Abstract

The Coroner’s Office investigates suspicious, unusual and sudden deaths in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. These records contain inquest files dating between 1887 and 1976, which reflect coroner’s verdicts for over ninety years. In addition to the final inquest report, materials in the files may include eye-witness testimony, grand jury reports, physician notes, affidavits, press clippings and other documentation. Also included in these records are morgue reports covering intermittent years from 1901 to 1941, along with a small amount of administrative files. Digital reproductions of some of the notable case files are scanned and online.

Sponsor Note

Funding for this project was made available in part through a grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

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History

The Office of the Coroner for Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, has developed into one of the leading medico-legal programs in the country. Historically, the title of coroner could be held by any land owning citizen, with professions ranging from a cabinet maker, to a silver smith, farmer, or lawyer, but seldom were they physicians. Until recently, the coroner had jurisdiction over crimes such as robbery, rape and burglary, in addition to homicides. As late as the early nineteenth century, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that these common law powers still inherently rested with the coroner. In 1972, the coroner statutes became codified and those seldom-used common law powers of the coroner were officially abolished.

By the turn of the century, the Coroner's Office in Allegheny County was well on its way to becoming a fully developed medico-legal investigative agency. Employees took an active role in performing autopsies, rather than hiring private physicians to do the work. In 1965, Allegheny County voters elected their first physician as coroner, Dr. William Hunt. Since that time, the office has made its professional expertise available upon request to Coroners' Offices and law enforcement agencies in surrounding counties.

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Scope and Content Notes

These records contain information about the causes of death in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, from 1884 to 1973, along with other legal information from the Coroner's offices through 1976. There are three series: Coroner inquests files, morgue reports, and administrative records. For the individual scope and content notes, please see below.

The Coroner Inquest files date from 1887 to 1973. They are public records open to all, as affirmed by the Allegheny County Coroner’s Office. The records were created by the Coroner’s Office to satisfy public law. In addition to the final inquest report, materials in the files may include eye-witness testimony, grand jury reports, physician notes, affidavits, press clippings and other documentation. Ephemeral material such as photographs, tissue samples, bullets, suicide notes, and other items have been retained with the original files. There is a five year gap in the records between 1933 and 1938; these records are not present.

These records also contain morgue reports from the Allegheny County Coroner's Office. The responsibilities of the Coroner include transporting and disposing of bodies, investigating causes and manner of deaths, and determining whether an autopsy is needed. The morgue reports allowed for record keeping of arrivals, transfers and releases of the bodies to funeral homes. See below for more detail of the files.

A small amount of administrative records include case files that are undated, correspondence, minutes from meetings, and other records from the Coroner's Office.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

ULS Archives & Special Collections, February 2009

Revision Description

 Information and scans of the files regarding the fatalities that occurred as a result of the Homestead Steel Strike were added to the finding aid. August 2014

Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

Copyright

No restrictions exist.

Acquisition Information

In 1982, the Coroner's Office of Allegheny County transferred and deposited inquest case records, morgue reports, and administrative records from 1884 to 1976, to the University of Pittsburgh.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by archival assistants under the direction of Kate Colligan during 2007-2008.

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Controlled Access Headings

Corporate Name(s)

• Allegheny County (Pa.). Coroner's Office.

Genre(s)

• Judicial records

Geographic Name(s)

• Allegheny County (Pa.)

Subject(s)

• Coroners -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County -- Records and correspondence
• Death -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County -- Causes
• Government
• Morgues -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County -- Records and correspondence

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Previous Citation

Allegheny County, Pa. Coroner's Office Records, 1884-1976, AIS.1982.07, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh

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Collection Inventory