Finding a specific tribute in the Clovis News Journal newspaper obituaries used to be as simple as walking to the end of the driveway and snapping a rubber band. Now? It's a bit of a maze. If you’re looking for a relative who lived in Curry County, you might be confused because the "Clovis News Journal" name doesn't exactly sit alone on the masthead anymore.
Back in 2016, a big shift happened. The Clovis News Journal merged with the Portales News-Tribune. They became The Eastern New Mexico News.
This is the first thing people mess up. They search for the old name and think the records vanished. They didn’t. They just moved houses. Whether you are trying to find a service time for a friend or digging through decades of family history, you have to know where the digital and physical paper trails actually lead in 2026.
Where the Clovis News Journal Newspaper Obituaries Live Now
If someone passed away recently—say, within the last few days—your best bet isn't a dusty archive. It’s the digital "Today’s Obituaries" section of The Eastern New Mexico News.
The paper still serves as the primary record for Clovis, Cannon Air Force Base, and the surrounding ranching communities. Because Clovis is a tight-knit place, these notices are often more than just "dates and locations." They are stories. You’ll see mentions of high school football glory at Clovis High or years of service at the railroad.
Most of these are hosted via Legacy.com, which has become the standard partner for the paper. Honestly, the search bar on Legacy can be finicky. If you don't type the name exactly as it was printed—maybe you used "Bill" instead of "William"—you might get zero results.
Why the Local Funeral Homes Matter
Sometimes the newspaper is a day behind. If you’re in a rush, check the local funeral homes directly. In Clovis, the big players are:
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- Muffley Funeral Home: They’ve been on Pile Street for decades. Their website often posts the full tribute before it even hits the print edition.
- Steed-Todd Funeral Home: Another pillar in the community. They handle many of the local services and keep a very clean, searchable digital archive of their own.
- Chavez Funeral Home: While they have a presence in Fort Sumner, they frequently handle services for folks in the Clovis area.
Hunting Down Historical Records
Now, if you’re doing genealogy, that’s a whole different beast. You aren't looking for someone who passed away last week; you’re looking for a Great-Aunt who lived near the stockyards in 1945.
For anything older than a few years, GenealogyBank and Ancestry.com are the heavy lifters. They have digitized millions of pages from the Clovis News Journal archives.
But here is a tip from someone who’s spent too much time in digital basements: search by address or workplace. Spelling errors in old newspapers were rampant. A typesetter in 1950 might have fat-fingered a last name, but "Santa Fe Railroad" or "Main Street" stays the same. If you can't find a name, try searching for the obituary by looking for the surviving spouse’s name or even the name of the church where the service was held, like Sacred Heart or Central Baptist.
The UNM Digital Repository
For the real history nerds, the University of New Mexico (UNM) Digital Repository has a collection of the Clovis News dating back to 1911. It’s a goldmine. You can literally see the birth of the town through these pages. It’s free to access, which is a nice break from the subscription paywalls of the big genealogy sites.
How to Place an Obituary in 2026
If you’re on the other side of the process—having to write one—it’s stressful. You’ve got a million things to do and now you have to sum up a life in 300 words.
The Eastern New Mexico News (formerly the Clovis News Journal) usually requires obituaries to be submitted through a funeral home. This is basically a "fact-check" measure. They want to make sure the information is coming from a verified source.
Cost is the thing that shocks people. Newspapers charge by the inch or by the word count. A long, beautiful story with a photo can easily run several hundred dollars. If you're on a budget, keep the print version short—stick to the "who, when, and where"—and put the long, flowery story on the funeral home's website for free.
Common Obstacles in Your Search
Is the site down? Is the name not showing up?
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Sometimes, an obituary isn't published in the paper at all. It’s a "death notice." A death notice is a tiny, one-paragraph blurb that just states the person died. Families often choose this if they want privacy or if the cost of a full obituary is too high. If you can't find a full story in the Clovis News Journal newspaper obituaries, look for the "Deaths" column. It’s usually a list of names and ages without the biography.
Also, remember that Clovis is a military town. If the person was stationed at Cannon AFB and moved away, the obituary might be in their original hometown paper or an Air Force publication instead of the local Clovis daily.
Steps to Take Right Now
If you are looking for a specific person, follow this sequence to save yourself some time:
- Start with the Eastern New Mexico News website. Look under the "Obituaries" tab.
- Check Muffley or Steed-Todd's websites. They often have "Pending Services" listed that haven't made it to the paper yet.
- Use Google News Search. Instead of a regular search, toggle to the "News" tab and type "Name + Clovis + Obituary." This filters out a lot of the junk "people search" sites that just want your credit card info.
- Visit the Clovis-Carver Public Library. If you’re actually in town, their local history room is incredible. They have microfilm and physical records that haven't been indexed by Google yet.
The Clovis News Journal newspaper obituaries are more than just a list of the dead. They are a map of who we were. From the railroad workers of the 1920s to the farmers and airmen of today, these records keep the history of the High Plains alive. Just remember to look for "The Eastern New Mexico News" if you want the current stuff.
Don't let a name change stop your research. The information is out there; you just have to know which door to knock on.
Actionable Insight: If you are searching for a historical obituary (pre-2000), prioritize the UNM Digital Repository first to avoid paywalls. For recent notices (post-2016), always use "Eastern New Mexico News" as your primary search term rather than the old journal name.