Honestly, if you grew up in New Hampshire, you know the drill. Sunday morning usually involves a box of Dunks and the thickest newspaper in the state. Even in 2026, where everything feels like it’s moved to a 15-second TikTok clip, Manchester Union Leader obituaries remain the heavyweights of local record-keeping. It’s kinda the town square for the Granite State.
People don’t just read these to see who passed. They read them to see where the service is, which charity needs donations, and, let’s be real, to catch those incredible life stories that only a place like New Hampshire produces. We're talking about the guy who ran the local bait shop for 50 years or the schoolteacher who seemingly taught every kid in the Queen City.
The Union Leader (technically the New Hampshire Union Leader now, but most of us still call it the Manchester paper) has been at this since 1863. That’s a lot of ink.
Finding the Record: Search Tactics That Actually Work
Searching for a specific name can be a total headache if you don't know the shortcuts. If you’re looking for someone who passed away in the last few years, your best bet is the digital partnership they have with Legacy.com. It’s updated daily.
But what if you're digging into family history? That’s where it gets tricky.
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The paper’s own digital archive on NewsBank goes back to 1989 for text-only and roughly 1954 for digitized images. If you’re looking for great-grandpa from 1920, you’re basically going to need a library card and a trip to the Manchester City Library’s New Hampshire Room. They have the microfilm. Yes, the old-school spinning reels.
Pro tip for the search bar: Don't just type the name. If you're looking for "Mary Smith," you'll get ten thousand hits. Add a keyword like "West High" or "Catholic Medical Center." It filters the noise.
The Cost of Saying Goodbye
Let's talk money because putting an obit in the paper isn't exactly cheap anymore. The Union Leader has a tiered system that feels a bit like picking a data plan for your phone.
- The Free Version: You can actually get a basic "Death Notice" for free. It’s capped at 70 words. No photo. No service details. It’s basically just the facts.
- The Basic Paid Tier: Starts around $90. You get a bit more room to breathe, but it's still text-only.
- The Standard/Premium Tiers: This is what most people choose. Prices jump to $205 or $330+ once you add a headshot or a larger photo.
Submission deadlines are strict. If you want it in for the weekday paper, you usually have until 5:00 PM the night before. If you're aiming for the Sunday News, you’ve got to have it ready by Saturday at 3:00 PM.
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Writing the Story (Without the Cliches)
If you're the one tasked with writing, please, for the love of all things, skip the "passed away peacefully surrounded by family" unless it really happened that way. New Hampshire loves a character.
Did they have a favorite spot at the Deerhead Sportsman’s Club? Mention it. Were they known for their specific recipe for beans at the church supper? Put it in. These are the details that make Manchester Union Leader obituaries worth reading.
The paper also handles "In Memoriam" notices separately. These are the little anniversary tributes people buy on the date of a death years later. You contact the Classified Department for those, not the newsroom.
Dealing With Digital Archives and Paywalls
A common frustration is the paywall. You see a snippet on Google, click it, and—boom—"Subscribe to read more."
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If you aren't a subscriber, you can often find the same obituary on the funeral home's website for free. Places like Phaneuf, Lambert, or Connor-Healy usually post the full text of whatever they sent to the paper.
However, the "official" record lives in the paper's archives. If you need a PDF of the actual newspaper page for a scrapbooked history, you’ll likely have to pay a one-time fee of about $3.95 through the NewsBank portal.
Actionable Steps for Finding or Placing an Obituary
- Check the Legacy page first for anything within the last decade. It’s the easiest interface.
- Use the Manchester City Library if you have a library card; you can access the NewsBank archives for free from home through their portal.
- Call 603-206-1503 after 2:00 PM if you have questions about a pending submission. That’s the direct line to the obituary editor.
- Verify the Saturday exception. The Saturday edition isn't distributed statewide like the others. If you want the whole state to see it, aim for Wednesday or Sunday.
Obituaries are more than just a list of the dead; they're the final draft of a person's life. In a state as tightly knit as New Hampshire, that draft still carries a lot of weight.