How would I find the serial # to guns that were in a family estate?

Question

I cannot find serial #'s to two guns that were in the family home. These guns are now missing. Can I find out the serial #'s by looking up the deceased persons name? Is there a website by state that I can do this?

Answer 1

Not likely. Most free states have no interest in who owns what guns and are in fact prohibited from keeping such records. And then there's California.

Answer 2

JD is correct and I could only add that if the guns were fairly old, say over 40 years old, and were not expensive guns, they may not have any serial numbers on them.

Manufacturers, prior to the gun control act of 1968, were not required to use serial numbers. Many of the less expensive firearms did not have them. Most major companies have used serial numbers since the mid 1800's or before.

If you know where the person bought the firearms, you may have a chance to get them, but my guess is it would take a court order. Dealers are not required to show anyone their"bound books" other than ATF or Police agencies as a matter of business.

Ultimately, even if an attorney got involved, you will probably not get the guns back or get the serial numbers.

Answer 3

Unless the Estate Attorney has the serial numbers on file as part of the deceased person's Will, you are pretty much out of luck. There is no legal requirement for anyone to record the serial numbers anywhere, unless the serial numbers were recorded as the result of a recent purchase of the firearm in question. Even then, there is no public access to these records unless done so as part of a law enforcement agency or government law enforcement agency investigation (active)

Answer 4

If the estate went through probate the serial numbers would probably have been recorded on the court documents. I know of no website that lists such information (maybe someone else does). If they weren't particularly old firearms the dealer who sold them may be able to give you the serial numbers. If they were registered with a government agency they may have that information; but you probably can't get it from them without a court order, and maybe not even then. This may be tough, but good luck.