There is a little story associated with this death certificate. When I originally ordered Sylvia Jane Loomer's death certificate from the Bureau of Vital Statistics in Bismarck, N.D., the death certificate said "unknown" where the mother's maiden name should be. Initially I was horrified, because the mother's maiden name should have said Eastman, which would have been our documented link to the Eastman name. Upon closer inspection of the document, however, I noticed a light, handwritten word over the "unknown" but it was illegible. I thought it might have been wishful thinking on my part, but I could have sworn I saw a possible capital "E" and a "t". So I wrote back to the Dept. of Vital Statistics, begging and pleading for them to pull the original certificate and see what was written over the word "unknown". About a week later I received a phone call from a lady named Sarah from the Dept. of Vital Statistics, who verified over the phone that it did indeed say "Mrs. Eastman" over the word "unknown". She explained that the copies were made from microfiche and didn't always come out too well, and offered to make a new copy from the original and send to me. Another week went by and I received the new copy of the death certificate with "Mrs. Eastman" clearly visible, along with an obituary from the Ransom County Gazette, dated August 20, 1925, that she had obtained from the local historical society in Bismarck, ND. Our ancestry is now well documented due to the extraordinary efforts of a wonderful lady who works at the Dept. of Vital Statistics in Bismarck, ND. Thanks Sarah!