I am trying to find out if there is any money left in the account of a
deceased relative.

Last year, in a family bible, we discovered a savings book envelope
with a note inside that said:

In case of accident, get in touch with this bank at once.

The note was in a savings account passbook envelope with the name of
my father's aunt, Adalaide Frock. Her maiden name was Adalaide
Mearlida Carr. She was born October 31, 1881, according to this family
bible, somewhere near Princeton, NJ. Possibly in Plainsboro, Grovers
Mills, or Cranberry, NJ.

She lived much of her adult life in New York City.

The envelope was for DRY DOCK SAVINGS INSTITUTION at 742 Lexington
Avenue at 59th Street and 341 Bowery at 3rd Street, both in New York,
New York.

There is no passbook inside the envelope. However, inside the envelope
was a brown envelope with her note on it. There was nothing in this
brown envelope, but it may have held a safety deposit box key.

We know for certain that she owned a profitble hat store in Spring
Lake, NJ  during the depression. We think she died after WWII in the
late 1940s.

In reading about so many unclaimed accounts, we are wondering if there
is any way to retrieve information on the disposition of her accounts.
How would we claim the money if there was any?

Mula --

Each state has a slightly different procedure for unclaimed funds (and
it differs depending on whether they're insurance, bank deposits or
other funds).

This is the specific contact information for the New York State
Banking Department Consumer Services site (April 23, 2002):

"I found an old passbook. Whom do I contact about getting my money
back?

Contact the Office of Unclaimed Funds in the State Comptroller's
office at the Alfred E. Smith Office Building, Albany, New York 12236.
The Office can be reached at 1-800-221-9311 from within New York
State, or at (518) 270-2200 from outside New York State. All abandoned
property from financial institutions is delivered to the State
Comptroller's Office after remaining unclaimed for a period of time
but may be reclaimed at a later time. The period differs according to
the type of property."

If the bank doesn't exist, there's a high likelihood that it was
acquired or that assets ended in the states hands.  There is
information on the Consumer Services site on what to do if this is the
case:
http://www.banking.state.ny.us/faq.htm

Good luck (and be sure to let us know via a comment if you're
successful)!
Best regards,
Omnivorous-GA

10-21-2002

DEAR MULA:

Please explain--are there any other surviving relatives of Adalaide's
who would be more closely related to her:  son, daughter, or
grandchildren, or is your husband the only surviving relative?  What
city/state do you live in?

Please visit the website www.who-me.com and post your search message
about Adalaide Frock on their website, and it will appear along with
other people searching for information about their missing or deceased
relatives or living friends.  It does appear that there is information
about Adalaide's assets available.

SINCERELY,

4keith-ga

OCT. 22, 2002

Unfortunately, the passbook and other documentation you have is
worthless, since Adalaide most likely closed out her accounts at that
bank.  That particular bank was later merged and/or bought out by
other banks, and was eventually liquidated in the 1980's.

The Social Security Death Index shows that Adalaide died in January
1971 in Miami, FL (Miami-Dade County), so I'm guessing she retired
there.  There are no unclaimed accounts showing up on the New Jersey
and New York websites, but there is an account (for less than $100)
for her showing up on the Florida unclaimed website
(http://up.dbf.state.fl.us) for a utility company deposit refund.  If
she left a last will & testament, then her executor would have first
rights to claim this money (you can call the Miami-Dade County
Courthouse at (305) 275-1155 to find out if Adalaide left a probate
file, and if so, you can order a copy of any pages in that probate
file that would contain the name and address of the executor and/or
any surviving heirs/family members.

However, due to the passage of time, it is also possible that the
executor might be deceased, in which case the most closely related
surviving relative could claim this money by filling out a form
available at the Florida Unclaimed funds website.  If you decided to
claim this money, you would need to furnish a copy of her death
certificate (available through www.vitalchek.com)

SINCERELY,
4keith-ga

Dear 4keith-ga,

Thank you very much for your helpful comments. How did you get her
SS#? Did you use her birth date to locate her? That's amazing
detective work. Thank's again, we'll keep this updated.

MULA