Augusta funeral home whose firm traces its beginnings to an 1822 maker of furniture, coffins and caskets. Its building, put up from 1920 to 1922, was the first in Maine built for the purpose of serving as a funeral home, and the firm merged with Winthrop's Roberts Funeral Home in 1984.
What to Do When Someone Dies in Kennebec County, Maine
When someone dies in Kennebec County, Maine, an estate that needs probate is opened with the Probate Court in Augusta, for a filing fee set by the estate's value.
The First Days After a Death in Kennebec County
A certified copy of the death certificate from the Maine Department of Health and Human ServicesMaine Department of Health and Human Services - Data, Research, and Vital StatisticsVerified Oct 15, 2026View source costs $15, and each additional copy ordered at the same time costs $6. The medical examiner for Kennebec County is the Office of Chief Medical Examiner.
Who controls the funeral and the burial or cremation follows an order set by law: surviving spouse, then surviving domestic partner, then surviving adult childMe. Rev. Stat. tit. 22, § 2843-AVerified Oct 17, 2026View source. An agent the person named in advance comes before that orderMe. Rev. Stat. tit. 22, § 2843-A(2)(A)Verified Oct 17, 2026View source. Cremation carries a 48-hour minimum waiting periodMe. Rev. Stat. tit. 32, § 1405Verified Oct 17, 2026View source.
Vital Records Office Record
Maine Department of Health and Human Services - Data, Research, and Vital Statistics
Kennebec County · State vital records office
Phone
Hours
9:00 AM-4:00 PM
Office
220 Capitol Street, Augusta, ME 04333-0011
Website
Certified copies
From the Municipal Clerk of the town or city where the death occurred, or from Maine Department of Health and Human Services - Data, Research, and Vital Statistics
11 State House Station
220 Capitol Street
Augusta, ME 04333-0011
Certified copy fees
| First certified copy | $15 |
| Each additional copy ordered at the same time | $6 |
Verified October 15, 2026 · Source
Coroner or Medical Examiner Record
State Medical Examiner
Kennebec County · Office of Chief Medical Examiner
Phone
Website
Serves this county
Office of Chief Medical Examiner
Cremation authorization
Signed by this office
Verified November 3, 2026 · Source
ToolsWhat Do I Do When Someone Dies? · How Do I Settle an Estate? · How Many Death Certificates Do I Need? · How Much Does a Funeral Cost?
Funeral Homes in Kennebec County
Kennebec County has 10 funeral homes and crematories, in 5 cities: 4 list cremation, 3 list pre-need arrangements and 1 lists veterans services.
Augusta office of Funeral Alternatives, a locally owned firm that has served Augusta, Lewiston and Brunswick since 2002. Cremated remains are generally ready in five to seven business days, prearrangements are placed in a mortuary trust, and its list of towns served runs from Yarmouth to Boothbay and Vassalboro.
Augusta funeral home founded in 1898 as the Plummer Funeral Parlor and incorporated in 1959, which built a second funeral home in Windsor in 2002 and 2003.
Gardiner funeral home established in April 1928 as the city's first funeral home. Its private chapel seats up to 60, and opening its french doors to the reposing room lets 150 attend; a family room off the chapel sits in view of the pulpit, and caskets are shown upstairs. The building is in the Cape Cod Colonial style.
Monmouth funeral home, formerly Bragdon-Flanders Funeral Home, bought in 1984 by the owner of Finley Funeral Home in Livermore Falls, which he established in 1970. The two homes share one owner and staff.
Waterville direct cremation service for families across Central Maine. Arrangements can be made online, and it holds visitation and memorial services at a place the family chooses.
Probate in Kennebec County
Probate cases in Kennebec County are filed with the Probate Court in Augusta. The fee to open probate in Maine is $50 to $1,210 or more, by the estate value18-C M.R.S. § 1-602(2)Verified Oct 17, 2026View source.
Probate in Maine typically takes 6 months to 12 months. In Maine, estates with personal property of $52,50018-C M.R.S. § 3-1201Verified Sep 8, 2026View source or less skip probate with the Small Estate Affidavit, 30 days after death. Creditors have 4 months18-C MRS §§ 3-801, 3-803, 3-805, 3-806Verified Oct 18, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the first publication of the notice to creditors.
Probate Court Record
Kennebec County Probate Court
Kennebec County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM
Office
95 State Street, Augusta, ME 04330
Website
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
E-filing
Required for attorneysAll 16 probate courts take filings through Maine Probate EZ-File, and every party must e-file in a case opened since October 1, 2014, except a self-represented person who has not registered as an e-filer. Each electronic filing carries a $7 fee. On paper: A self-represented party who has not registered as an e-filer may file on paper; An original will or other testamentary document is filed on paper.
Self-represented filing
AllowedThe official Title 18-C probate forms are on the Maine Probate website, and every probate court also has them. Court staff give general and procedural information but no legal advice.
Accepted payment
- At the counterCash, Check, Money order.Checks are payable to KCPC or Kennebec County Probate Court. Debit and credit cards can be used only when filing electronically, and the e-filing vendor adds its own fee.
Fax
1-207-621-1639
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Fee and Accounting Rules in Kennebec County
Local costs for publication, heir notices and the real estate abstract. The court charges $75 for the Notice to Creditors, $170 for formal publication and $5 for each notice to an heir, devisee or DHHS. A real estate abstract is $60 for each county.
What Probate Costs in Kennebec County
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Maine costs an estimated $26,31318-C M.R.S. § 3-721 (court review of the reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage); § 3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, counting the court fee, the executor's and the attorney's pay, the bond and publication.
Free formsSmall Estate Affidavit →
ToolsDo I Need Probate? · How Much Does Probate Cost? · Who Inherits Without a Will? · What Is the Estate's Personal Property Worth for Probate?
Serving as Executor in Kennebec County
The court's appointment comes as Letters of Authority of Personal Representative18-C M.R.S. §3-103 (appointment & letters), §3-301 (informal application), §3-402 (formal petition contents)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source. A person can apply for the appointment without a lawyer. Informal probate is available18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-301, 3-302Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, with less court supervision than a formal case. No bond is required by default before letters issue18-C M.R.S. §3-603 (bond not required without court order; exceptions); §3-604 (bond amount; security; procedure; reduction); §3-605 (demand for bond by interested person)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source. Someone named as executor who will not serve declines by a written renunciation filed with the court18-C M.R.S. § 3-203(3)Verified Sep 23, 2026View source.
Notice to creditors is published in a newspaper18-C MRS §§ 3-801, 3-803, 3-805, 3-806Verified Oct 18, 2026View source for 2 consecutive weeks. The estate inventory is due within 90 days18-C MRSA §§ 3-706, 3-707, 3-708Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment. An executor is paid reasonable compensation from the estate18-C M.R.S. § 3-719 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Probate attorneys are paid reasonable compensation from the estate18-C M.R.S. § 3-721 (court review of the reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage); § 3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
ToolsHow Do I Get Letters Testamentary? · Can I Self-File Probate? · How Much Can an Executor Charge? · What Are the Creditor Claim Deadlines?
Homes, Accounts and Debts in Kennebec County
A deed from the personal representative, an affidavit that records a death, or a court order is recorded with the Registry of Deeds for Kennebec County. Recording a 2-page document there costs $40 in recording fees, before any form fee the office adds. The Registry of Deeds accepts electronic recording through Simplifile. In Maine a deed naming the owners as joint tenants, with right of survivorship, or as tenants by the entirety creates a joint tenancy. The Maine estate tax lien does not attach to property passing to a surviving joint tenant who was the decedent's spouse; any other lien is released ten years after the death, and on request the State Tax Assessor issues a discharge for recording18-C M.R.S. § 6-414; 18-C M.R.S. § 6-413(1)(A); 33 M.R.S. § 203Verified Oct 26, 2026View source.
The estate's bank account can be at any bank, in any state18-C M.R.S. § 3-715(5) (UPC § 3-715 analog)Verified Nov 2, 2026View source. Property the state holds as unclaimed for the person who died is claimed from the Office of the Maine State Treasurer, Unclaimed Property33 M.R.S. Chapter 45 (Maine Revised Unclaimed Property Act); 33 M.R.S. 2153-2155Verified Aug 24, 2026View source. An estate that cannot pay every debt pays them in an order set by statute, in 918-C MRS § 3-805Verified Sep 23, 2026View source classes. A representative who distributes to heirs while claims are open can be personally liable18-C M.R.S. § 3-807(2)(A); § 3-104; § 3-1004; § 3-909; § 3-1003(1)(B)Verified Sep 23, 2026View source.
Recording Office Record
Registry of Deeds
Kennebec County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-noon and 1:00 PM-4:00 PM
Office
77 Winthrop Street, Augusta, ME 04330
Website
E-recording
available via Simplifile
P.O. Box 1053
Augusta, ME 04332
Fax
1-207-622-1598
Recording fees
| Flat fee (any length) | $40 |
| Transfer tax on a TOD deed | TOD deeds are exempt from transfer tax |
33 MRSA 751; 33 MRSA 752
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
ToolsWhat Happens to Jointly Owned Property When an Owner Dies? · How Do I Open an Estate Account When Someone Dies? · How Do I Claim a Deceased Person's Unclaimed Property? · What Happens When an Estate Is Insolvent?
Taxes and Benefits
Estates over $7,160,00036 M.R.S. §§ 4102, 4103, 4119Verified Sep 15, 2026View source pay Maine estate tax, at rates up to 12%. The final state income tax return for the year of death is Form 1040ME36 M.R.S. §§ 4101-4119 (estate tax; 4107 filing, 4110 extension, 4112 lien), 5220, 5222, 5227, 5231 (income tax returns)Verified Sep 10, 2026View source. The federal estate tax exempts the first $15,000,00026 USC 2001(c), 2010; P.L. 119-21 §70106Verified Sep 15, 2026View source per person.
Social Security pays a one-time death payment of $25542 U.S.C. § 402(i) (Social Security Act § 202(i)), first sentenceVerified Oct 26, 2026View source to a surviving spouse who lived in the same household, or else to a spouse or child entitled to survivor benefits for the month of death42 U.S.C. § 402(i), first and second sentencesVerified Oct 26, 2026View source. A family allowance of up to $35,40018-C MRSA §§ 2-402, 2-404, 2-405 (as adjusted under § 1-108)Verified Oct 11, 2026View source can be paid from the estate to support the family during administration.
ToolsDo I Have to File Tax Returns for Someone Who Died? · What Taxes Apply to My Inheritance? · What Social Security Survivor Benefits Can I Get? · How Does Step-Up in Basis Work?
Probate Attorneys
Kennebec County Probate Attorneys →Kennebec County Trust Administration Attorneys →Kennebec County Probate Litigation Attorneys →Kennebec County Trust Litigation Attorneys →Kennebec County Guardianship Attorneys →
More for settling an estate in MaineAll Maine settlement forms · All Maine settlement tools
Legal Sources
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- 18-C M.R.S. § 1-602(2)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-1201
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-203(3)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-715(5) (UPC § 3-715 analog)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-719 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-721 (court review of the reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage); § 3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 3-807(2)(A); § 3-104; § 3-1004; § 3-909; § 3-1003(1)(B)
- 18-C M.R.S. § 6-414; 18-C M.R.S. § 6-413(1)(A); 33 M.R.S. § 203
- 18-C M.R.S. §§ 3-301, 3-302
- 18-C M.R.S. §3-103 (appointment & letters), §3-301 (informal application), §3-402 (formal petition contents)
- 18-C M.R.S. §3-603 (bond not required without court order; exceptions); §3-604 (bond amount; security; procedure; reduction); §3-605 (demand for bond by interested person)
- 18-C MRS § 3-805
- 18-C MRS §§ 3-801, 3-803, 3-805, 3-806
- 18-C MRSA §§ 2-402, 2-404, 2-405 (as adjusted under § 1-108)
- 18-C MRSA §§ 3-706, 3-707, 3-708
- 26 USC 2001(c), 2010; P.L. 119-21 §70106
- 33 M.R.S. Chapter 45 (Maine Revised Unclaimed Property Act); 33 M.R.S. 2153-2155
- 36 M.R.S. §§ 4101-4119 (estate tax; 4107 filing, 4110 extension, 4112 lien), 5220, 5222, 5227, 5231 (income tax returns)
- 36 M.R.S. §§ 4102, 4103, 4119
- 42 U.S.C. § 402(i) (Social Security Act § 202(i)), first sentence
- 42 U.S.C. § 402(i), first and second sentences
- Maine Department of Health and Human Services - Data, Research, and Vital Statistics
- Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 22, § 2843-A
- Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 22, § 2843-A(2)(A)
- Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 32, § 1405
- 33 MRSA 751; 33 MRSA 752
- Kennebec County Probate Court, official page
- Kennebec County Probate Court: Local costs for publication, heir notices and the real estate abstract
- Kennebec County Registry of Deeds, official page
- Kennebec County vital records and death investigation offices, official page
Data sourced from Maine statutes and official state code. How we research.
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