Don’t Forget Half-Siblings

If your ancestor has half siblings, don’t forget to search for them as well. In some families half-siblings barely speak and never interact. In others, they are as close as full siblings. Just because in one family those relationships were strained doesn’t mean they were in others.

And your ancestor may have half-siblings and you may not even know it.

About Tip of the Day

For our new fans/followers:

Genealogy Tip of the Day is one genealogy tip published every day to our blog (http://genealogytipoftheday.blogspot.com/ and the Genealogy Tip of the Day Fan Page on Facebook. You can also follow us by clicking on the links on the blog page at http://genealogytipoftheday.blogspot.com/.

Tip of the Day is free–but is sponsored by my weekly newsletter Casefile Clues (http://blog.casefileclues.com/).

Tips usually come from my own research and writing. Content and topics are pretty random–just whatever comes across my desk in the process of doing my own research and writing. You don’t have to subscribe to the newsletter to get the tips. The tips are, by the nature of tips, short and to the point.

Once in a while I may mention a website, but we try and avoid being “website of the day.”

Suggestions and comments are always welcomed. Posts to the Fan Page are welcome, but posts that are pretty much all “self-promotion” will be removed. Suggestions based upon the tips or additional tips or clarifications are always welcomed.

How was that first name said?

I’ve been working on Aunt Emma for the next issue of Casefile Clues. In searching for her in various census records, I have become convinced she pronounced her first name as “Emmer.” At least that’s how almost every census taker spelled it, Emmar, Emmer, Emer, etc.

Think about how the first name was said. Sometime English language names were said in ways that resulted in a wide variety of spellings.

Those “Other” Spouses

Remember that if your ancestor was married more than once, records on those “other” spouses may be helpful to your direct line research. A second spouse may provide clues about the ancestor’s other spouses, the ancestor’s family, etc. And if the “other” spouse got a military pension, those records may be helpful as well.

Chronological Maps

Chronologies are a good problem-solving tool. So are maps. I’ve got one extended family I’m stuck on and I think that maps of each person’s location in certain years (say 1850, 1860, 1870) might be another helpful tool. Seeing what is “pulling” and “pushing” people to certain locations might be easier if I organize the information in this fashion. Hopefully we’ll have some illustrations in a future issue of Casefile Clues.

Think “What Might Have Been Created”

It is always advisable to think of all the records that might have been created when one is missing. Perhaps the records of your ancestor’s estate settlement cannot be found. Are there other court records (perhaps a partition suit?)? Were there guardianship records for the children? Were there deeds that might have settled up property? Would tax records provide any clues?

It can be frustrating when a record is missing, but ask yourself “what else could there be?”

Do they Know their STUFF?

Many of us posts genealogical questions on message boards, mailing lists, facebook groups, etc. Keep in mind that the person who answers may not really “know their stuff,” even if they throw around key phrases and sound really smart.

Give a second thought before taking free advice or suggestions from someone whose skill level and expertise are not really known to you.

Do You Know What It Meant THEN?

Today is 10-4. In CB lingo that means “OK” or something pretty close to that. Is there a phrase or word in a document, letter, or record that meant something different when it was written? Is there a chance you are interpreting something with a 21st century mind when it was written with a 17th century one?