You may be fortunate enough to know what your relative’s occupation was. But do you know anything about that occupation during the time period your relative had it? There could be clues in that occupation that could help you learn even more about your relative than you already do. And just because you know how the occupation “works” today does not mean that you know how it “worked” in 1750.
If your relative immigrated, don’t assume they only crossed the border or ocean only one time. It was not unheard of for immigrants to make return trips to the old country. Sometimes this was done to bring other immigrants on the return trip. The immigrant might have thought they wanted to go back home to stay only to realize that they really did want to immigrate. Some returned for short visits to family members for one reason or another with no intention of remaining in the home country. Never assume that relative only made one trip to immigrate. That first trip could have been one of a series of voyages.
If Amazon’s too slow, we still have copies of the Genealogy Tip of the Daybook that can be sent directly to you via USPS. It can be a great way to refresh yourself on things you forgot, learn new things, or view research from a different perspective. It can be read in one setting, browsed at random, or used to generate ideas for your own research. It’s easy to read, informative, and geared towards helping you with your research and not seeing how much labored prose and ten-syllable words can be used in one sentence. If you’re “stuck at home” (or even if you are not), get your copy today! There’s more information on the book on our website.
Dealing with a “new to you record” can sometimes be confusing. That confusion is compounded when the record is written in blank book format where the clerk or records keeper had to create their own form. Sometimes that “homemade form,” was unique to the person who originally kept the records. Determining what the format was for each entry, what the columns stood for, etc. may take some time. It may require more than just looking at the entry of interest. It may require more than looking at just the entries on the page containing your ancestor’s entry–particularly if some columns are used infrequently. And it always requires patience. Note: I’ve been reminded of the importance of this in working with some tax records from Ohio. All of us […]
There is so much information on FamilySearch that it can be easy to confuse exactly what database is what. The Family Tree is an attempt to create one worldwide “family tree” where everyone can collaborate, make additions, corrections, changes, etc. The theory is that the “cream will rise to the top,” but it contains errors. Sometimes entries in this tree will contain links to actual images of records. https://www.familysearch.org/tree/find/name Databases and indexes are an attempt to make it easier to determine if certain names of individuals are contained in certain sets of records. These items are meant to be finding aids and they are imperfect. The transcriptions are meant to make it easier to find someone in the actual record and should not be used in place of […]
Court cases that seem to have no genealogical relevance may still suggest ancestral associates and give clues as to individuals who may have been related to your ancestor. The difficulty is that these records may not state the specific relationship–or they might. I’ve been viewing several early 19th century court cases from central Virginia. They are not cases where heirs are fighting over property but appear to be neighbors fighting over unpaid debts and property lines. There are depositions and statements of testimony from several individuals. Further research determined that several of these individuals were relatives to the plaintiffs or defendants in the case–either by biology or by marriage.
Court records, particularly court packets of papers from early 19th century court cases, can be confusing. To increase understanding and minimize confusion organize the papers in chronological order, make certain you have the images paired correctly (the right front with the right back), and read any conclusions and verdicts issued. Those techniques will not clear up all issues, but is the best way to get started.
While the internet may make it seem like there is no limit to genealogical data, the reality is that there is. All researchers get to a point where there is no more information and additional details about an individual probably are not forthcoming. The difficulty is in knowing when that limit has been reached and not stopping too soon. Some ways to avoid quitting too soon or banging your head against the wall for too long include: Reading genealogical journal articles for the time period and location of interest–not to find your family but to see what sources and methods were used. Being aware of all sources for the time period and place and how those sources are accessed. This means not just the sources you are comfortable […]
When a relative died in Missouri in the 1860s, all his personal property was ordered sold to pay bills and to settle up his estate. It was inventoried and appraised before the auction. When comparing the sale values with the appraised values, I noticed that what the widow purchased went for pennies on the appraised value while the other items went for relatively close to what they had been evaluated at. It was not difficult to see what had happened. The law said there had to be an appraisal and there had to be a sale. The law said nothing about the neighbors shooting dirty looks at anyone who made a bid against the widow. The procedure was followed, but the widow was not forced to really pay […]
The death of a family member can result in significant change in the family dynamics of those individuals who are left behind. The sale or transfer of property may result in family members moving–either into Grandma’s former home or far away from it. Without a certain family member to solidify the ties, those left behind may change church memberships and other affiliations. If Grandma was the surviving parent, the dynamics of the relationships among the surviving children may change as well. All of which can impact genealogical records. There is more to what happens to a family after someone dies besides the funeral.
A guardian ad litem is one that is appointed to make certain that a child’s interests are represented–usually when the child is sued. The guardian ad litem does not take custody of the child and does not control the child’s finances or estate they may have inherited. But if the child is sued–most often because they inherited something via a deceased parent–and they have no one to represent them in court, the guardian ad litem will serve that purpose.
Not everyone moves to where they have other family members. Sometimes people do pack up and move. That’s what Emma Cawiezell of Davenport, Iowa, did in the 1890s. She went to New York City to become an actress and that’s where the twenty-something Iowa native died in 1893. Compounding the issue is the fact that she changed her name from Emma Cawiezell to Emma Davis. For some time she was “lost” and I simply assumed she had died young in Iowa and somehow missed having a death certificate and tombstone. I was wrong. Emma’s mother also died in 1893 and several years ago I decided to see if there were other obituaries for her besides the one I had originally found. In that second obituary was a reference […]
We’ve mentioned the importance of thinking about who a record’s informant is before, but some concepts are worth repeating. Do we really know who gave each piece of information on a record? Even if an informant is stated, there is no guarantee that they didn’t ask someone else for a piece of information or that they received a piece of information from someone else. The informant may have easily guessed at information for one reason or another. The informant may have been told to guess if they weren’t certain–particularly if the information wasn’t considered “really essential” by the clerk or record keeper. The informant may have lied–to protect themselves, someone else, or to keep a secret from being discovered. The researcher’s perspective is worth considering as well: is […]
Genealogists love copies of vital records. Genealogists use copies of vital records for the clues they contain. It is rare for a genealogist to need a copy of a vital record immediately. Record offices often offer expedited services for an extra fee. Genealogists usually do not need the copy that fast. Save your money for some other genealogical expense or to keep your household budget on task. Determine what options there are to obtain a copy of the record. These are often listed on the local records office website. If you think there may be other ways to get the record, ask those questions on a message board or a Facebook page devoted to the area where the record was recorded. Locals may have insight to help with […]
If probate records suggest there was some fighting over your relative’s estate, consider looking for mention of it in the local newspaper. What’s in the newspaper may simply be printed gossip (sometimes they do that), but it could provide a little more personal insight into your relatives’ lives. If full text searches of newspapers are not available and manual searching of newspapers is the only option, consider searching newspapers for times when the case was being heard in court. Filing dates, motion dates, decree dates, and other dates of legal activity will be noted in the probate papers or journals and may help pin down a search time frame.
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