Your War of 1812 veteran may not have lived long enough to qualify for a military pension, but he may have qualified for a land warrant based on his military service. Many land warrants for War of 1812 military service were granted in the 1850s–either to the veteran or his widow. The names of warrantees (if the warrant generated a land patent) at the Bureau of Land Management website (https://glorecords.blm.gov/search/default.aspx). If you are unfamiliar with land warrants, make certain to have an understanding of the following terms first: patentee warrantee patent warrant And if your ancestor received land, there are additional terms to learn. All are described on the BLM’s “Reference” page. Not knowing what something means can lead to additional brick walls. Michael John Neill writes Casefile Clues […]
In some jurisdictions there may have been multiple courts that heard different types of cases. The obvious court that is often separate is the probate court–the one the oversaw the settlement of estates. There may have been a court that heard criminal cases and yet another court that heard other types of cases. Make certain you’ve gone through them all. A divorce probably won’t be heard or settled in a probate court or a criminal court. Separate courts may have used the same facilities and had the same judge. But the records may be separate from each other with separate indexes and finding aids.
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