A 1906 newspaper reference to my uncle and his wife provides several tips or reminders in one quick note:
“Joe Neal and daughter Jennie and Mrs. Harper and daughter Anna returned home last Friday after a two weeks visit with relatives in Polo, Mo.”
I located the entry by manually searching for the alternate spelling of my last name. The site that hosted this image, at least at the time I used it, did not support soundex-based searches and wildcard searches required at least two letters to be used initially before a wildcard operator was used.
The connection between the individuals named in the newspaper is not stated. Frustrating for the genealogist. It’s worth remembering that the individuals reading the newspaper at the time already knew those relationships. Newspapers were not always concerned about stating things clearly for someone reading the item 110 years or more later.
Don’t assume what the relationships are. You may be incorrect.
“Mrs. Harper” is not identified any further–although she does have a daughter Anna. Women are not always identified as completely as we would like. That’s reflective of the time and also because “everyone knew who was meant by ‘Mrs. Harper.'”
Lastly: do not forget to follow up on items you locate. I just realized that my goal of doing more work on this item fell by the wayside.
The post I originally wrote “Headed to Polo in 1906” was published on my other website.
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