My relative’s tombstone in a Tioga, Hancock County, Illinois, cemetery indicated that she died in 1877. The place of death is not given and I’m not certain where she died–at least not exactly. I do have a fairly good hunch as to where she died–at least as far as the name of the township. I probably know where she died. Based on the tombstone (and the death record at the church), I have the date of death. But I need to exercise some care when I comment somewhere about her place of birth.

  • Died in 1877 probably in Walker Township, Hancock County, Illinois.
  • Probably died in 1877 in Walker Township, Hancock County, Illinois.

I use the first suggestion and put the “probably” after the year or date of her death. That is because the 1877 seems pretty solid based on my sources; it is the location that is more conjectural. My statement needs to reflect that.

And of course I need to cite the tombstone and the funeral entry in the church records for this person’s date of death and place of burial. There’s no “probably” in that statement.

Categories:

Tags:

No responses yet

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Get the Genealogy Tip of the Day Book
Get the More Genealogy Tip of the Day Book
Recent Comments
Archives