Mentioned but not Named

Through the late twentieth century, and even afterwards in certain circles, newspapers often mention women without stating their given name. Mrs. Thomas Smith may be the only way your great-grandmother is referenced in social columns of her local newspaper. Sometimes the use of the husband’s name changed if the husband died or the couple divorced, but not always.

It’s not just women who may be mentioned in a newspaper account without their name being given. My grandfather is mentioned in a 1950 era newspaper account of a family trip as the “brother-in-law without his first name being mentioned. Fortunately other family members are mentioned in the write-up.

All of which reminds us from a research standpoint of the importance of searching digital images of newspaper for the names of all family members, not just those in which we think we have the most interest.

If You Estimate…

…then give a reason.

I just read an article in a genealogical periodical where many of the individuals listed were had a year of birth as “born say’ and then the year. Some individuals had a place of birth that was “probably born in” and then a location.

There may be a valid reason for the year of birth that was estimated. There may have been a valid reason to believe the individual was born in a certain location. But those reasons should be provided.

“Thomas Smith was born in say 1800 based upon his being married in 1825.”

“Susan Anderson was probably born in Jackson Township, Coshocton County, Ohio, based upon her her father owning a forty acre farm there at the time of her birth.”

Someone else may disagree with my conclusion, but at least there is a clearly stated reason for it.

Reminder: Transcribe as Written

This 1951 writeup is a great one to remind of two important things when making any transcription. Transcribe as written and do not add details to the transcription itself. The last sentence contains a major genealogical error. “Sisters” should be replaced with “daughters.” My transcription should indicate “sisters [sic],” indicating the error was in the item originally.

The second reminder is that any clarification attempts should be made outside the transcription of the document. In this case the actual names of the women mentioned might be helpful.

My transcriptions usually begin with <begin transcription> and end with <end transcription>. What is between those items is the transcription only, anything after the transcription was not a part of the document–my notes, clarifying details, analysis, etc. There are other notations that can be used, but the keys are to not add to the item and make it clear where the transcription begins and ends.

And that’s not bull.

Actually I’m not certain about that as the gender of the calf is not indicated in the newspaper clipping.

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No Residence on That Census

A person of interest was found in an 1850 census enumeration. The difficulty is that the enumeration for the county contains no geographic subdivisions other than county.

To somewhat narrow down the part of the county in which the person of interest lived, I’ve chosen a few heads of household on the same (and previous and subsequent pages) who have real property values listed in an attempt to find what part of the county they lived in. If they’re in the same portion of the county, then that’s probably where the person of interest lived at the time of the enumeration since the census taker likely listed the names in the order in which they were actually visited.

My analysis of why I think he lived where he did should be put in my notes. I should not add it to his census enumeration since it is not a part of it. Never add what is not there.

Of course, I’ll have to make certain where the individuals I’ve chosen lived in 1850 or as near to it as I can ascertain. People do move.

Which is the exact problem I have with the person of interest.

Don’t Expect More

Our ancestors are no better than us.

Have you ever given incorrect information on a record or document–either intentionally or unintentionally? Did great-grandma treat that application for a Social Security number in 1940 the same way you treated that first job application you filled out?

We don’t always get things right. We make mistakes. We provide details that are not correct.

It shouldn’t be a big leap to see that our ancestors might have done the same thing.

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Wife Keeping Separate Property

If a legal document for a married woman refers to property as her “separate property,” it could have been property she had before the marriage or something she obtained during the marriage. Often this separate property was obtained from an inheritance, but not always. When seeing this reference, determine how the property was obtained–starting with land and estate/probate records.

Indicating that a property was a married woman’s separate property was usually done to prevent the property from being sold to pay the husband’s debts or otherwise being “wasted” by him. It’s possible that a married couple may set aside property as separate property for the wife during their marriage in order to try and prevent it from being used to pay for the husband’s debts or in a “we’ll live apart but we are not getting divorced” situation.

There was a reason the property was kept separate. Knowing more about the family and their financial situation may help to discover that reason.

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Non-Residents in the City Directory?

Is it possible that your relative appears in a city directory for a town in which he does not live? The 1950s era city directory for Rock Island, Illinois, includes a number of references for individuals who worked in the city but did not live there. Not all directories include references such as these, but don’t assume your relative would not be listed in a directory for a town where she never lived.

Part Time Jobs?

Many of our forebears had a side hustle in addition to their main job or occupation. Sometimes it can be difficult to document these activities.

Two generations of my Ufkes ancestors sold Pioneer seed corn to supplement their farm income. My knowledge of my grandfather’s having done it was simple: I was aware of it. There were also pictures of seed plots and other visual evidence documenting the connection–including a few pencils with their names on it that were used for advertising.

They also occasionally advertised in the local newspaper. My grandmother Neill, who sold “farm-fresh” eggs for years, occasionally advertised her chickens in the classified ads section of the local weekly newspaper. Newspapers are a great way to document some of these activities–particularly sections devoted to advertising. There may be other newsletters or advertising material available digitally on GoogleBooks or other sites that host digital images of out-of-copyright print materials. Advertisements in city directories, yearbooks, and other items may provide document of your ancestor’s entrepreneurial activities.

Census records may list an occupation for an ancestor of which you were unaware and estate inventories may suggest what activities your ancestor undertook.

Never assume your ancestor had just one job. Side hustles are nothing new.