A recent tip mentioned a picture where a chicken in the background went unnoticed for some time. The chicken was not the point. The reminder was to go back and make certain that all details or pieces of information in a record (or picture) have been noticed and analyzed. I cannot decide whether or not to research the chicken if I never see it in the first place. Of course, the chicken probably does not matter. But sometimes those seemingly innocent clues are relevant and significant discoveries are often made when one is looking at innocuous details. We just have to remember not to get too “eggcited” about seeing the chicken.
Widow’s military pension applications have the potential to shed light on many aspects of that widow’s life. It’s not just direct-line ancestors for whom these pensions may be helpful. Applications for aunts and cousins may give us a broader picture of the family and, upon occasion, provide new information on direct line ancestors as well. If she qualified for a military pension, the widow would have to have proved her husband’s service, her marriage to the husband, and her marital status after that husband’s death. Documentation of her marriage and marital status may have hinged on testimony from relatives–potentially her siblings and maybe even your direct ancestor. Those affidavits may include references to where the widow was married, where she had lived, and other pieces of information about […]
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