Reminder that all US federal censuses are free on FamilySearch: United States Census, 1950 United States Census, 1940 United States Census, 1930 United States Census, 1920 United States Census, 1910 United States Census, 1900 United States Census, 1890 United States Census, 1880 United States Census, 1870 United States Census, 1860 United States Census, 1850 United States Census, 1840 United States Census, 1830 United States Census, 1820 United States Census, 1810 United States Census, 1800 United States Census, 1790
Families can be separated on passenger manifests. Always make certain to read the entire manifest for additional entries with the same last name as the person of interest. This 1869 manifest from the Hansa, which landed in New York City on 30 August 1869 contains entries for the Bruns family. Ulke (actually Ubbe) and Trientje Bruns appear on the manifiest approximately twenty entries before those for their children, Nanke, Jacob, Gerd, Albert, and Hinrich. Why the family is separated on the manifest is not known, but the fact remains that the names are not together. Always read the entire manifest for other potential family members who may have travelled with your ancestor.
A blast from the past: It can be easy to waste “research” time by mindlessly looking at online sites for one thing or another. Some ways to avoid these time wasting activities are: make a list of research tasks you wish to accomplish; turn your internet connection off; make a list of documents to transcribe; make a list of “done” ancestors that should be reviewed; set a schedule of when to go back and check a site for an update to a database (daily is probably excessive); lists in general are good. Chasing some research leads down those “rabbit holes” can be a good thing–sometimes. But it can be easy to waste an inordinate amount of time chasing after half-baked, uncooked leads on your computer, when you’ve got […]
“Great-grandma Neill wouldn’t let Nellie date the Humke boy because they were related.” I know someone told me that. I am not dreaming it. I had already known the Humke boy was related, but the dating (or potential dating) was news to me. I remembered the tidbit while doing something completely unrelated and the statement just popped into my memory from out of nowhere. The problem is that I cannot for the life of me remember who told what great-grandma said. I will include the statement in my notes on these individuals, but indicate clearly that I cannot remember who told me this or when I was told this. It is even more frustrating because I was told this little nugget years after I had started genealogy and […]
Sooner or later you will encounter conflicting information in your research. Record the information as it is provided on each source and put any analysis in your notes. Do not change, correct, or modify the information from an actual record. Your job is not to edit. If there are obvious errors, indicate that in a comment, but do not “fix” the record.
My uncle was married to his wife for ten days when he died of the flu in 1918. His widow never remarried and lived the rest of her life with her parents. In at least one federal census, she was enumerated with her maiden name. The listing is probably an error as later records use her married name. Everyone else in the household had the same name, except my aunt. It is very possible that the census taker simply got confused. Do you have a female relative who is inadvertently listed under their maiden name in a record created after their marriage?
Before you scan 400 family photographs, scan a few and make certain your scanner is working the way you think it should. Make certain you can back up the images. Make certain any editing is working the way you think it is. Then continue your project. Before travelling to distant cemeteries to take photographs, make certain you know how to use your camera in a cemetery during different times of the day. Make certain you know how to upload your photos to back up services and media. Practice while you are at home and have time to learn and “get it right” instead of learning on the fly at a cemetery when the rain is about to start and you are about to leave. The same goes with […]
Years ago after a presentation, a gentleman came up and told me that I should not suggest people rely on census records or other “secondary records” (his phrasing) for information. I should suggest better sources. That’s just not the way it works. We do not always have the sources that we would like to have. While census records can be incorrect and information that’s secondary can be suspect, sometimes it is all that we have. My ancestor, Ellen Butler was born in Missouri in the 1850s. Her family moved frequently, did not attend any church that kept records, there is no family bible that I can find, and she died before there was vital registration of deaths as well. While I keep looking for a “better source” of […]
There are several ways one can approach “problem-solving” and it’s been mentioned as a tip of the day before. One way is not necessarily any more correct than another. The important thing is to think about your research as you do it. I’m a fan of the problem-solving process attributed to George Polya, which I’ve slightly modified. There are essentially four steps in the problem-solving process: Understand the problem–this involves learning the history of the area, learning the applicable laws of the time, all the records available (and their issues), knowing key terms in any documents already located, assumptions you have made, your ancestor’s background, etc. Understanding takes time. Plan–pick a record to access or an approach to use to answer your question Execute-search the record or apply the […]
When making digital images of any piece of paper, always make an image of the back as well as the front of every item. Consistently making such images will help to guarantee no information is lost and will not leave you wondering later if there was something on the back of the item.
Always keep your mind open to the possibility that more of your family immigrated than you think–or than family tradition tells you immigrated. My ancestor and his brother immigrated to the United States as young men in their early twenties. They arrived separately a few years apart from each other, but eventually settled in the same area and ended up marrying sisters. But it was not until years later that I discovered these two men had no other full siblings and that their mother had married again in Germany after their father’s death. She and this second husband had several children and eventually came to the United States themselves. They settled approximately one hundred miles from where her two sons did. I now know that the family apparently […]
From a while back… Always think about the family that was left behind when someone died? Were there children who would have needed looked after? Was there a spouse who would have needed some assistance? Was there an adult child who would have been unable to look after themselves? Who would have been nearby to help these individuals? Were there court records, guardianships, or other records resulting from issues when the person died?
Those whose United States ancestors were immigrants after the American Revolution may find this discussion of US naturalization certificates interesting on the National Archives website. Remember that before 1906, any court of record could naturalize and there was no federal oversight of the process. That means things varied from one location to another–process, paperwork, and records. Before 1906 US naturalization records are generally local court records–not federal ones.
When going through paper family history materials in an attempt to preserve and digitize them, the first things to be concerned with are items that are available in no other location. Think “what do I have that no one else has (or probably has)?” This typically means family photographs, letters, diaries, personal papers, and the like. Copies of official records, census materials, pension records a relative sent you from the archives, and similar items likely can be replaced if necessary. Focus to initially preserve those items that are truly unique. Same goes for people’s memories. Those can’t be replaced either–so record their stories as well.
A reminder from a while back… Always consider how a place name may be said and heard. Every document on William Lake, his siblings, and his parents, indicated that they lived in Mercer County, Kentucky. Except this one page from his compiled military service record. It indicated he was born in Marshall County, Kentucky. After saying “Mercer” over and over, I realized that to someone unfamiliar with Kentucky geography it could be interpreted as “Marshall.” Sometimes inconsistencies are not as inconsistent as one thinks. Before you give too much credence to a “new” location, make certain it is really new.
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