Generally speaking, genealogists who write and lecture extensively about genealogy research and methodology, put sources in one of three categories: This classification scheme is not perfect. No scheme is perfect. This classification scheme does not comment on the accuracy of the record. That’s the job of the researcher as some original sources are virtually worthless and some derivative sources are excellent. For more about record classification and analysis, consult Evidence Explained.
An excellent problem-solving technique is to write up your “problem” as if you were explaining it to someone totally unfamiliar with the time period, the family, and the location. Organizing your thoughts and your current research for someone else to read and to follow may be give you additional insight into where you appear to be stumbling. Gaps are easier to notice when we try and clearly explain our problem completely to someone else. You may be able to “write over” your brick wall!
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Never change the order of any names in a document. Children could (but not necessarily) be listed in order of age in a will. If an older child is listed last in a census enumeration it may mean that they weren’t really living there or had moved back home (or it could just be an “error” on the part of the census taker). Heirs may be listed in order of age on a quit claim deed (or they may not). The order may be a clue, but try and use other documentation to back up any conclusions you make about the order. And remember that order, sometimes like life, may be completely random and meaningless.
When going through a relative’s home or effects, don’t neglect to look everywhere. When we emptied my parents’ home, my Mom’s piano and piano bench were put in storage along with some other items. Today I discovered two folders of papers from three of my grandparents tucked under sheet music in the piano bench. Not a place I thought to look.
The postcard is addressed to my great-grandfather Habben and is postmarked 15 August 1968 in Little America, Wyoming. It’s addressed as “Dear Dad” and is unsigned. There’s a picture of the Salt Lake City Temple on the reverse. I’m about 99% certain it was written by my grandmother (predominantly based on the handwriting and the fact that Grandma had the card in her possession upon her death). But once I’m gone the chance that someone living has the knowledge to determine that is slim. So the digital image I have made of that post card includes my reasoning for why I think my grandmother wrote it. The postcard is in an archival envelope that includes a piece of paper with the same information written on it. Do you […]
People are not always consistent in how they sign their names. The reverse sides of my Mother’s report cards contain the signatures of her parents–usually that of my grandmother. She was not consistent in how she signed her name, sometimes using Dot and sometimes using Dorothy. Occasionally she included her middle initial and an “Mrs.” in front of her name. My grandfather signed it–twice using his middle initial and twice not. Just something to think about.
My maternal grandmother liked to paint and I have several paintings she did before she died. Some were framed and a few others were mounted on thin pieces of wood. All of them were in a box. I thought the style of one looked different and the name, which I could not read, did not appear to be her name. After some google searching and further inspection and analysis of the name, the painting was by Monet and what I had was actually a print of some sort. There’s reminders here about jumping to conclusions, making certain you have the right person, and seeing if different pieces of information are consistent. What we think is our person or is about our person may not be. But I am […]
A relative immigrated to the US in the 1860s while married to her first husband. She’s named in her father’s will in the US (he immigrated as well) and was buried in Nebraska under the last name of that husband. She seemed to disappear sometime after the 1870 census only to reappear in the 1890s when she died in Nebraska. She really didn’t disappear at all. She was married for about ten years from 1870 (after the census) through at least the 1880 census. The relative and her second husband apparently separated as there’s no mention of him in a family history written several years later and she appears in the funeral records of her local church without a married last name at all–only a reference to her […]
When was the last time you reached out to a relative outside of your immediate family to see if they had family pictures, family information, or other information or items that could be helpful to your genealogy research? Sometimes we need to get outside of our own immediate circle and contact others who may be able to help. There’s no guarantee your inquiries will be successful, but you won’t know until you try.
Keep a list of all the spelling, transcription, and other variant renderings of your ancestral names in one place. Sort them alphabetically. Keep the list handy. It can be easy to overlook the occasional variant, particularly when querying a database. And if you think there are no variant spellings for a last name, think again. Lee has Leigh and Smith has Smythe.
Sometimes after records have been destroyed by fire, natural disaster, or other event, local records officials will ask for people to being their copies of actual records back in to be recorded. That’s especially true with land deeds, which people tend to keep. This book from Boone County, Indiana, indicated that the deeds in this book (and several others) had been “heretofore recorded.” Obviously not all deeds whose record copy had been destroyed could be re-recorded, but some where. So when you discover that there was actual records loss in a county or location, see if there was an attempt after that loss to recoup what was possible. Even if an attempt was made, remember that such attempts are imperfect. But if you are aware of subsequent property […]
Issue 5-3 of Casefile Clues is out. If you’re a subscriber to our bi-weekly genealogy newsletter (more in-depth than our Tip of the Day), you should have it in your inbox. I’m pleased with the positive feedback I’ve gotten to Casefile Clues since we brought it back. Learn more on our recent announcement page.
When a relative signs or witnesses a legal document, remember that it means they were supposed to be of legal as of the date the document was signed. In some cases, that can help distinguish between individuals with the same (or similar) names. In some cases, just that piece of knowledge can help to narrow down a year of birth as well–depending upon what else you know.
Many of a county courthouse’s records books (especially before the late 19th century) contain handwritten transcriptions of actual records. Clerks were charged with transcribing the text of the document as faithfully as they could, but errors happen. Humans get distracted. Humans make mistakes and clerks are human. That’s likely what happened with this 1841 document where four witnesses are named. The second witness is only styled as “Wm Mc.” It’s probable that there’s more to his last name than “Mc.” The location of the document where his name appears is the section where the witnesses have signed. It seems unlikely that William (the likely full name for “Wm.”) had a last name of “Mc” or signed part of his name. My transcription of the document includes a [sic] […]
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