When a family has apparent gaps in their family–ranges of time when no children appear to be born–keep in mind not to jump to conclusions. The couple could have been separated for a time. There could have been temporary fertility or other medical issues. The couple may have been married before and the earlier children are by their previous spouses. Children could have been born during the gap only to die later. The mother may have had a serious of miscarriages. The key is not to assume.
Ever wondered if the census taker came around right after your 5th great-grandpa got back from the local tavern or having a some moonshine? In all seriousness, it is always good to keep in mind that we don’t know who provided information to the census taker, what the informant really knew about the other people in the household, or whether they occasionally intentionally lied. Occasionally when a family has a large number of children and the entire enumeration appears to be correct, I have wondered if the informant referred to the family Bible to determine the correct ages. That’s not always the case. In additional all seriousness, most errors were likely unintentional or simply oversights–occasionally the informant might have even been told to (shockingly) guess. And when asked […]
“I need to prove James was the father of Enoch.” You may hope James was the father of Enoch. You may want James to be the father of Enoch (for one of a variety of reasons). But what you need to do as a genealogist is determine who were James’ children and who was Enoch’s father. It may be that Enoch falls into that list of James’ children. It may be that Enoch’s father is James. As a genealogist, you want to gather all the materials that may provide evidence related to the issue at hand (who are James’ children? who is Enoch’s father?). You don’t want to only look for materials that will provide evidence of a conclusion you’ve already reached before the research has been conducted. […]
It can be frustrating when a census or other record is missing or has been knowingly destroyed. It can be tempting to find some record to “substitute” in its place. But one needs to think about the record being used in lieu of the absent record and ask what the purpose of the original record was and what the purpose of the replacement was. Using a tax record to substitute for a census record is problematic. That’s not because tax records are bad, but because they have a different purpose from a census record. Property taxes only include people who own property. Census records may have as their goal listing every head of household, listing every resident of a certain area, listing a specific subset of the population, […]
I discovered two boxes of the first Genealogy Tip of the Day book in my garage while cleaning. We’re offering them for $20–shipping included–while supplies last. US addresses only. Order here. Learn more about the book here (that page does not have the lower price link)
Genealogists often put events in an ancestor’s life in a chronology so that things can be noticed, gaps can be seen, and research opportunities can present themselves. It’s also helpful to put maps in chronology as well or to create a chronology of maps for an area where your ancestor lived. It’s important to include maps of the area after your family died or left the area–including down to the present day. This can show you changes in the area over time more slowly than simply using a contemporary map and one map when your ancestor lived in the area. Having a series of maps can make it easier to see where on a contemporary map that ancestral residence was–especially in some areas where changes are more difficult […]
When you see a record set that names people in alphabetical order (such as a tax list or an early census record), remember that people do not live in alphabetical order. That ordering was done to facilitate finding names later, making certain someone was not overlooked, or because the clerk liked things in order <grin>. The thing to keep in mind is that such lists were usually copied from earlier ones that were not in alphabetical order. That copying, to put in alphabetical order, could have resulted in an error of transcription. This is not the same as counties or jurisdictions that put marriage licenses or probate records in alphabetical order. There hopefully information is not being recopied when packets or files are re-ordered.
We’ve posted details of my 2025 research trip to the Library of Virginia. Join me 31 March-5 April.
What inherited items do you no longer need? What pieces of ephemera do you have that do not really relate to you or to your family? What items do you have duplicate copies of? Have you considered giving the items away instead of waiting for whoever cleans out your house to do it? Will your kids know who might be interested in an item? Will they care or have the time to go through such things? There are many ways to reach out to individuals who might be interested in things you have that you no longer want. A duplicate copy of a county history I mentioned on my personal Facebook page. A football program I mentioned on my high school class Facebook page. Other items I’ve mentioned […]
Despite what the websites and the advertisements say, not everyone has a famous relative. And, even if there are stories of a connection to a famous person, work on documenting your known family as best as you can, as accurately as you can and see where the information takes you. It may take you to a famous person. Or it may not. But your goal should be to research your ancestors’ lives and document them and their connections to their relatives as accurately and as completely as you can. A famous person may appear. Or they may not. And it’s perfectly fine if they don’t. Trying to force the connection can be a waste of time and resources.
A relative whose name was Beverley always went by “Bev.” That’s the name she signed on various cards and letters sent to my parents over the years. One item had slipped in with letters from another side of the family and, without context and while thinking too fast, I found myself asking “Who is Ben? Or who is Benjamin?” It was a little while before I realized there was no Ben at all. The “v” at the end of Bev looked like an “n.” Sometimes one little letter is all it takes. And it can be worse with names that are short because there’s less context with which to work.
We’ve announced details of my 2025 trips to the FamilySearch library in Salt Lake and the Allen County Public Library in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Salt Lake City trip details. Ft. Wayne trip.
More than names of places can change. Names of schools, churches, and other organizations can change as well. Do you document those? The name of the school district I went to changed while I was there–once named for it’s location within the county, once named for the main town, once with the word “community” thrown in. Did your ancestor really switch churches or did the name of the congregation change?
The map was in my parents’ things and it brought back memories of a trip my whole family took a trip to Peoria, Illinois, in the 1980s when I competed in a regional spelling bee. We ate our noon meal at the former’s Jumer’s restaurant (shown on the map). It was the days before online maps and navigation. I am reasonably certain Mom did not draw the map, but I’m not entirely certain. The map brought back memories. Do I need to preserve the paper map? I’m not certain. I can certainly make a digital image of the map, but I am thinking that I should file it in a folder of “not so important images.” My children or my descendants will do good to look at a […]
If Alice gives Homer money or property in her will, it’s a pretty good bet that Alice knew (or thought) that Homer was alive when the will was written and signed. It’s possible that Homer died after the will was written but before Alice or before the will completed the probate process. People do change their will when someone they provide for in it dies, but that’s not always the case. Alice’s will may have taken into account Homer’s potential dying by mentioning that upon Homer’s death the property Alice intended for him went to “Homer’s heirs,” “Homer’s descendants per stirpes,” or some similar phrase. Read the entire estate file to determine if Homer’s share went to Homer or to his heirs.
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