When an item in a file or set of records has no date, indicate that in any images you make from the document–whether for your own personal use, posting to the web, sharing with colleagues, etc. Saying something is “undated” makes it clear to you later that there was no date on the item. Otherwise you may be wondering if there was a date and you simply forgot to include it. That’s a waste of time. Learn more about research, methods, and sources in Casefile Clues.
The adjacent (and not so adjacent) names on a manifest could be relatives. Families with children may bring along an unmarried aunt or uncle. Single immigrants may arrive with a sibling, cousin, or family friend. Search for all names in indexes and finding aids as it may be easier to find one person over another, depending up the handwriting and the indexing. The manifest does not often give the relationship. This is particularly true in pre-20th century manifests and often the case in later ones as well.
New subscribers to Casefile Clues will have their subscriptions start with issue 16 and get issues 4-1 through 4-15 for free. Improve your genealogy research skills, your knowledge of sources, and your analytical abilities with our easy to follow, easy to understand, and clearly written newsletter. We transcribe and interpret documents, discuss methods, and include strategies in every issue.
A record may indicate your relative is a farmer, but is there a little more detail that the word “farmer?” Is he a: farm laborer–working from one job to another whenever he can (a day laborer)? farm renter? farmer who owns his own property? a farm owner who rents out his property and lives off the rental income? a hired man who regularly works for the same family? a farmer who also worked an off-farm job? etc. These distinctions are important in understanding your relative’s records and life. Some renters move from farm to farm–others stay on the same property for decades. Some owner/operators move regularly as well. One word may not really describe your relative’s occupation. Learn more about research, methods, and sources in Casefile Clues.
A witness is just that: a witness. Sometimes witnesses are individuals who have known for years the person for whom they are witnessing a document. Sometimes witnesses are relatives of the person for whom they are witnessing the document. And sometimes they are warm bodies of legal age who know the identity of the person, that the person appears to be of legal age themselves, and that the person appears to be of sound mind. That’s the essential legal requirement. Don’t assume witnesses are relatives. They could be. But they don’t have to be. Research them to find out who they are, but don’t force a deeper connection where none may exist.
When digital scanners are used to create indexes (which Ancestry.com does with some materials that were originally typed), words that are not names can be “read” as part of the name. For this reason, avoid exact searches, interchange the first and last name, and (generally speaking) be creative. Indexes created by digital scanning allow us to have indexes to materials that might otherwise be unindexed, but there are limitations. Most digital newspapers are “read” and “indexed” this way a well.
When research in the United States gets back beyond a certain point, records are fewer and less likely to make direct statements. It is important to remember that any conclusion reached when the records are not clear may need to be revised if new information comes to light. Keep your mind open to the chance that you may be incorrect or may have not looked at all the records. Never assume that your initial “hunch” is Gospel Truth. Genealogy Tip of the Day book is here and it’s not written to help you research your “famous ancestors.” It’s written to help with all of them. Learn more about it and get your own copy.
A few reminders for the end of the month: Don’t forget to digitize photos and papers that only you have. Identify people you can in pictures–include “how” you know who they are. Back up your data. Back up your data–because that’s really important. Genealogy Tip of the Day book is here. Learn more about it.
The edges of a document can often contain clues just as significant as those in the main body of a document. Clerks may squeeze in additional text for legal reasons, pastors may squeeze in parenthetical comments about a parishioner, etc. Sometimes the edges themselves can be a clue. Many times when documents are digitized or microfilmed, it may not be crystal clear which “front” goes with which “back.” That determination can be difficult when the documents are a variety of sizes, blank sides aren’t digitized, etc. And there are times when knowing which “front” goes with which “back” is essential to completely analyzing and interpreting the document. This relinquishment from a homestead application in Nebraska was one of those documents. Comparing the edges made it clear that I […]
A few reminders: tips are short–and not meant to be extensive, academic discussions of a topic tips are reminders–all of us forget things from time to time tips may send you looking–for more details on that topic tips may not apply in all areas and time periods–check and see if that concept applies to your research situation tips are sometimes basic–we’ve got people at a variety of levels who participate and we were all beginners at one point in time And thanks to all who participate in Genealogy Tip of the Day! It is appreciated.
Just about anything can appear on a tombstone–not just the dates of birth and death. Some immigrants had their place of birth inscribed on their tombstone and others may have included military service information. Any information on a stone should be compared to other sources, but never assume that the “stone won’t tell me anything I don’t already know.” Learn more about research, methods, and sources in Casefile Clues.
Sometimes the connection the adminstrator of an estate has to the deceased is obvious or easy to determine. Sometimes it’s not. It’s always worth finding out if there is a connection. For years, I assumed incorrectly that the administrator of the estate of Michael Trautvetter who died in Hancock County, Illinois, was a neighbor, friend, or interested creditor. I knew little about Trautvetter’s family and, after a while, gave up on determining what the relationship was. Years later, after learning more about the family it was discovered that the administrator of the estate was the husband of a daughter of Trautvetter’s sister. The sister had a marriage in Germany I was unaware of and that was the maiden name of the administrator’s wife–which meant nothing to me at the time. […]
Always pay close attention to the person who was appointed to be the administrator of the estate of a man who died with a wife and young children. If the person is not clearly a relative of the deceased individual, it very likely is a biological relative of the wife–or perhaps her second husband. And if there is a will and the wife is appointed executor, look carefully at who signed her bond. Those bondsmen were often relatives of the widow.
It can be tempting to think that if one keeps looking and tries hard enough, that there’s “got to be” a document somewhere that answers all your questions. Sometimes. But most of the time there’s not. To be certain, I’ve found a page of court testimony that outlined the family relationships and military pension affidavits that answered many of my questions. But in most situations, determining the relationships required looking over all the snippets of information I had from a variety of records, analyzing those snippets, and trying to determine what they said in the aggregate. No clue is too small. There might be that one piece of paper in a courthouse that will answer all your questions, but likely there’s not. Chances are it’s quite a few […]
Based on many requests, we’ve added this class to our schedule for September-October: AncestryDNA–5 weeks Activities/Content: Understanding what can and cannot be learned from the AncestryDNA test Strategies for “figuring out” people who do not return communication Probability of relationship based on shared DNA and relationship scenarios not presented Downloading AncestryDNA matches into an Excel spreadsheet and working with those matches and that spreadsheet Determining what matches you want to try and figure out Tracking results and findings Problem-solving Looking at the results when the grandfather was an adoptee who wasn’t the birth father of one of his children Analyzing tree for ethnic/geographic pools Sorting matches that can’t be determined specifically Keeping your list of matches up to date More details are on our announcement page.
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