Whenever a document is located, you should quickly ask: Why was this document recorded where it was? Why is it in the location where it is? Many times the question is quickly answered and the answer is obvious. James died where he lived and the death certificate was recorded in that county. But if you find an obituary for an ancestor in a newspaper that you do not expect it to be in, try and determine the reason. If you find your ancestor enumerated in one census in a location that’s unexpected, try and determine why she was there (first make certain it’s really the same person). Usually the “why” is easy. It’s those few times when it is not that could lead to more genealogical discoveries. Genealogy […]
A new DNA match appeared to be descended from one of my Irish immigrants, based on their surname and the handful of shared matches we had that were known to descend from that immigrant. Their tree had two names: their name and that of a maternal great-grandmother. There was no other data. A quick search for the great-grandmother’s name was inconclusive with no location to aid in the search and it turned out the name was more common than I originally thought. So I reached out to the match with a very short, cordial email. Fortunately, I received a response that, while brief, gave me the name of their paternal grandfather and great-grandfather. That was enough for me to flesh out the connection. Then I realized that their […]
It can be tempting to ignore subpoenas in court records as “necessary details” that don’t warrant reading. That’s a mistake. Those slips of paper can provide significant details. In the United States, they should provide the jurisdiction where the individual was living (usually the county) which may not be the county in which the case was being heard. In the case of the example, the subpoena contained an easier reading of the names of the witnesses to the will that was being admitted to probate.
This tip ran nearly five years ago on the day of my Mom’s funeral. It’s still pretty good advice–or a reminder if you’ve been at this for a while. We all have relatives of whom we neglected to ask questions or otherwise probe for family genealogical information. If you have relatives who have pictures you’ve not identified, try and identify them now.If you have relatives who have pictures or other ephemera you’ve not digitized, do that now. If you have relatives to whom you’ve not talked about the past, do that now. If you have relatives who would consent to DNA testing, do that now. If you have stories of your own that you have not written down, do that now.
One ancestral family lived in Ohio for several years in the early 19th century before moving to Adams County, Illinois, and settling near the village of Lima. Records in Ohio do not suggest that they ever lived near Lima, Ohio, and spent their time there in a different portion of the state. When one child in the family died in Iowa in the very early 20th century, her obituary indicated she was born in Lima, Ohio. The document was transcribed as written, but it was noted parenthetically that the reference to Lima, Ohio, was probably due to some confusion with Lima, Illinois. Probably.
I gave an interview on a local radio station about genealogy and the Genealogy Tip of the Day book. It’s a wide-ranging discussion on a variety of general genealogy topics. Audio of the discussion is available on the WGIL-Galesburgwebsite.
Obituaries and estate notices usually appear in newspapers shortly after someone dies. There are other times a person may be mentioned years or decades after their death or departure from the area. Some small-town newspapers published snippets of items from the past as a way to engage readers and generate subscriptions. These items from ten, twenty, twenty-five, or fifty years ago were usually abbreviated versions of the original article. Given that earlier newspapers are sometimes harder for computerized algorithms to read, a digital search may find the more recent reference easier. Don’t always set your years of search to the person’s lifespan. The most interesting references may have been published some time after they were dead. And always go back and read the original reference for additional information.
If a relative reached any birthday milestone–75, 80, 90, or 100 years–there’s a chance something about it was mentioned in a local newspaper. The same goes for wedding anniversaries. These items may be located with searches of newspapers that have been digitized. For those newspapers that have not, consider searching for these items. Digital searches of newspapers are not perfect either and these are items that one may wish to search for manually as well. The names of the guests in attendance may be helpful. In this illustration out-of-town guests are named, but their relationships are not. Keep in mind locals during the time period knew how the guests were related so those details may not be included.
There are times where seeing things on your screen or being able to search quickly to “figure out who someone is” isn’t quite enough–at least for me. I’ve been working on my Ostfriesen families and the similarity of the names can lead to confusion. There are times where the names Antje Jurgens Ehmen Antje Tonjes Ehmen, Tonjes Jurgens Ehmen, Jurgen Ehmen, Willm Jurgens Ehmen, and Willm Tonjes Ehmen start to run together to the point where I’m about ready to start looking for Tonjes Antje Ehmen (there was no such person). These individuals are all children or grandchildren of the same ancestral couple (and there are more similar names that are not included here). To keep me organized and to where I don’t have to search for them […]
I’m not a big fan of genealogy “games” as I think some of them are time wasters and that’s simply not my thing. But have you thought about how your ancestral couples met? For some there may be family stories about how grandpa and grandma met. There are others where the best you can do is surmise that they simply lived within shouting distance of each other. But have you given it any thought how those couples met? My maternal grandparents met at Luther League in the 1930s. My paternal grandparents met likely because they lived relatively close to each other. My great-grandparents? Neill-husband was the hired man for his bride-to-be’s mother. Trautvetter-no real idea other than geographic proximity of living in the same general area of Tioga, […]
When manual searches of newspapers are necessary, don’t neglect searching the gossip or local correspondents’ columns before that relative dies as well as afterwards. If the person had “taken a turn” or been ill for a few weeks or months before they died, there may be mention of it in the newspaper with details not mentioned after the death. The illustration mentions Nancy Rampley’s illness in the paper not long before she actually died in 1923 and provided the name and residence of her sister. The name was slightly wrong, but it was a clue and the location was helpful as well.
I have two group research trips scheduled in 2020. Visit our site for more information or to save your spot! Salt Lake City’s Family History Library–May/June 2020 Allen County Public Library in Ft. Wayne, Indiana–August 2020
Joseph Daby had four deeds recorded in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in 1738–some of which had been executed nearly ten years earlier. Not everyone always had their land record recorded immediately. Some people just waited and others waited until they had more than one to record. For these reasons, always look for land records after you “think they should be recorded” and for multiple deeds to the same person recorded at the same time. Joseph Daby may have dabbled getting his deeds recorded but he was not the only one.
A source should never be used without the genealogist asking: How complete is it? How was it compiled? What could be missing? FindAGrave is perhaps the perfect example. It only includes burials that have been submitted by someone who either took a picture of the tombstone or, in some cases, learned about a burial in the cemetery or another source. It’s a great resource, to be certain, and it is a great place to start, but by its very nature it can be incomplete. Not every burial had a tombstone, deaths before death records were not recorded, and not every death or burial gets mentioned in a newspaper, etc. Every site or set of records should be used with the same concern over completeness–not just FindAGrave. But you […]
Those genealogy shows have budgets that we don’t, access to experts that many people don’t, and sometimes easier access to records than we have. The shows may be fun to watch and help to provide us with motivation, but they are not always realistic. You’ll have to work within your budget. This can be done by finding other ways to access information, networking with other relatives to share expenses, asking other researchers for suggestions (not necessarily indepth free help). You may not have access to “experts.” It’s possible that you won’t have access to “big name” experts, but there are groups on Facebook, genealogical societies, and other locations where you can possibly interact with individuals who are “in the know.” They may not be “big names,” but they […]
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