Information for any record can be provided under less than ideal circumstances. Death certificates contain information than can easily be given at a time when the informant is tired, distracted, and even slightly confused about who their mother-in-law’s mother was or where the deceased’s father was born. Keep this in mind if the informant gave “unknown” or a location that is really off. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you are stuck, consider putting the problem aside for a few days (or a week) and letting it rest. Work on another family for a while. When you come back to the first problem or family, you may be able to see things you didn’t before or will be more able to take a new approach. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Besides fitting events in your ancestor’s life into national and regional historical events, consider fitting them into other events in their immediate family as well. Had a parent just died when a child decided to move? Did a parent’s marriage to a new spouse take place a few years before the child left home? Always consider what was going on within your ancestor’s family when certain things were happening in their life ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Is it possible that a color scan or copy of a document or record might indicate clues that are not as easy to see on a plain black and white copy? Even sometimes a grayscale scan may show some nuances of shade and different colors or handwriting. This image which we’ve discussed elsewhere makes a simple illustration. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Always analyze a date in the context of other events taking place at about the same time. In comparing the death date of my great-grandfather with the date the will was brought to court for recording, I realized the dates were close–the date of death was 1 February and the will was brought for recording on 3 February. The time frame was even closer than I thought. The great-grandfather died on a Saturday and on the following Monday the potential executor brought the will to be recorded. This was the first business day after the ancestor died–meaning that there wasn’t really any delay at all–the executor didn’t mess around. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
GenealogyBank–our sponsor–is offering a special for new subscribers to their services: a discount and a free ebook on searching for obituaries in newspapers. GenealogyBank has exclusive content and the offer rate is less than $5 a month. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Are you aware of who created the document you are using in your research? Was it a census taker, records clerk, local pastor, etc.? It makes a difference as who probably created the document impacts how much crededence is given to the information the document contains. Did the creator of the record obtain the information from their own first-hand knowledge or did someone else likely provide the information? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you have not seen a document or record yourself, do not list it as your source. “My cousin looked at the marriage record and said it says Blah” does not mean that you looked at it and it said “Blah.” There’s always a chance you cousin is incorrect. Look up the document yourself. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Do you know the original purpose of the record you are using for your research? It most likely was not genealogy. Land deeds were created to transfer real property, tax records were used to document the wealth of an individual so that taxes could be collected, court testimony was used to gather evidence to make a decision in a specific case, etc. Why a document was created impacts the information it contains and how reliable that information may be perceived for genealogy research. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Date Time Topic Cost Description Register 26July 2012 3:00 PM CST 1820-1870 Census Case study—the Newmans $8.50 See how a family was traced in the 1820 through the 1870 census in the Midwest (KY, IN, IL). This case study will discuss search techniques, methodology, making certain you have the “right family,” correlating information, and more. Add to cart 26 July 2012 1:00 PM CST Crossing the Pond—Part II $8.50 This webinar will discuss reading, interpreting, and using passenger lists between 1820 and 1920. This session will not discuss search techniques of online databases, but will cover where to go once the manifest has been located, making certain you have the correct family and getting the most from what the manifest says. Attendees may wish to purchase our US […]
If original material disagrees with other records or with your conclusions, do not simply ignore those original records because of the difference. Acknowledge that the other material exists and attempt to determine what might have caused the difference in statements of fact. If the cause cannot be determined and you still have reason to believe the other record to be incorrect, write up the records and reasons used. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Before copying everything in a document or record, make certain you know exactly what type of record you are using. Is it a will, a census record, an affidavit contained in a pension file, a transcription of a court, record, etc.? If you do not know what you are looking at, analyzing and interpretation are problematic. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
A marriage license allows a couple to get married and is usually presented to the officiant at the ceremony. The granting of a license is not proof that a marriage took place. The certificate certifies that the marriage took place. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Are you losing great-grandma at the very end of her life? Is it possible she married very late in life and her last name changed? Took me a long time to find an ancestor of my wife who married her second husband in her late 60s. I assumed (incorrectly) that when her first husband died when she was in her early 60s that she never remarried. She didn’t disappear, but instead died and was buried under her second husband’s last name. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Compiled trees (regardless of the compiler or the book, site, etc.) should not be your only source for a fact, relationship, date of an event, etc. These trees can lead you to other sources and give you research ideas, but do not simply “copy it down because you saw it online.” At the best, compiled trees provide references to original source materials. At the worst, they are completely incorrect. The truth is that most are somewhere in between. Use them as clues. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
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