Why would an ancestor give a child $1 (or another token amount) in a will? Basically to show that they had not been left out. The child could have had a falling out with their parent, or perhaps the parent had already given them their inheritance, perhaps when they got married, started some type of business, bought their first farm ground, etc. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
So you interviewed your relative twenty years ago when you first started genealogy. Have you thought about interviewing them again? Maybe they remember something now they didn’t remember before or are willing to discuss something they didn’t want to discuss twenty years ago. It is worth a shot. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Many states took censuses in “off-census” years. These records can be a great way to track people in between federal census enumerations. Many have been microfilmed and Ancestry.com includes some in their databases. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
It is an oft-repeated suggestion, but we’ve not used it before here. When visiting that cemetery, consider putting a waterproof calling card on the stone or near to it. A business card in a plastic bag, or a laminated one will work just fine. Use a stone, rock, or some other object to secure it in place, without harming the stone. You never know when another relative, who doesn’t use the internet at all, might stop by that same cemetery and find your card with contact information. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Remember that tax lists are not just for those who had real property. In some areas during some time periods, certain items of personal property were also taxed. So your non-landowner relatives might be listed. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
It can be difficult when you only have one census enumeration to tell you anything about an ancestor. I was working on a Benjamin Butler who was enumerated in Iowa in 1870. The problem was that his place of birth in 1870 (Canada) was shown as New York in the 1880 census where I eventually found him. And his 1880 enumeration had him listed as William. Fortunately the wife and all the other details matched. When using just one enumeration to search for others, considering that any one piece of information could easily be incorrect. My search for Benjamin will be mentioned in an upcoming issue of Casefile Clues. Subscribe now and get in on the fun. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Do not always assume you will remember why you reached a certain conclusion. In analyzing an 1870 census entry for an upcoming issue of Casefile Clues, I made some preliminary conclusions about the oldest female in the household. In reviewing the material later, it took me another ten minutes to “re-reach” those conclusions. It would have been easier if I had taken the time to write down my thought the first time. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
When entering dates into any database, check them twice. There is always the possibility that you copy something incorrectly and you may make an inconsistency where there really is not one. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
A minor naturalization was a naturalization of someone who immigrated as a minor and wanted to naturalize once they had reached the age of majority. These individuals didn’t have to wait quite as long to naturalize as did those who immigrated as adults. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
We use the names of people on documents as clues. Sometimes the reason why a person is listed on a document is fairly obvious, parents on a birth certificate for example. But a witness on a deed or a will. The witness may be a relative, friend, or another warm body. But the witness had to be of legal age and that may be a clue. And always learn why names are on records and in what capacity they are acting. What requirements were there to act in that capacity? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Some of our ancestors migrated along paths that thousands of Americans took, but they didn’t settle along these national roads. They went where they knew people, or had a “connection” to a job, a farm, etc. The fact that your ancestor might have travelled part of the way on a common pathway might help solve some problems, but the larger problems will be solved by determining who else travelled with him from point A to point B. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
For any document, ask yourself “why was this document created?” Some will be fairly obvious: death certificate because someone died birth certificate because someone was born Others not so much, particularly some records in court and other cases. Asking why a document was created will help you to know why some things were included in the document and some things were not. Records we use were created for purposes other than genealogy–keep that in mind. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you are going to use a digital camera to take pictures of tombstones, documents, etc. on a research trip, practice using the camera at home. Try different kinds of books, different lighting, different times of day, etc. and see what works for you and what doesn’t. The place to learn is at home when you have time, not a thousand miles away when rain is threatening, it’s late in the evening, and the last day of your trip. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Do you try the same approach on every family? Are you always using the records that are “easiest” to research or the ones with which you are most familiar? Are you always using county records and never state records? Have you never used church records? Get outside of that same approach. Your ancestors all didn’t approach life the same way, you shouldn’t approach them the same way either. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Even if you can’t read the entire thing, at least read the history of the town or township where your ancestor settled. Don’t just look in the index or do a text search for the names of interest. Actually read part of it. You may actually learn something that helps your research. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
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