Sometimes it is easy to see when something is missing. Other times there may be no obvious clue that information has been from a genealogical record or document. Atypical entries in handwritten records are particularly easy to overlook, especially for the untrained eye. When viewing a handwritten record in a series of entries in a record book, look at others to make certain that there’s nothing missing in the one in which you are interested. Does the record of interest appear similar to others in the same series? What’s missing in a record is not always as obvious as it is in this picture. Check out the Genealogy Tip of the Daybook.
Knowing what you are looking at is key to any level of genealogical analysis. Making the most out of any record and not becoming confused depends on understanding the material in front of you. That’s why this is not the signature of John and Milly Sledd. It’s the clerk’s transcription of their signature because this deed book contains word-for-word transcriptions of deeds that were brought to the county office for recording. The purchaser of the property kept the original deed. That is the record that had the actual signatures on it. That was the original signed document. John and Milly’s signatures may have looked nothing at all like what is pictured in the deed record book. John and Milly signed the original deed, but their hands did not […]
When querying any database or searching any record, consider the possibility that a relative’s first and last names have been interchanged. Is the individual named Tinsley Johnson or Johnson Tinsley? Even where the first name is not usually used as a last name, it is always possible that someone entering data or enumerating a census inverts the two names. Individuals whose names are in a foreign language can easily be confused by clerks who are not familiar with that language. Check out the Genealogy Tip of the Daybook.
My late Mother’s recipe book contained a recipe from her Grandma Habben that was clearly written in my Mother’s handwriting. Hiding behind another recipe in one of the plastic sleeves in the book was the same recipe on a very well-worn three by five inch card that had clearly been used by someone while they were prepping the dough. It was fairly old, stained, and apparently had been used repeatedly through the years. I was not certain about the handwriting. It clearly was not my Grandmother’s handwriting–my Mother’s mother and daughter of my Grandma Habben. At the bottom, someone had written “Grandma Habben” in what appeared to be a similar handwriting. I thought maybe it was my mother’s handwriting. My daughter likes to bake and I shared an […]
Obituaries on some funeral home websites are more detailed than the one that is eventually published in a print or online newspaper. The charge for the funeral home’s obituary is usually a part of the funeral cost and is not dependent on the length of the obituary (within reason). That’s not necessarily true for a print obituary which may end up being edited and reduced in length even if cost is not an issue. Do not assume those funeral home website obituaries will always “be there for the taking.” That’s not the case. While working on DNA matches, I needed the obituary of a distant cousin. I had a paper copy but did not have it handy. “It doesn’t matter. I can get it on the funeral home […]
Sharing information with other genealogists is great, but one will only reach a small portion of the world if one does. Always ask yourself if there are other places where old pictures, newspaper clippings, etc. can be shared. One place to share such items are in Facebook groups devoted to a specific area or locality–particularly if the group has any sort of historical focus. Groups such as “Old Days in Tuckertown,” “You know you are from Smithville if you remember..,” or similarly named ones often include people who, while not technically genealogists, do have an interest in local history and may know a thing or two about their deceased relatives or have access to materials that you do not. Such postings may also pull relatives out of the […]
My German immigrant ancestor and his brother settled in Adams County, Illinois, in the 1850s. His mother and her second husband also immigrated to the United States, settling some ninety-eight miles away. Early in my research, because I didn’t find her near my ancestor and his brother, I assumed that she never immigrated because “people settled together.” That’s true–usually. But there were a few other factors at work in this family. The “boys” were adults when they immigrated and they actually did settle in an area where a few of their former German neighbors (and perhaps an errant relative I simply haven’t tracked down yet) settled. Their mother had a second husband she married in Germany and it’s possible that he had connections in the area where the […]
I recently discovered the second husband my ancestor had and the children she had with him during the 1840s and early 1850s. I knew her first husband had died, but I had “lost” her after his death in the late 1830s. Her two children with her first husband were immigrants to the United States in the 1850s and are well documented. One of the things I wanted to discover was when she, her second husband, and their children immigrated. Before I start looking for names in online databases and indexes, I need to do one thing: take a look at the manifests on which her two sons appeared (they immigrated separately) and see if the mother (and her crew with husband number two) are also on the manifest. […]
When documenting your immigrant family’s experience, keep in mind that immigrants could have been “up in years as well.” Widowed individuals, on their own for the first time in decades, may have felt the pull to “cross the pond” with one of their children. Empty nest couples whose last child was emigrating may have felt they had no other choice or decided it was time for a new adventure. And you never know, Grandpa or Grandma may have been the driving force encouraging their children and grandchildren to emigrate–only to decide to join them.
If your genealogy group is looking for a virtual presenter for your next monthly meeting, email me for details at mjnrootdig@gmail.com. Many groups are meeting virtually given the current situation. I recently gave a presentation for a group in western Massachusetts whose meetings are online–which is great for those who have mobility challenges or do not live near enough to the meeting site to attend in real time.
If you can identify the handwriting on the back of that photo don’t forget to do that. It helps you know how accurate the identification probably is. And someone later may be glad they know whose writing it is if they find similar writing on the back of one of their pictures of the family.
It is always good to interview as many relatives as possible about the same person or event. Each will remember slightly different things based on their own perspective and life experiences. That’s entirely natural. Humans are not virtual tape recorders no matter how “good” one may think their memory is. They may also have been told different stories about long-deceased relatives or remember details that resonate with them for one reason or another. Long-dead Aunt Myrtle may have liked one cousin better than another and shared more stories with one as a result. The reasons are not so important as the reality: talk to as many as you can, even if they think “I don’t know nuthin’ you ain’t already heard.”
Think about that “fact” you are trying to discover. What records could contain information stating that fact directly? What records could contain information that may provide incomplete information about that fact? What records may contain information that could help you locate additional records that would help you locate information about the fact in which you are interested? This activity is easier to do if you are familiar with records kept in the area and time period for the individuals involved. Brainstorm. Make a list. Then start your work.
When looking for siblings of an adult ancestor, it’s easy to focus on individuals living near the person that have the same last name. They are obvious candidates as siblings of the ancestor of interest. But that person with a different last name who appears on several documents with your ancestor and appears to be hanging out near the ancestor in Amherst County Virginia, and then in Bourbon County, Kentucky? Could he be a brother-in-law of your ancestor-married to the ancestor’s sister? Sometimes those neighbors with different last names are just as related as those with the same last name. And there’s no guarantee those with the same name are related just because they have the same last name either.
If the property your ancestor “owned” or lived on was entailed, it meant that he was not allowed to dispose of it however he saw fit. Broadly speaking, the document setting up the entail (usually deed or a will) defined how ownership would pass from one generation to the next. Many times this would be from the oldest son to the oldest son or to other heirs of the body (frequently males). Entails were generally abolished by the late 18th and early 19 centuries in most English speaking locations. A genealogist may find reference to an entailed estate in a deed and should reference the original deed or will of the initial landowner to determine how the original entail was constructed so that later ownership of the property […]
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