If your ancestors lived in public land states and owned real property, are you familiar with sections, quarter sections, townships, etc.? If not, you could be interpreting a property description incorrectly or missing out on a crucial detail. Theoretically, a: a township is a square six miles on a side; section is a mile on a side and contains 640 acres; a quarter section is a half of a mile on a side and contains 160 acres. There are exceptions to these dimensions and acreages that usually result from geography and political boundaries. For more about these methods of description and units of measure, refer to this reference guide.
To learn more about your ancestor’s employer as given in a city directory, search the rest of the city directory as it may include advertisements or list the employer in a list of area businesses. Consider performing a Google search for the name of the business and search local and regional histories as well, many of which have been digitized at Google Books (http://books.google.com) or Archive.org (http://www.archive.org).
Many records used in genealogical research were created as a part of a larger process or flow or information and records. When analyzing a document or working to understand it, determine what that process was. It’s also helpful to understand what function the document or record served in that process. Birth certificates were to document a birth, but summaries of information from those records may have been used for a variety of governmental purposes. The specific details of what was on the record may have been used by the individual to document their age, their parentage, etc. Death certificates are used to document a death, but different pieces of information from that record are used by different individuals for a variety of reasons: compilation of cause of death […]
If your ancestor had a first, middle, and last name, keep in mind that it is possible that those names could be in the wrong order in a record. If the names are in the wrong order on the record, then the ancestor will appear in the index under the wrong “last name.” If the index does not include the last name of interest, consider searching for that relative with their first or middle name as their last name.
When using a search option at an online database, do you know how that site implements wildcard searches, Soundex searches, and other search options? Getting creative with search terms is often necessary, but if you don’t know how they are really working, you are not being effective. Experiment and look at your results and see if you are getting what you think you should. A Soundex search for the last name Smut on a site with English language last names should result in a large number of hits. And if you don’t know why, then review what Soundex really is.
The grantor (seller) on a deed may not be a “person” but rather someone acting in an official legal or capacity. I could not find one ancestor’s deed “selling” his farm because it was transferred on a deed executed by the local judge after a court action involving his estate. The judge was the grantor, not the ancestor and not his children. If your ancestor went through a a foreclosure or a sale of property for back taxes, the court or the local sheriff may have been the grantor on the deed transferring property from your relative’s ownership. If you cannot find a deed of sale, look for a court action involving your ancestor or his estate.
Anna Apgar was born 8 March 1913 in Chicago, Illinois. Her Application for Social Security and Tax Account Number application (commonly called the SS-5) form was the first record on her that listed her father as William Apgar. It is one of the few documents where she provided her father’s name. That’s in contrast to her death certificate, obituary, and family information which was provided by others and which gave a different name for her father. There’s no guarantee what is on the application is 100% correct. It’s only as reliable as the informant and only as accurate as their knowledge. But the application form can be a great source of information. Make certain you obtain a duplicate of the actual card and not a computerized summary and […]
Have you made a list of genealogical goals? Have you thought about what genealogical tasks you can “put off” and which ones you should not? What compiled information do you want to leave behind (if any)? What items do you have that you want to preserve and share so that when you go those items don’t go with you? Do you have any unique items in your possession that have not been preserved? Are there any human memories that you’ve not recorded or preserved?
Always take a close look at the real estate inventory of your relative. Don’t just ignore the legal description as “legal mumbo jumbo.” While an estate is normally probated by just one county court, there may be real property mentioned in other counties as well. The specific records of how that real property was acquired will be located in the county where that property is physically located. There may not be a separate probate file in the other county if the property is in the same state. There should be separate land records in the county where the property is located. It may be that the person own real property in another state as well. All of those other locations could lead to additional information on your ancestor.
I have a DNA match (called “A”) with whom I share enough DNA that our relationship is probably between 4th and 6th cousins. A and I have several shared matches. The one with whom I share the most DNA (called “B”) is someone I know to be my 1st cousin once removed. This tells me nothing about how much DNA A and B share or what their relationship probably is. What I know is that: A and I are probably between 4th and 6th cousins. B and I are first cousins, once removed. A and B are DNA matches to each other as well. I do not know what A and B’s relationship is to each other or how potentially precise that relationship is. They could be related […]
Migrants often settle where they have associates–either through biology, marriage, shared social/cultural ties, etc. Determining the others in that group can be beneficial to your research–no matter where your ancestor or family fits into the chronology of migration over time. But who arrived first? What brought that person there? Others followed them because of ties they had to that person, but what precipitated the first move? Don’t assume you know what that was. Actually try and find out. It might have been area newly opened for settlement. It might have been political or financial unrest at home. It could have been religion. It could have been escaping the law. Genealogy Tip of the Day book is here and it’s not written to help you research your “famous ancestors.” It’s […]
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.
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