We all have those people we can’t find in certain records for one reason or another and there comes a time when it’s time to move on and search for another record or another person. But I’ve thought about creating a master list of those people and the records in which I can’t find them (along with where I’ve searched before and how). That “Can’t Find them List” is something that periodically I could refer to and try again. Not every week or every month, but maybe a few times a year when I’m in need of a break from whatever I’m working on. Databases do get updated. New records are discovered. Researchers realize they have made mistakes. Instead of scouring my files for things I’ve not found, […]
Not having an 1890 census as a source is a hindrance for those of us with American ancestors during that time period. While there is a fragment of the census available (and a very small fragment at that), the fact remains that most will never see their relative in the 1890 census. That can create a research gap which creates challenges. Sometimes writers, advertisers, and the fee-based websites will mention a substitute of sorts. It’s more accurate to refer to anything else (that “substitute”) as a 1890 era source that should be utilized. City directories, tax lists, voter lists, newspapers are all touted as substitutes. The reality is they are sources that should be utilized anyway, even during those time periods when the census is available. They aren’t […]
Relationships are not always about biology. It’s important in genealogical research to be aware of the biological relationships between two individuals as those relationships are the ones that may leave genetic evidence behind. That genetic evidence is strongest the closer the relationship is. The further the connection, the lower the chance that an autosomal DNA test finds genetic evidence of the connection. Biological relationships are not the only ones that matter in genealogical research. There are relationships established through marriage. There are relationships established through a shared heritage, growing up in geographic proximity, being members of a shared religious tradition, etc. Anyone who has that relationship to your ancestor or relative may interact with him in ways that leave additional records behind and may help you to learn […]
If we have not experienced some of the things our family members in the past did, it is difficult to say how it might have really impacted them. It’s hard to say how you would react to something that has never happened to you. One can empathize, but sometimes it’s hard to understand when you’ve not really experienced it yourself. The last two of my grandmother’s three children did not survive birth. I’m not certain how I would have reacted had I been in that same situation and the “babies” (as they were called) were not discussed or asked about. I have other family members (distant and not-so-distant) who had similar experiences, including a great-great-grandma whose son was murdered in Kansas City in 1921. I’m certain that impacted […]
A first cousin of my great-grandfather and his wife had only one daughter. She was a child that they adopted when she was fairly young. Years after she died, a son of that daughter contacted me and asked me if I wanted pictures he had of my great-great-grandfather’s brother and other family members. I said yes after making certain he really did not want to keep them. He was concerned that no one in his family would want the pictures when he died and, since they weren’t biologically related to the family, he was also afraid that would increase the chance someone just threw them out when he passed away. There are several lessons here: think about what may happen to your pictures and other ephemera when you […]
I began my research in the 1980s when photocopiers in some locations did not create long-term reproductions of records. They would fade and turn brown and eventually be unreadable. My local librarian always reminded me to type up these photocopies and not rely on them long term. Photocopying was a way to get more information and get a copy with it “right” without having to manually copy the information in the library or courthouse. Those old photocopies were a form of evaporating notes and that’s how we had to view them. Digital reproduction of records has come a long way. But some things have not changed. It is still important to transcribe copies of documents. It is still important to view those photocopies or digital images of records […]
If you are unable to find a deed of sale for your relative, consider that the property could have been sold for failure to pay taxes. Those deeds are typically indexed under “Sheriff” and not the name of the owner as the owner technically does not own the property at that point and is not the actual grantor on the deed. If there was a Sheriff’s sale, consider looking for court records involving the non-tax-paying ancestor as well.
I joked that Riley, the dog shown in the picture, took a DNA test and was related to a cat. His indignation could only be assuaged by bacon. There’s a warning in the little story about Riley. DNA tests can always result in surprises. Paper trees can be wrong. Relatives can have marriages or relationships about which we know nothing. People lie. Some think that they took their secrets with them to their grave only to have their family later make the discovery through a DNA test. Eating bacon won’t solve your DNA problem, but your DNA test results may cause you to understand how Riley feels even if you are not related to a cat.
In a Facebook post I referred to my daughter’s father-in-law as my relative. Someone seeing the post and not knowing who Jim was might actually have through he was a biological relative of mine and wondered what the connection was. Remember when interviewing family members that they may refer to individuals as “relatives” when they are not related in any biological way. They could have been related by marriage or could have been considered family for one reason or another. Instead of trying force the “relative” to have a biological connection to your family, research them and see what the records indicate.
My immigrant ancestors Peter and Barbara Bieger came to Illinois in 1850 after a short pit stop in Cincinnati, Ohio. The officially purchased a small lot in Warsaw, Hancock County, Illinois, in November of 1850. I had never given any thought to the subdivision where their home/tavern was located other than it’s name and it’s location. Searching for information on their neighbors in that same subdivision was on my to-do list in an attempt to learn more about the Bieger’s Germanic origins. While searching for something else, I discovered that the subdivision was platted out originally in October of 1849. It was a “new” subdivision when my relatives purchased the property there. Did they possibly have some connection to the individual who organized the subdivision?
Not all indexes are created equally. This is especially true with those that were created by local records clerks. Don’t just turn to what you think is the correct section of that printed or handwritten index without first familiarizing yourself with the organization and layout. Some indexes are by first letter of last name only. Some separate out different sections of last names by their first two letters. Some partially index names by the last name and the first name. Practice with the index if it is one you have not used before. Find a record at random in the series and see if you can find an entry for it in the index. Ask someone who has more experience using it or has more research experience in […]
This chart is a slightly different take on a pedigree chart back to my third and fourth great grandparents. There are no names on it. Instead the location where that person was living in 1880 has replaced their name. Most of these are based on the 1880 US census enumeration except for those ancestors who were living outside the United States. Those who were living in the same household were circled. To help retain some sense of geography, color was used. Census years are easier to use for charts of this type, but there’s no reason to limit yourself to those years. Just try and make certain you really know where the person was living at that point in time. Genealogy Tip of the Day book is just about […]
This is not a tip about dating advice. It’s a reminder that in some locations and time periods, there simply are no records of specific dates of vital events. This can often be the case with births and deaths even when marriage records are available. While a marriage is considered a “vital event” by many, it technically is a contract between the two individuals getting married. For that reason, there may be records of marriages when birth and death records are not extant. The American South before the Civil War is one location and time period where it can be difficult to obtain precise dates of birth and death. The best that can be done is to have an estimate of when the person was born and when […]
Not every baby was named immediately upon its arrival. For a variety of reasons, a couple may have waited to name their child. Sometimes it may have been to choose a name. Sometimes it may have been because they were not immediately able to have the child christened. It was not usually because they had twins and only had one name which is one way to interpret this family’s enumeration from the 1870 census.
While great-grandma could only have been born in one place, don’t ignore those places that are clearly incorrect. Sometimes wrong locations as places of events are out and out lies, but more often, they are clues as to where the people had lived at some point in their lives–just not the moment the person in question was born. My great-grandmother has three different states of birth listed for her depending upon what record is being looked at. Every location that’s “wrong” is somewhere the family lived in the early 1870s around the time that she was born. They moved a lot. And people sometimes get “where you were born” mixed up with “where you were from” or where someone was living.
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