Your ancestor’s residence may not be stated on an affidavit, but if the document is notarized there may be a residential clue there. Notaries usually had jurisdictions in which they were authorized to operate. This one from 1886 was authorized to work in Dawson County, Nebraska. This does not mean that the affiant (Goldenstein in the illustration) lived in Dawson County–only that he was there on that date. But it is still a clue.
If your ancestor was a landowner, do you know exactly where their property was located? Do you know the acreage and the dimensions? Do you know what geographic features were nearby? Part of the difficulty I had with this property was that I had not looked to see where it was. The property was oddly shaped and that was partly due to the Platte River and the railroad. The local land records office may be able to help you locate the property’s precise location. Local libraries, historical societies, or genealogical societies may have copies of county-wide plat books that show the landowners for specific pieces of property. There may be survey maps in the local recorder’s office that show how parcels were drawn out as well. For individuals […]
We all have ancestral mysteries that we want to figure out. Sometimes the best way to get insight into our “confusing people” is to go back and work on the ones that are already done or that we think are already done. That review may cause us to learn about new approaches or sources or remind us of things that we’ve forgotten. Many of my maternal families are well-documented in the United States. Double checking that information in vital records, land records, probate records, court records, etc. has confirmed most of what I was told. I learned a few new facts about them and corrected some errors. That’s good. But it did more than that. Those searches taught me more about all those records. It helped me to […]
If your ancestor naturalized in his own right (as opposed to becoming a citizen when his parent naturalized), have you thought about how old he was at the time and how long he had lived in the new country when he naturalized? I recently remembered that an ancestor of mine was twenty-one when he naturalized in 1879, but I never gave much thought to how old the others were when they naturalized. Of course to naturalize in their own right an alien had to be of the age of majority at the time of naturalization. This might be something for me to think about.
We’ve announced the details of my annual trip to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City–27 May through 3 June 2020. Details are on our announcement page.
The middle entry on this page of 1838 baptisms from Aurich, Germany contains the entry for my ancestor. The fourth column contains the names of the sponsors. When I was trying to analyze the entry for my relative I thought the symbol in the middle red circle on the image were a part of the entry. Then I looked at the other two entries on the image I made and realized that the items in the circle were partially used to number each entry and were not a part of the names of the sponsors. If I had only copied the entry for my ancestor and not other entries on the same page, I might have missed that. Don’t copy only the entry of interest on a page […]
Children were not always named immediately. While modern practice is to name children at birth (if not before), this was not always the case for one reason or another. It is not uncommon to see “unnamed” or “baby” as the first name on a birth certificate. A couple may have waited until they could arrange for a christening to name the baby, because they could not decide, or other reasons. This post on our sister site looks at possible unnamed children in the 1880 United States census.
Sometimes you simply won’t find the record you want. Clark Sargent died in the late 1840s, probably in Winnebago County, Illinois. A genealogy of his family written approximately fifty years later gives a year of death, but it is unsourced. I have no reason to doubt what that book says as it is consistent with county records, census records, etc. But just because it fits doesn’t necessarily mean it is correct either. It is too early for a death record in Illinois. There is no probate (I looked). He owned real estate, but there is no guardianship for his children (I looked). The land records for his real estate mention nothing of his death–but that’s typical. There is no apparent tombstone, but one could be buried somewhere. It […]
Congressional townships were used in Federal land states for surveying purposes. Civil townships are used for governmental purposes. In some places their borders will be the same. Congressional townships are numbered using base lines and meridians within each state that was a Federal land state. Civil townships have names depending on the whims of early settlers.
This session will provide an overview of the records to expect at the typical United States county courthouse–focusing on local vital, court, probate, and property records. It includes: a general overview of the general types of records to expect, use of indexes and finding aids; how to organize your searches and set a search strategy, preparing for an onsite visit. Geared towards advanced beginner and beginning intermediate researchers. Michael has been researching his own genealogy in American courthouses since the 1980s (since he was thirteen) and is an experienced courthouse researcher. The presentation and handout can be ordered for immediate download via the following link: order at the intro rate of $19.99 through 11:59 pm on 27 September
There is no date listed for the estate sale of Thomas J. Rampley in Coshocton County, Ohio. However, a review of other materials recorded with that estate sale suggested the date of the sale was August or September of 1823. The precise date was not crucial to my personal research, but if it had contained the last reference to Christianna Rampley, Thomas’ wife, then it would have been. Because I inferred the date of the sale from other records, I need to include that reasoning somewhere when I use it. That’s what was done on the image that is a part of this post. My citation is not perfect (it’s missing the date I downloaded the image), but other key elements are there even if the format and […]
The word “moiety” generally means half of something. The word is often used in real estate documents to indicate a half-interest in a piece of property.
Affidavits and other witness-type statements can indicate how long a witness has known the person they are vouching for. This can be a clue as to residences, moves, etc. Charles Hartsell in this 1907 statement suggests that he has lived in the following places: until 1875 in Mercer County, Illinois; from 1875-1901 in Union County, Iowa; 1901-1902 (approximately) in Stafford County, Kansas; 1902 (approximately)-1907 Pratt County, Kansas. Hartsell has known the Goin witness for 15 years and the McMillan witness for 3 years. Both indicate that in 1907 they were living in Stafford County, Kansas. Based on the time frame, McMillan became aquainted with Hartsell when they both lived in Stafford [corrected to Pratt] County. Goin apparently knew Hartsell when Hartsell lived in Union County, Iowa. In this […]
Property can escheat to the state when there are no qualified heirs to someone who has died and that person has left no will. State statute defines who qualified heirs are. A man died in Bedford County, Virginia, in the late 1700s with only natural children and no will that was admitted to probate. His two hundred acre farm was going to escheat to the state until the natural children petitioned the Virginia legislature to prevent it from happening. State statute did not allow natural children (those born outside of marriage) to automatically inherit from their father.
I’m transcribing a will from Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the mid-18th century. The handwriting is difficult to read. One way is to try and force yourself to figure out every word in order and struggle with them without reading the entire document. That’s a mistake–particularly when something is a challenge. Instead try and get as much of it as you can by doing a “relatively quick sweep.” Don’t read too quickly, but get the words you can and move on. Put brackets in those places you can’t immediately read and go forward. Sometimes reading more will help you read earlier parts of the document either because the handwriting is better or the same phrase is repeated to where it “clicks.” Then go back. Try reading it out loud. […]
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