Don’t let the fact that your genealogy isn’t “done” and isn’t “perfect” prevent you from publishing your compilation. Cite every source you have used, transcribe the documents accurately, report what they say (not what you wish they’d say), omit conjecture that has no basis, and summarize what you have found. No genealogy will ever be complete and there’s always the chance you miss something. Make certain you have used all sources that are available, not just the ones that are easy to access and not just the ones that are the easiest to understand. Realizing that it won’t be done and that it won’t be perfect doesn’t mean that you skim the surface of what is available and that you do a sloppy job. It’s just that perfection […]
If a document refers to your ancestor as the lessor on lease–he owns the property that is the subject of the lease. If your ancestor is referred to as the lessee, he is the person being given temporary use of the property. The lessor owns it, the lessee borrows it–generally speaking.
That family story may clearly be incorrect or greatly exaggerated. Before you throw the story out completely, think about what sources or records might have been created if it were true. Consider breaking the story into the parts you could prove and the parts you could not prove. And then go from there.
While divorce has not always been as common as it has been in the last forty or fifty years, it was not as rare in the time period before that either. Is it possible that your relative had a short term marriage that did not last? It could be that the oldest child was born to a previous spouse and adopted by the next one? It could be that a female relative was married for a year or so, was divorced and took back her maiden name. A man could have easily moved to the big city to look for work, found love, found that it didn’t go so well, and returned home a single man. That deceased relative may have had a marriage before their “first” one […]
Your ancestor may not have arrived at the US port that you think they did. Not everyone came through New York. Your ancestor’s original destination may not be where he settled and that destination may have impacted where he originally landed. Some immigrants to the United States originally settled in Canada and their “port of entry” into the United States may have been a land-locked one. Just because Grandma insists her Grandpa landed in New York City when he arrived as a young boy does not mean that he did. If he arrived at that age, his granddaughter was not there to witness it.
A relationship given on a document may not be quite as accurate or as precise as you would like. I’m listed as my great-aunt’s nephew on her death certificate–not her great-nephew. It’s a minor distinction, but still a distinction. A document may indicate two individuals are cousins, but that relationship may be first cousins, second cousins, or something other relationship. And sometimes a non-biological relative may be referred to by a term that is often used for biological relatives. And keep in mind that some terms have changed their meanings over time.
For the most part genealogy research is not a race and rushing around to research as fast as possible increases the chance that mistakes are made. Often those mistakes end up wasting time and money, but more importantly they increase the chance that incorrect conclusions are made and shared. Sometimes it can be difficult to “undo” those incorrect conclusions as once something is shared, it tends to be repeated by others over and over. There are times in research when time is crucial: interviewing relatives whose memories may be fading and who may be nearing the end of their life; preserving records that are already deteriorating; preserving records that are in danger of being destroyed. Even if you “want to get it done before you pass on,” it’s […]
This appears to be a joke, but this screen shot of available FamilySearch databases was made at approximately 6:30 pm central time on 24 January 2019. The “Junk” database was displayed.
The recorded copy of a document may have several different dates on it. Make certain you understand the purpose of each date and don’t draw incorrect conclusions. Dates may include: date of the event(s) the document is documenting; date the act the document documents was acknowledged; date the document was “proved” by the witnesses; date the document was recorded; etc. Not all documents will have all these dates. Deeds are one document that are often acknowledged in front of an official in addition to being signed by the person executing the deed. The dates may not be the same. Wills often have to be “proved” by witnesses.
We are excited to offer this new class on using US census records. Virtually every US genealogist uses census records, but not everyone is aware of how those records can be maximized for what they do contain. There are limitations to these records, but there are advantages to them as well. If you’ve wondered if you are getting the most out of US census records, this class is for you. Content: This three-week session will look at US census records from 1850 through 1940. Topics discussed will include: enumerator instructions and how information “got in the census” organization of original records working with family structure in 1850-1870 records correlating a family’s census records over time evaluating accuracy of census records determining other records suggested by a family’s enumerations […]
I’ll be speaking at the San Mateo County, California, Genealogical Society’s May 2019 workshop in Menlo Park, California. The seminar will be held on 4 May 2019. Registration details are on their website. Topics: Problem Solving Applied to Genealogy Organizing Online Research Researching the Entire Family and Beyond Finding Barbara’s Beaus and Gesche’s Girls I’m looking forward to the seminar. If you’re a regular reader in attendance, please come up and introduce yourself during one of the breaks! If you’d like to have Michael present at your conference or seminar, email him at mjnrootdig@gmail.com.
US Census records before 1880 do not give relationship to the head of the household. The oldest male and female are often husband and wife–but occasionally they are siblings or there is another relationship. If other records provide evidence that the oldest male and female in a household were married, remember that the children may not all be theirs together. Some could be his, some could be hers, some could be theirs, and some could have another relationship to one or both of the oldest male and female in the household. Remember the pre-1880 US census indicated who was living in a household. That household may have been a married couple and their children (sometimes referred to as the “traditional household”) or another set of relationships. Those “non-traditional” […]
If a document gives a clear informant, ask yourself: what information did the informant know first hand; what information did the informant know because someone told him; would there have been motivation to lie; what information might she have guessed the answer to. If a document does not give an informant, ask yourself: was there more than one probable informant; who was the most likely informant; how likely was the informant to know the information. Always ask yourself: were there any penalties for lying on the document; how likely was it that the informant be caught in a lie; was there a motivation for the informant to lie. Inform yourself and think about the informant.
Perhaps one of the best ways to easily catch errors in your tree is to look at the dates of vital events for the people involved. Do they make sense? Is the timeline plausible? Genealogists should know, as they say, where babies come from. Aside from modern interventions, parents have to in the same place roughly nine months before the birth. They also have to be alive at that same time. Triple check before you add someone to your tree and don’t just take someone else’s online tree as gospel. Sometimes a simple dose of “genealogy commonsense bleach” does an excellent job of cleaning. There are more advanced tools that can be used to “clean your tree,” but “genealogy commonsense bleach” will remove the majority of the grime […]
This is not a sentimental post about marriage. An estate document from the early 20th century apparently omitted one daughter of Adam Trautvetter from an an estate notice. Further analysis suggested that daughters Lena Salzer and Louise Buckert had been “merged” into one: Lena Bucklew. It is not known whether poor handwriting, bad hearing, or some other miscommunication resulted in the error. What is known is that the other children’s names are consistent with other records and this is the only document that replaces Lena Salzer and Louise Buckert with Lena Bucklew. But it always pays to remember that any one document can be incorrect and that utilizing multiple documents will increase the chance that errors of this type are caught.
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