For families that lived during a time of no vital records genealogists often do not have dates of birth. In some cases, it may even be difficult to estimate years of birth if records are not available. In cases such as these, make certain that you indicate the birth order is either a guess or inferred from the order of children in a will or another document. If children married, years of birth could be estimated from the marriage dates. And ask yourself, would any of my conclusions change if the order of birth for these children change? Most times they wouldn’t, but you never know.
Reading the German language records was difficult and I almost didn’t bother obtaining copies of the baptismal entries for the siblings of John George Trautvetter who was born in 1798. And there in the entry for one of John George’s brother was the indication that their father’s brother was the sponsor. A helpful hint in this case where knowing as many relationships as possible is necessary because every family had a George and a Michael and every son’s first name was Johann. Don’t neglect those ancestral siblings. Join me for my upcoming online AncestryDNA class.
Due to some schedule changes, we have a few additional open spaces in our AncestryDNA class this coming June. If you signed up and have not heard from me, please contact me. If you would like to sign up, visit our information page.
Generally speaking, sources are considered to be original or derivative. The words mean what they say, but sometimes there can be confusion. The original is the first one–the actual letter your relative wrote (the physical piece of paper they touched and used their writing utensil on). Any picture, transcription, scan, photocopy, etc. is a derivative. Some derivatives are the legal equivalent of the original–the record copy of a deed or a will that is recorded in a records office. Some derivatives are mechanical reproductions that reproduce the document faithfully (unaltered color photographs for instance). Calling something original or derivative is simply referencing its creation. Whether that something is accurate is another story.
A few quick reminders: download files/images from websites when you find them–websites change, licensing agreements change, you may have to cancel a membership identify any pictures you have–before it’s too late preserve pictures and other ephemera–especially if your copy is the “only” one.
The further you get back in your tree, the higher the chance that you and a relative share no DNA. It does not mean that you are not related, just that DNA from the common pair of ancestors has not been passed down to both of you. For example: The probability that 5th cousins have no detectable DNA relationship is 69.8% For more details visit this longer post. Join me for my upcoming online AncestryDNA class.
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. Perform a Google search for the name of the business, search old newspapers, and search local and regional histories as well, many of which have been digitized at GoogleBooks (http://books.google.com) or Archive.org (http://www.archive.org). Join me for my upcoming online AncestryDNA class.
While they won’t tell you where the family Bible is today, a military pension application may provide evidence of the Bible’s existence and ownership at a certain point in time. That could be a clue in trying to locate it today. Join me for my upcoming online AncestryDNA class.
Not every will brought to court gets approved. Wills that are denied should be included in the probate file along with a notation that they were not admitted to probate. There may be testimony regarding the will and why it was considered to be invalid. Or there may only be a statement regarding the denial. Sometimes reading the denied will makes it clear why certain heirs might have had a problem with it. Join me for my upcoming online AncestryDNA class.
There is a very real chance that your DNA test results will result in portions of your tree being “removed.” You will have to remove that part of the tree yourself, but there is always a chance that a DNA test may result in: unexpected relatives close relatives not sharing any DNA There’s always the chance that relatives who are really related share no DNA. That is a reasonable possibility once the relationship gets more distant than third cousins. Your siblings and first and second cousins should share some DNA. Be prepared for the possibility that your test results may help you find some new ancestors…and they may cause you to lose a few as well. We will be discussing analyzing and interpreting your DNA test results […]
Names can easily get truncated and, when first working on a family, it can be difficult to know whether a name has been truncated or not. A family who went by Noon occasionally had their name spelled “Noone.” That was easy to discover as “extra” es on the end of a name are not too uncommon. The family’s name was might have actually been Noonan–it gets that way in a few records as well. Or someone could just have thought their last name was (or should have been) Noonan. Sometimes variants are created because a clerk or enumerator thinks that’s what the name should be. If a name is relatively short, always consider the possibility that the name you have was actually part of a longer name.
When using any index, determine what that index covers and what it does not. Most census indexes are every name indexes, but many other indexes are not indexes to every name contained in the record. Death certificates contain many names, but indexes may only index the name of the person who died. Probate indexes often only index the name of the person whose estate is being settled. Names of beneficiaries, witnesses, debtors, lenders, etc. are often not indexed. Deed indexes frequently index only the name of the first grantor and the first grantee. Other grantors and grantees are not included and names of neighbors listed in metes and bounds descriptions to property are not included. When using any index to any record, determine what names got in the […]
The use of the “in-law” did not always just indicate the relationship that it does today. In most modern uses of “in-law” a “father-in-law” is the father of someone’s spouse. In the same way a “mother-in-law” is currently generally interpreted as the mother of one’s spouse. In earlier uses, particularly the early 19th century and before, a “father-in-law” could be indicating that the “father-in-law” was actually a subsequent husband of the person’s mother. Today that person is generally referred to as a step-father. Similarly a “mother-in-law” reference could mean that the “mother-in-law” was a subsequent wife of the individual’s father. Today that person is generally referred to as a step-mother. The “in-law” portion of the term stems from the marriage contract signed between the two individuals marrying.
Locations can create all kinds of problems for genealogists. For this reason it is necessary to be as precise as possible. Some locations are logical. For example, Knoxville, Illinois, is in Knox County, Illinois. But this is not always the case. Des Moines, Iowa, is in Polk County, not in Des Moines County, Iowa. Keokuk, Iowa, is not located in Keokuk County, Iowa. And remember there are townships as well which may or may not add to the confusion. Hancock County, Illinois, has a Webster Cemetery and a village of Webster. Webster Cemetery is not located near the village of Webster. Provide as much detail as possible when listing locations in your genealogical database. Personally I always use the word “county” in a location. It reduces confusion.
I posted this a while back to the “group” page for Tip of the Day in response to a question about step-parents and their relationships with children by their spouse’s previous marriages and thought it made for a good tip: Explain the biological and “relationship by marriage” relationships clearly. It’s fine to indicate if a subsequent spouse of an ancestor served as the parent of the children in ways that are crucial, life-lasting, and important to that child’s development and relationships. Just make sure that the biological and non-biological aspects are clear so that later DNA tests are not needlessly confusing. If that subsequent spouse was influential in the life of the child, document it and record it. Those are things that tend to get lost as time […]
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