One letter can make all the difference. Technically this 1966 obituary should indicate that the deceased was married at the home of her “parent” as her father was deceased by 1905 and her mother did not marry again. Errors of this type are easy to make, especially when the typesetter, proofreader of the local newspaper is not familiar with the family–not to mention this marriage took place sixty years before the obituary was published. Don’t believe everything you read in print. It is easy to make one little mistake.
Someone living as a boarder with your relative may be more than a boarder–they could be a relative as well. Don’t assume that first cousins or nephews would be listed with those relationships in the census. They could simply be enumerated as a boarder. And that hired man? Depending upon the age or the situation, he could end up being the son-in-law or the widow’s new husband.
Books are a great place to look for pictures, clippings, and other ephemera. Things frequently get tucked away in books (Bibles, etc.) for safe keeping and some times get forgotten. if a relative says they have no pictures or clippings, ask if they’ve got any hidden away in a book. Just this week I discovered a picture I had stuck away and forgotten about.
If you can’t find your relative in an index or record with his actual last name, try searching for him listed with his middle name as his last name. Hinrich Jacobs Fecht is enumerated in at least one census record as Hinrich Jacobs.
Never assume that a widowed relative did not marry again after their spouse died. Always search the records. One reason that female ancestors “disappear” after their husbands die is that they are living with a subsequent husband under a new last name. Widowers or widows with young children are more likely to marry again, frequently for financially pragmatic reasons. Some may wait until “late in life” to marry again–at a stage in their life when descendants do not think to look for a marriage record. Records of later marriages may give detail on the ancestor not given in their initial marriage record. If the subsequent marriage does not go well and results in no children, reference to it may not be made in an obituary, death notice, tombstone, […]
When that widowed relative “disappears,” it’s plausible that they wen t to live with or near a child. The Tjede Ehmen mentioned in this clipping is enumerated in the 1920 through 1940 censuses with a child in Moline, Illinois, and died in Seattle, Washington, in the 1940s where another child lived. This item was obtained on GenealogyBank.
For those who have asked, this is a partial list of genealogical references on my bookshelf. I’ll update it with others as I create the links, but I’m only going to add books that I personally have experience with and that I actually use. There are other good books out there, but I only mention ones with which I have actual experience. Your experience may vary. Sometimes one can get used library editions for low-cost–other times not so much. State Census Records by Ann S. Lainhart Genealogist’s Handbook for New England Research, 5th edition, edited by Michael J. Leclerc Land and Property Research by E. Wade Hone–a personal favorite of mine–although it is weak on methodology in local records in federal land states. Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, […]
Attending seminars, reading books, following blogs, and reviewing journal articles are all great ways to learn genealogical skills, but the best way to really up your skill level is doing actual research. One way that I’ve enhanced my skills is to go back and completely research a family that I thought was done (all children, their spouses) for a couple of generations by searching every possible record I can find, preferably during a time period when more records are available. I do this even if I don’t think the records will “help me” as sometimes reading them when I “know the answers” helps me to interpret the records. That helps to build my skills for those families where I don’t know as much and the records are not […]
Obituaries, online compilations, and other materials may list as “children” individuals who are actually the person’s biological children, their step-children, their spouse’s step-children from a previous marriage, etc. There is also the possibility that their biological children do not all share the same biological parent. Be careful entering these names and the relationships in your database until you have a better idea of who is the parent of whom. Indicating that your relative raised non-biological children as their own is advised though as it helps to explain the connections that exist among people. In some families it is better to write a summary of the individuals and relationships involved before forcing that data into a genealogical relationship database.
Is it possible that your widowed or divorced ancestor reverted to a previous surname after they were no longer married? That’s what Gesche Fecht did on this 1887 arrival in Baltimore. Despite having survived two husbands she is listed with her maiden surname of Fecht on the manifest.
In some countries and some time periods, last names were not fixed and did not pass directly from father (or mother) to children. Children might be given a last name that was based upon their father’s first name (a practice called patronymics). Heads of household may take a name that is associated with the farm they settle on. Learn about how last names were created, used, and passed on in the area where your relative lived. It may cut down on some confusion.
L. U. Albers moved from New Mexico to Illinois sometime between 1910 and 1920. A classified ad for lilacs in the Albuquerque Journal of 9 May 1913 helped me to pinpoint his move a little more closely. Classified ads may tell you more than what your ancestor had to sell. This item was obtained on GenealogyBank.
Did your relative’s land transaction appear in the local newspaper? In counties with burned records newspaper mentions of deeds can help to document transactions. These references can also be helpful in other situations as well. You can search Newspaper Archive (our sponsor) for your own ancestors.
Newspapers can get a variety of things wrong. Searches should be creative. The woman who died near Golden, Adams County, Illinois, in 1892 was actually Mrs. Ehme M. Aden–not Mrs. Elmer Aden. And of course this reference to her does not even include her actual first name–which was Reenste.
There are some names that are used for towns in several different states. Is it possible that an informant on a record got the town right but the state wrong?
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