There is still room in our February US land class and US probate records class. Join us!
Spellings of last names can vary significantly, even within one document. Avoid getting hung up on minor differences or spelling variations. The important thing to keep in mind is do the spellings sound the same. Even if your ancestor was literate, he might not have been too concerned about whether or not his name was spelled right. Always be open to spelling variations-like the 1860 census taker apparently was. He spelled Behrens as Barams, Burse, and Barrus (?) on the same census page.
Just a reminder: the death benefit field in the renditions of what’s commonly called the Social Security Death Index, is where the death benefit check was sent, not where the person was necessarily living when they died. My Aunt Luella Barnett died in Carthage, Hancock County, Illinois, but the death benefit was sent to Orland Park, Cook County, Illinois, where her oldest daughter was living at the time. The image in this post comes from Ancestry.com. The Social Security Death Index can be searched at FamilySearch or GenealogyBank as well.
[This was posted to my other blogs several years ago, but thought it appropriate to post it here again since we’ve moved to the new domain.] All content on Rootdig.com, Genealogy Tip of the Day and my other blogs is self-written. It is not copied and pasted from the work of others and originates from my own keyboard. Like many writers, I do get writing ideas from other blogs and bloggers, but that’s about as far as the “getting” content from others goes. I try very hard to respect the creative rights and copyright of other writers and bloggers. Copyright matters. Respecting the intellectual property of others matters. It’s not just a legal matter, it’s an ethical matter. That’s our “fresh-content” pledge. Tips may be similar over time—but I never recycle […]
In trying to find a picture of my mother, I realized that I had digital images of many pictures that were incompletely identified. Don’t neglect to identify people in those photographs. And include that information on the image, along with some provenance. I should have included the date of the wedding, but the names of the couple and location are better than nothing. In older photographs I also include a sentence on how identification was made. ——————— Don’t forget! We are offering sessions of our popular US land and probate classes this February. Additional details are on our announcement pages.
Never assume that a person with what you think is an usual name might not have a “name twin” somewhere. There were two men named Lubbe Albers living in Illinois at the same point in time, in different parts of the state. They may or may not have been cousins, but the marriage index and census records indicate that they were different men living in different places at the same time–and not the same person. Don’t just grab the first census hit and assume you have the right person.
Do not assume that your relative’s nickname was derived from their actual birth, legal, or Christian name. The reasons for that nickname may now be lost to history and could be for reasons ranging from the serious to the sublime. NIcknames are usually alternate names based upon a characteristic, life event, behavior, etc. and do not stem from the actual name itself. Shortened names are usually referred to as diminutives. —————— Our sponsor, GenealogyBank, is offering an annual subscription for a monthly rate equivalent to less than $5 a month.
We are offering sessions of our popular US land and probate classes this February. Additional details are on our announcement pages.
Digitizing color photographs should be high on your preservation list, even if you don’t know who all the people are in the picture. Color inks fade more quickly than inks used for black and white photographs. Seize the moment and preserve those color pictures.
Women could file claims under the United States Homestead Act of 1862. They simply had to meet the age and citizenship requirements like the men. In some areas of the United States, homestead claim eligibility was one of the reasons single women would naturalize. —————— Our sponsor, GenealogyBank, is offering an annual subscription for a monthly rate equivalent to less than $5 a month.
Years ago, early in my research, I located an early 20th century entry for relative in the seller’s index to local land records. It was in a part of the county where he “shouldn’t have owned property.” It turned out the deed was one where he was selling his small interest in a small piece of property that his grandmother had owned at her death. And the deed referenced that her former husband had purchased the property in the 1850s. All from a deed that I didn’t even think was relevant. —————— Our sponsor, GenealogyBank, is offering an annual subscription for a monthly rate equivalent to less than $5 a month.
My goals here at Genealogy Tip of the Day are pretty simple. Iwant to make people aware research pitfalls, research procedures, sources, and terminology. And I try and do this in short tips. That means that many tips are not complete, lengthy discussions of a topic. There may be exceptions that would take too long to discuss fully. Generally those tips are at most four sentences long. I try and keep each tip to the point, with the thought that: some people just need a reminder others will see something new and decide they need to learn more about it Suggestions for additional tips are always welcome. Genealogy Tip of the Day (and our sister sites Rootdig, Daily Genealogy Transcriber, and Search Tip of the Day) are all written by Michael John Neill
The 1889 will of a relative gave his two sons all his real estate without indicating which son was to get which portion. Land records or court records may answer that question and uncover even more information.
Sometimes it takes a while for things to dawn on us. I had this photograph for years before I realized that the “Mary and I and our old home church” was written by my great-grandmother. After all she and Mary are in the picture so “I” must be her. This was one time when I was glad that “I” was used on the back of a picture instead of the name. Fortunately someone was able to identify the people in the picture for me.
Legal records that state the ages of children may indicate their age as of a certain date or state what the child’s age will be on their next birthday. Read the document carefully to make certain you interpret the age and when it was effective correctly. Otherwise you may inadvertently create a year discrepancy where none actually existed.
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