Some universities have local or regional historical materials in what frequently is termed a “special collection,”usually in the library or an archives. There might even be historians who have done research in the local area. Not necessarily genealogical research, but historical research that still may give some insight into local families. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Is it possible that your ancestor’s name was spelled in a different way on a document, record, or tombstone because there wasn’t room for the “right” spelling? That’s a potential problem and might be the reason “Rebeca” appears on this stone instead of “Rebecca.“ ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Whether a name matches depends on more than the exact same spelling. It is only in recent times when consistent spelling has become important. When trying to determine if a name could be the “same,” consider spelling and pronunciation alternates and variations. Your ancestor’s name probably will not be spelled the exact same way in every document. You should look at other identifiers in the record (if they are given), such as age, ethnicity, social status, marital status, occupation, etc. Never look at just the name if you can avoid it and never “throw out” a potential match without good reason. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If it appears that the “mother” of a child is in her mid-fifties or older and there’s a gap of quite a few years between the last child and the child prior to the last one, consider that the last child might be the “mother’s” grandchild and not her actual child. If there’s an unmarried daughter in the household in her late teens, she could be the mother. Of course the “mother” actually could be the mother–assuming her age at the birth of the child isn’t stretching the plausibility of childbirth too much. And it’s possible the youngest child was actually adopted. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Naturalizations before the reform of 1906 typically provide little in the way of genealogical details. Records after the reform tend to contain more information about the applicant’s nativity, immigration, and family. If your ancestor had a cousin or other relative who naturalized after 1906, consider searching for their naturalization materials. It may provide you with significant detail. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you can’t find a person in a census index, try reversing their first and last names. It is possible the census taker (or other record keeper) made a simple goof. Foreign language names can easily get recorded in this way. This could easily explain why Panagiotis Verikios was enumerated in 1930 as Verikios Panagiotis. Think about it–it’s possible with English language as well. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
In the United States, during the time before the Cable Act, a native born American woman would lose her citizenship status if she married a man who was an alien. This explains why the 1920 census for my children’s great-great-grandmother indicated she was an alien even though she was born in New York State. Her husband was an unnaturalized Greek immigrant. Did your female ancestor lose her citizenship because her husband was an alien? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
In 1912, Miriam Pierce had a Presbyterian minister write a letter on his office letterhead to the US pension office inquiring about a military benefit. I assumed that she had the letter written by the minister solely because he was a minister and might lend more credence to her claim. While that might have been part of it, it turns out that the minister was her son-in-law as evidenced by a census enumeration from 1920. My initial conclusion didn’t include that possibility. Is there a chance that your initial conclusion is incorrect? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Has it been some time since you conducted that unsuccessful search for an ancestor in a specific record? Perhaps a second look is in order. It is always possible that you overlooked something the first time around, especially if that first time around was several years ago. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
We have just announced the remainder of our May 2012 genealogy webinars:Crossing the Pond–10 May 2012–for help with those immigrant ancestors in the 18th and 19th centuries.Comparison Shopping-8 May 2012–determining if you have the “right” person.Registration and additional details are here:http://www.casefileclues.com/webinars_neill.htm ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
. Do not assume that the local records offices will be open just because you have made an unannounced thousand mile trip. Contact the local offices before your scheduled arrival just to be certain there will not be any unexpected closures. Also ask if there are days that the office is less busy (perhaps days when court is not in session). The short amount of time spent preparing may be well worth it. Local staff may even give you suggestions on where to stay. I know of several counties where the best motel may be in the next county. Never hurts to ask. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
We have just released our latest series of webinars: Charts, Charts and More Charts Google Docs Proving Ellen What Is Unwritten You can order all four for $20.00–just put “florence” as the coupon code at checkout.That’s a savings of $11.00! Charts, Charts, and More Charts Charts, Charts, and More Charts discusses a variety of charts that can be used to organize your research. No family group or pedigree charts here–I discuss a variety of customized charts that I’ve used for years in my own research. Whenever I’m confused or something doesn’t make sense, I make a chart as readers of Casefile Clues already know. This webinar is geared towards advanced beginners or intermediate researchers. $8.50. Google Docs This webinar discussed using Google Docs, particularly sharing, collaborating, and publishing your content […]
At least in one sense. Toddlers are often asking “why?” and are very inquisitive. Genealogists need to be asking the same thing. Why did my ancestors move from point A to point B?Why did they wait five years to settle up the estate?Why did Grandma say she was born in Iowa when she was actually born in Ohio?Why did they attend the “wrong” church? Sometimes there is no way to find out why, but often just thinking about it can move your research along. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
It is not always possible to tell, but consider finding out where the boundaries of your ancestor’s property came from. A survey plat of my ancestor’s farm in 1940 indicated that the boundaries of his 100+ acre farm came from: the section line the railroad a hedge row The railroad is no longer there, but that “line” still exists as the property north of the line is not owned by the person who owns my ancestor’s farm today. Learning a little about the “lines” of your ancestor’s property may give you a quick history lesson. It may even give you a few genealogical clues in the process. And if your ancestors were city dwellers, consider learning the origin of the name of the street on which they lived. […]
Seeing this image from an 1874 county atlas made me think of a possible transcription or indexing error that can be particularly frustrating. The owner of part of the northern part of this section of property is “B. Urton.” It certain would be easy for the name to be indexed (particularly if OCR is being used) as “Burton.” Just a thought! ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
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