My children’s great-great-grandfather apparently disappeared around 1920. In a renewed attempt to find him, I have decided to look for him in areas where he had siblings, aunts, uncles or cousins. Some of his immediate family was in the Chicago, Illinois, area, but research on his parents indicates he had uncles and aunts in Texas and Canada–two places he could easily have settled. So when someone “disappears” don’t go “nationwide” until you have to. Keep in mind that they might have settled, even temporarily, near a member of their extended family. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
We rarely get “newsy” on Tip of the Day, but we’re making an exception for this issue. If you use the Social Security Death Index and are a US resident–please consider contacting your representatives in Congress and make it clear that the Social Security Master Death Index does more to prevent fraud than cause it. Learn more here: http://rootdig.blogspot.com/2012/01/threats-to-ssdi.html ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Someone testifies for your ancestor in a rather boring court case that apparently contains no real earth shattering information. The witness indicates he has known your ancestor for twenty-five years. That may be the biggest clue in the file if your ancestor has only lived in the country for ten. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Some relatives (close or distant) might not like what you tell them about their relative or ancestor. The husband of one of my aunts killed himself in the 19th century, most likely because he suffered from a debilitating disease for which there was no real treatment. A relative of this man was very communicative with me until I mentioned how the relative died and the fact that my aunt divorced him. That was the last time I heard from the correspondent. Some people do not want to hear anything unfavorable. Remember it is our duty to report accurately what we find, not to judge or lay blame. We don’t have to necessarily tell every negative story we discover, but somethings are hard to leave out without really altering […]
To celebrate getting really close to 11000 fans of Genealogy Tip of the Day on Facebook, we’re offering a special on my genealogy newsletter, Casefile Clues. Get 52 issue subscription to my Casefile Clues for only $11! Process your subscription securely here. Don’t wait–it’s been a while since we offered a subscription rate this low…around 20 cents an issue–Casefile Clues has no advertising either. Want two free samples of Casefile Clues? You can download them via this link-only your email (name can be made up if you want) is needed for the free samples–no credit card or anything and no obligation. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you’ve made a chronology for that ancestor and have a ten year gap in their life where you know absolutely nothing, consider researching it in more detail and consider the possibility that you have overlooked something. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
My ancestors are pretty much from rural locations. When they moved, they settled where they had kin or kin arrived a few years after they did. My English speaking ancestors in the States moved across the country with some of the relatives and my 19th century European immigrants to rural America did the same thing–settling where they knew people or where they later brought relatives from “home.” My children have ancestors in Chicago, Philadelphia, and other large towns.For some reason, I decided that urban people didn’t “move with neighbors” like my rural family did. I was wrong. The more I researched the families in urban areas, I learned that they too stuck with family or had relatives nearby. The point this time isn’t about “chain migration,” (although that […]
If there is a family or person you are “stuck” on, consider putting them aside for a day or a week and working on an entirely different person or family. Perhaps getting away from the “rut,” or at least into a different “rut,” will cause you to come back at that person or family with fresh eyes. Is there someone you’ve not worked on in ages that would be person to focus on while you’re taking time off from that “stuck” person? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Remember that when dealing with some record agencies, government offices, churches and private businesses, helping you with your genealogy might not really be their job. County record offices maintain records, but if you don’t know what you are looking for it makes it difficult for them to help you. Some offices may maintain old records, but their “real job” focuses on current day-to-day activities. Churches and private business maintain their records “privately,” and really don’t have to share information with you, even if great-grandma was a lifetime member or great-grandpa spend a “huge” amount there on his funeral. Just a few thoughts. It doesn’t mean that clerks have to be rude or impolite though! ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you have a listing of the children of an ancestor, how certain are you that they are actually listed in order of birth? The ordering may have been mere speculation on someone’s part years ago, particularly if they were born in an era before birth records. If any conclusions are based upon a birth order and there’s no evidence for that birth order, those conclusions may need to be revisited. ———————————— Check out our Genealogy Tip of the Day book!
Before going to the library, courthouse, or other research facility, considering creating a short “cheat sheet” of key terms you will use while there that confuse you. It may not be practical to constantly “google on the go,” and sometimes time can be saved by making a quick referral to doublecheck the meaning of a word or term. Grantor and grantee are two terms that people often get confused–and that confusion can easily cause the researcher to waste valuable time. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
This 1790 era deed from Harford County, Maryland, contains a clue in the “fine print” at the very top of the record copy of the deed. The item, underlined here in red indicates that the original was delivered to Wm. Rampley per order. The deed was from an Elisha Garrett to a William Gibson. The “delivery” notice is a clue that needs to be investigated. Don’t ignore those items at the very top, bottom, or side of a transcription. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If a guardian was appointed for your minor ancestor, the guardian usually was just to oversee the child’s inheritance or estate. The minor’s mother may very well have been alive and would probably have had physical custody of the child. Don’t immediately conclude that the guardian of a child’s estate was the person with whom the child lived. And do not assume because a child had a guardian appointed that their mother was deceased. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Some who have ordered webinars for download have had issues playing them. The “codec” that is needed can be downloaded here: https://www4.gotomeeting.com/codec?Portal=www.gotomeeting.com Let me know if that does not solve the problem by emailing me at mjnrootdig@gmail.com. Download links expire after 24 hours. If your link expired before you were able to download, forward me your receipt and I’ll resend. Thanks. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
I had a really good tip for today, but I didn’t write it down and now it’s lost. So that’s today’s tip–don’t rely on your memory. Write it down or record it when you think of it. Not later. And make certain that what you write makes sense. Handwritten “chicken scratches” are confusing and jumbled thoughts are as well. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
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