Do not always assume you will remember why you reached a certain conclusion. In analyzing an 1870 census entry for an upcoming issue of Casefile Clues, I made some preliminary conclusions about the oldest female in the household. In reviewing the material later, it took me another ten minutes to “re-reach” those conclusions. It would have been easier if I had taken the time to write down my thought the first time. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
When entering dates into any database, check them twice. There is always the possibility that you copy something incorrectly and you may make an inconsistency where there really is not one. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
A minor naturalization was a naturalization of someone who immigrated as a minor and wanted to naturalize once they had reached the age of majority. These individuals didn’t have to wait quite as long to naturalize as did those who immigrated as adults. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
We use the names of people on documents as clues. Sometimes the reason why a person is listed on a document is fairly obvious, parents on a birth certificate for example. But a witness on a deed or a will. The witness may be a relative, friend, or another warm body. But the witness had to be of legal age and that may be a clue. And always learn why names are on records and in what capacity they are acting. What requirements were there to act in that capacity? ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Some of our ancestors migrated along paths that thousands of Americans took, but they didn’t settle along these national roads. They went where they knew people, or had a “connection” to a job, a farm, etc. The fact that your ancestor might have travelled part of the way on a common pathway might help solve some problems, but the larger problems will be solved by determining who else travelled with him from point A to point B. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
For any document, ask yourself “why was this document created?” Some will be fairly obvious: death certificate because someone died birth certificate because someone was born Others not so much, particularly some records in court and other cases. Asking why a document was created will help you to know why some things were included in the document and some things were not. Records we use were created for purposes other than genealogy–keep that in mind. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
If you are going to use a digital camera to take pictures of tombstones, documents, etc. on a research trip, practice using the camera at home. Try different kinds of books, different lighting, different times of day, etc. and see what works for you and what doesn’t. The place to learn is at home when you have time, not a thousand miles away when rain is threatening, it’s late in the evening, and the last day of your trip. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Do you try the same approach on every family? Are you always using the records that are “easiest” to research or the ones with which you are most familiar? Are you always using county records and never state records? Have you never used church records? Get outside of that same approach. Your ancestors all didn’t approach life the same way, you shouldn’t approach them the same way either. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Even if you can’t read the entire thing, at least read the history of the town or township where your ancestor settled. Don’t just look in the index or do a text search for the names of interest. Actually read part of it. You may actually learn something that helps your research. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Most of us had a life before genealogy that required specific skills and attributes. Is it possible to use those skills and approaches to problems to your own genealogy? Adapt your “other life” skills to genealogy–it might save you time and break down that brick wall. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
I’ve been analyzing some census records for an upcoming Casefile Clues column. Doing the analysis on paper and pencil was necessary because I was travelling. What I needed was colored pencils. Then I could use the colors to mark each person and help me to keep them straight in my head. I’m going to have to get a set of colored pencils. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
In rural areas, if you can’t find someone in the index, a manual search of the census may be necessary. If that doesn’t help you locate your person, try looking only the places of birth. Then when you find someone with the “right” place of birth, look very closely at their name. That’s how years ago I found Ulfert Behrens in Adams County, Illinois listed as Woolpert Barcus. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
A quit claim deed is one where someone (the grantor) gives up whatever claim they have to a piece of property. They aren’t guaranteeing they have title–they are just giving up their claim. A quit claim deed may have been drawn up quickly, but there’s not such thing as a quick claim deed. It is just a mispronunciation of “quit claim.” ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
Since my recent breakthrough at the Family History Library, I discovered an online posting about my newfound ancestor that lists dozens of his ancestor, including one on the Mayflower. It is important not to get too excited about these huge discoveries and take the to prove every link in the chain. Online materials, especially those that are unsourced or that only have filenames like “jones.tftw” as sources, should be used as guides, not gospel. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
This has been a tip of the day before, but I believe it is important enough to occasionally be repeated. Writing up your genealogy research is important. It will make you look more closely at what you have, your assumptions and your conclusions. Remember to write for someone who does not know anything about your family. You might be surprised at the things you learn. And consider submitting your finished product to a local genealogical or historical society quarterly in the area where your ancestor lived. It is a great way to preserve your research. And don’t forget to cite your sources. ———————————— Check out GenealogyBank’s Offer for Tip of the Day Fans!
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