[Genealogy] I Just Want the Answers to My Question, DNA, and Your Ancestor Was

Thu Apr 16 10:01:36 CDT 2026

Need to unsubscribe? Manage here
<https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com>
.

** I Just Want the Answers to My Question

** AncestryDNA webinar

** Your Ancestor Was

----------------------------

I Just Want the Answers to My Question

---------------------------

[image: 1860-henry-trautvetter]
<https://rootdig.genealogytipoftheday.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/1860-henry-trautvetter.jpg>

Sometimes it is tempting to say “I just want an answer to my question. I
don’t want to research other records at all. Just tell me how to answer my
question.”

The problem with genealogy research is that sometimes one record does not
answer the question of interest and that other records are needed to
establish context which helps the researcher frame their search for the
“record that answers the question.”

Such it is with the arrival of the family of Henry Trautvetter in the
United States. The German immigrant family appears in Hancock County,
Illinois, in 1860 with their sons, a daughter-in-law, two grandchildren, a
child of unknown origin, and a farm laborer. The census makes no mention of
their arrival and the birth of the grandchildren in Illinois does allow for
an approximation of the arrival of at least the son who is the father of
those children. (*Note: the relationships among the Trautvetters in the
enumeration are known from other records–not this census entry*).

Henry does not naturalize and is dead by the 1870 census enumeration. A
complete search for information on his brothers Michael and Adam located a
reference to Henry in Campbell County, Kentucky, where Henry apparently
spent at least some time. Adam’s live in the 1850s is better documented
than Henry’s.

Adam apparently arrives in Campbell County, Kentucky, in the summer of
1850. Based upon documents located during that time frame, Adam knew where
he was headed when he arrived in the United States.

   - In July of 1850 Adam arrives on the *Marianne*, landing in Baltimore.
   ( He is listed as John Adam Trautvetter, aged 57.) It’s probably the right
   guy as the name, age, and location of origin matches.
   - On 5 September 1850, Adam (as  57-year old “Item Troutfeather”) is
   enumerated in Campbell County, Kentucky’s Second District, living in the
   household of Michael and Margaret Trautvetter.
   - On 6 November 1850, Adam and Henry Trautvetter, styled as “of Campbell
   County, Kentucky,” purchase thirty acres on four mile creek (Campbell
   County Deed Book V, p 442). No relationship between the two is given in the
   deed.

Michael Trautvetter had lived in Campbell County for at least a few years,
having purchased property there on 9 August 1845 (Deed Book  Q, page 194).
This is the earliest documented reference to a member of this Trautvetter
family living in the United States.

The information helps to establish a time frame for when Henry immigrated.
It is possible that he arrived by himself and sent for his family later.
There is no evidence indicating Barbara and the sons are in the United
States until 1860

The current goal is to locate immigration information on Henry, his wife
Barbara, and their sons Adam, George, and Christian. Their daughter,
Ernestine (Trautvetter) Mathes (wife of George Mathes), immigrated in July
of 1853 arriving in Baltimore with the family of her uncle George
Trautvetter. By 1860 Henry, Barbara and their sons were living in Hancock
County, Illinois, where other members of the family (except Michael who was
still in Kentucky) were also living. Michael remained in Campbell County
until the mid-1860s, but eventually settled in Hancock County, Illinois, as
well.

Why work on setting the time frame?

Because Henry was easily located performing simple searches of passenger
lists on his name. Broader name-based searches may be necessary. Those
searches may result in an unmanageable number of hits if the time frame is
too large.

And researching the family in an exhaustive manner may result in a record
that helps me more than I would expect.

And as I write this, I realize that I’ve not searched for declarations of
intention or naturalization for the Trautvetters in Campbell County,
Kentucky. Those records may help as well.

------------------------------------------------------------

Ancestry DNA webinar

------------------------------------------------------------

*Order today--see below*

AncestryDNA Results Analysis–2026

*Confused with your DNA results at AncestryDNA? *

Michael takes a commonsense, down-to-earth approach to genealogical DNA
match analysis. Emphasis in this presentation is on developing skills, not
on relying on automatic processes that are often misunderstood.
Presentation discusses Michael’s pooling technique that he applies to his
genealogical tree and his DNA matches.

Discussion will include: the importance of reviewing currently known
genealogical information, understanding centimorgans and predicted
relationships, working from the known to the unknown with matches, avoiding
rushing into brickwall work, reaching out to matches, tree-less matches,
clustering matches, tracking progress, documenting reasoning and analysis,
avoiding duplicating work. Then we’ll talk about setting new goals and
problem-solving.

Presentation length is approximately 90 minutes. Handout included. This
session is geared towards beginning and intermediate genealogists.

Michael brings genealogical knowledge and thirty years of classroom
teaching experience to his presentations. His work with math students gives
him a unique perspective on analyzing DNA matches.

Presentation will be released on 1 May 2026. Pre-orders are $45–order yours
today.
<https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=67LJNCR98WWKA>

----------------------------------------

Your Ancestor Was

----------------------------------------

At one point in time, all of our ancestors were living, breathing humans.
Sometimes in our search for records and answers this crucial fact is
forgotten. This week we discuss several facts and characteristics of
individuals that can cause them to be listed in records (or even sometimes
to be omitted). Are there features of your ancestor that you are
overlooking? Remember that your ancestor lived in an actual time and in an
actual place and interacted with other people. Perhaps these features or
these interactions, where applicable to your ancestor, have generated
additional records.

*Your Ancestor Was Born*Have you looked for birth records (both civil and
church)? Have you looked for baptismal records?

*Your Ancestor Was Married (Probably)*Have you looked for complete marriage
records (both civil and church)? Have you looked for marriage bonds and
marriage banns? Was there a notice in the newspaper?

*Your** Ancestor Died*
Have you looked for death records (both civil and church)? Have you looked
for cemetery or sexton’s records and obtained the information on the
tombstone? Have you looked for probate and will files and guardianship
records on any minor children?

*Your* *Ancestor* *Owned* *Land*
Have you found records indicating how the land was obtained and how the
land was transferred from your ancestor’s ownership? Have you looked for
property tax records? Have you looked for county plat books or atlases,
which may provide additional information on the property?

*Your Ancestor Paid Taxes*The census taker may miss your ancestor, but the
taxman usually does not. Personal property or real estate tax records may
help you establish when your ancestor resided in a certain area, when he
died, or when he obtained property.

*Your Ancestor Was Not Home When the Census Taker Came to the Door*Did a
child answer the door AND the census questions that soon followed? Did an
uncertain neighbor answer the questions instead of a family member? The
census will not tell you who provided the information or how reliable of a
source they were.

*Your Ancestor Had Neighbors*
Do records on these neighbors–particularly land, probate files, or court
records–mention your ancestor? Perhaps he is mentioned as sharing a
property line, purchasing items at an estate sale, or testifying at a trial.

*Your Ancestor Was an Immigrant*Are there records of his arrival? Are there
records of departure in the country from which she came? Are there records
of a declaration of intent or naturalization?

*Your Ancestor Was a Citizen*
Are there records of the ancestor voting or serving on a jury? If so, these
records may help you approximate the year of birth for your ancestor.

*Your Ancestor Was a Revolutionary Patriot*
If so, there may be records of oaths of allegiance, military service, or
military pension. The National Archives (www.nara.gov) or appropriate state
archives may have additional information.

*Your Ancestor Was a Civil War Soldier*If so, there may be Federal or state
records of his service and Federal records of his pension if he was a Union
soldier. If his service was Confederate, there may be state pension records.

*Your Ancestor Was Well-Known Locally*Have you read the gossip columns of
the local paper where your ancestor lived? There may be significant
information on your ancestor contained in these columns, which are
typically more valuable for smaller papers.

*Your Ancestor Was Less Than Dirt Poor*Perhaps the poor farm or almshouse
registers will mention him and his family. In some cases, particularly
before the American Revolution, church records may make mention of widows
and other families unable to support themselves. Was your ancestor forced
to farm her children out to strangers in order to keep them fed?

*Your Ancestor Was Dishonest*If he got caught, there might be court records
or newspaper accounts of his activity. If he did not get caught, what
records he did leave behind may be inconsistent or intentionally incorrect.

*Your **Ancestor* *Attended* *Church*
* Regularly*If so, the family may appear in records of the church beyond
the typical baptisms, confirmations, marriages, and burial records of many
congregations.

*Your Ancestor Was Literate*Did she leave any letters or diaries behind as
a record of her life and existence? Does her will or her estate inventory
mention any books by name?

*Your Ancestor Did Not Speak the Language*
Consequently was she unable to completely understand questions when asked
by various record officials?

*Your Ancestor Was Distrustful of the Government*
As a consequence did he answer census and other questions incorrectly? Did
he try and avoid being listed in any government records at all?

*Your Ancestor Had In-Laws*
Does your ancestor appear in any of their records, particularly as a
witness or a bondsman?

*Your Ancestor Was…*
…more than just a name in a file. He or she was a breathing, living person.
Think about all the events that might have happened in his or her life and
determine if any records might have been created in the process. Think
about how he or she would have responded to various events in his life and
determine if dates of significant events correspond to sudden moves or
changes in lifestyle. Remember that if our ancestors were not human, they
probably would not be our ancestors!

*Note: This post was originally printed in the former *Ancestry Daily News * on
19 May 2004. *
*Need to unsubscribe? Do so at:*
*https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com
<https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com>*

------------------------------------
Michael John Neill
Genealogy Tip of the Day
PO Box 17, Henderson, IL 61439
http://www.genealogytipoftheday.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://genealogytipoftheday.com/pipermail/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com/attachments/20260416/ee626d53/attachment-0001.html>