Maps can be the very tool for breaking through your brick wall... or causing one. County boundaries that have changed over time can be overwhelmingly frustrating in your genealogy research. Here's a deeper look at understanding and dealing with shifting county boundaries. As anyone who has ever delved very deep into American research knows, the shifting boundaries of counties and even states can complicate research. You want to get right to the source, to know where to look for records of … [Read more...]
Finding the Owner
I love getting a bargain. Because of this, I’m a member of several local Facebook yard sale pages, and I check them regularly for things I need for my home or my children. However, this weekend there was a different kind of ad that drew my attention. A woman posted that she had gone to a yard sale where the people were selling the contents of a storage unit they had purchased. At this yard sale she found a folded up flag encased in a wooden frame, with a plaque that gave the name, birth date and … [Read more...]
Genealogy Research in the Southern United States
Quite often Southern records do not provide direct evidence of relationships and links between one generation and another. This is both a curse and a blessing. The curse, of course, is that without those explicit statements, there is always room for doubt about a relationship when we want total confidence in our tree. Therein lies the blessing as well. Because of the uncertainty, we must build a case for the proposed line through a preponderance of evidence. This requires an accumulation of … [Read more...]
Hereditary Societies and You
“My great-grandfather fought in the Civil War.” “I’ve always heard we were related to George Washington.” “We’re supposed to be descended from the Pilgrims who came on the Mayflower.” Family history and lineage societies aren’t just for the elite. There are literally hundreds of organizations offering membership to those who can trace their ancestors to a specific individual or event. From early settlers to presidential relatives, these groups span events covering the length of American … [Read more...]
Research Spotlight: Two Excellent New Jersey Resources
Because the New Jersey colonial census records and the U.S. Federal census schedules of 1790 through 1820 for New Jersey were destroyed, early genealogy research there can be especially difficult. However, two invaluable collections of historical and genealogical records can help overcome this obstacle. 1. Documents Relating to the Colonial History of the State of New Jersey What: During the late 1800s, William Whitehead, Corresponding Secretary of the New Jersey Historical Society, … [Read more...]
Elephind.com – Indexing the World’s Newspapers
Newspapers are often an under-utilized resource in genealogy, a treasure trove of unique information. The obituaries, social columns, news bulletins, various notices, and even advertisements are invaluable for their ability to tell us things we would have a difficult time finding elsewhere, as well as giving an authentic look into the culture of the time and place. In my own research, I have personally encountered more than one research mystery that only became clear when I searched for the … [Read more...]
Researching Cherokee Ancestry
As genealogists, we're often asked to research the likelihood and details of a client's Native American heritage. The Cherokee are currently the largest federally-recognized native tribe in the United States. Although they originally lived in the Southeastern United States, they were among the people forcibly relocated by the policies of President Andrew Jackson in the 1830s via the Trail of Tears. Today, many of their descendants are headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. They were known as … [Read more...]
Ancestor’s Photographs: Worth a Thousand Words
Discovering an ancestor's photograph is one of the highlights of genealogy research. Bringing a face to a name is a priceless addition to any family tree. Here are a few ideas to help you locate ancestral photographs. Photographs can be very interesting genealogical records, and we have been told are worth a thousand words. The picture above, taken sometime around 1908 at Warm River, Idaho, certainly tells something. Of particular interest is a couple in the back corner. They were Zina Gunter … [Read more...]