juli 23, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

Legacy Tree Onsite in Istria, Croatia: One Peninsula, Three Identities

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers located in Istria, Croatia, to share some of the nuances of genealogical research in Istria.

Istria is a peninsula in the Adriatic Sea belonging to Croatia, Slovenia and Italy. Its name derives from the name of the tribe Histri. When the Roman army invaded their capital in 177 BC, the Histrian king Epulon, his guard and their families committed mass suicide, choosing death over slavery. A few stones left from that period can still be seen in the open-air museum of Nesactium (known as Vizače in Croatian).

Nesactium (Vizače) Hillfort, Istria, Croatia.

Rome was not the only foreign power to rule Istria from afar. Over the centuries, Istria was ruled from Venice, Ljubljana, Vienna, Belgrade and Zagreb. Due to this history, records for Istria are held in various archives. The main genealogical archives for Istria are in Pula, Pazin, Rijeka and Zagreb, all cities in Croatia. However, some records are also held in the archives of Koper in Slovenia and Triest in Italy.

The Three Official Languages of Istria

For genealogical research in Istria, it is very useful to know the names of towns in all three languages, because records will be in different languages depending on the time period and area. There are three official languages on Istria: Croatian, Italian and Slovene, in addition to a few ancient languages and distinct dialects. The table below shows a few examples of town names in Croatian, Italian, and Slovene:

Croatian	Italian	Slovene
Istra	Istria	Istra
Pula	Pola	Pulj
Pazin	Pisino	Pazin
Rijeka	Fiume	Reka
Zagreb	Zagabria	Zagreb
Kopar	Capodistria	Koper
Trst	Trieste	Trst
Mleci	Venezia	Benetke
Rim	Roma	Rim
Beč	Vienna	Dunaj

Changing Borders

State borders in Istria shifted several times in the last two centuries. Every time new borders were drawn, there were consequences in the record-keeping as some dioceses and even parishes were split and redefined. Therefore it is vital for a researcher to know the history of the area. The main question before beginning research is to know when the parish was created and which towns were included in each parish.

The majority of the registers for Croatian Istria are still held by local parishes or in the archives of Pazin, Poreč, Rijeka or Triest. The original books are generally still held in the churches by the local parish priests. However, sometimes smaller parishes were incorporated into a larger, neighboring parish, and then the books will be held by that parish. The first step in determining where the parish registers are for a certain town is the National Archive of Pazin, Državni arhiv u Pazinu (DAP). This archive holds a list of parish registers and family books for all of Istria, both in book form and available online. Their website is in Croatian and English, though not all English pages work properly so it is a good idea to also search in Croatian with Google translate.

Duplicate Register Books

The dioceses of Triest, Poreč-Pula and Rijeka hold duplicate books of births, deaths, and marriages from every year from each parish from 1835 until World War II. Unfortunately, there are no indexes or family books (status animarum) that can be used to narrow down the research. This means research is a bit more challenging for bigger towns where there were several hundred births registered every year. Another difficulty in researching in cities is that the baptism could be a couple of months after the birth, so knowing the exact date of birth is crucial for successful research.

The Diocesan Archive of Triest, “Archivio storico diocesano di Trieste”, holds parish register copies for all of Istria except for the southern and north-easternmost parts for the period from 1835 until the end of the World War II. The Archdiocesan Archive of Rijeka, Arhiv Nadbiskupije Rijeka, keeps the duplicates for some northeastern parts of the peninsula that are not known as Istria but are called Čičarija and Kvarner. The territory of today’s Diocese of Poreč and Pula comprise all of Croatian Istria. Its Diocesan Archive of Poreč-Pula, Porečko-Puljski biskupijski arhiv, holds the majority of duplicates from 1827 to the present. This archive is not open to public but allows access to professional historians who must write an application letter for admittance.

There are few languages used in the duplicate records: Latin, Italian, Croatian, Slovene and German. There are also two different scripts used: Latin and the German Gothic alphabet. Personal names were also translated into the language of the record in the 19th century. For example, a boy named Josip was born in Pazin, but when he got married in Pula he was recorded in Italian as Giuseppe, and when he died in Dekani, Slovenia his name was written as Jožef. For some names this is complicated further with dialect variations: the English ‘John’ is equivalent to the names: Ivan (Slavic), Ioannes (Latin), Giovanni (Italian), Janez (Slovenian), or Zouanne (a dialect). Because names were translated into the language the priest was using at the time, researchers should not make assumptions about the ethnicity of the person based on a given name alone.

Priests copied out duplicates from their parish registers very year in December or January for the past year. Since they were copies, the handwriting is generally legible, nicer and often calligraphic from the mid-nineteenth century. Using duplicates is sometimes the only possible way to research a family if the originals no longer exist, but it is important to be aware of possible mistakes that occurred while copying data.

An example of a mistake in the duplicate registers.

Digital Copies

Digital copies of parish registers before 1900 from the Croatian State Archives are available from FamilySearch. The copies are from 40-year-old microfilms, so they are in black and white. Fortunately, these copies were made before the Croatian War of Independence (1991–1995). Due to record destruction during the war, these black-and-white digital copies are the only remaining copies for certain places and time periods.

A very early baptism dated 1 February 1537, Labin, Croatia, from FamilySearch. Zaharija Dragonja (Zacharias Dragognia) baptized a girl called Matea, the daughter of Juraj Božić (Georgi Bosic).

Digital copies of microfilms and the microfilms themselves are still stored at the Croatian National Archive in Zagreb, Hrvatski državni arhiv (HDA), for the all of Croatia. This archive also keeps many family books in addition to the digitized parish registers, and the latest copies are in color. The archive is housed in a palatial building built in 1913 in the Art Nouveau style and has a huge reading room with a beautiful ambience. If you need access to these records, one of our onsite researchers would be happy to assist!

The reading room of the Croatian State Archives.

If you need help researching your Croatian ancestry, the team at Legacy Tree Genealogists is experienced at navigating the challenges presented by changing borders and record destruction to extend family lines as far back as records will allow. Our network of onsite researchers have access to the archives you need to make serious progress on your family history. Contact us today to discuss your research goals and request a free quote!

juni 26, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

Legacy Tree Onsite: New England Historic Genealogical Society

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. We asked one of our researchers to share the ins and outs of visiting the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) in Boston.

Planning Your Trip to the New England Historic Genealogical Society

Located on Boston’s famous Newbury Street, the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) is close to anything and everything. Newbury Street is a shopper’s paradise, and all kinds of hotels are within a 15-minute walk, from the five-star Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental and the exquisitely beautiful Fairmont Copley Plaza to a Sheraton, Hilton, Westin, and Marriott, plus several boutique hotels.

New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS)

The New England Historic Genealogical Society does not accommodate parking. The closest parking garage costs $40 to park over 90 minutes. NEHGS is between two “T” or subway stops for economical visitors. The Arlington “T” stop is at Boston Public Garden, two blocks east, and the Copley “T” stop is across from the Boston Public Library, one block west and one block south. Also, an Amtrak Station is a ten-minute walk away, just off I-90.

The New England Historic Genealogical Society is member-based. Individual members pay $89.95 USD per year for on-site and online access. Non-members may purchase a day pass for $20 USD. If you take the free tour on Saturday mornings (not every Saturday, so call ahead!), you are welcome to stay and research.

Visiting the New England Historic Genealogical Society

The first floor has a small bookstore to the right on the entryway. Check-in is to the left. The Rotunda in front is stocked with how-to guides, an international reference collection, and teller windows from a previous life. A break room is on the other side, next to the bank vault, with more books. The elegant wood paneling, old paintings, intricate fireplace, and period chandeliers give it an antiquated and inspirational vibe.

The second floor holds meeting rooms and the third floor, administrative offices. The fourth floor contains the microtext collection, including microfilm and microfiche. It also has two scanners and a genealogist to assist in operating them. Collections include New England vital records, deeds, probate records, and city directories as well as items like Department of Motor Vehicle records.

The fifth floor is the reading room. It contains 40,000 state, regional, and local histories, a large table, and at least one genealogist. A branch of the American Jewish Historical Society is also housed on this floor. Manuscript requests are made here.

The sixth floor is more administrative offices. The seventh floor is the largest research floor, with six large tables comfortably spaced and six computers with access to newspaper databases and other subscription websites, including Ancestry and Fold3.

The corner to the right as you enter has current genealogical periodicals. The corner across the room has bound issues of older NEGHS periodicals. The corner to the left as you enter has a genealogist at a desk and shelves of several collections, including bound issues of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record and The American Genealogist, and every volume of Mayflower Families and The Great Migration. The opposite corner has a table with several computers. A collection of 30,000 published family histories are in the attached room on the left.

The bulk of NEHGS’s collection are here. An off-site location houses new and less popular collections that can be accessed with a week’s notice. Off-site collections include unpublished manuscripts. In total, NEHGS houses over 1,000,000 manuscripts. Since only about 20% of NEHGS’s collections are online, a visit could be well worth your while.

Researching at NEHGS

I brought three family names to see what I could find at NEHGS. All three are old eastern Connecticut names: Janes, Slafter, and Fenton. I found that each name had its own published family history and two histories definitely had my lines! Interestingly, the two books with my lines were published in the late 1860’s.

My favorite find on the fifth floor was a published Guide to Diaries in the R. Stanton Avery Special Collections of the NEHGS. Diaries are my favorite records since they have the most potential for giving insight into personalities and daily lives. Examples of information on diaries are: “Thomas Brewer, 1798, unspecified location,” “James Cox, 1779 – 1782, on ship,” “John Fiske, 1607 – 1676, Chelmsford and Wenham, Massachusetts,” “Julia Moses “1837 – 1918, Boston,” “Louise More, 1876 – 1945, NYC socialite,” “Susan Sparrow, 1833 – 1910, Cape Cod.”

The New England Historic Genealogical Society has collections from every state and genealogists on every floor to answer your questions. It is well worth the visit. If you plan a visit of several days and know that you’ll need to get out and take a break, you couldn’t ask for a better location. The picturesque Charles River is a ten-minute walk north with a great view of the world famous MIT. The fifty-acre Boston Common is a historically significant park that is a ten-minute walk east, in the middle of Boston, with swan boats and a Frog Pond. And if Newbury Street doesn’t offer enough shopping options, my favorite mall, The Shops at Prudential Center, is a ten-minute walk west.

The New England Historic Genealogical Society is more than a research facility, it is a rich experience. As much as I enjoy finding information online at home, I value the experience of visiting repositories, especially historic repositories. Whether you research on or off-site, the collections of NEHGS can prove invaluable in extending your family history.

Do you have ancestors from the northeastern United States? Our excellent onsite researchers can access the New England Historic Genealogical Society as well as other resources in the Boston area such as the Massachusetts Archives, Boston Public Library, and National Archives to find what you need. Contact us today to request a free quote!

mai 22, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

From Beaver Pelts to Totem Poles: Key Canadian Genealogy Resources East to West

A guide to key Canadian genealogy resources, coast to coast!

East to west, Canadian genealogy resources offer an abundance of delights for family history! The record landscape begins with the first non-indigenous early 16^th century settlement by the French in present-day Quebec, and although things didn’t really start rolling in terms of nation-wide settlement until Confederation in 1867 — the birth of the Dominion of Canada — the tantalizing opportunity for many families to be traced in Canada as far back as the early 17^th century exists.

Yet where should your exploration begin? If your non-indigenous ancestor lived in Canada before Confederation, it’s a safe bet — with some exceptions for Métis and fur trade ancestors — that you’ll be hanging out in provincial record sets belonging to the eastern half of Canada, for the country had yet to expand significantly beyond what are now the following provinces: Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Following Confederation, you’ll be casting a wider net to embrace all of western and northern Canada: Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. And so, let’s take a look at some choice Canadian genealogy resources from east to west — aside from those available on sites such as MyHeritage, Ancestry and FamilySearch — beginning with three national gems. All are a must-visit whether online, onsite or vicariously through genealogy professionals!

Explore Pan-Canada Genealogy Resources

You’ll want spend a little ‘getting-to-know-you’ time learning about Canada’s history and settlement, each province’s specialized records sets, and civil registration dates. Start with the mini-history over at Canada GenWeb, and pause to explore all the provincial and territorial volunteer-donated treats.

Next, shift to Library and Archives Canada (LAC) to build on your knowledge of the history of each province and territory and their associated genealogy records. From LAC’s home page, select ‘Genealogy and Family History’ from the drop-down menu under ‘Search the Collection’. To the left of the ‘Genealogy and Family History’ page, select ‘Places’ from the menu, and begin exploring! Under ‘Discover the Collection’, you can also learn about resources available for researching fur trade and Métis ancestors, and all of Canada’s ethno-cultural groups. Make sure to have a rummage through LAC’s essential collection of databases, which can be accessed again from LAC’s home page by selecting ‘Ancestors Search’ from the drop-down menu under ‘Search the Collection’. Of intrigue here are the Land Petitions of Upper and Lower Canada, for in pre-Confederation days, the paper trail was often parsimonious with information concerning an ancestor’s origins or relations. However, if an ancestor petitioned for land — which many did — the details in a petition have been known to resolve some particularly stubborn questions! Best of all, links to free, digitized images of the original petitions are provided at the bottom of each database page under ‘How to Obtain Copies’. If you can manage a visit to LAC in Ottawa, you’ll be treated to so much more, for only a tiny percentage of their dizzying collection of holdings — LAC is the 4^th largest library in the world — has been digitized.

After LAC, head over to Héritage, LAC’s partner website, where you can access, for free, close to forty million digitized primary-source documents, such as parish registers, all of which are searchable.

Explore Eastern Canada Genealogy Resources

In Ontario, the Archives of Ontario (AO) is a must-access repository. AO houses so many key records — it’s the second largest archives in Canada — necessary to tracing families from the early days of settlement in the regions known as Upper Canada and subsequently Canada West. The most critical of these are AO’s probate and land records, and, although a bit more fortuitously available, church records and cemetery transcriptions. When sought-after mentions of family members and origins evade, they are often found in these collections. AO’s value does not end here, for their holdings embrace a seemingly endless supply of maps, photographs, books, immigration records, military records, municipal records, historical correspondence, and so much more.

Research in Ontario will also benefit from a visit to the Metropolitan Toronto Reference Library. Here, you can delight in finding a bevy of local histories, transcriptions of cemeteries, church records, early township census and population returns, immigration records and passenger lists, telephone books and city directories, newspapers and transcriptions, guide books, rare historical books, maps, and more… not only for Ontario, yet all of Canada.

Quebec is one Canadian province in which you might expect to trace ancestors to the 17^th century. Also, if you suspect an early ancestor arrival to Canada — whether of French heritage or not — yet cannot place that ancestor, do try Quebec. Loyalists from the US, Scots, Irish, people of African descent, and many other groups started arriving before the 1800s. The best places to explore Quebec ancestors are Généalogie Québec and BAnQ, or Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec. Généalogie Québec is a comprehensive online source which offers, among their numerous prized sources, the complete Drouin and LaFrance collections of Quebec vital records. BAnQ’s impressive resources allow you to search online for ancestors in digitized original newspapers, directories, and importantly, files of Quebec notaries, which often contain wills and death information. For Quebec research, you will want to brush up on your French language skills, or corral the help of a translator or willing friend!

Collectively, some families in the maritime provinces can be traced to the 17^th century, for many, such as Acadians, shifted from province to province. You may find that your research in the Maritimes will need to appeal to the Drouin collection of Acadian records.

For the individual maritime provinces, beginning with Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia Archives online genealogy guide is key, as are their digitized collections of early — dating to roughly the mid-18^th century — land records, census records, and historical newspapers. Next, an absolutely critical resource is the online, searchable Nova Scotia Historical Vital Statistics database.

Neighboring New Brunswick’s Provincial Archives have amassed a collection of thirty-seven compelling databases for you to search, and in many cases copies of original documents may be ordered. And, to augment your New Brunswick research, be sure to sift through the comprehensive listing of links to further treasures over at Can Genealogy’s page for New Brunswick.

Tiny, yet teeming with genealogy resources, Prince Edward Island’s PARO Collection is the place to begin. Here, vital records from the 1770s, census records and archival collections can be searched, and copies of original records ordered. Complement your research over at a favorite of PEI historians: The Island Register, a searchable trove of information. Finally, if you have early French PEI ancestors, the Archives Nationales d’Outre Mer offers scanned images of the original parish registers of Port-La-Joye, one of the first settlements of PEI (formerly known as Île Saint-Jean). Yes, here again, the French language will be a requirement!

Newfoundland and Labrador did not join Canada until 1949, and so its record system is distinct. Start learning about Newfoundland and unraveling family ties in the cherished, volunteer-run website Newfoundland’s Grand Banks Genealogical and Historical Data, which is crammed with transcriptions of historical documents of all manner, and directions to locate sources for originals. You’ll also want to explore The Rooms, Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Archives’ collection, embracing parish registers, wills, crown land records, and more key resources. Also, considering this province’s rich maritime history, you can explore shipping ancestors over at Memorial University’s Maritime History Archive, starting with a search of their Crew List Index.

Explore Western and Northern Canada Genealogy Resources

Post-Confederation vital statistics research in the western provinces and northern territories will be a slightly protracted affair, because the original records held by each province and territory are, for the most part, not accessible online. However, to ease your search, each provincial and territorial government vital statistics agency or archives offers searchable indexes or, in the case of Alberta, digital images of their vital statistics index, followed by instructions for ordering copies of original documents. If you can visit any western and northern provincial archives in person, hire a genealogist, or choose to appeal to any archives’ ‘research from a distance’ services, you are encouraged to access homestead — or land — records and probate records, which are all-important to genealogy research in western and northern Canada. While you wait for any of your requested archival documents to arrive, reward your patience by exploring what’s on offer at the following key resources!

If you are researching fur trade or Métis ancestors, you’ll certainly want to make use of the excellent Hudson’s Bay Company Archives offered by the Archives of Manitoba, followed by the treasured collection of online resources at the Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture. For early Scots Selkirk settlers, the Hudson’s Bay Company Archives is again your go-to, followed by the labor-of-love website Red River Ancestry.

If your ancestors hailed from British Columbia, be sure to visit the Vancouver Public Library, home to several indispensable online collections such as their British Columbia City Directories and Historical Newspapers databases.

Traveling north, supplement your Yukon research at the very helpful site Yukon Genealogy, or the Nunavut GenWeb site.

Finally, in the comparatively sparsely populated historical regions of western and northern Canada, research in newspaper announcements can be the answer to piecing together family histories. For a round-up of digitized historical Canadian newspapers, you’ll want to explore Can Genealogy’s comprehensive summary.

We hope you have enjoyed your east to west exploration of some key Canadian genealogy resources. Do keep in mind that many Canadian ancestors were an itinerant bunch, and so you may be tracking them in more than one place!

With these key resources you should soon be nudging your Canadian ancestors into view!

Do you need help tracing your Canadian ancestors? With genealogists specializing in all different types of research and onsite agents worldwide, we can help you track down those elusive records that might provide the clue(s) needed to extend your family line. Get started today by requesting a free quote.

april 30, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

“The Milkman’s Son”: Tips for Writing a Captivating Family History, and a Giveaway!

Randy Lindsay, author of The Milkman’s Son, shares tips for writing a family history others will want to read, PLUS a giveaway for a copy of his book.

Randy’s Story

In the summer of 2005, an ordinary trip to visit my dad changed my life. I should have known I was in for a surprise when he muted the sound on the television and had an actual discussion with me. Dad told me he was having dreams. He saw the faces of people he believed were his ancestors and even though none of these ghosts spoke to him, he knew they wanted their family history work done.

The responsibility for researching the family tree fell upon me. I became The Keeper of Names for both sides of my family. While I loved all of the work, the research into my surname was by far my favorite. The Great Lindsay Quest took me back as far as William “The Immigrant” Lindsay.” And that’s where I hit a serious brick wall.

William was born around 1800, in Ireland, but I could find no trace of him there. I switched gears and worked on other branches of the family tree. All that time, William taunted me. At least, in my imagination, he taunted me. Daring me to find him. Bragging about his skill in hiding from modern investigation techniques.

But I knew he couldn’t hide his DNA. I had it running through my blood. I pulled out the big guns, technologically speaking, and ordered a DNA test kit. Fortunately, they didn’t want any of my blood, just a little bit of spit. I sent in the kit and . . . waited.

Months passed by at a glacial pace. Then the results arrived. I scrambled to look through the information, looking for any evidence that would lead me to William’s location in Ireland.

Surprise!

William Petrauschke

I’m not a Lindsay. Not genetically. It turned out that I was a Petrauschke (pronounced Puh-trow-ski). Maybe it shouldn’t have been a surprise. Since high school, my siblings have teased me about being the milkman’s son. I don’t look like the rest of them. I don’t act like any of them either. The results sent a thousand thoughts reeling through my head. One emotional storm after another tossed my heart about.

It took some time, but I adjusted to having two families. Then my writer friends urged me to write about the experience. None of their efforts to persuade me worked. I wasn’t interested in writing about myself.

Then, one of my closest friends suggested that I had the ability to make this whole experience accessible to the many people who might be going through the same thing. In other words, it would help others.

Oh, horse feathers. How could I say no to helping others.

So, I wrote a memoir. People discovered I wrote about my family history and having my DNA tested and wanted to know how to do the same. These people realized they needed to make their family stories interesting or else nobody would read them.

Then it hit me. These stories were important. Future generations would benefit from know more about their origins by reading about the lives of relatives who had passed away. Since then, I’ve switched from writing fiction to helping others to tell their stories in a way that’s interesting for others to read. I mean, what’s the point of writing a family history if the readers are going to lose interest and put the story down after the first page?

Not only do I love teaching people how to write their personal and family stories, but I also want all of these amazing stories to reach as many readers as possible. Here are a few tips that I hope will help you craft an engaging story.

Limit Your Material

It’s impossible to write about everything that happens in a person’s life. Not only do you not have the time to write that much material, but even if you did the story would fill hundreds of books.

Find a theme instead. Choose a single aspect of the person’s life and write about that. Show the reader how the situation came about. Describe the related events that came afterward. Discuss how it affected the people in the story. And then tell us how it ends. Write only about that single event.

My memoir, The Milkman’s Son, is not the story of my life. It’s about how I discovered I had a family I didn’t previously know, how that discovery affected both sides of my family, and how it changed my life.

Don’t Start at the Beginning

The beginning of a story needs to grab the reader’s attention or else they probably won’t make it past the first page. True stories are no different. The beginning of your story should start at the point when things get interesting. There will be plenty of time to add in details you want the reader to know, once you have their attention.

An immigration story might start as the person, or family, boards the ship that will take them to their new home. That’s the point where everything is new and scary for the immigrants. Readers will be intrigued to see what happens on the journey across the sea and in the place where they plan to settle.

The Milkman’s Son starts with my dad telling me that his dead ancestors are visiting him in his dreams. Talk about an attention-grabber. My book starts where the story gets interesting.

Goals and Struggles

At the heart of every great story is a person with a goal. Humans are instinctively drawn to find out whether a person succeeds in obtaining any goal they might have. Then when obstacles are placed in the way of those goals, we have . . . struggles.

Struggles are the reason people read stories. We want to find out if the characters in a story can overcome adversity. Hopefully, to grow stronger and wiser in the process. That is a central concept in our lives. All of us face obstacles. All of us must deal with adversity. Reading about how someone else has managed to succeed gives the rest of us the courage to work through our own struggles.

The obstacles in a family story need to be related to the theme, or event, you are writing about. Obstacles in paying off a student loan might be a distraction in a story about a young woman dealing with a fractured relationship with her sister.

For example, the obstacles I used in The Milkman’s Son include long-established beliefs about what it meant to be family, emotional conflict over meeting my new family, and financial difficulties in making a second trip out to visit my biological father.

Include Plenty of Details

Details bring a story to life. Without them, the readers are basically staring at an empty stage. Without details, the readers have nothing to picture in their mind’s eyes. Writing about a trip to your grandparent’s house will have a greater impact if you give it a colorful description. The more details you include, the more vivid a picture you place in the reader’s mind.

Compare the following two sentences.

I drove my car over to grandma’s house.

I drove my cherry-red 1967 Camaro, along the crowded I-17 freeway, to Grandma Jenny’s paint-peeling, two-story house.

The first sentence tells what happens, but the second sentence allows the reader to visualize what happens. It’s the details in the second sentence that makes the reader feel as if they are right in the middle of the action. And for me, that’s what writing memoirs and family histories is all about, letting readers experience the lives of their ancestors.

Keep the memory of your family members alive with stories that are interesting enough to grab the attention of future generations. These simple tips are a good start to writing family stories that people will want to read.

Win a Copy of the Best-selling Memoir, The Milkman’s Son

The Milkman’s Son reveals author Randy Lindsay’s family tree, pulling back layers of new information as he gets closer to the truth—a biological father, siblings, and family members he never knew about.

This is a story of accepting, forgiving, reuniting, and, most importantly, it’s about the bonds that connect us and the unconditional love that makes us feel like we belong.

To learn more or to purchase your own copy, visit: https://milkmanssonbook.com/

win a copy of "The Milkman's Son"

1 winner
Value:
$24.99
Prize:
FREE book

Win a Copy of "The Milkman's Son"!

Ended

april 17, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

Forensic and Probate Research Frequently Asked Questions

Legacy Tree Genealogists has a dedicated probate research division, and has been servicing the forensic needs of attorneys, paralegals, estate administrators, fiduciaries and investors since 2004. Check out our forensic and probate research FAQ.

What is forensic genealogy?

Forensic genealogy is genealogical research in relation to legal matters. This most often involves genealogical research to define the identities and locate contact information for potential heirs based on descendancy. While often involved in matters of probate, forensic research has additional legal applications, such as in real estate investments, mineral rights investments and unclaimed property. See How Can Investors Benefit From Probate Researchers for additional information.

What is a forensic genealogist?

Traditional genealogists generally research only backwards in time to find further ancestors. Forensic genealogists, also referred to as probate researchers, start with a decedent, researches backward in time only as appropriate according to individual country or state succession laws, then researches forwards in time to define extended family members and potential heirs to the decedent.

How do I hire a forensic genealogist?

If you’re interested in hiring Legacy Tree Genealogists for estate research, also called probate research, forensic genealogy, heirship research, or heir searching, here’s some helpful information:

Legacy Tree has experience working with Public Administrators, court-appointed administrators, individual executors, and even geneticists in their quest to account for heirs of common ancestors.
Unlike many probate research companies, we do not work on a commission that takes a percentages of the estate. Each hour is billed and appropriately accounted for as we strive to productively accomplish the work as quickly as possible.
We provide copies of all documents used to assemble the relationships presented, which are accompanied by citations for easy reference.

How much does probate research cost?

Payment is required in advance for a minimum of five hours used as a research retainer to initiate the research process and the corresponding Affidavit of Diligent Search for Kinship. If additional research time is required to bring the research and affidavit to completion, the client will receive a summary update of the results achieved so far and an estimate of the amount of any additional research time required. This will include cost proposals to present to courts for release of funds to facilitate advance payments. This can generally be delivered within several days. If there are time constraints we need to work within, please let us know and we will make every effort to meet those deadlines. Client approval and payment is required to proceed.

In addition to the hourly rates for research services, Legacy Tree may need to bill for outside services such as death certificates, marriage records, obituary notices/local newspaper searches, background checks (on relatives discovered, for potential relationships to other individuals), database fees, and other incidentals that may occur. Client approval will be obtained prior to incurring any additional costs.

How long does probate research take?

After client approval of proposed costs, the final report has a turnaround time of about 3-8 weeks. If success is reached with additional time remaining, the balance will be refunded upon conclusion of the project.

In order to facilitate the providing of research results as soon as possible and/or preserve estate assets, certified death certificates for deceased persons affecting the line of succession will not be purchased at this time. Deaths will be exhibited with the use of databases such as the Social Security Death Index and exhibited by documents such as obituaries. Should the client later require the securing of certified certificates, Legacy Tree Genealogists can assist the client in the ordering of certified certificates that the various identified heirs at law cannot produce themselves and make them available in an addendum report.

If an affidavit is required, these are generally completed in 8-10 weeks, depending on the availability of needed official records and certificates that may need to be ordered through the mail.

What is the difference between an affidavit and simply a report?

The kind of report you need us to provide for you depends upon the goal which you want to accomplish. All reports explain the results of the diligent and unbiased research conducted in a narrative written form. If the report is going to be used as evidence in legal proceedings, or as the basis to begin legal proceedings, the report must be in the form of a notarized report of written sworn testimony called an “affidavit.”
what is an affidavit

What are the key components of an affidavit?

An “affidavit” is simply sworn expert testimony presented in written form. The “affiant” is the person who signs the report as their personal notarized and sworn expert testimony.

Your affiant, the professional forensic researcher assigned to your case, begins the affidavit by swearing to a series of statements. Your affiant swears that they are:

An employee of Legacy Tree Genealogists.
A United States citizen over 18 years old age.
Credentialed.
Not related to the decedent or heirs.
Paid on an hourly plus costs basis and have no financial interest in the outcome of the case.
Have inspected or caused to be inspected documents.
Have personal knowledge of the facts and matters discussed in the affidavit.
Believe any statements made in the affidavit are true.

The affidavit then discloses the specific state laws the research was conducted to align with.

The affidavit also contains a series of summary charts overviewing the research results.

The main body of the affidavit is a series of facts describing the research results. Each statement of fact presented in a numbered paragraph and is accompanied by an exhibit showing the basis for the fact, including a full source citation. For example: sample affidavit exhibit
Finally, the affiant swears under penalties of perjury that the facts stated in the affidavit are true.

Will the affidavit say for sure who the heirs are?

No, only potential heirs based on familial kinship and the applicable state laws. Only a judge has the legal right to adjudicate heirship.

What if the court wants the affiant to testify in person?

As providers of expert testimony, we are happy to testify in person. However, in person testimony is rarely required by the court.

Can you answer my legal questions so I will not need an attorney?

No. As professional genealogists and not attorneys at law, we cannot offer any legal advice.

Can I, as the client, request changes be made to an affidavit or request that certain information be left out?

As providers of expert testimony, we must remain completely unbiased as to the research results, else our testimony would not be of value. If a client shares documents, directly related to the case, we are happy to include them. We cannot remove information from the affidavit and remain unbiased.

How long does an affidavit take to complete?

Normally an affidavit can be completed in 8-10 weeks from the time of client payment, depending on the availability of needed official records and certificates that may need to be ordered through the mail.

How am I charged for an affidavit?

Research is conducted on an hourly plus actual costs basis. As providers of expert testimony that is unbiased, we cannot accept commission or contingency agreements.

Is all forensic research conducted in the same way?

No. Forensic research is conducted in a way consistent with appropriate state laws. Each state has different intestate succession laws. See our article, Intestate Succession – 50 Laws for 50 States for additional information.

Can I help keep costs down?

Yes. Provide us with all the documents you can such and birth, marriage, and death certificates. We do not want to waste resources ordering and waiting for documents that you already have. Be open with us about your concerns so we can address them cost effectively.

How do I order my forensic research project?

Orders may be placed using our secure online order form here, or by contacting our Client Solutions Team at 800.818.1476 (U.S. and Canada) or 0800 0488530 (UK and International).

As a probate research firm, our forensic genealogists are experienced at providing expert genealogical research, analysis and reporting for legal proceedings involving kinship. Contact us today for expert probate research assistance.

mars 27, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

Legacy Tree Onsite: A Genealogist’s Guide to Australian Archives

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers to share an inside look at the resources available for family history research at various Australian archives.

Australian archives can be broadly sorted into governmental, public and private collections. They can occur at each of the three levels of government (federal, state and local), within other public institutions such as state libraries, or within private organisations – either the creating body such as the Lutheran Church of Australia or collecting bodies such as genealogical and historical societies.

There is a certain lack of consistency about which records can be found in which archives for any particular record type or series before the mid 20^th century. As such, it is important to know at least which state or territory your family member lived in.

It’s also important to remember several key points about searching these records:

Nearly all of the colonial and federal census household census returns and enumeration sheets have been destroyed.
Naturalisation was only relevant to non-British subjects.
Migration records were often only created and kept if the migrant was sponsored by the government.
Where US spelling uses a ‘Z’, Australian spelling often uses an ‘S’, and archive search tools often need both spellings used to return all records.

National Archives of Australia (NAA)

The National Archives of Australia collects governmental records created by the government and agencies of the Commonwealth of Australia, although certain records sit with specialist collections such as the Australian War Memorial or Parliamentary Library.

The NAA holds the following important records for family historians:

migration and naturalisation and defence post 1901 (Australian Federation) as well as some pre-1901 colonial records in these areas
WWI Army Service Records (B2455, First Australian Imperial Force Personnel Dossiers, 1914-1920)
naturalisation records for colonial South Australia and Victoria (other states pre-1901) records are still held at a state level. A large number of these records are available as digital images for free, and other records can be requested for digitisation at a cost.

Check the NAA for a more complete list: https://www.naa.gov.au/help-your-research/whats-collection.

Australian archives - Certificate of Naturalisation

South Australia Certificate of Naturalisation (NAA: A821, SET 1/NO 4 FOLIO 1 Page 1 of 4).

State/Territory Government Archives

In each state or territory (Australia has 6 states and 2 self-governing territories) there is an agency responsible for the archiving of government and governmental agency records. A different name is given for this agency in each jurisdiction:

South Australia – State Records of SA (archives.sa.gov.au)

Victoria – Public Records Office Victoria (prov.vic.gov.au)

Western Australia – State Records Office of WA (sro.wa.gov.au)

Tasmania – Tasmanian Archive & Heritage Office (libraries.tas.gov.au/archive-heritage)

New South Wales – NSW State Archives and Records (records.nsw.gov.au)

Queensland – Qld State Archives (archives.qld.gov.au)

Northern Territory – NT Archives Service (https://dtsc.nt.gov.au/arts-and-museums/northern-territory-archives-service)

Australian Capital Territory – Archives ACT (archives.act.gov.au)

These collections are less accessible than the National Archives records. All have online collection search functions; however the amount of material digitized or even indexed varies greatly. Some of the archives have partnered with providers such as MyHeritage, Findmypast, Ancestry and FamilySearch to provide access to digital versions of these records.

The collections are particularly useful for colonial migration documents, access to local government annual land assessments (if not stored with the local government), police and court files, wills and probate, school attendance, and government employment records. Some state records are managed by a different state body, but there are usually links from state archives to the relevant department. This includes vital records (known as BDM in Australia) and land titles in particular, but also some probate and will documents.

South Australia Certificate of Title (SAILIS: Certificate of Title Vol. 584 Fol. 30).

State Libraries

Most state and territory government archives grew out of their respective state libraries, with non-government collections staying with the state libraries after the service splits. These collections include diaries, journals, photographic collections, maps, organisational archives, and private archives. A number of religious bodies have chosen to archive their material with state libraries, for example the Uniting Church and the Anglican Church in South Australia have archived their records with the SA State Library. Even where a state or national organisational archive exists, such as the National Lutheran Archives, some individual parish records can be found in state libraries.

The rise of interest in family history research means that most state libraries have a dedicated section for family historians and have created significant indexes of their holdings where they relate to family history.

Australian archives - State Library of SOuth Australia, Map of Hundred of Bright

State Library of South Australia, Map of Hundred of Bright 1876 ([cartographic material] zsmp 830 bje 1:63,360 Bright 1876).

Local Government Archives

Records relating to the various local government bodies in Australia are kept in a variety of places and may include tax assessment (rates) registers, council minutes, and records of local health and welfare bodies prior to state management.

Larger councils may have their own archival facilities (eg the City of Adelaide Archives), while smaller councils may choose to co-locate records or deposit them with state archives. Others have passed records deemed as historic to local history groups for management and access. Due to significant reform within the local government sphere, there are currently only 537 local governments in Australia as of June 2018, so determining who holds which records is not too difficult. Most local council areas also have a local history group that works closely with the council on history and heritage matters and can help with accessing specific records.

Australian archives - assessment book from City of Adelaide

Assessment Book (City of Adelaide Archives, Series S5 Assessment Books, Series 2 1846-1849, Vol 1 1847-1848 p. 78).

Private Archives

As noted above, private organisations often use state archives and libraries as their repositories of record, but others maintain their own archives at a state or national level. Access may be freely available or heavily restricted, so it is necessary to contact each organisation individually. The most important of these organisations for family history are the various church archives and the collections they hold beyond parish registers.

Lutheran Archives, Hope Valley Parish Papers (researcher’s personal file)

Australia is one of the world’s largest immigrant-based countries, meaning the majority of the people living there have family trees that originate from somewhere else. If you need help researching your Australian ancestry, the team at Legacy Tree Genealogists is experienced at tracing and extending family lines, wherever they originate from. Our network of onsite researchers have access to the archives you need to make serious progress on your family history. Contact us today to discuss your research goals and request a free quote!

mars 26, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

8 Essential Tips to Maximize Productivity While Working Remotely

As employers and employees around the globe scramble to implement and adjust to remote work options in the face of COVID-19, for Legacy Tree employees, it’s just another day “in the office”. Legacy Tree Genealogists has been a remote-based company since its inception in 2004–allowing us to attract top talent regardless of geographical location, access records around the globe for our clients, and grow our company to allow us to serve even more individuals and families worldwide.

As work from home veterans, our team shares some of our best tips for overcoming common remote work challenges while staying organized and productive:

#1: Have a dedicated work space

Not everyone has a designated home office, but it’s crucial to have a private, quiet space for your work, free of distractions. Create a workspace you can walk away from (even if that’s just shutting a laptop), and stick to a regular work schedule as much as possible. This helps you mentally separate work from personal life.

remote work tips - have a dedicated office space

Elly Catmull, Director of Client Services in her dedicated office space.

#2: Establish expectations and accountability

Make sure expectations are clearly communicated. Are work hours set or flexible? How are team members accountable for their time, and how is success measured? At Legacy Tree Genealogists, we utilize time keeping software and KPIs so everyone knows what’s expected and can report on it.

#3: Collaborate with shared schedules and files

We love our project management software, and if you want free, Google also does wonders for helping with team organization through their shared spreadsheets and calendars.

For file organization, it’s tough to beat Dropbox. It’s fast, it’s intuitive, and up to a limit, it’s free. Another great cloud-based option for teams is OneDrive.

#4: Implement weekly to do lists

Once a week, our team members review a list of items they planned to complete in the previous seven days, mark off what’s done, and create a new to do list for the next seven days. This list is sent to a manager and becomes the employee’s roadmap for the next seven days.

Daily planning time or aimlessness is minimal because next tasks are already all mapped out. This also encourages more completion of “deep work.”

#5: Keep the team together digitally

Working remotely, it can be easy to feel isolated. One way our team overcomes this is through regular virtual meetings using software, such as Zoom. You can screenshare, whiteboard, and record meetings for later use. Tip: before you start a call, turn around and look behind you. This is what people will see on your Zoom calls. Make sure you want to share those things with others!

There are also great chat options, such as Slack, that help remote teams feel united and get “water cooler” time.

#6: Agendas and recaps

Every team meeting follows an agenda and includes an emailed post-meeting recap with assignments. This keeps us on-task and ensures that stuff gets done as a result of the meeting. One way to track pre-meeting topics is through Trello.

As items come up during the week, it’s easy to drop a note in Trello and then quickly create a meeting agenda based on those notes.

#7: Consolidated tasks

Most of us have rather boring, repetitive items to take care of – you know, checking the spam folder, going over audio notes, reviewing stats, etc. We’ve found it helpful to consolidate these little items into one big tasklist that’s taken care of once a week, all at once. That way, the rest of the week can focus on other more complicated things.

A Google sheet, Trello list, or to do list app works fine.

#8: Increase efficiency with routines

The more you hold yourself and your team to a routine, the less time needs to be spent thinking about when to do something. Holding team meetings on the same day and time each week or month makes it something no one has to think about. Scheduling the way we use our time each day, and holding ourselves as individuals to a routine, can also be helpful. One approach is to schedule the most complicated projects first thing in the morning, before hitting the inbox or answering the phone. That way those important things that take more brain power don’t get pushed out of the way by “fires,” and get attention before any late-afternoon drowsiness can set in.

As you embrace a work from home situation, or, look to refine your current processes, we hope these tips will be useful in ensuring your remote work situation is productive. Are there any tips you would add to our list?

By offering flexible work options, Legacy Tree Genealogists has established a team of leading experts with the knowledge and expertise necessary to help you connect with your ancestors and preserve your legacy for generations to come. There’s no genealogy “brick wall” too difficult for our team! If you’re ready to make serious progress on your family history research, get started today by requesting your free quote.

mars 2, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

RootsTech 2020 Recap: Celebrating 10 Years of Connection

A recap of all the happenings of RootsTech 2020.

There was a lot to celebrate this year at RootsTech 2020, and Legacy Tree Genealogists was there for it all. We discovered great stories, connected with friends new and old, shared our genealogy knowledge, and helped commemorate the conference’s 10^th anniversary.

The theme of RootsTech 2020 was “Discover the Story of YOU.” The story of each of us is made up of an intricate mix of not only our own experiences, but the trials, traditions, and adventures of the ancestors that came before us. This year’s theme resonated with us, since helping people discover their own stories and celebrate their family history is what we do best.

Legacy Tree Genealogists team members could be found throughout the conference, fielding questions, giving out prizes, and of course greeting attendees at our booth in the Expo Hall. It was great to see all those who stopped by to say hello!

With more than 300 classes to choose from, RootsTech 2020 featured educational opportunities for everyone. Conference attendees had two opportunities to catch the popular presentation, “DNA & Facebook: Finding Your Ancestral Community,” taught by Legacy Tree Genealogists’ team lead, Michelle Chubenko. Legacy Tree DNA Team Lead also gave several presentations in the Expo Hall, including, “Tips and Tricks for MyHeritage DNA,” and “Mitochondrial DNA Testing Plans.” Legacy Tree president, Jessica Taylor, also joined in on the presentation fun, offering a class titled, “Find Your Ancestors with MyHeritage SuperSearch.” RootsTech organizers have also made a selection of sessions available to watch for free in their Video Archive, including keynote and general sessions.

Paul Woodbury entertains and educates a crowd at the MyHeritage booth.

Wednesday’s keynote session opened the conference on a nostalgic note with reminiscences of RootsTech over the years. The dream of bringing together technologists and genealogists began a decade ago with a gathering of only 3000 and has grown to over 30,000 attendees, with many times that amount joining the conference virtually. Audience members were reminded of some of the incredible achievements in the industry since RootsTech began, including over 15,000 gallons of spit collected for DNA analysis! A giant digital scrapbook showed pictures of some of the inspiring speakers who have taken to the RootsTech stage during the past ten years, including Donny Osmond, Laura Bush, LeVar Burton, Buddy Valastro, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Scott Hamilton. Check out some of our recaps from previous years: RootsTech 2019, RootsTech 2018.

Joy was the theme of the keynote speech by Steve Rockwood, CEO of FamilySearch International, on Wednesday, specifically the joy of discovering the story of us. Rockwood’s sons have recently been documenting their 88-year-old grandmother’s life by sharing her past experiences and pictures on Instagram. They handle the technology, she tells the stories, and each is doing what is natural and comfortable for them. Rockwood encouraged audience members to rescue the stories at risk of being forgotten, our own stories and our ancestor’s stories.

The session came to an end with a reminder of a big reason why we do what we do. A group of the rising generation, the “YOU’s of tomorrow,” were introduced on stage among confetti and fireworks. The children and teens then traveled among the audience handing out 10^th anniversary commemorative pins.

RootsTech 2020 celebration

On Wednesday night as the conference wound down for adult attendees, over 20,000 youth between ages 11 and 18 flooded the convention center for a night of games and interactive activities, designed to motivate and excite them to discover their own history. Meanwhile, the Genealogy Business Alliance, co-founded by Family ChartMasters owner, Janet Hovorka, and Legacy Tree Genealogists president, Jessica Taylor, held their annual RootsTech Get-Together. The event was well-attended by industry professionals interested in networking and growing the genealogy sphere.

Legacy Tree Genealogists president, Jessica Taylor, with Thomas MacEntee, founder of Abundant Genealogy.

Amber Brown and Michelle Chubenko during the Legacy Tree Live broadcast.

Thursday marked Eastern European Day at the Legacy Tree Genealogists booth in the Expo Hall. The morning started with a Live Q&A featuring European Research Team Lead, Michelle Chubenko. Michelle answered questions users submitted about tracing their Eastern European ancestry, and provided research strategies and advice for viewers. If you missed the Live broadcast, you can watch the replay of the broadcast on the Legacy Tree Genealogists Facebook page. The video replay will also be available on our YouTube channel.

Adoption advocate Leigh Anne Tuohy gave a humorous and heartwarming address at the conference’s second keynote session. Tuohy may be best known as the woman portrayed by Sandra Bullock in the movie The Blind Side, telling the story of the Tuohy family’s adoption of Michael Oher, who eventually became an all-American NFL player. Michael was mired in the foster-care system and “society had deemed [him] valueless” when the Tuohys took him in. Tuohy stated that sometimes “all [people] need is a chance. They need someone that believes in them.” She illustrated the power of one person making a difference with the tale of a child on the beach throwing starfish into the ocean, one-by-one. We may not be able to help everyone, but we can help someone. She related this idea to family history research: “the one name you find can be the difference-maker.”

Capturing stories through photographs was a main theme of Friday’s keynote session as Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer David Hume Kennerly took to the stage. This “witness to history” shared many of his incredible photos taken over 55 years, including his first, of the family cat. Kennerly described the stories behind each photograph, inspiring us to look more closely at photos of our own families to discover the deeper narrative. Despite witnessing some dark moments in history, Kennerly remains optimistic that “human nature and spirit prevail over adversity.”

On Friday night, RootsTech hosted a Young Adult After-Party. Attendees enjoyed dancing, cultural experiences, and other activities to celebrate their unique stories. They also joined the regular RootsTech crowd for Friday’s evening event, where family-friendly comedian Ryan Hamilton had the crowd laughing.

Saturday’s keynote speaker was an exciting one for fans of both football and ballroom dance. Emmitt Smith, NFL Super Bowl champion and former Dancing with the Stars contestant, shared some of the stories he has recently discovered about his family history. An ancestor named Mariah was from West Africa, enslaved as a teenager, and spent her life in Burnt Corn, Alabama. She became a stalwart family matriarch, keeping her loved ones together as best as she could “with the strength of a thousand people.” Finding his ancestors made Smith feel as if “their souls were released from heaven.” Smith talked about other ancestors, coaches, mentors, and family members who have influenced his life, claiming he stood “on the shoulders of giants” to accomplish his dreams.

Photo courtesy of RootsTech

RootsTech 2020 did more than ever before to inspire the rising generation, the “YOU’s of tomorrow.” Saturday was Family Discovery Day at RootsTech where genealogy enthusiasts of all ages and families of all kinds came to the conference together for speakers, classes, and fun crafts, games, and exhibits in the Expo Hall.

Our team enjoyed celebrating the “Story of You” with so many of our followers. With RootsTech 2020 in the books, we look forward to connecting with many of you at one of our other scheduled conferences for 2020.

The experts at Legacy Tree Genealogists are here to help you connect with your ancestors and preserve your legacy for generations to come. Get started today by requesting your free quote.

februar 21, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

Legacy Tree Onsite: Genealogy Research at the Pest County Archives in Budapest, Hungary

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers in Hungary to share an inside look at the resources available for family history research at the Pest County Archives located in Budapest, Hungary.

The Pest County Archives | Pest Megyei Levéltár

Pest county (Hungarian: Pest megye) was formed after World War II, incorporating a part of the former Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun county, as well as smaller parts of adjacent counties. Historically, Pest County (Pest megye) has been part of kingdom of Hungary since the 11th century and its territory was mainly the north-eastern part of the modern Pest County.

Today, Pest County Archive (Hungarian: Pest Megyei Levéltár) is one of the twenty county archives in Hungary and located in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, and has a regional branch in Nagykőrös.

Pest County in present-day Hungary. Source: https://pestpilis.hu/kettevalik-budapest-es-pest-megye

Additionally, the archive keeps records both from the historical Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun county, and some from its present borders. For example, Pest county archive holds civil records of the villages of Tárnok and Diósd, which were historically part of Fejer county, but now are in Pest county. A good research practice is to check with each modern County Archive to determine whether or not it has historical records from a particular town. Note: The city of Budapest has a separate administrative status and is not included into Pest county.

Map of Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun county, 1796, from Pest County Archive Guide, 2004, accessed on https://hungaricana.hu/

Accessing Records at Pest County Archives

Pest County Archive building in Budapest (From the researcher’s personal files)

Although the archivists are available to assist and advise you on the archive’s resources, they do not provide research services. Research work must be done by the interested person or their representative. Both Hungarian and foreign citizens alike have access to the archive’s holdings. It is advisable to contact the archive before the visit, via email or by phone, in order to request the records. You will be notified, when you can come to research. Access to records is granted from one to eight working days after the request, but the average is three days.

Research room at the Pest County Archives (From the researcher’s personal files)

Upon arrival, you will need to present your ID and complete a registration form. In case of successful research, you order copies of the found records or take copies yourself, having paid a photocopying fee. Contact information and research room opening hour are available on the website.

Location: Vágóhíd utca 7, 1097 Budapest
Reading Room Hours: 8:00 – 15:00 [8am-3pm]

Available Collections for Family History Research

A list of collections is available for download on the archive’s webpage (in Hungarian), or it can also be searched on the Digital Archival Portal:

The online services of the National Archives of Hungary (MNL) and Budapest City Archives (BFL) can be accessed through the Digital Archives Portal. Here you can search in the combined databases of registry and digital contents of the archives, register as a researcher, submit document requests or contact our client services.

The main collections of interest for genealogy at the Pest County Archives include:

Church records of Pest-Pilis-Solt and Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun counties (duplicates), 1828-1895
Civil records from Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun/Pest counties (duplicates), 1895-1983
Censuses and tax-payers lists from Pest-Pilis-Solt county from feudal period, listing names and size of the land plots
Censuses of the County General Assembly of various subjects, 1702 – 1848
Tax records, 1701-1770
Election lists, 1877-1950, containing valuable data from several elections, including names and occupations of those, who had the right to vote
Court records, notary records, probate records, 1875-1949
Obituaries, 19th – 20th centuries
Archival collections of prominent families and personalities, 1569-1965
Nobility documents, coat-of-arms and stamps

Civil Registration Records (duplicates)

While Hungarian church records are mostly accessible online through October 1895, not all civil records are, so oftentimes onsite archival research is the only way to research them. Hungarian Civil registration (Állami anyakönyvek) began on October 1, 1895 for births, marriages, and deaths and records are maintained by local civil registry offices.

The record format varies slightly over time:

prior to 1907 records were kept with a single event per page
beginning with 1907 the format is tabular with many events listed on the same page

It is important to note that the Pest County Archives, like other county archives, holds “duplicates” of the civil records. These duplicates are open for research, however, there is an important caveat to this: according to the Hungarian National Archives Regulations enacted in July 2014, “researchers are not allowed to take copies of the second copies of civil records”.

Researchers seeking copies of civil registration records need to contact the respective local civil registry authority and provide proof documents of family ties to obtain copies.

Example of civil marriage record held at Pest County Archives: 1920 marriage record of Gábor Erdélyi and Julianna Pregitzer.

Privacy Restrictions on Vital Records

According to the 2010 Law on Vital Records Procedures, the following limitations of access apply to vital records for research:

for death records – 30 years after the event
for birth records – 130 years after event
for marriage records – 86 years after the event

A catalog of the civil records held at Pest County Archive can be accessed on its website here.

With professional genealogists who specialize in Hungarian genealogy, along with onsite agents worldwide, we are able to help you identify the origin of your Hungarian ancestors, determine where the applicable records are kept, and obtain them for you so that you can learn as much as possible about your Hungarian ancestry. Contact us today to discuss your research goals!

januar 23, 2020 by Legacy Tree Genealogists 2 Comments

Top 3 Online Resources for Researching Your French-Canadian Ancestry

Legacy Tree works with researchers all over the world to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers, located in Québec, Canada to share his top online resources for researching your French-Canadian ancestry in Québec.

Québec has a vibrant cultural heritage that reflects on its family history records. Thanks to records preservation and the efforts of many individuals and organizations, a large number of documents are available and well organized. With technological advances, many repositories, both public and private, have been placing documents online, especially the parish registers which are the foundation for researching Québécois ancestors. This post will guide you through the most relevant online resources for researching your French-Canadian ancestors in Québec.

resources for researching your Québécois ancestry

Québec City. Source: www.wikipedia.org

1. Genealogy Québec

Genealogy Québec is a genealogical research website that hosts more than forty-five million files, documents, and images on Québec family history. It is the largest and most comprehensive Québécois database online, and it belongs to the Drouin Genealogical Institute. Created in 1899 by Joseph Drouin, a lawyer specialized in genealogy, from 1899 to 1937 it sold more than 1,500 family genealogies. The institute work was kept by Drouin’s children and grandchildren after his death and kept expanding its collection until it reached the current size. It is a paid resource and offers different, and affordable, options of subscription.

Roman Catholic parish records (LAFRANCE collection), 1621-1918

Roman Catholic parish records, reunited under the LAFRANCE collection, are an essential database available at Genealogy Québec and can be searched by the names of individuals, couples, or parish. A user guide provides excellent instruction on how to use it.

Map of Quebec’s catholic parishes up to 1918. Source: www.genealogiequebec.com

Québec was colonized initially by France (where the Roman Catholic faith was the established church until 1789) and did not have separate civil records until 1994. Hence, the best way to obtain genealogical data from Québec families is through Roman Catholic church records—they start in 1621 and cover baptisms (Baptêmes), marriages (Marriages) and deaths (Décès). Québec also received an influx from French and non-French Protestants, especially after 1760, when the British rule started, but this must be addressed in a different post as many specificities apply.

One thing to note is that the Roman Catholic territorial parish system was not so organized as the Church of England or the Church of Scotland. That was especially true for rural towns. It means one’s ancestors could have lived their whole lives at the same address but had their baptism recorded in one parish, their marriage in another, and their death in yet another. The most common reasons are that the priest of one given church was responsible for the sacraments in the whole region and that the parish borders changed through time. In practical terms, you will need to start your search where your ancestors lived and, if their records are not there, expand the research to the neighbouring parishes and towns.

best resources for researching your Québécois ancestry

An original document in the LAFRANCE collection. Source: www.genealogiequebec.com

Marriages and Deaths, 1926-1997

Marriages and Deaths is a detailed index of marriage and death forms recorded in Québec between 1926 and 1997. The collection includes all religious denominations, with more than five million forms. The original document can be viewed for the marriages, and a detailed user guide is available.

Obituaries, 1860-2019

This section contains a majority of the obituaries, memorial cards and headstones available on the website, divided into four sub-sections:

Internet obituaries, which includes obituaries published online from 1999 to today;
Newspaper obituaries, with obituaries from newspapers published between 1860 and today;
Tombstones, which contains pictures of headstones from hundreds of cemeteries in Québec and Ontario; and
Memorial cards, which includes tens of thousands of memorial cards published between 1860 and today.

All of these subsections are indexed and can be browsed using a search engine, and a comprehensive user guide is available.

Example of a newspaper obituary that can be found in the Obituaries collection. Source: www.genealogiequebec.com

2. Canada Census

The first step in most genealogical research is to study the existing census reports. Designed as a means to count the population for a variety of years, the census of Canada is taken every ten years, with the earliest records available in 1851. Due to privacy laws, the most recent census available is from 1921. The census can give a snapshot of the family at the time. It can also provide valuable information such as the birthplace of the individuals recorded, occupation, birth year, and familial relationships. One can often discover elderly parents or widowed mothers, aunts, or sisters living with younger members of the family.

An example of an image from the 1921 Canada Census from MyHeritage

Detailed transcripts of Canadian census records are available for free on FamilySearch, and the images can be found for a fee at MyHeritage or Ancestry.

3. Land Petitions of Lower Canada, 1764-1841

In the province of Quebec, the seigneurial system established in 1627 and used until 1854 was the primary form of land distribution. The King granted Seigneuries to members of the bourgeoisie, members of prominent families, and former military officers. As a proprietor of a seigneurie, the seigneur had privileges and obligations towards the King or his representative. The seigneur granted parcels (concessions) of his land to tenants called censitaires or more commonly, habitants. From 1763 on, Québec also granted land based on the township system, while the British North America Act of 1867 established Crown lands as a provincial responsibility. The Government of Canada retained land petitions for Upper and Lower Canada (Ontario and Québec).

An example of a land petition. Source: http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca

Each petition includes the original submission by the petitioner and the various administrative documents added by the different offices of the government reviewing the petition. Some small maps, particularly those set within documents, remain with the petitions. The search screen allows you to search by surname and given name(s). The entries reflect the spelling of names as they appear on the documents, some of which are barely legible. A thorough user guide is available.

With genealogists specializing in all different types of research and onsite agents worldwide, we can help you track down those elusive records that might provide the clue(s) needed to extend your family line. Contact us today to discuss which of our projects would work best for you.