Enjoying a quiet day at home? Spend the day having fun while finding your ancestors. Enjoy this list of genealogy-focused rainy day activities. When you need a break from the hustle and bustle, a relaxing day at home is a great time to focus on researching the ancestors that have come before us. Learning about their lives and the struggles they endured can provide perspective, hope, and appreciation for the journey-takers that helped write the pages of our own story. Not sure where to … [Read more...]
Using University Special Collections for Family History Research
If you're not including university special collections in your genealogy research arsenal, you may be missing out on finds that add valuable context to your ancestors' lives. The Civil War diary of my first cousin, five times removed, detailing his experience at the battle of Vicksburg. The original botanical sketches for my great-great-grandfather’s work on South African flowers, including his handwritten notes. Advertisements for the barbering business of another … [Read more...]
How to Use Fire Insurance Maps for Family History Research
Fire insurance maps can be a useful resource in helping you learn more about your family history--we'll show you how! At the time of the 1880 census, 44-year-old stonemason Frederick Richter and his 41-year-old wife Wilhelmina were living on Beecher Street in Indianapolis. Also in their household resided daughters Matilda (age 17), Anna (13), and Rosa (7) and sons Frederick (age 10) and Harry (5). Their oldest daughter, Louisa (21), and her husband, John Heimbeck (23), were also living with … [Read more...]
Midwives, Menus and Meteors: Using Government Reports for Genealogy
Using government reports for genealogy can add valuable social and historical context to our research. Have you ever wondered what the weather was like the day an ancestor was born? Or what the conditions were in the orphanage where Grandma lived? Was there an epidemic that could explain your great-grandfather’s early death? As family historians, we frequently have questions about the “why” and “how” of our ancestors’ lives. Answers to these questions and more can be found in one often … [Read more...]