Dear Randy - How Do I Research My German Ancestors?

On my post MyHeritage Record Matches Keep Delivering News! (dated 4 April 2013), reader Dieter commented:

"I am born in Germany, but came to the US just 15 years ago. Trying to build my family tree is very difficult, because every search I put in relates to US findings only.  I have no family members, who immigrated to the States, can anybody help/advice me, how to get info about German ancestors?"

Dear Dieter,

I do not have any experience with researching German records, either online or in repositories, so I cannot give you first-hand advice.

However, whenever I do not know much about genealogy records or research in a locality, I try to consult published material.  My advice:

1)  Consult the FamilySearch Research Wiki for articles about German records and research in German repositories.  For instance:

*  This link provides a list of articles about "Germany" genealogical research
*  The main article titled "Germany" provides an overview, and online help links
*  FamilySearch currently has 50 record collections with "Germany" in the title
*  The "German Research Websites" wiki page lists many online education and record links

2)  There are 16 video courses on German research on the FamilySearch Learning Center.  See the list for "Germany" here.

3)  There are 99 databases on Ancestry.com with the word "Germany" in them.  You will need a World Deluxe subscription to access them.

4)  The Germany GenWeb Project has links for databases, resources, list of German states, Maps, Ship Lists, Kingdom of Prussia, and Map of Civil Registration.  The list of German states includes links to GenWeb pages for those states.

5)  There are mailing lists, with queries from researchers, and responses from other researchers, for Germany and each one of its states.  And more.  See the list at http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.ceeurope.germany/mb.ashx.  On the message boards, you can search for a place or surname to see if others have discussed the topic.

6)  If you know where your parents were born, lived, and died (and grandparents too), then you have a start.  If not, then you need to start with your parents (ask them for information if they are still alive, or obtain marriage and death records if they are deceased), and research back one generation at a time, searching for records and family information.  Each record you find may provide clues for more records.

7)  Do you have siblings still in Germany?  If so, do they have records, papers, photographs, etc. about your parents, grandparents, and earlier ancestors?  If not, do you have cousins who are children or grandchildren of siblings of your parents?

8)  There may be online family trees that include your deceased ancestors - the two largest online family trees for western Europe are ( I think!) at MyHeritage and GeneaNet.  There may be some Germany-specific online trees that I am unaware of.

You will have to work through the above websites one by one, carefully gleaning information that will help you.  You may find that there are some online databases with German records, but it's likely that you will have to search for records at repositories in Germany.

I would welcome advice from readers who know more about German research than I do, and I probably missed some obvious resources.  Please comment on this blog post, and I hope that Dieter will see them.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/dear-randy-how-do-i-research-my-german.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Review: "Tracing Your Colonial American Ancestors" Special Magazine

While at the National Genealogical Society 2013 Conference in Las Vegas, I visited the Moorshead Publishing (Internet Genealogy, Family Chronicle and History Magazine) exhibit.  Ed and Rick are great genealogy friends, and gifted me with a copy of one of their excellent special magazines - "Tracing Your Colonial American Ancestors," written by David A. Norris.

The publicity for this magazine says:

"Many Americans can trace at least part of their ancestry back to people who lived in the colonial era.  Each of the original American 'Thirteen Colonies' was unique, and within them, the counties and towns had their own distinctive characteristics.  Fortunately for the genealogist today, the Internet, libraries, archives, books, and microfilm are all available to help find and understand family history information from the colonial era.  I hope that this guide will provide useful ideas and tips for the reader who is digging into the fascinating history of this time."

The Table of Contents for this 84 page special magazine is:

*  page 6 - Colonial Newspapers
*  page 12 - Maps of Colonial America
*  page 15 - Revolutionary War Records
*  page 18 - Births, Marriages & Deaths
*  page 24 - The New Calendar

*  page 26 - Passenger Ship Records
*  page 30 - Tax Rolls & Colonial Censuses
*  page 34 - Militia Records
*  page 38 - Colonial Money
*  page 45 - Colonial Court Records

*  page 50 - The French and Indian Wars
*  page 58 - Indentured Servants
*  page 64 - Voting & Poll Books
*  page 66 - Political Committees
*  page 69 - Probate and Land Records

*  page 73 - Colonial Weights & Measures
*  page 77 - Brands, Ear Marks & Strays
*  page 81 - Predator Bounty Records

Each of these articles discusses the topic in general terms, and often describe online or repository records with information.  In addition, there is a web page (http://www.internet-genealogy.com/Colonial_Extra.htm) listing published and digital record sources of the colonial era, with a state-by-state listing.

The "Tracing Your Colonial American Ancestors" special magazine can be ordered here for $9.95 plus $4.50 shipping (PDF download is $8.95).  Other magazines and books can be ordered through their Book Store.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/review-tracing-your-colonial-american.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Disclosure:  I was provided a copy of this special magazine and was asked to review it.  The gift does not affect my objective evaluation of this magazine.

Tuesday's Tip - "Mondays with Myrt" Hangouts on Air on Google+ and YouTube

This week's Tuesday's Tip is:  Participate in the almost weekly "Mondays With Myrt" family history discussions on Google Plus or watch them on the DearMYRTLE YouTube Channel.

Pat Richley-Erickson, fondly known to many genealogists as DearMYRTLE, is one of the pioneers in communicating with researchers using technology - from AOL to blogs to webinars to Hangouts on air - she has been there.  Currently, Pat is doing "Hangouts On Air" using the Google+ feature, and the resulting "Hangouts On Air" are archived on the DearMYRTLE YouTube Channel.

The "Hangout on Air" feature on Google+ can have up to 10 persons on the panel - each using their own webcam, and can be shown on the screen and can speak (through their microphone) to the people watching the "Hangout on Air."  Pat controls everything from her computer, and her cousin, geneablogger Russ Worthington, helps her stay on track and monitors the comments from the Google+ Community.  I have been a panelist on several of the "Mondays With Myrt" and have enjoyed the experience, and hope that I've contributed some useful ideas and tips.

If you don't want to be on the panel of 10 people, or the panel has 10 members already, you can still watch the "Hangouts On Air" live from the DearMYRTLE's YouTube Channel with only a slight delay (seconds).  Any number of persons can watch the "Hangout On Air" on the YouTube Channel.

You can sign up to be a member of the Google+ DearMYRTLE Community (https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/104382659430904043232).  Here is what it looks like (two screens shown):

When Pat is going to have a "Hangouts On Air," she posts to the Google+ Community the link to JOIN (as a panelist) the "Hangout On Air."  Once the "Hangout On Air" has started, she posts the link, in the same post stream, to WATCH the "Hangout On Air."  Or, a watcher can go to the DearMYRTLE YouTube Channel and find the active video and watch it there.  Watchers can make comments on the Google+ Community post stream for the "Hangout On Air" and the panelists will often answer or discuss the questions.

Here is a screenshot of a recent "Hangout On Air" from the DearMYRTLE YouTube Channel:

Here is the most recent "Mondays with Myrt" Hangout On Air video from 13 May 2013.  We discussed the NGS Conference during the first part of the Hangout:



I encourage you to watch the archived episodes of "Mondays With Myrt" to see what you've missed, and to try to "tune in" to them when they are scheduled.

The next "Mondays With Myrt" Hangout is on Monday, 3 June, at 12 noon EDT, 11 a.m. CDT, 10 a.m. MDT, 9 a.m. PDT, etc.  Pat updates the calendar on www.GeneaWebinars.com on a regular basis.

You do need to be registered on Google+ (it's free), and be part of the DearMYRTLE's Genealogy  Community to JOIN or to comment.  You can WATCH on the YouTube Channel without being on Google+.

This is a collaborative educational opportunity - with discussions of genealogy news, tips and techniques offered by a number of people.  It's also a lot of fun.  It's like watching a panel of people at a conference discussing genealogical topics of interest.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/tuesdays-tip-mondays-with-myrt-hangouts.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

When Will Legacy Family Tree Version 8 be Available?

I've heard for almost a year through the grapevine that Legacy Family Tree Version 8 was coming, and it may be announced very soon - probably early June.

My clue was:  the Southern California Genealogical Society Genealogy Jamboree list of sessions on Friday, 8 June:

There it is, in the 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. list of presentations:

FR005 - Geoff Rasmussen - DEMO: "What's New in Legacy Family Tree 8."  Learn about all the great new features in Legacy's newest release - version 8.

Cool, I love new software versions.  Hopefully, they will give a price break for an upgrade from Version 7.5 to Version 8.

I have no clue just what new features will be included in Version 8.  Can anything be really new in this day and age?  I can think of one item:

*  Synchronize with FamilySearch Family Tree (rather than New FamilySearch)

That's it - I'm not very imaginative.

What NEW features would you like to have on Legacy Family Tree Version 8?

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/when-will-legacy-family-tree-version-8.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986 Available on FamilySearch - Digital Microfilm

One of the NEW record collections that appeared today on the FamilySearch collection list is the Massachusetts, Land Records, 1620-1986.  There are records from all 14 counties, but not all counties have records up to 1986.

Here is the process I used to find a deed for my ancestor, Isaac Seaver (1823-1901):

1)  On the Page for the Massachusetts, Land Records, 1620-1986, you have to click on the "Browse through 5,766,135 images" link:

2)  Clicking on the "Browse" link opens the "Waypoint" page for the 14 counties:

3)  On the screen above, I clicked on "Worcester" to get to the County records.  This provided the list of all of the record books available for Worcester County:

I wondered how late the Deed Indexes extended.  The screen below shows that the Deed Index extends to 1889:

Then I wondered what the date for the latest Deed Book was - shown in the screen below to be 1866, with Volume 716:

3)  The next step is to find your target person in the Grantee (obtained the land) and Grantor (granted the land) Deed Indexes.  I knew that Isaac Seaver was born in 1823, so he could buy land in about 1844, so I selected the Grantee Deed Index for the 1840-1889 time period, that contained the surname Seaver.

In order to find the page with your target person, you start on Image 1, and then have to guess the approximate image number in the Deed Index Book.  I call this the "guess, guess again and find" process.  After several guesses (there were 555 images in the selected Deed Index Book), and then going page by page, I found it on image 295:

I wrote down the information for all of the Isaac Seaver persons.  My Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) was known as "Isaac Seaver 3d" all of his life - he was the third adult Isaac Seaver in Westminster, Massachusetts.  I decided to look for the 1847 deed for Isaac Seaver 3d from Samuel A. Monroe in Gardner - it is on Deed Volume 429, page 137.

4)  Rather than using the Back button, I clicked on the "bread crumb trail" above the image - I picked the "Worcester" link because I want to find Deed Book 429.  When I got to the list of record books, I scrolled down and selected "Deeds 1847-1848 vol 428-429."

It opened on Image 1 (of 684), and I did the "guess, guess again and find" process to get to page 137 in Volume 429.  It was on Image 415:

Scrolling down the page, there is the deed where Samuel A. Monroe granted 50 acres of land in Gardner to Isaac Seaver 3d for $900.  Isaac had married Juliet Glazier in 1846 and they had a child in September 1847.

5)  I saved the deed images (it continues on page 138) to my computer Ancestor Files, and now need to transcribe them.

6)  A source citation for this deed, found on FamilySearch, is:

Massachusetts, "Massachusetts, Land Records, 1620-1986," digital images, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 20 May 2013), "Worcester County, Deeds, 1847-1848, Volumes 418-419," image 415 of 684, in Volume 429, Page 137, Isaac Seaver deed in Gardner, Mass. from Samuel A. Monroe, 1847.

There are no shortcuts to using this process - you have to find the Deed Index for your person, and note the Deed Volume and Page number, then find the Deed on the noted page.  

This is similar to what a researcher would do using microfilm at the Family History Library, or a local Family History Center.  It is somewhat faster at the FHL or FHC (because scrolling a microfilm takes less time than clicking links and waiting for images to load, but it costs more to obtain it there.  At home, this is essentially FREE "digital microfilm" for researchers, available any day at any hour at our convenience.  

The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/massachusetts-land-records-1620-1986.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Amanuensis Monday - Probate Records of John Kenyon (1647-1732) of Westerly, R.I.

Genea-blogger John Newmark (who writes the excellent TransylvanianDutch blog) started a Monday blog theme many months ago called Amanuensis Monday. What does "amanuensis" mean? John offers this definition:

"A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another."

The subject today is the probate file of John Kenyon (1647-1732) of Westerly, Rhode Island.  John Kenyon married --?-- Mumford (ca 1657 - before 1732) in about 1690, and they had seven children:

*  John Kenyon (1682-1735), married Elizabeth Remington (1686-1747)
*  James Kenyon (1685-1774), married Sarah Gardiner (1688-????)
*  Enoch Kenyon (1688-1781) married (1) Sarah Eldred (1684-????) and (2) Ann Auchmundy (1710-????)
*  David Kenyon (1693-1772) married Mary Sanford (1702-1761)
*  Jonathan Kenyon (1695-1767) married Sarah Rogers (1697-????)
*  Joseph Kenyon (1697-1766) married Marcy --?-- (1690-1764)
*  Samuel Kenyon (1699-1724)

John Kenyon, yeoman of Westerly RI, died testate, having written a will dated 12 June 1732, which was proved on 26 June 1732.  The will reads (transcribed by Randy Seaver from the "Westerly (RI) Town Council and Probate Records," Volume 2, 1731-1745, pages 18-19 (hand numbered), accessed on FHL Microfilm 0,930,805, difficult to read the handwriting in places):


"In the Name of God, Amen, the 12 day of June 1732:  I John Kinyon of Westerly in Kings County in the Colony of Rhoad Island & Providence Plantations in Newengland, yeoman, being Very Sick & Weak in Body but of Right mind & Memory Thanks Be given to God.  Therefore Calling unto mind the Mortality of my Body & Knowing that it is Appointed for all men once to Die, Do make & ordain this my Last will & Testament that is to say - principally (?) & first of all I Give & Recommend my Soul into the Hands of God that gave it & my Body I Recommend to the Earth to be Buried in Decent Christian Burial at the Discression of my Executor Hereafter Named & as touching such worldly Estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me in this Life I Give Demise & Dispose of the Same in the following manner.

"First of all I will that all Those Debts & Duties that I do owe in Right or Concience to any manner of Person of Persons whatsoever shall be well & Truly Contacted & paid or Ordained to be paid in Convenient Time after my decease by my Exec^r hereafter named.

"Item  I Give & Bequeath to my Beloved Son John Kinyon Ten pounds to be Raised & Levied Out of my Estate within one year after my decease.

"Item  I Give & Bequeath to my Beloved son James Kinyon Ten pounds to be Raised & Levied Out of my Estate within one year after my decease.

"Item  I Give & Bequeath to my Beloved son Enoch Kinyon Ten pounds to be Raised & Levied Out of my Estate within one year after my decease.

"Item  I Give & Bequeath to my Beloved son David Kinyon Ten pounds to be Raised & Levied Out of my Estate within one year after my decease.

"Item  I Give and Bequeath to my Beloved son Jonathan Kinyon, whom I likewise Constitute make & Ordain my Sole Exec^r of this my Last will & Testament, all my Moveable Estate by him fully to be Possessed & Enjoyed, He paying to each of my Sons Before Named the Sum of money Willed & Bequeathed to Them and I Do utterly Disallow Revoake & Disannull all & Every other former Testaments wills Legacies & Bequests made by me in any way Before Named Willed & Bequeathed. Ratifying & Confirming This & no Other to be my Last will & Testament ???? whereof I have herewith Sett my Hand & Seale the Day & year above Written.

...................................................... The mark of John K Kinyon  (seal)

"Signed Sealed published pronounced & Declared
by the sd Jno Kinyon to be his Last will &
Testament in the Presence of us the Subscribers
John Hall
the mark of Sam^l Larkin
Sam^ll Wilbore"

On 26 June 1732, the subscribers made an oath that they witnessed John Kinyon sign and seal this last will and testament, and that he was in perfect and sane mind and memory when he did so to the best of their knowledge.

The inventory of the moveable estate of John Kinyon was taken by James Addams Junior and John Moxsie.  It is difficult to read some of the entries, but the total is 189 pounds, 8 shillings.  The inventory was accepted by the Town Council on 26 June 1732.

On 26 June 1732, Jonathan Kinyon was ordered to act as executor of the last will and testament of his father and to administer the estate according to the laws of the colony.

John Kenyon had seven sons, and bequeathed to only five of them.  The last son, Samuel, died before the will was written.  What happened to the sixth son, Joseph Kenyon?  He's not mentioned in the will at all.  Did he not exist?  Did he die before 1732?  Was he provided for by his father before the father died?  The likelihood is that Joseph Kenyon died before his father died, and left no issue.  In that case, the information I have about his death date is wrong.

I descend through the first son, John Kenyon who married Elizabeth Remington.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/amanuensis-monday-probate-records-of_20.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Best of the Genea-Blogs - 12 to 18 May 2013

Hundreds of genealogy and family history bloggers write thousands of posts every week about their research, their families, and their interests. I appreciate each one of them and their efforts.

My criteria for "Best of ..." are pretty simple - I pick posts that advance knowledge about genealogy and family history, address current genealogy issues, provide personal family history, are funny or are poignant. I don't list posts destined for the genealogy carnivals, or other meme submissions (but I do include summaries of them), or my own posts.

Here are my picks for great reads from the genealogy blogs for this past week:

*  Cluster Genealogy - Have You Discovered the Benefits? by Lorine McGinnis Schulze on the Olive Tree Genealogy Blog.  Lorine shares how she does cluster genealogy research.

* FamilySearch: Sharing is Forever by Judy G. Russell on The Legal Genealogist blog.  Judy looks at the FamilySearch Terms and Conditions and describes what each person's rights and responsibilities are.

*  A Brief History of the Huguenots by Michael J. Leclerc on the Mocavo Genealogy Blog.  This is a very useful summary of the history of the Huguenots.  I have some in New York.

*  Why Attend a Genealogy Conference? by Shelley Bishop on the A Sense of Family blog.  Shelley shares her reasons - good ones.

*  "St. Anthony, St. Anthony, Please Come Around, Something's Lost and Can't Be Found" by Erica Voolich on the Erica's Adventures in Genealogy blog.  Erica and her husband visited Croatia recently - this is Erica's excellent trip report.

*  No (DNA) Bullying by Roberta J. Estes on the DNAeXplained - Genetic Genealogy blog.  Roberta describes how and why DNA bullying might occur, and why some persons don't agree to do DNA testing.

*  Do I Still Need a Desktop Genealogy Program or is Family Tree Enough? by Renee Zamora on Renee's Genealogy blog.  Renee summarizes an UNConferencing session at RootsTech 2013.  I missed this session.

*  "I" and "We" in Genealogy Writing by Harold Henderson on the Midwestern Microhistory blog.  Harold discusses writing in the first person vein, including the pitfalls and the benefits.

*  Treasure Chest Thursday: Look At That Chart by Diane Weintraub on the Nuts From the Family Tree blog.  Diane used Ancestry's MyCanvas feature to make a wall chart for her mother on Mother's Day, and shares her experience.

*  Are Genealogists Being Defined Out of Family History? by James Tanner on the Genealogy's Star blog.  It's an interesting an important question.  Good comments, too.

*  In Which Things Do Work Out ... If You Let Them by Sheri Fenley on The Educated Genealogist blog.  Well done, Sheri - your grandma's a star now!

These genea-bloggers wrote weekly pick posts and news summary posts this week:

*  Follow Friday - Favorites for May 17, 2013 by Heather Kuhn Roelker on the Leaves For Trees blog.

*  Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for May 17, 2013 by Jana Last on Jana's Genealogy and Family History Blog.

*  Blogs and News for Genealogists by Michael J. Leclerc on the Mocavo Genealogy Blog.

* Friday Finds - 05/17/13 by Julie Cahill Tarr on the GenBlog blog.

*  Saturday Serendipity by John D. Tew on the Filiopietism Prism blog.

Readers are encouraged to go to the blogs listed above and read their articles, and add their blogs to your Favorites, Google Reader, RSS feed or email if you like what you read. Please make a comment to them also - all bloggers appreciate feedback on what they write.

Did I miss a great genealogy blog post? Tell me! I am currently reading posts from over 1350 genealogy bloggers using Google Reader, but I still miss quite a few it seems.

Read past Best of the Genea-Blogs posts here.

The URL for this post is:   http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/best-of-genea-blogs-12-to-18-may-2013.html

Copyright(c) 2012, Randall J. Seaver 

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Your Own Scavenger Hunt

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 

time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!):

1) You're going on a scavenger hunt - for records of one of your relatives.  You can pick a relative who lived in the 1800 to 2000 time period.  A brother of one of your ancestors might be best (since males don't change their name).  Or the husband of a sister of your ancestor.  Tell us the name of your chosen relative. 

2)   Go to FamilySearch and search for records for that relative.  Start on the Search page - https://www.familysearch.org/search.  Search any way you want.   

3)  Tell us what you found in the FamilySearch record collections.  Did you find something new about that relative?   

4)  Write your own blog post, comment on this post, or write something on Facebook or Google Plus.

Here's mine:

1)  I chose Charles Edwin Richmond (1866-1951), born in Connecticut, and brother to my great-grandfather Thomas Richmond, both sons of James Richman and Hannah Rich.  He married Lavinia Guerten in 1896.

2)  I entered his name, birth year and death year into FamilySearch, using these terms:

*  Exact search on first name, last name, exact search on birth state, and plus/minus two years on birth year, 
*  Exact search on first name, last name, and plus/minus 2 years on death year, 
*  Wild card search on first name and last name, and plus/minus two years on birth year 

3)  The results:

*  1900 U.S. Census record, Charles Richmond in Hartford, Connecticut
*  1930 U.S. Census record, Charles E. Richmond in Manchester, Connecticut
*  1920 U.S. Census record, Charles E. Richmond in Manchester, Connecticut
*  1880 U.S. Census record, Charles Richmond in Putnam, Connecticut
*  1870 U.S. Census record, Charles Richmond in Putnam, Connecticut
*  1910 U.S. Census record, Charles E. Richmond in Manchester, Connecticut
*  Connecticut Death Index, 1949-2001: Charles E. Richmond

I expected to find a 1940 U.S. Census record, but I didn't with Richmond or a name variant. I finally found him, by using a last name of "rich*", as a father-in-law enumerated as Charles "Richman" in Manchester, Conn.

I found no new dates or places for Charles Edwin Richmond, but I found eight records for which I did not have a source, and I also found families for several of his children.  I can extend my family tree database a bit with the children, and add sources to my database for the records.  

4)  I just did!

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-your-own.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Surname Saturday - WHEELER (England > Colonial Massachusetts)

It's Surname Saturday, and I'm "counting down" my Ancestral Name List each week.  

I am in the 7th great-grandmothers, up to number 589: Hannah WHEELER (1649-1697). [Note: the earlier great-grandmothers and 7th great-grandfathers have been covered in earlier posts].

My ancestral line back through two American generations of this WHEELER family line is:

1.  Randall J. Seaver

2. Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983)
3. Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002)

4. Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942)
5. Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962)

8. Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922)
9. Hattie Louise Hildreth (1857-1920)

18.  Edward Hildreth (1831-1899)
19.  Sophia Newton (1834-1923)

36.  Zachariah Hildreth (1783-1857)
37.  Hannah Sawtell (1789-1857)

72.  Zachariah Hildreth (1754-1828)
73.  Elizabeth Keyes (1758-1793)

146.  Jonathan Keyes (1722-1781)
147.  Elizabeth Fletcher (1720-1761)

294.  Samuel Fletcher (1684-1749)
295.  Hannah --?-- (1689-????)

588.  Samuel Fletcher, born about 1652 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States; died before December 1723 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 1176. William Fletcher and 1177. Lydia.  He married  05 July 1672 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

589.  Hannah Wheeler, born about 1649 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States; died 11 December 1697 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Samuel Fletcher and Hannah Wheeler are:
*  William Fletcher (1673-1753), married (1) Mary Foster (1682-1721); (2) Mary (????-????)
*  Hannah Fletcher (1676-1759), married Ebenezer Wright (1663-1730).
*  Elizabeth Fletcher (1679-1715), married Benjamin Butterfield (1679-1715).
*  Samuel Fletcher (1683-1683).
*  Samuel Fletcher (1684-1749), married Hannah (1682-????).
*  Mary Fletcher (1686-1768), married John Wheeler (1695-1747).
*  Lydia Fletcher (1689-1766), married Pelatiah Adams (1682-1746)
*  Susanna Fletcher (1692-????), married Joseph Chamberlain.
*  Isaac Fletcher (1694-1772), married Persis (1695-1747).
*  Sarah Fletcher (1696-????).

1178.  George Wheeler, born before 23 March 1605/06 in Cranfield, Bedfordshire, England; died 02 June 1687 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He married 08 June 1630 in Cranfield, Bedfordshire, England.
1179.  Katherine Pin, born in England; died 02 January 1684/85 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of George Wheeler and Katherine Pin are:
*  William Wheeler (1631-1683), married Hannah Buss (1642-1694).
*  Thomas Wheeler (1633-1686), married Hannah Harwood (1632-1707).
*  Elizabeth Wheeler (1636-1704), married Francis Fletcher (1630-????).
*  Sarah Wheeler (1640-1713), married Francis Dudley (1638-1705).
*  John Wheeler (1643-1713), married Sarah Larkin (1648-1725).
*  Mary Wheeler (1645-1679), married Eliphalet Fox (1644-1711).
*  Ruth Wheeler (1647-1703), married Samuel Hartwell (1645-1725).
*  Hannah Wheeler (1649-1697), married Samuel Fletcher (1652-1723).

Astute readers will recall that I did Esther Wheeler (1678-1756), daughter of John and Sarah (Larkin) Wheeler, on 13 April 2013, and Thankful Wheeler (1682-1713), daughter of John and Sarah (Larkin) Wheeler, on 20 April 2013.  

Information about the George Wheeler family was obtained from:

*  M. Wheeler Molyneaux, The Wheeler Family of Cranfield, England and Concord, Massachusetts and Some Descendants of Sgt. Thomas Wheeler of Concord (Long Beach, Calif. : the author, 1992)

John Brooks Threlfall, 50 Great Migration Colonists in New England and Their Origins (Madison, Wis. : the author, 1990)

Dean Crawford Smith, edited by Melinde Lutz Sanborn, The Ancestry of Eva Belle Kempton, 1878-1908; Part III: The Ancestry of Henry clay Bartlett, 1832-1892 (Boston : New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2004)

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/surname-saturday-wheeler-england.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

I'm Speaking at South Orange County, California Genealogical Society (SOCCGS) on Saturday, 18 May

I almost forgot to post this notice about my speaking engagement on Saturday, 18 May 2013 at 11 a.m. at the South Orange County, California Genealogical Society (SOCCGS), in Mission Viejo, California.

My topic is "Genealogy Blogging:  What? When? Why? Where? How?"

A brief description of this talk is:

"What is genealogy blogging all about? Randy will tell all, showing where to find genealogy blogs, how to read them, some genealogy blog examples, and a basic how-to of starting and writing a genealogy blog so you to share your family history and genealogy knowledge with the world."

The SOCCGS program meeting is in the chapel at the LDS Church at 27976 Marguerite Parkway (corner of Hillcrest Drive) in Mission Viejo. The business meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. followed by a break with refreshments, and the program begins 11:00 a.m.

I look forward to seeing my SOCCGS friends, and would welcome Genea-Musings readers to say hello to me at this event.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/im-speaking-at-south-orange-county.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Finding Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) in FamilySearch Record Collections

One of the ways I test out every online U.S. record collection is to search for my second great-grandfather, Isaac Seaver (1823-1901).  There are a lot of records for him available online, and it's a good measure of the breadth of the different record collections.

Today, it is FamilySearch's turn in the barrel - what information is there about Isaac Seaver on FamilySearch?

I used Search criteria of:

*  Not exact search
*  First name = 'isaac" (not exact)
*  Last name = "seaver" (not exact)
*  Birth place = "Massachusetts" (not exact)
*  Birth year range = "1821" to "1825"

1)  Here is the Search screen (at https://www.familysearch.org/search):

2)  After clicking on the blue "Search" button on the screen above, I was presented with 146 matches to my search criteria (two screens shown):

There were more matches to my search criteria on succeeding pages of results.

3)  A summary of the results for Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) includes (in approximate order):

**   Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915:  Birth in Westminster, birth in Leominster (Index only, no image)
*  1900 United States Census: Leominster, Worcester, Mass. (index, image)
*  1880 United States Census: Leominster, Worcester, Mass. (index, image on Ancestry)
*  1870 United States Census: no town given, Worcester, Mass. (index, image)
*  1860 United States Census: Westminster, Worcester, Mass. (index, image on Fold3)
*  1850 United States Census: Medfield, Norfolk, Mass. (index, image)
*  Massachusetts, Deaths, 1841-1915: Leominster, Worcester, Mass. (index, image)
*  Massachusetts, State Census, 1865: Westminster, Worcester, Mass. (index, image)
** Massachusetts, Marriages, 1695-1910:  1888 to Alvina Lewis, no place given (index only);
** Massachusetts, Deaths and Burials, 1795-1910:  1901 in Leominster, Worcester, Mass. (index only, no image)
*  Massachusetts, Births, 1841-1915: 3 entries for children (Index, Image)
*  United States, Civil War Soldiers Index (no image)
*  United States, Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861-1917: (index, image on Fold3)
*  Massachusetts, Marriages, 1841-1915:  1846 to Juliet Glazier, in Rutland, Mass. (index, image)
** Massachusetts, Deaths and Burials, 1795-1910:  1910 death of daughter, Juliet Bryant, no place (index, no image)
** Massachusetts, Deaths and Burials, 1795-1910: 1894 death of son, Benjamin Seaver, no place (index, no image)
*  Massachusetts, Deaths, 1841-1915: 1910 death of daughter, Juliett Bryant, in Leominster (index, image)

There were 22 matches for Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) in the first 50 matches, and none after the 50th match.  There were 15 different record collections with entries found for Isaac Seaver (1823-1901).  Note that the IGI extracted data is in the three collections denoted with an **.

I didn't see the marriage of Isaac Seaver to Lucretia Smith.  So I searched for Lucretia Smith, and found her 1851 marriage to Isaac "Leavir" in the Massachusetts, Marriages, 1841-1915 collection. An indexing error.

The birth of a fourth child to Isaac and Lucretia (Smith) Seaver is not on the list above - There is a listing in the Massachusetts, Births, 1841-1915 collection for Ellen Maria Leaver in 1861 to "Isa.. Z. Leaver" and "Luera."  Another index error.  Here is a snippet of the Ellen Maria "Leaver" birth record:

I can see how the indexing error for Isaac's name occurred.  They confused "3d" with Z. for Isaac's name.  I think I would have indexed the mother's name as "Lucretia," but I'm biased because I know the name.

There was also an 1855 Massachusetts, State Census, 1855 collection for Isaac "Leaver."

So that makes 25 entries for Isaac "Seaver" (1823-1901), in 15 FamilySearch record collections, accounting for spelling variations in the indexing.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/finding-isaac-seaver-1823-1901-in_17.html

copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Follow-Up Friday - Helpful and Interesting Reader Comments

It's Friday - time for follow-up on reader comments, suggestions and challenges from the last two weeks.

1)  On MyHeritage To Announce Record Detective Feature (11 May 2013):

*  Nancy commented:  "Thanks Randy for asking MyHeritage about matching delays for all your readers – many of us have been having problems as new MyHeritage subscribers with getting matches, syncing new software and NOT getting help from support.

"As long ago as you last posted about this problem (May 5th), is how long I've been waiting for a support email to be answered - today I received a response ( Yippeee only 7 days) and they report that folks having problems with software should uninstall their software and reinstall new software from a link that will fix issues – I thought you should know about this.

"With no assistance from support I deleted my own ged file ( via web) and reloaded it via the web page only and I am now getting some smart / record matches. I guess I will reinstall the software at some point but I’m interested in the matching and don’t care about the syncing so I’ll wait.

"From my email this morning from MyHeritage support ---

"'I apologize for any inconvenience. I recommend you to uninstall the software then download it from the link below:
http://web009.myheritage.com/public/updates/7105/family_tree_builder_7105_cd.exe

""'It is supposed to fix some issues.'"

My response:  Thank you for the information.  I haven't received Record Matches yet for the new tree I uploaded on 5 May 2013.  I also can't sync my "bigger" original tree on MyHeritage down into FTB, even with the updated program.

*  Mac Torment snarled:  "They give you a free account and you become an uncritical part of their marketing machine.  How the hell is this different from the record matching they already do.  Sounds like the only change is the new name, stolen from gendetective?"

My comment:  You should talk to MyHeritage personnel about my being an "uncritical part of their marketing machine."  Here's a paraphrased quote from one of them:  "Randy finds problems and errors that we don't find with our testing."  You can look at all of my MyHeritage blog posts at http://www.geneamusings.com/search/label/MyHeritage.com and see that I have been both complimentary (for features I like) and critical (for features I don't like, or problems I find).  Frankly, I'm one of the few geneabloggers that is critical of the software and database companies.  I don't publish press releases, I test and analyze and comment, while trying not to gush or whine excessively.

The "Record Detective" feature finds additional records for the same person, or for family of the person, based on Record Matching from other MyHeritage family trees.  So it is different from "Record Match" which only finds records for a person in my MyHeritage tree.  If you'd read their publicity, you would understand that.

The term "Record Detective" is not the same as the term "GenDetective."  "Record Detective is an accurate description of the MyHeritage feature, and the "Record Detective" feature does not perform the same function as the "GenDetective" software.  

I do have a free account on MyHeritage, and I appreciate having it.  I think that I give them their money's worth.

2)  On SuperSearch Matches on MyHeritage.com (6 May 2013):

*  Rick asked:  "Why is it important to include a microfilm number when you're not using microfilm? Isn't it more useful to include the image number for this record on MyHeritage.com? (Plus, of course, the town, county, state and sheet number.) The microfilm number won't help anybody find the record online."

My comment:  I agree with you in principle, but not everybody will have a MyHeritage Data subscription, or even an Ancestry subscription.   Having the FHL microfilm number, one could find the image on FamilySearch, HeritageQuestOnline, or Archive.org.  Can we be sure that the image number on MyHeritage (or Ancestry, or another provider) will be everlasting?  I think we need every bit of the information that we can get in our source citations, including the NARA Publication number and roll number.

*  Anonymous commented:  "To search for a prefix like Sea*, you can select "Names starting with letters (e.g., Jo finds Joshua)" on the last name advanced options popup, and enter "sea" in the last name field."

My comment:  Thank you for adding to my knowledge base about searching on MyHeritage.  I did not know that before.

3)  On Amanuensis Monday - Probate Records of Elizabeth (Jenckes) Tefft (1658-1740) (posted 13 May 2013):

*  Geolover commented:  "Ah, another delightful estate inventory!  Interesting, the wo(r)sted combs. Was Elizabeth a spinster? The precious worsted fleece was carefully combed, not carded like wool, in order to align the long fibers. Then it was usually hand-spun using a spindle and whorl (a disk that acted as a fly-wheel).  The "Ktchel" was probably a Hatchel, one of the implements for processing flax fibers. Possibly a spinning wheel for flax had long since been given to a daughter or granddaughter."

My response:  Thank you for the corrections...the handwriting is never quite readable for me...

4)  On Day 3 at the NGS 2013 Conference (10 May 2013):

*  Lauri offered:  "This was easy enough to find, but here is a link to the NY Muster Rolls 1755-1764. http://longislandgenealogy.com/MusterRolls/MainIndex.html "

My comment:  Thank you, Lauri!  That is very useful.  I didn't take the time to find it while at NGS

5)  On Day 4 at the NGS Conference (That's all, folks!) (12 May 2013):

*  Angela said:  "Randy, Thanks for summarizing Robert Charles Anderson's presentation. He was speaking at the same time I was, so I missed it."

*  Lisa Suzanne Gorrell noted:  "I want to thank you, Randy, for attending and summarizing as many of the presentations that you did! They helped me decide to order a few JAMB recordings since I was unable to attend this year, even though it was nearly in my back yard (on the west coast at least)."

My comment:  You're welcome, ladies.  Someone has to do it, and it provided blog fodder.  By the way, I am still updating the list as posts come online.

6)  That's it for this week - thank you to all of my readers for their comments on the blog, and in email and on Facebook.  

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/follow-up-friday-helpful-and.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Ancestry.com Changes Search Results Page Format

I wondered why Ancestry.com was taking so long to respond last night after 9 p.m. PDT - and then the page format changed in the middle of my seemingly endless searching for records and sources.  It looked different.  I'm guessing that they took a new design live around that time.

For the record, here is the Search Results page from my post yesterday:

Today, I poked around to see what changes were made to the search results page format.

Using the same search terms for my Isaac Seaver (1823-1901), with the "exact match" box not checked, here is today's search results page:

The changes I see on this page ("new screen") from the first screen ("old screen") above include:

*  The fonts are different.  The font size and weight seems to be about the same for the results in the match list, but the "Results" heading is much fainter...I like dark fonts with contrast as opposed to light with less contrast.
*  The color scheme for the Results list is different - the "Results" header background is a very light green, rather than dark green, and the Categories background is also light green.  The "Matching Records" heading in the "Results" list is next to the matching person for some reason (I think that's a programming error.
*  There are tabs on the new screen for "Records" and "Categories" as opposed to "Sorted by relevance" and "Summarized by categories" on the old screen.  I like this change.
*  The "Star system" shown on the record matches has disappeared (as shown on the screen above).  I liked the old "Star system."

The screen above shows the "Records" tab - this is the "Categories" tab below:

One more significant change is:

*  You can click on the right arrows next to the different Categories in the left portion of the screen and expand them to see sub-categories.  I did that in the screen above for the "Birth, Marriage & Death" and "Military" categories.

If I select one of the matches from the "Categories" tab list, I see a similar layout, but with the selected database, and the bread crumbs to it, in the left panel.

I clicked on one of the matches listed to see the record summary for my Isaac Seaver in the 1880 U.S. Census:

I did not notice any changes to the record summary from before.

At the top of the "Results" screen is a message with a light blue background, saying:

"What's new  The search results page is faster and has a new look and feel. Tell us what you think."

When I clicked on that, I got this popup screen:

I made my selection and clicked on the double arrow and was able to comment on each of the format changes that they showed.  They include;

*  The "Searching For" area, where the presentation is more compact and simplified, and long fields are truncated.  I dislike this...
*  The "Category" area changes, where you can pick sub-categories with a single click.  I like this!
*  The "Layout" changes - fonts, backgrounds, etc.
*  Tabs for switching views between "Records" and "Categories."  I like this!

There is space for your comments on each option, plus one at the end of the survey for general comments.  I filled it out...

All in all, these changes are cosmetic, with the exceptions of the tabs and category expansion features, which are easier to use and are helpful.

Now, I'm wondering what records the search found that are different from yesterday's identical search:

*  The "Old screen" (first screen above) shows 84,655 matches  
*  The "New screen" (second screen above) shows 85,359 matches

And there are differences between the "New screen" for "Records" and the "New screen" for "Categories:"

*  The "New screen" for "Records" (second screen above) shows 85,359 matches
*  The "New screen" for "Categories" (third screen above) shows 95,527 matches.

I was told at NGS 2013 that the algorithms for "Records" and "Categories" were different, but I didn't expect that many differences.  

I'm really glad that this change happened now and not in June or July.  I have presentations on "Searching Ancestry.com Effectively" in both months, and will have to change all of my screen shots of results in the presentation!  

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/ancestrycom-changes-search-results-page.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver

Survey of Genealogy Database Software Usage

Jerry Kocis offered a survey of genealogy database software usage in March 2013 in the Google+ Genealogy Tech Community.  He has summarized and analyzed the answers from 166 respondents.  He described the survey as:

"This is a survey regarding users’ satisfaction with their genealogy software, including their perceptions of to what extent they make use of the software’s features and capabilities."

His survey summary is a PDF file here.

Jerry not only presented the findings to ten questions, but he analyzed the responses for the three most used programs - Family Tree Maker, Legacy Family Tree and RootsMagic - for each of the questions.

Here is a typical screen capture from the report:

Interested readers should peruse the entire document.

My take on the results, at least for the three programs analyzed in more detail, is that users are fairly well satisfied with their program, but need to learn more about using the program effectively.

One factor that may skew the results of this survey is that the respondents are much more likely to be consumers of social media and genealogy technology - they were on Google+, probably obtain information from a variety of online sources, and are more "tuned in" to the online genealogy world than the typical genealogical society member or occasional user of online trees.  It would be interesting to do this type of survey in a large genealogical society with thousands of members.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2013/05/survey-of-genealogy-database-software.html

Copyright (c) 2013, Randall J. Seaver