After a week with granddaughter Lauren, and a long weekend with grandsons Lucas and Logan (with their mom and dad), Linda and I are jetting off on Aloha Airlines on Tuesday morning to beautiful Maui.
We have a condo near Napili Beach north of Lahaina on Maui - for the next seven nights.
I am taking my laptop, so there may be some genealogy blogging done, but it will be spotty - it probably depends on how many hula dances I get roped into (they always pick me for some reason!) and how sunburned I get (gotta wear a hat at all times, and a T-shirt in the water). I have a bunch of books to read if I get bored with watching the surfers and young people acting crazy.
Are there genealogy libraries on Maui? What does "wiki-wiki" mean in Hawaiian? I need to learn the Hawaiian words for cousin, uncle, aunt, brother, sister, grandmother, grandfather, etc.
This came about because I asked Linda the question: "Would you rather go to the FGS conference in Fort Wayne, Indiana, or someplace with a beach?" And she said "Maui." OK - the FGS Conference will have to do without my attendance.
I'm counting on my fellow friendly genea-bloggers to hold down the fort. My faithful readers are asked to click on one of the genealogy blogs on my blogroll that you haven't read before.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Della's Journal - Week 32 (August 6-12, 1929)
This is Installment 32 of the Journal of Della (Smith) Carringer, my great-grandmother, who resided at 2115 30th Street in San Diego in 1929.
The "players" and "setting" are described here. Pictures of some of the players are here. Last week's Journal entry is here.
Here is Week 32:
====================================
Tuesday, August 6 (warmer): Ed is 77 yrs old today. Emily worked, watered things.
Wednesday, August 7 (warm): I went to town to get some things - 2 bed pads - $4.00, for beds in 2116 Fern, & table pad $2.00. Austin did not work today. Changeing water at faster pump. Has to make up time on Sat. & noons. I got varnish 1 qt $1.50 brush 0.45, catches for cupboard doors $1.80 & screen check 0.15.
Thursday, August 8 (cooler): I varnished kitchen floor, 2116 Fern St. & oil cloth rugs. Mrs. Schmidt called up the man did not go to see Ma's house. A[ustin]'s feet bother him some, has to change shoes when he gets home. Vernon played Golf at C.V.
Friday, August 9 (cooler): I washed, varnish drying nicely. Lyle received letter & card from Germany that came over on the Zeppilin air mail. Ma is out at her house yet. Our new pen drops ink. Mr. Roberts stopped in this morning, he said Mr Britten was home again from the Co[unty] Hospital.
Saturday, August 10 (cooler): Ironed. A[ustin] worked all day. Vernon took me out to Ma's, she had to have some more paint and varnish. Ed over, gave him $10. He has not been well. Have not rented [2116 Fern] yet.
Sunday, August 11 (cooler): A[ustin] varnished toilet seat. I varnished sun nook & part of front room border, have to get more varnish. Lyle's rode to Escondido this afternoon, back after 4 P.M. I listened to Indian chief singer at concert.
Monday, August 12 (nice): Emily working. A[ustin] varnished toward evening rest of front room & bedroom. I rode down with the folks, got more varnish. Then Bessie & Vernon went to the depot to see about their tickets.
=============================
What a boring week! Varnishing mostly. That's a task I've never had to do! In the 21st century, we really have it pretty easy, don't we? But we stay busy - with me, it's blogging, researching and web-surfing. No wonder I'm fat and happy!
The "players" and "setting" are described here. Pictures of some of the players are here. Last week's Journal entry is here.
Here is Week 32:
====================================
Tuesday, August 6 (warmer): Ed is 77 yrs old today. Emily worked, watered things.
Wednesday, August 7 (warm): I went to town to get some things - 2 bed pads - $4.00, for beds in 2116 Fern, & table pad $2.00. Austin did not work today. Changeing water at faster pump. Has to make up time on Sat. & noons. I got varnish 1 qt $1.50 brush 0.45, catches for cupboard doors $1.80 & screen check 0.15.
Thursday, August 8 (cooler): I varnished kitchen floor, 2116 Fern St. & oil cloth rugs. Mrs. Schmidt called up the man did not go to see Ma's house. A[ustin]'s feet bother him some, has to change shoes when he gets home. Vernon played Golf at C.V.
Friday, August 9 (cooler): I washed, varnish drying nicely. Lyle received letter & card from Germany that came over on the Zeppilin air mail. Ma is out at her house yet. Our new pen drops ink. Mr. Roberts stopped in this morning, he said Mr Britten was home again from the Co[unty] Hospital.
Saturday, August 10 (cooler): Ironed. A[ustin] worked all day. Vernon took me out to Ma's, she had to have some more paint and varnish. Ed over, gave him $10. He has not been well. Have not rented [2116 Fern] yet.
Sunday, August 11 (cooler): A[ustin] varnished toilet seat. I varnished sun nook & part of front room border, have to get more varnish. Lyle's rode to Escondido this afternoon, back after 4 P.M. I listened to Indian chief singer at concert.
Monday, August 12 (nice): Emily working. A[ustin] varnished toward evening rest of front room & bedroom. I rode down with the folks, got more varnish. Then Bessie & Vernon went to the depot to see about their tickets.
=============================
What a boring week! Varnishing mostly. That's a task I've never had to do! In the 21st century, we really have it pretty easy, don't we? But we stay busy - with me, it's blogging, researching and web-surfing. No wonder I'm fat and happy!
NEHG Register July 2007 Table of Contents
The July 2007 issue (Volume 161, No. 3, Whole Number 643) of The New England Historical and Genealogical Register arrived last week, chock full of New England research articles.
The Table of Contents includes:
===================================
* Editorial -- p. 163
* "The English Origins of Edward Jenkins of Scituate, Massachusetts," by Allis Ferguson Edelman and Daniel G. Jenkins -- page 165
* "The Children of Ward Swift (1735-1821) of Sandwich, Massachusetts," by Ellen J. O'Flaherty -- page 167
* "Marriage by Elihu Marvin, J.P., of Hebron, Connecticut, 1785-1812," by Linda MacLachlan -- page 175
* Jemima Preston, wife of John Younglove of Killingly, Connecticut," by Helga Andrews -- page 181
* "Ancestry of Bennet Eliot of Nazeing, Essex, Father of Seven Great Migration Immigrants to Massachusetts," by William Wyman Fiske (continued from 161:91) -- page 186
* Genealogy of Samuel Peirce, First Settler of Zoar, Massachusetts," by Jon Wardlow (concluded from 1612:137) -- page 199
* "Genealogist John Farmer Discovers His Ancestry: The Warwickshire Family of Edward Farmer, Isabel (Farmer) (Wyman) (Blood) Green, and Thomas Pollard, of Billerica, Massachusetts," by Nathaniel Lane Taylor (continued from 161:155) -- page 209
* "New England Articles in Genealogical Journals in 2005," by Henry B. Hoff -- page 223
===================================
For some reason, I find very few recent items or articles useful to my research from the Register. Many people have researched most of my New England families, and there have been many helpful articles in earlier volumes of the Register. What is left, for me to research, are the "brick walls" - the women with no known surname, the folks with a common surname in a place with several families of that name and poor extant records, the men that "pop up" in a place without clues of where they've been previously, etc.
As I've noted before, I'm posting these Tables of Contents so that other researchers, who might Google a name of their ancestor, can find out where they might look next in their search. If every periodical or magazine would post their Tables of Contents online, that would help many researchers.
The Table of Contents includes:
===================================
* Editorial -- p. 163
* "The English Origins of Edward Jenkins of Scituate, Massachusetts," by Allis Ferguson Edelman and Daniel G. Jenkins -- page 165
* "The Children of Ward Swift (1735-1821) of Sandwich, Massachusetts," by Ellen J. O'Flaherty -- page 167
* "Marriage by Elihu Marvin, J.P., of Hebron, Connecticut, 1785-1812," by Linda MacLachlan -- page 175
* Jemima Preston, wife of John Younglove of Killingly, Connecticut," by Helga Andrews -- page 181
* "Ancestry of Bennet Eliot of Nazeing, Essex, Father of Seven Great Migration Immigrants to Massachusetts," by William Wyman Fiske (continued from 161:91) -- page 186
* Genealogy of Samuel Peirce, First Settler of Zoar, Massachusetts," by Jon Wardlow (concluded from 1612:137) -- page 199
* "Genealogist John Farmer Discovers His Ancestry: The Warwickshire Family of Edward Farmer, Isabel (Farmer) (Wyman) (Blood) Green, and Thomas Pollard, of Billerica, Massachusetts," by Nathaniel Lane Taylor (continued from 161:155) -- page 209
* "New England Articles in Genealogical Journals in 2005," by Henry B. Hoff -- page 223
===================================
For some reason, I find very few recent items or articles useful to my research from the Register. Many people have researched most of my New England families, and there have been many helpful articles in earlier volumes of the Register. What is left, for me to research, are the "brick walls" - the women with no known surname, the folks with a common surname in a place with several families of that name and poor extant records, the men that "pop up" in a place without clues of where they've been previously, etc.
As I've noted before, I'm posting these Tables of Contents so that other researchers, who might Google a name of their ancestor, can find out where they might look next in their search. If every periodical or magazine would post their Tables of Contents online, that would help many researchers.
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Randy's "Best of the Genea-Blogs" - 8/5/07
I'm going to try to list my "Best of the Genea-Blogs" each week on Sunday (but probably not next Sunday). I'm going to leave out the entries to the Carnival of Genealogy since there are so many "keepers."
For this last week, here are blog posts that I thought were critical to research, expressed interesting thoughts, or just plain enjoyed:
* The Ancestry Insider - more news about New FamilySearch. I can hardly wait!
* Jasia's Creative Gene -- latest post about City Directories - this is a great series, well-researched and presented, and not completed yet.
* Moultrie Creek's Family Matters - the post on a Copyright Primer, with a link to Smashing Magazine, which looks interesting!
* Chris Dunham's The Genealogue - the post on Serial Centenarians alerted me to Megan Smolenyak's piece in Ancestry Magazine with that title. A great piece of 20th century research work.
* Diane Haddad's Genealogy Insider - a post about Better Web Searching for your Ancestors, including a link to the 2007 list of Family Tree Magazine's 101 best genealogy web sites.
* Elizabeth in the GenWeekly blog - Strategies for Tracking disappearing Ancestors.
And a new feature -- blogs I just discovered and like:
* Paula's Genealogical Eclectica blog - http://paulastuartwarren.blogspot.com/
* Thomas Hamburger Jnr's GENanon - http://genanon.blogspot.com/
* Lee Drew's FamHist blog - http://famhist2.blogspot.com/
* FamilyForest's Your Future, Your Past - http://familyforest.wordpress.com/
I can see that I need to start a list each week so that this goes faster (for me) and so that I don't miss any "keepers."
What "keepers" did I miss? Tell me!
For this last week, here are blog posts that I thought were critical to research, expressed interesting thoughts, or just plain enjoyed:
* The Ancestry Insider - more news about New FamilySearch. I can hardly wait!
* Jasia's Creative Gene -- latest post about City Directories - this is a great series, well-researched and presented, and not completed yet.
* Moultrie Creek's Family Matters - the post on a Copyright Primer, with a link to Smashing Magazine, which looks interesting!
* Chris Dunham's The Genealogue - the post on Serial Centenarians alerted me to Megan Smolenyak's piece in Ancestry Magazine with that title. A great piece of 20th century research work.
* Diane Haddad's Genealogy Insider - a post about Better Web Searching for your Ancestors, including a link to the 2007 list of Family Tree Magazine's 101 best genealogy web sites.
* Elizabeth in the GenWeekly blog - Strategies for Tracking disappearing Ancestors.
And a new feature -- blogs I just discovered and like:
* Paula's Genealogical Eclectica blog - http://paulastuartwarren.blogspot.com/
* Thomas Hamburger Jnr's GENanon - http://genanon.blogspot.com/
* Lee Drew's FamHist blog - http://famhist2.blogspot.com/
* FamilyForest's Your Future, Your Past - http://familyforest.wordpress.com/
I can see that I need to start a list each week so that this goes faster (for me) and so that I don't miss any "keepers."
What "keepers" did I miss? Tell me!
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Probate Record of Nathaniel Wade (1709-1754) - Part 2
I posted the will of Nathaniel Wade (1709-1754) of Scituate RI in Part 1 here.
The inventory is interesting - and includes the death date of Nathaniel Wade. I don't know that there is any other record of the date. Here is the inventory as transcribed from the Scituate RI Town Records (the numbers are in pounds:shillings:pence, the English system being used in 1754- 12 pence to a shilling, 20 shillings to a pound):
===========================
"And the Ruth Wade and Simon Wade Exhibited an Inventory of the personall Estate of the said Nathaniel Wader Deceased to this council in the Following Words (Viz.)
"A True Inventory of all and Singular the goods Chattels Rights and Credits of Nathaniel Wade of Scituate in the County of Providence &c Yeoman Who Departed this Life on the 29th Day of June Last past Apprised this Thirteenth Day of July Annoq. Dom: 1754 by us the Subscribers.
"Imprimis to his Wearing Apparrell ........................ 25:00:00
Item to one Horse ..................................................... 40:00:00
Item to Two cows ..................................................... 72:00:00
Item to one Calf ........................................................ 6:10:00
Item to Six Swine ..................................................... 31:00:00
Item to one Saddle and Bridle ................................... 6:00:00
Item to one Loom and Some Tackling ...................... 9:00:00
Item to Ten Pounds of Sheeps Wool ......................... 5:00:00
Item to Some Flax Seed and Some Callovants ......... 1:08:00
Item to one Box with Some Salts and Some
Other Small Things in it .......................................... 1:10:00
Item to some old Casks and a peck Measure
and a Chest to keep Grain in ................................... 6:03:00
Item to one pair of Plow Irons and Irons for Heifer Horses .2:10:00
Item to one pair of Bottle Rings and two Grain Wedges .. 1:18:00
Item to one Broad Ax 90/ one Harrow Ax 5/ ......... 4:15:00
Item to Four Mill Pecks and an Iron Wedge ........... 3:18:00
Item to Carpenter Tools and Some ShoeMakers Tools
and old Irons ........................................................... 6:12:00
Item to Some Turning Tools 20/ and one Scyth
and Tackling 69/ ..................................................... 4:09:00
Item to one Iron Bar ...................................................4:16:00
Item to one Cow Hide and one Calf Skin ..................4:04:00
Item to Two Bells 40/ one H???ell 20/ .....................3:00:00
Item to Seventeen Bushells of Indian Corn ............ 21:05:00
Item to one pair of Cards 33/ and
Two Spinning Wheels 75/ ........................................ 5:08:00
Item to one Feather Bed and Furniture .................20:10:00
Item to one Ditto and Furniture .............................20:10:00
Item to one Flock Bed and Furniture ..................... 12:12:00
Item to one Chest 30/ and one Warming pan 50/. 4:00:00
Item to Pewter ???ssells ........................................... 6:16:00
Item to Two Fire Shovels 40/ and one Trowell 40/ 4:00:00
Item to one Iron Pot and Two Iron Kettles ..............4:12:00
Item to one Box Iron 20/ one CandleStick 5/
and Frying Pan 12/ ................................................. 5:17:00
Item to one Earthen Jugg and some Mollasses
and a Glass Bottle ..................................................... 1:05:00
Item to Some Milk Juggs and other Wooden Wair .2:00:00
Item to Two pails 23/ Two Washing Tubs 19/
Three Chairs 13/ one Table 20/ ............................. 3:15:00
Item to Three Knives and Forks 17/ one Razor 7/
some Nails 10/ ......................................................... 1:14:00
Item to Some Sall??s and some Candles 40/
and Some Books 26/ ............................................... 3:06:00
Item to Three pounds of flax 21/ one ounce of Indego 13/ . 1:14:00
Item to about 40 lb salt pork L8 and Meat Rass?ll 23/ .... 9:05:00
Item to paper Bills of Credit ................................... 1:05:00
Item to Bank Accounts ....................................... 104:08:05
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
................................................................ Total 321:07:05
John Howland Gideon Harris"
"And Ruth Wade and Simon Wade Both Declared on their Engagements that they has put the Personall Estate of the said Nathaniel Wade into the above Inventory that was come to their Knowledge and that if any Thing More thereof does thereafter appears or Come to their Knowledge they will add the Same to sd Inventory. And John Howland and Gideon Harris Both personally appearing Declared on their Engagement that the above Inventory is a True Apprisall of all that was Set Fourth to them to be of the Estate of the sd Nathaniel Wade Decesd. Whereupon it is voted that the above Inventory be accepted and allowed to be a Good and Lawfull Inventory and be Recorded.... Test. Gideon Harris Court Clerk."
======================================
What can we learn from the above list of common household furnishings, tools, livestock and the like? When Nathaniel Wade died, he was only 45 years old - fairly young - and he was likely still working to feed, house and clothe his wife and five surviving children (ranging in age from 9 to 23).
When I see inventories with so much emphasis on livestock and farm implements, and so little furniture and kitchen ware, I often wonder just how these people lived day-to-day. Did they have enough to eat? Did they wear the same clothes every day? How did they find time to do the cooking, washing, cleaning, raising and teaching children, etc.?
When I compare their possessions to my own, there is such a vast difference between them - I have no livestock (not even a dog!), few tools and no farm implements, but I have lots of stuff - most of which is not necessary for surviving in this day and age. What I have are conveniences and luxuries. I made my living with my knowledge and expertise in engineering - Nathaniel made his living by the sweat of his brow and the hardiness of his muscles in addition to his knowledge and experience.
This little thought comparison reinforces my belief that our ancestors were, in nearly every case, hard-working and industrious people who made a living for themselves and their family with the tools at hand. I deeply respect these types of people - for they are my ancestors, and I am one of the results of their labor.
The inventory is interesting - and includes the death date of Nathaniel Wade. I don't know that there is any other record of the date. Here is the inventory as transcribed from the Scituate RI Town Records (the numbers are in pounds:shillings:pence, the English system being used in 1754- 12 pence to a shilling, 20 shillings to a pound):
===========================
"And the Ruth Wade and Simon Wade Exhibited an Inventory of the personall Estate of the said Nathaniel Wader Deceased to this council in the Following Words (Viz.)
"A True Inventory of all and Singular the goods Chattels Rights and Credits of Nathaniel Wade of Scituate in the County of Providence &c Yeoman Who Departed this Life on the 29th Day of June Last past Apprised this Thirteenth Day of July Annoq. Dom: 1754 by us the Subscribers.
"Imprimis to his Wearing Apparrell ........................ 25:00:00
Item to one Horse ..................................................... 40:00:00
Item to Two cows ..................................................... 72:00:00
Item to one Calf ........................................................ 6:10:00
Item to Six Swine ..................................................... 31:00:00
Item to one Saddle and Bridle ................................... 6:00:00
Item to one Loom and Some Tackling ...................... 9:00:00
Item to Ten Pounds of Sheeps Wool ......................... 5:00:00
Item to Some Flax Seed and Some Callovants ......... 1:08:00
Item to one Box with Some Salts and Some
Other Small Things in it .......................................... 1:10:00
Item to some old Casks and a peck Measure
and a Chest to keep Grain in ................................... 6:03:00
Item to one pair of Plow Irons and Irons for Heifer Horses .2:10:00
Item to one pair of Bottle Rings and two Grain Wedges .. 1:18:00
Item to one Broad Ax 90/ one Harrow Ax 5/ ......... 4:15:00
Item to Four Mill Pecks and an Iron Wedge ........... 3:18:00
Item to Carpenter Tools and Some ShoeMakers Tools
and old Irons ........................................................... 6:12:00
Item to Some Turning Tools 20/ and one Scyth
and Tackling 69/ ..................................................... 4:09:00
Item to one Iron Bar ...................................................4:16:00
Item to one Cow Hide and one Calf Skin ..................4:04:00
Item to Two Bells 40/ one H???ell 20/ .....................3:00:00
Item to Seventeen Bushells of Indian Corn ............ 21:05:00
Item to one pair of Cards 33/ and
Two Spinning Wheels 75/ ........................................ 5:08:00
Item to one Feather Bed and Furniture .................20:10:00
Item to one Ditto and Furniture .............................20:10:00
Item to one Flock Bed and Furniture ..................... 12:12:00
Item to one Chest 30/ and one Warming pan 50/. 4:00:00
Item to Pewter ???ssells ........................................... 6:16:00
Item to Two Fire Shovels 40/ and one Trowell 40/ 4:00:00
Item to one Iron Pot and Two Iron Kettles ..............4:12:00
Item to one Box Iron 20/ one CandleStick 5/
and Frying Pan 12/ ................................................. 5:17:00
Item to one Earthen Jugg and some Mollasses
and a Glass Bottle ..................................................... 1:05:00
Item to Some Milk Juggs and other Wooden Wair .2:00:00
Item to Two pails 23/ Two Washing Tubs 19/
Three Chairs 13/ one Table 20/ ............................. 3:15:00
Item to Three Knives and Forks 17/ one Razor 7/
some Nails 10/ ......................................................... 1:14:00
Item to Some Sall??s and some Candles 40/
and Some Books 26/ ............................................... 3:06:00
Item to Three pounds of flax 21/ one ounce of Indego 13/ . 1:14:00
Item to about 40 lb salt pork L8 and Meat Rass?ll 23/ .... 9:05:00
Item to paper Bills of Credit ................................... 1:05:00
Item to Bank Accounts ....................................... 104:08:05
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
................................................................ Total 321:07:05
John Howland Gideon Harris"
"And Ruth Wade and Simon Wade Both Declared on their Engagements that they has put the Personall Estate of the said Nathaniel Wade into the above Inventory that was come to their Knowledge and that if any Thing More thereof does thereafter appears or Come to their Knowledge they will add the Same to sd Inventory. And John Howland and Gideon Harris Both personally appearing Declared on their Engagement that the above Inventory is a True Apprisall of all that was Set Fourth to them to be of the Estate of the sd Nathaniel Wade Decesd. Whereupon it is voted that the above Inventory be accepted and allowed to be a Good and Lawfull Inventory and be Recorded.... Test. Gideon Harris Court Clerk."
======================================
What can we learn from the above list of common household furnishings, tools, livestock and the like? When Nathaniel Wade died, he was only 45 years old - fairly young - and he was likely still working to feed, house and clothe his wife and five surviving children (ranging in age from 9 to 23).
When I see inventories with so much emphasis on livestock and farm implements, and so little furniture and kitchen ware, I often wonder just how these people lived day-to-day. Did they have enough to eat? Did they wear the same clothes every day? How did they find time to do the cooking, washing, cleaning, raising and teaching children, etc.?
When I compare their possessions to my own, there is such a vast difference between them - I have no livestock (not even a dog!), few tools and no farm implements, but I have lots of stuff - most of which is not necessary for surviving in this day and age. What I have are conveniences and luxuries. I made my living with my knowledge and expertise in engineering - Nathaniel made his living by the sweat of his brow and the hardiness of his muscles in addition to his knowledge and experience.
This little thought comparison reinforces my belief that our ancestors were, in nearly every case, hard-working and industrious people who made a living for themselves and their family with the tools at hand. I deeply respect these types of people - for they are my ancestors, and I am one of the results of their labor.
Friday, August 3, 2007
San Diego area Genealogy Calendar
Genealogists in the San Diego area are fortunate to have a "one site" to list all genealogy events in the County.
The Current Events Calendar is hosted by the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego (CGSSD) at http://www.cgssd.org/events.php.
The Calendar software keeps it up-to-date with events in the coming two months. Of course, someone has to enter the information received from all of the local societies - Joan Lowrey does this faithfully!
The CGSSD site also has a list of San Diego-area genealogy societies at http://www.cgssd.org/societies.php.
The locations and hours of Public Libraries are at http://www.cgssd.org/libraries.php and local Family History Centers are at http://www.cgssd.org/centers.html.
Does your city or county have a similar online Calendar? If not, would an online Calendar help your society gain new members or keep your current members informed about genealogy events in your area?
The Current Events Calendar is hosted by the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego (CGSSD) at http://www.cgssd.org/events.php.
The Calendar software keeps it up-to-date with events in the coming two months. Of course, someone has to enter the information received from all of the local societies - Joan Lowrey does this faithfully!
The CGSSD site also has a list of San Diego-area genealogy societies at http://www.cgssd.org/societies.php.
The locations and hours of Public Libraries are at http://www.cgssd.org/libraries.php and local Family History Centers are at http://www.cgssd.org/centers.html.
Does your city or county have a similar online Calendar? If not, would an online Calendar help your society gain new members or keep your current members informed about genealogy events in your area?
Hidden Gems in Probate Records
The latest issue of Rootsweb Review arrived in my email box yesterday, and I just got around to reading it. There is a wonderful article in it and I want to post it below because it illustrates the point that I, and many others, have frequently made - that probate records are a gold mine of information.
=========================
"What a Will
By PJ DeHoog
"My great-grandmother was a Smith. Through many years of research I settled on her birthplace as Connecticut and her death location as Colorado. I was able to get her father's name and some of her siblings'.
"As I continued my quest for information about her and her family I discovered that most of her siblings were half-siblings. I think I have their mother's first name, but not her last. I know many of the family moves but not all.
"Ultimately, I needed to make some factual discoveries in Connecticut, so I hired a local researcher to find a birth, marriage, or death certificate for any of my ancestors. The response I got was totally disappointing.
"Then, about a week ago, I had the opportunity to go to LaSalle County, Illinois, where my great-grandfather came from and where he married my Smith grandmother. The Genealogy Guild in Ottawa, LaSalle, Illinois was a gold-mine, not for my great-grandfather, but for my great-grandmother Smith. One of her brothers stayed in LaSalle County and became a successful farmer. When he completed his will just a few months before he passed away in 1915, he chose to split half of his estate with his siblings and their children and the other half with his wife's family. The actual probate took ten years as his wife passed away a decade after he did. By that time most of his siblings had passed away so the probate was delineated down to the children or children's children of the siblings.The fantastic part of it all is that every name of the heirs was listed--both those alive and deceased at the time of the probate.
"Further, there were addresses for nearly every one of them. I was thrilled. I copied nearly 100 pages of this probate and once home began entering them into my Family Tree Maker database. I have the 2007 version so it triggered me to possible matches. By the time I finished adding all the information, I had nearly 300 more people in my database.
"I always thought the Smith side of my family was going to be like my White family--nearly impossible to find--but thanks to a successful sibling I was able to put nearly every piece of this family's puzzle together, including their connection with Connecticut."
"Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 1 August 2007, Vol. 10, No. 31."
=================================
Isn't that a wonderful story? Now I'm wondering just who the Smith people are in the story - could they be related to my Ranslow Smith? Would PJ DeHoog please contact me at rjseaver(at)cox.net?
Quite often, the key to solving a genealogy puzzle or brick wall is not through your ancestors, but through the family members (e.g., siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins), colleagues and neighbors of your ancestors.
=========================
"What a Will
By PJ DeHoog
"My great-grandmother was a Smith. Through many years of research I settled on her birthplace as Connecticut and her death location as Colorado. I was able to get her father's name and some of her siblings'.
"As I continued my quest for information about her and her family I discovered that most of her siblings were half-siblings. I think I have their mother's first name, but not her last. I know many of the family moves but not all.
"Ultimately, I needed to make some factual discoveries in Connecticut, so I hired a local researcher to find a birth, marriage, or death certificate for any of my ancestors. The response I got was totally disappointing.
"Then, about a week ago, I had the opportunity to go to LaSalle County, Illinois, where my great-grandfather came from and where he married my Smith grandmother. The Genealogy Guild in Ottawa, LaSalle, Illinois was a gold-mine, not for my great-grandfather, but for my great-grandmother Smith. One of her brothers stayed in LaSalle County and became a successful farmer. When he completed his will just a few months before he passed away in 1915, he chose to split half of his estate with his siblings and their children and the other half with his wife's family. The actual probate took ten years as his wife passed away a decade after he did. By that time most of his siblings had passed away so the probate was delineated down to the children or children's children of the siblings.The fantastic part of it all is that every name of the heirs was listed--both those alive and deceased at the time of the probate.
"Further, there were addresses for nearly every one of them. I was thrilled. I copied nearly 100 pages of this probate and once home began entering them into my Family Tree Maker database. I have the 2007 version so it triggered me to possible matches. By the time I finished adding all the information, I had nearly 300 more people in my database.
"I always thought the Smith side of my family was going to be like my White family--nearly impossible to find--but thanks to a successful sibling I was able to put nearly every piece of this family's puzzle together, including their connection with Connecticut."
"Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 1 August 2007, Vol. 10, No. 31."
=================================
Isn't that a wonderful story? Now I'm wondering just who the Smith people are in the story - could they be related to my Ranslow Smith? Would PJ DeHoog please contact me at rjseaver(at)cox.net?
Quite often, the key to solving a genealogy puzzle or brick wall is not through your ancestors, but through the family members (e.g., siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins), colleagues and neighbors of your ancestors.
Thursday, August 2, 2007
A Virtual Interview in "Internet Genealogy" Magazine
Miriam Midkiff alerted the genea-blogosphere to an article on Genealogy Blogs by Donna Pointkouski in the latest issue (September 2007) of Internet Genealogy magazine. She was kind to send along what I was quoted as saying:
"How do you start a blog? Can anyone be a blogger? Can it really help with your family history research? To answer these questions, I took a virtual tour of the blogging world and asked the experts--genealogist-bloggers--for advice. As with most bloggers, they had a lot to say! My panel of bloggers includes: [the list of other genea-bloggers], Randy Seavers from Genea-Musings http://randysmusings.blogspot.com/"
[Later in the article:]"Another popular genealogy blog is Randy Seavers' Genea-Musings. Randy's blog also started out including other topics, but genealogy quickly became the sole focus. Randy's original purpose was to share his research experiences with members of the local genealogical society. He also intended to create a website, but Randy became frustrated with the amount of work involved in creating new web pages. 'I wanted something more dynamic,' notes Randy. A blog became an easier way to disseminate his research tips, as well as genealogical news items and stories from his own family's history."
[Even further on:]"Randy Seavers cautions new bloggers against becoming frustrated by a lack of readers. 'Very few people write a comment, so it is easy to feel that no one is reading,' says Randy. He recommends free sites, such as http://www.statcounter.com/ or http://www.sitemeter.com/, which measure how many page visits your blog gets each day."
I do wish that she had spelled my last name right. It's not that hard - it's on the blog correctly! Oh well, it's the publicity that counts.
All of the words quoted above are from my email response to the author back in January (and I didn't find it in my email archives because of my computer crash in February). I am anxious to read what the entire article said - I'll wait and see if my CVGS colleague who subscribes to IG can show me the article.
Subscribing to Internet Genealogy is one of those "round tuit" tasks that I have on my list. Reader Randy Clark recently sent me an image of a "Round Tuit" so I cashed it in tonight and subscribed to the magazine.
My congratulations to the other genea-bloggers mentioned - Miriam has the list in her post. They are ALL on my must-read list every day, plus many others.
UPDATED 8/3 10 AM: I erred last night in my post about not being interviewed by the author - she did contact me by email back in January, and I responded to her many questions. My apologies to Donna. I fixed this post to reflect reality. It was an unreal day yesterday - I chased two little boys for about 12 hours and rushed three blog posts when I was really tired.
UPDATED AGAIN 8/3 8 PM: To Sally J. (from comments) - I'm sorry for the confusion here. Donna did contact me via email and I responded to her questions in some detail. She then used my words to write her story. I have no problem with what she wrote. This is my preferred way to do an interview - I can edit and refine my comments before I send them to the writer.
"How do you start a blog? Can anyone be a blogger? Can it really help with your family history research? To answer these questions, I took a virtual tour of the blogging world and asked the experts--genealogist-bloggers--for advice. As with most bloggers, they had a lot to say! My panel of bloggers includes: [the list of other genea-bloggers], Randy Seavers from Genea-Musings http://randysmusings.blogspot.com/"
[Later in the article:]"Another popular genealogy blog is Randy Seavers' Genea-Musings. Randy's blog also started out including other topics, but genealogy quickly became the sole focus. Randy's original purpose was to share his research experiences with members of the local genealogical society. He also intended to create a website, but Randy became frustrated with the amount of work involved in creating new web pages. 'I wanted something more dynamic,' notes Randy. A blog became an easier way to disseminate his research tips, as well as genealogical news items and stories from his own family's history."
[Even further on:]"Randy Seavers cautions new bloggers against becoming frustrated by a lack of readers. 'Very few people write a comment, so it is easy to feel that no one is reading,' says Randy. He recommends free sites, such as http://www.statcounter.com/ or http://www.sitemeter.com/, which measure how many page visits your blog gets each day."
I do wish that she had spelled my last name right. It's not that hard - it's on the blog correctly! Oh well, it's the publicity that counts.
All of the words quoted above are from my email response to the author back in January (and I didn't find it in my email archives because of my computer crash in February). I am anxious to read what the entire article said - I'll wait and see if my CVGS colleague who subscribes to IG can show me the article.
Subscribing to Internet Genealogy is one of those "round tuit" tasks that I have on my list. Reader Randy Clark recently sent me an image of a "Round Tuit" so I cashed it in tonight and subscribed to the magazine.
My congratulations to the other genea-bloggers mentioned - Miriam has the list in her post. They are ALL on my must-read list every day, plus many others.
UPDATED 8/3 10 AM: I erred last night in my post about not being interviewed by the author - she did contact me by email back in January, and I responded to her many questions. My apologies to Donna. I fixed this post to reflect reality. It was an unreal day yesterday - I chased two little boys for about 12 hours and rushed three blog posts when I was really tired.
UPDATED AGAIN 8/3 8 PM: To Sally J. (from comments) - I'm sorry for the confusion here. Donna did contact me via email and I responded to her questions in some detail. She then used my words to write her story. I have no problem with what she wrote. This is my preferred way to do an interview - I can edit and refine my comments before I send them to the writer.
Footnote.com Partners with Allen County Public Library
www.Footnote.com announced today that they will partner with Allen County Public Library (ACPL) in Fort Wayne, Indiana to provide digital access to millions of historical records held by the largest U.S. public genealogy library.
The full press release can be found at Leland Meitzler's Genealogy Blog and the DearMYRTLE Blog - these were the first two notices that I saw, there may be others.
I am confused as to why the press release is not available on Footnote's Press Room or the Footnote Blog site (as of 2 August 2007 before 10 PM).
I was curious as to what databases at ACPL might be offered on Footnote. The text says:
"This exciting partnership will result in millions of historical records being digitized and made available online for the first time at Footnote.com. The ACPL collections feature unique American and International records including family histories, city directories, military records and historical newspapers."
I am disappointed, but not surprised, that the list doesn't include the ACPL's collection of genealogy newsletters, periodicals, journals and magazines. ACPL houses a complete collection of the genealogy-related publications that are indexed in the PERiodical Source Index (PERSI). I'm not surprised because I've been told that the copyright on many publications are held by the authors or the publication's owner, and therefore the publications cannot be digitized.
Does anybody know if the ACPL databases will be available on www.Footnote.com accessed at the LDS Family History Centers (when those links come alive in the future)?
The good news is that the ACPL collection of family histories, and the ACPL collection of City Directories and Historic Newspapers may contain many more volumes and issues than have been digitized and are available on other web sites.
It will be fun to see what exciting new content will be available on www.Footnote.com. I do note that there is never any date certain for availability of online databases - we just have to wait for the announcements.
The full press release can be found at Leland Meitzler's Genealogy Blog and the DearMYRTLE Blog - these were the first two notices that I saw, there may be others.
I am confused as to why the press release is not available on Footnote's Press Room or the Footnote Blog site (as of 2 August 2007 before 10 PM).
I was curious as to what databases at ACPL might be offered on Footnote. The text says:
"This exciting partnership will result in millions of historical records being digitized and made available online for the first time at Footnote.com. The ACPL collections feature unique American and International records including family histories, city directories, military records and historical newspapers."
I am disappointed, but not surprised, that the list doesn't include the ACPL's collection of genealogy newsletters, periodicals, journals and magazines. ACPL houses a complete collection of the genealogy-related publications that are indexed in the PERiodical Source Index (PERSI). I'm not surprised because I've been told that the copyright on many publications are held by the authors or the publication's owner, and therefore the publications cannot be digitized.
Does anybody know if the ACPL databases will be available on www.Footnote.com accessed at the LDS Family History Centers (when those links come alive in the future)?
The good news is that the ACPL collection of family histories, and the ACPL collection of City Directories and Historic Newspapers may contain many more volumes and issues than have been digitized and are available on other web sites.
It will be fun to see what exciting new content will be available on www.Footnote.com. I do note that there is never any date certain for availability of online databases - we just have to wait for the announcements.
Carnival of Genealogy #29 is posted
The August 1 Carnival of Genealogy (29th edition) is posted at http://footnotemaven.blogspot.com/2007/08/29th-edition-of-carnival-of-genealogy_02.html. The topic is:
"Moral or Legal Dilemmas in Genealogy and Genea-blogging. Which ones have you had to deal with and how did you resolve them, if you did? "
My own submission was "A Challenging Moral Dilemma" (since I didn't want to blog much more about my embarrassment having to apologize to an ... -- oops, never mind! I still think about it!).
Thank you to the 15 genea-bloggers who contributed their articles - we had a few new faces (to me, at least) this time. And thank you to footnoteMaven for hosting it and for doing a fine job on this edition. By the way, why does fM not capitalize the first word of her nom-de-plume? And does she look like the picture on her blog? Inquiring minds want to know!
The topic for the next Carnival of Genealogy will be:
"Genealogical Conferences/Seminars. Just to get you thinking, here are some things you might want to write about. Have you been to a conference you really enjoyed? Is there one you attend every year? Which would you recommend to others and why? Is there one you've always wanted to attend but couldn't? If you could design the "dream conference", what sessions would you have in it? Have you been on a genealogy cruise? What are your pet peeves regarding genealogy conferences?"
The deadline for the next Carnival of Genealogy will be August 16, and Jasia at Creative Gene will host it. You can submit an article for the Carnival on the carnival submission form.
"Moral or Legal Dilemmas in Genealogy and Genea-blogging. Which ones have you had to deal with and how did you resolve them, if you did? "
My own submission was "A Challenging Moral Dilemma" (since I didn't want to blog much more about my embarrassment having to apologize to an ... -- oops, never mind! I still think about it!).
Thank you to the 15 genea-bloggers who contributed their articles - we had a few new faces (to me, at least) this time. And thank you to footnoteMaven for hosting it and for doing a fine job on this edition. By the way, why does fM not capitalize the first word of her nom-de-plume? And does she look like the picture on her blog? Inquiring minds want to know!
The topic for the next Carnival of Genealogy will be:
"Genealogical Conferences/Seminars. Just to get you thinking, here are some things you might want to write about. Have you been to a conference you really enjoyed? Is there one you attend every year? Which would you recommend to others and why? Is there one you've always wanted to attend but couldn't? If you could design the "dream conference", what sessions would you have in it? Have you been on a genealogy cruise? What are your pet peeves regarding genealogy conferences?"
The deadline for the next Carnival of Genealogy will be August 16, and Jasia at Creative Gene will host it. You can submit an article for the Carnival on the carnival submission form.
Light Blogging for Awhile
My daughter Lori and her two sons, Lucas (almost 4) and Logan (18 months) have arrived and will be here until Monday. Therefore, blogging may be light on some days.
Today, I'm taking Lucas to the Aerospace Museum and Model Railway Museum in Balboa Park, then we're going for Chinese food (he loves tofu, I get Almond Chicken) and home for a nap (I'll need it). Linda, Lori and Logan are going to the Padres game this afternoon.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
LDS Research Guides
The LDS Family History Library has created Research Guides for all US states, and many countries and specific topics. Each state Research Guide provides an extended description of the different types of records available to researchers, and describes the holdings of the Family History Library (in book or microform format) of those records.
You can purchase individual Research Guides at Family History Centers (the prices are very reasonable), or you can read them or download them from the LDS FamilySearch web site.
The list of available Research Guides is at http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/RG/frameset_rhelps.asp.
You can download these to your computer and print them on your own printer. I have downloaded many of them to my computer and put them on my laptop - these guides are usually the first reference I check when I have a research problem in a state or topic I have not researched in before.
CVGS purchased a set of about 60 Research Guides about three years ago from the FHC. We have them in binders in our file drawers at the library. Unfortunately, our members forget that they are available and have to be constantly reminded.
You can purchase individual Research Guides at Family History Centers (the prices are very reasonable), or you can read them or download them from the LDS FamilySearch web site.
The list of available Research Guides is at http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/RG/frameset_rhelps.asp.
You can download these to your computer and print them on your own printer. I have downloaded many of them to my computer and put them on my laptop - these guides are usually the first reference I check when I have a research problem in a state or topic I have not researched in before.
CVGS purchased a set of about 60 Research Guides about three years ago from the FHC. We have them in binders in our file drawers at the library. Unfortunately, our members forget that they are available and have to be constantly reminded.
NGS has Series of E-books for Research in 7 States
The latest issue of UpFront (the National Genealogical Society email newsletter) has the following announcement:
------------------------------------
The National Genealogical Society announced several new and revised publications from its Research in the States Series just before the 2007 Conference in the States, and the books fairly flew off the shelves.
Several were sell-outs, so we want to make sure everyone knows that the e-book versions are available right now from the NGS web site. Each publication includes a section on archives, libraries, societies, and other research facilities in the respective state, as well as a discussion of the major family history resources available, such as maps, cemetery records, census, city directories, newspapers, military records, tax records and vital records. In addition each state includes a discussion of which records are available at the local, county, andstate level.
Series Editors, Ann Carter Fleming and Kay Haviland Freilich worked with various authors to update the research in some states and complete research on new states. The new and revised publications are as follows:
* Genealogical Research in Illinois by Diane Renner Walsh (published in the NGS Quarterly in 2006, now available as a separate publication)
* Genealogical Research in Maryland by Patricia O'Brien Shawker (new, never published)
* Genealogical Research in Missouri by Pamela Boyer Porter and Ann Carter Fleming (revised and updated from 1999)
* Genealogical Research in Oregon by Connie Miller Lenzen (revised and updated from 1992)
* Genealogical Research in Pennsylvania by Kay Haviland Freilich (revised and updated from 2003)
* Genealogical Research in Virginia by Eric G. Grundset (revised and updated from 1998)
* Genealogical Research in West Virginia by Barbara Vine Little (new, never published)
Each publication is 8 1/2 inches by 11 inches, slightly larger than our previous Research in the States publications. The average length is 42 pages, but it varies by state. Each is currently available as a PDF file, an "e-book" that you can download from the NGS web site and then either read on your computer or print. Prices are $8 for NGS members and 10$ for non-members.
The direct link to the download and purchase page is https://www.ngsgenealogy.org/bookstore/ListItems.cfm?CATID=32 For those who prefer to purchase printed copies, watch for an announcement on the website as soon as we've replenished our inventory.
NGS and Editors Fleming and Freilich are working on several more states, especially those hosting future Conferences in the States and surrounding states.
"Originally published in UpFront with NGS, The Online Newsletter of theNational Genealogical Society. http://www.NGSgenealogy.org/upfront.htm"
--------------------------------------------
If you have an interest in these 7 states, these E-books may be very helpful in your research. Several of them have been published previously in the NGS Quarterly previously.
We can never have too much information!
------------------------------------
The National Genealogical Society announced several new and revised publications from its Research in the States Series just before the 2007 Conference in the States, and the books fairly flew off the shelves.
Several were sell-outs, so we want to make sure everyone knows that the e-book versions are available right now from the NGS web site. Each publication includes a section on archives, libraries, societies, and other research facilities in the respective state, as well as a discussion of the major family history resources available, such as maps, cemetery records, census, city directories, newspapers, military records, tax records and vital records. In addition each state includes a discussion of which records are available at the local, county, andstate level.
Series Editors, Ann Carter Fleming and Kay Haviland Freilich worked with various authors to update the research in some states and complete research on new states. The new and revised publications are as follows:
* Genealogical Research in Illinois by Diane Renner Walsh (published in the NGS Quarterly in 2006, now available as a separate publication)
* Genealogical Research in Maryland by Patricia O'Brien Shawker (new, never published)
* Genealogical Research in Missouri by Pamela Boyer Porter and Ann Carter Fleming (revised and updated from 1999)
* Genealogical Research in Oregon by Connie Miller Lenzen (revised and updated from 1992)
* Genealogical Research in Pennsylvania by Kay Haviland Freilich (revised and updated from 2003)
* Genealogical Research in Virginia by Eric G. Grundset (revised and updated from 1998)
* Genealogical Research in West Virginia by Barbara Vine Little (new, never published)
Each publication is 8 1/2 inches by 11 inches, slightly larger than our previous Research in the States publications. The average length is 42 pages, but it varies by state. Each is currently available as a PDF file, an "e-book" that you can download from the NGS web site and then either read on your computer or print. Prices are $8 for NGS members and 10$ for non-members.
The direct link to the download and purchase page is https://www.ngsgenealogy.org/bookstore/ListItems.cfm?CATID=32 For those who prefer to purchase printed copies, watch for an announcement on the website as soon as we've replenished our inventory.
NGS and Editors Fleming and Freilich are working on several more states, especially those hosting future Conferences in the States and surrounding states.
"Originally published in UpFront with NGS, The Online Newsletter of theNational Genealogical Society. http://www.NGSgenealogy.org/upfront.htm"
--------------------------------------------
If you have an interest in these 7 states, these E-books may be very helpful in your research. Several of them have been published previously in the NGS Quarterly previously.
We can never have too much information!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)