Thursday, July 7, 2011

What's on My Bookshelf?

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In her post The Top 5 Books on My Bookshelf  on the Marian's Roots and Rambles blog, Marian Pierre-Louis listed the genealogy reference books that she uses the most.

I thought that I would list the Top 10 books that I consult regularly and consider the most important  (I have no clue of the order):

*  Elizabeth Shown Mills, Evidence! Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace, Baltimore, Md: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2007.

*  Elizabeth Shown Mills (editor), Professional Genealogy, Baltimore Md: Genealogical Publishing company, 2001.

* Helen F.M. Leary (editor), North Carolina Research: Genealogy and Local History, Raleigh NC: North Carolina Genealogical Society, 1996.

*  Val D. Greenwood, The Researchers Guide to American Genealogy, 3rd Edition, Baltimore Md: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2000.

*  Christine Rose, Genealogical Proof Standard: Building a Solid Case, San Jose,Calif.: CR Publications, 2009.

*  Christine Rose, Courthouse Research for Family Historians: Your Guide to Genealogical Treasures, San Jose Calif.: CR Publications, 2004.

*  Kathleen W. Hinckley, Your Guide to the Federal Census for Genealogists, Researchers and Family Historians, Cincinnati Ohio: Betterway Books, 2002.

*  E. Wade Hone, Land and Property Research in the United States, Salt Lake City, Utah: Ancestry, 1997.

*  Loretto Dennis Szucs, They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins, Salt Lake City, Utah: Ancestry, 1996.

*  Meredith B. Colket, Jr., Founders of Early American Families: Emigrants from Europe 1607-1657, Cleveland Ohio: General court of the Order of the Founders and Patriots of America, 1975.

*  Martin E. Hollick, New Englanders in the 1600s: A Guide to Genealogical Research Published Between 1980 and 2005, Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2006.

*  Marcia Wiswall Lindberg, Genealogist's Handbook for New England Research, 3rd Edition, Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1993.

*  George K. Schweitzer, Pennsylvania Genealogical Research, Knoxville, Tenn: G.K. Schweitzer, 1986.

*  William Dollarhide, Census Substitutes and State Census Records, Volume 1 - Eastern States and Volume 2, Western States, Bountiful, Utah: Family Roots Publishing Company, 2008.

*  William Dollarhide, Genealogical Resources of the Civil war Era: Online and Published Military or civilian Name Lists, 1861-1869, and Post-War Veteran Lists, Bountiful, Utah: Family Roots Publishing Company, 2009.

Hmm, that's fifteen, not ten.  I have not listed all 100 or so genealogy-oriented books that I have on my bookshelf, on my computer hard drive, or in my Google Books reading list.

 I did not list surname books, locality books for specific towns or counties, or books for European research. I have a major interest in colonial New England. The one that may surprise is the North Carolina book by Leary, which includes an excellent summary of general genealogical research in many topics.

I do not have some important books for general or New England genealogical research - for instance, I don't have a general Military Records or Passenger List book on my bookshelf, and I don't have The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1633 and The Great Migration, 1634-1635 series that provide authoritative family sketches of early New England families.  I do have access to those books, and many others at my local libraries.

What is on your bookshelf?  What books do you suggest that I add to my bookshelf?

The URL for this post is http://www.geneamusings.com/2011/07/whats-on-my-bookshelf.html

(c) 2011. Randall J. Seaver. All Rights Reserved. If you wish to re-publish my content, please contact me for permission, which I will usually grant. If you are reading this on any other genealogy website, then they have stolen my work.

3 comments:

owlhart said...

What about: Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources

gophergenealogy said...

On my website I have posted a Book Wish List of forty five books of what I consider top books for genealogists, eleven of which are still on my wish list. http://gophergenealogy.blogspot.com

Howard Swain said...

I also have Mr. Hollick's book, New Englanders in the 1600s. And I also use TGMB and GMB 2nd in the library.

My additional top books for New England are:
* Clarence A. Torrey, New England Marriages Prior to 1700 (complete with sources, on CDROM); NEHGS, 2001.

* Melinde Lutz Sanborn, Third Supplement to Torrey's New England Marriages Prior to 1700; Genealogical Publishing Co., 2003.

And for Massachusetts:
* Charles Henry Pope, The Pioneers of Massachusetts...; 1900 (Reprinted by Higginson Book Co.)

* Melinde Lutz Sanborn, Ages from Court Records 1636 to 1700, Volume I...; Genealogical Publishing Co., 2003.

Passenger lists:
* John Camden Hotten, The Original Lists of Persons of Quality..., second edition (1880); reprinted by Higginson Book Co.