Getting The Story Straight

Today's newsletter from Family Tree, written by Diane Haddad in the Genealogy Insider, had a wonderful article titled, "The Importance of Enunciation in Genealogy".

[You can read the article in its entirety at: http://www.familytreemagazine.com/insider/The+Importance+Of+Enunciation+In+Genealogy.aspx ]

Diane tells of a family whose daughter couldn't wait to go to a certain part of the country on her next vacation because it was where her Dad had always told her he was from. The truth was far from the idyllic setting he had told her!

This reminds us that not all family myths, or family legends, are ground in truth. I can't begin to tell you how many times someone will tell me that their family was from one area of the country or region, or of some nationality, just to find out through research that it wasn't so.

Case in example: my grandpa had always told me he was named after his own grandpa, Henry. In fact, he even had old Henry's name written down in his family Bible as his grandpa. However, imagine my surprise when I found his death certificate, and that of three of his children listing their father not as Henry, but as Gottlieb! We knew he had come from Germany, and had even thought perhaps we would find his real name to be Heinz or Henri. But Gottlieb? No one was prepared for that!

I guess the point I am trying to get across is that it won't always be the case that family legend or myth can be proven true, and as researchers, we must be prepared to find that it isn't so.

I have had so many "cousins" tell me that this or that in my research has been faulty because their "daddy" or their "grandpa" or "aunt" or "uncle", etc., have told them something different. Therefore, my research has to be faulty.

The truth is folks, our families sometimes tell little embellishments to make our history sound better. Before you know it, those embellishments become "fact".

I recently did the research for a family who had been unable to trace their heritage past 1870, when one of the ancestor's suddenly appeared on a Census record in Illinois. Why? Well, their family myth had been that they had just arrived to the New World, but from where they did not know.

When we got into the research we found that the ancestral parents were actually two inmates in an insane assyllum. Evidently they got together and bore a child. The child was sent in 1868 to live with his grandparents, whose ancestors had been in this country since around 1700.

Be prepared for a bit of scandal!

Scandal occurred in the past much more often than you would think! I recently researched a family whose ancestor was linked as an associate of John Wilkes Boothe in the Lincoln assassination; you never know what will turn up!

The most common scandal of all? Oh, those precious little bundles of joy arriving not nine months to a year after the marriage occurred, but a mere three to four months after the marriage! [A HUGE no-no before the 20th century!] And it happened in all types of families. From the very rich to the very poor. From the educated to the uneducated.

Some of our clients are shocked to see on the Census records where their grandparents, and perhaps 3 or 4 generations back, were totally unable to read or write. Their signature a simple "X" on a document. [Oh, some people are highly offended when they see this on their ancestry!]

Then there are those whose family legend links them to someone of fame, or who claim a certain ethnic or national ancestry. I have been asked on several occasions not to tell anyone else of my research results when they find out that what they thought to be truth ends up not being so!

Regardless of our ancestor's past, we need to embrace it. If we find that our great-grandfather was a rake and a scoundrel, well, we need not believe our nature is the same as his. We hold our own destiny in our hands.

Be prepared to document the truth as evidenced by proof. Oh, to be sure, we should record the family legends. But be prepared to locate the truth of them. Wonderful for the researcher who is able to prove the legendary ancestry! But equally wonderful to locate the truth when the "legend" becomes a common man or woman.

Searching For Census Records

Today has been a busy day. I've been searching for Census records for a client's ancestor's in order to provide proof of the family names she already has listed in her tree.

I have been totally at a loss! I found a single record for 1850. According to the tree she provided me with, there should have been several children added to the family by 1850. Even a nationwide search did not reveal the family for the 1860 census.

Finally, in searching the county and state where they SHOULD HAVE BEEN I began searching using just one of the children's first name's. I left the surname on the search engine blank. This provided a rather large database in the county of everyone with the same first name.

They last name should have been listed as "ISOM. However, what I finally found was the correct first name with the unusual surname of TROM". Sure enough, a thorough search of that particular record revealed the transcriber had read the surname ISOM as TROM. And, there the family finally appeared.

Moral? If you are searching for a family in an area and you feel certain they should have been there, perhaps you might do a search using the given name. See how many options you have and choose from there.

As my old grandpa used to say, "There's more than one way to skin a cat!"

Have a great week everyone!

Cyndi

June 26, 2008

Try, Try, Try Again!

Today I received a new contract, and I have spent the entire day working on it.

Just when I thought I couldn't locate any more information for this client, BAM! Along comes another break and I am inundated with information!

I love tying families together with Census Records. This is a great tool for building family trees. Not only can we find family members who may, or may not, have survived in family history passed down to us, but we can also see just how often family members have moved!

In searching for family members prior to 1900, when transportation was extremely different from that of today, I am often amazed at how often, and at what great distances our forbears traveled and moved!

Today alone I witnessed a man who was born in 1827 in Ohio, who moved from Ohio, to Indiana, to Illinois, to Missouri, and finally to Kansas, all by 1860. And in 1885 his 90 year old mother moved from Ohio to join him in Kansas! Wow! Can you imagine?

I always count it a privilege to work for my clients. And I don't believe there has been a single client yet who I have NOT given free hours of service to! I often don't charge for an hour here, or two hours there. I get so lost up in the moment that I find it is not only entertaining for me, but it truly is MY PASSION!

I hope that you are doing what you are passionate about, too. When you can work at a job that is your passion, well, it just doesn't seem like work at all!

Blessings to All!
CBH

Wednesday - 25 June 2008

So, here I am, adding yet another task to my daily schedule! I've decided to chronicle my journey as I work through the mounds of dusty papers, journals, ledgers, tax rolls, birth and death certificates, indexes, wills and land grants!

That's me and my hubby on the right in a photo taken last October. We live in the beautiful mountains of Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Johnnie is a long-haul truck driver and is gone five days a week, which accounts for my long, [endless] ,hours of genealogy research.

I've begun to sell my services on eBay and am getting a rather wonderful response. I keep my services priced low for those individuals who might not otherwise be able to afford the high cost of a genealogist or family historian. So far, I have had only wonderful reviews! The Feedback has been fabulous!

Yesterday I finished up with a client who gave me a first. I have never been asked to uncover slavery documentation before. So, I went into the case presuming that we would uncover such. And we did! I was able to get the client exactly what she wanted. While black historical documents have not been my forte, I was rather proud that I was able to unearth these. It was a wonderful accomplishment for me. This morning I was able to email the client with a successful report and copies of the documents she had so wanted.

Today I have received another contract for forty-hours of research, and have spent two hours on the project so far. It looks to be quite successful. In just these two hours, I have uncovered public records, census records, death records, military records , an obituary and an SSDI. Whew! It's been a whirlwind evening!

In the midst of trying to run a successful research business, I am also the editor, and sole writer for "The Monroe Bean's", a monthly newsletter about the Bean family of West Virginia. It's a family based newsletter that contains historical research, as well as all the latest family news.

I am also an author and am currently working on a historical novel based on the life of my great-great-grandfather. As well as co-writing a science fiction novel with my hubby. By the way, Johnnie is a wonderful genealogist as well, although I think sometimes he lacks the confidence to admit it!

I subscribe to several genealogy magazines and online newsletters and blog feeds. I would suggest that anyone who is interested in genealogy do the same.

In the next few days we will post a list of our favorite online genealogy websites. These are wonderful for research.

Since it is well past midnight in my little neck of the woods, I will get ready for bed.

Until tomorrow evening, keep the dust out of your eyes [and nose] as you perform your research, and keep your pencil always sharpened!