Maryland and South PA Shared Sources

The region of central and western Maryland along with southern Pennsylvania has a long history of early settlement, many sections dating back before the American Revolutionary War.  When gathering ancestral  names and locations, if you have come across any, from any time period, in the Maryland and southern Pennsylvania areas, you will want to check out the PA-Roots online site for Maryland State Genealogy DataBoards.

The Maryland and Pennsylvania border was crossed back and forth many times over the decades by its citizens. Someone may have been raised in Carroll County, MD and later moved just over the border to York County, PA to live and work. Using the Maryland DataBoards can provide some much needed resources.

They are divided into ‘folders’.  There is the general Maryland folder when you want to search for a surname but have no idea which county they lived in. The other folders are the 23 counties of Maryland along with a separate one for Baltimore City.  Within each folder of a county will be submitted records, documents, biographies, court records, newspaper articles, cemetery records, military records and Wills, provided by other researchers.   There will not be every birth record or every marriage record, only those which have been submitted. However, just think, what if what you have been searching for, is there?

It would take a lot of time to go through each folder, so there is an easy search box in the upper right portion of each folder. Place just a surname, unless it is a very common name, then add a given name. It will take a few moments to search each item in the collections, but then a listing with a brief summary will appear.  Click and go over the full document. It might only have a small mention of a name you’re looking for but it could be enough of a clue to open some doors for you.

Many of the sources, especially newspapers are from Pennsylvania papers.  Because the families did go in between the two states, information on individuals appeared in newspapers in both Maryland and Pennsylvania. There is also the Pennsylvania State Genealogy DataBoards to search through for any ancestors.  This one is a little more in-depth with the general folder, all the counties of Pennsylvania, along with PA Civil War DataBoards and folders covering just Eastern Pennsylvania with obituaries and newspaper articles.

There will also be queries that individuals have submitted, requesting dates or locations about an ancestor.  Read some of them over, you might be able to help someone who in turn has some other information you are in need of.

Share some of the documents you have for these areas also.  The site has a free profile register button. Complete the registration and then post records you wish to dispense.

The example above shows the birth of Maria Margaretha Kufer of Carroll Co. in 1800, including citing the source.