ancestors
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Copying the Details Found on Headstones
Jul 5
All family history researchers check for vital records, but one source many times overlooked is the headstone of an ancestor. Locating the cemetery and then the headstone of an ancestor just might produce some answers to a few long sought questions. A popular practice when visiting a family plot at a cemetery is to make some rubbings of the head...
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Any Ancestors during the American Revolution?
Jul 3
This is the time of the year many family history researchers reflect on the possibly that they may have some ancestors who lived during or even served during the War for American Independence. Before beginning, one must have verified that they had ancestors who lived between 1776 and 1783, the war years. Many people immediately figure if they ...
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Searching for Living Relatives
Jul 1
A family researcher spends a great deal of time looking for primary vital documents to learn about those relatives who have passed away. However, one of the aspects of looking for those who have died, are also finding living relatives. By learning of a cousin or an aunt, previously unknown to the researcher and who could still be alive is just as...
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LowCountry Africana
Jun 29
The key period of time for many African Americans searching for their Southern ancestors is with the 1870 U. S. federal Census. This census was the first to name individual blacks by name. Anything before then was by a listing of the enslaved people with Wills, estate sales or slave schedules. One region of the South known as the Low Country c...
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Finding Birth-Marriage-Death Records in Cook Co., Illinois
Jun 27
Locating vital records (birth, marriage and death) are essential for all family researchers. These are the primary sources to determine who, what and where an ancestor’s life existed. With more local and state governmental agencies realizing the importance of making these records available on the Internet, the Cook County Clerk’s Bureau of Vi...
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Using CyndisList to Search for Anything
Jun 25
Since 1996, Cyndi Howells has single handily amassed a mammoth collection of genealogical links and is available online for use by anyone, anywhere, with no fee or subscription. It is called CyndisList with nearly 300,000 categorized links to every conceivable topic any researcher would be interested in, the site continues to provide an essenti...
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Finding Death Records for Ancestors from San Francisco, California
Jun 23
During the 19th century thousands of people were attracted to the growing city of San Francisco on the west coast of California. Many came from the eastern half of the United States, from European or Asian countries. The area became a true melting pot of individuals. Even after the great earthquake of April 1906, there were vast numbers of people...
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Search and Learn about the Louisiana Slave Trade
Jun 21
Those having African-American ties in Louisiana would want to review an online site titled Afro-Louisiana History and Genealogy 1718 - 1820. Not only those who had slaves as ancestors, but also those who held slaves in Louisiana and surrounding regions would be interested in this database. Though the efforts of Dr. Gwendolyn Hall, a New Orleans w...
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Maps — More Than Just for Locations
Jun 19
You need maps for many purposes besides finding your way from point A to point B. They provide information of the land and water sources of a given area. The population centers and concentration of communities can be featured on a map. Areas for vegetation, cattle, forests, hills, lakes, etc. can be illustrated using a map. With these and oth...
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Get Your Kids to Love Heritage Scrapbooking
Jun 15
Every child loves a good story. At least my two little ones do. They like to imagine fairies, and princesses, happy endings, and mysteries. While we may not have fairies and princesses in our family history, we certainly have plenty of mystery, and both happy and sad endings. My father-in-law is a big genealogy buff. He loves it and it is one of...