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The October Workshop was a problem sharing session. Several members presented a brickwall problem and members suggested solutions. Helen Henson’s brickwall is Oliver Janes. She is searching for death date and place for him. Helen has traced Oliver from Delaware Co., OH, in 1840 to Davis Co. IA, in 1854, to Henry Co., MO, in 1860, to Brown Co., KS, in 1865, and to Jasper Co., MO, in 1870. She has searched the cemetery records for Jasper Co., obtained deed records, researched all his children, talked with descendants of the youngest child, and walked cemeteries close to Oliver’s land in Jasper Co.
Some suggestions from members were:
1) search for a Land Partition Deed, which may contain information about Oliver’s death,
2) search the state census,
3) do an Ancestry.com search for Oliver in 1880.
Hazel Voris is seeking information about Robert Shipley, who received payment for his services as a spy in July 1789 from the colony/state of Georgia. She has traced him from Maryland to Virginia and to Georgia. Some suggestions from members were:
1) check British Army records,
2) check Georgia militia records,
3) locate Georgia Military Affairs, in 9 volumes.
Fran Black is seeking the parentage of Thomas Jefferson Carver. According to his obituary, Thomas was born 4 Aug 1811 in Burke Co. NC, left home at the age of 14, stopped in Middle Tennessee for a few years, then came to Cedar County, MO, with a family named Powell, arriving on 12 Jul 1837. Suggestions from members included:
1) research Powells in Burke Co. NC,
2) look for marriage records for Powells in that time range,
3) follow Powells’ migrations, 4) search land records in Tennessee and North Carolina,
4) he was in the age range to have served in the Mexican War— search land records.
Lynn Shelley suggested obtaining copies of original records when doing research and not depending on abstracts. She shared how she had traced two John Alfords, both in Rockingham Co. VA, who each had children with the same given names. It was only after she obtained copies of the original wills that she was able to sort out each family.
Barbara Jensen suggested searching the online indexes using just the first name instead of the whole name when you can’t locate your brickwall on a census. She is working on the genealogy of the Holmes family. She was doing a census history when she found Hardy Holmes (Haines on the index) in Roane Co., TN. She had already been given the information that he was married there in 1831.
Fran Black shared the following suggestions for breaking through brickwalls 1. Gather all the evidence you have on the person or line into one place. Pull all the documents together and organize them in some way. Chronological sequence by the date the document was created is a good way to start.
2. Keep a pad of paper handy to write down ideas for future research. NO! You won’t remember it later.
3. Create a written, chronological timeline. Include dates of censuses, church and religious records, land and property records, birth, marriage, and death records.
4. Write a narrative or biography about your ancestor. Creating a timeline and writing a biography helps you determine where there are gaps in your research.
5. Read every thing that you have acquired concerning your ancestor. Everything! That means not only documents, but your notes, sources, and those little scraps of paper on which you’ve written information. Don’t just scan it, read it like you’ve never seen it before. You may have gained some knowledge about your ancestor since you read those documents. Re-reading may provide some new insights.
6. Transcribe all documents. This also may provide some overlooked clues.
7. Research siblings, cousins, and in-laws of your ancestor. Collecting documents and records for collateral lines may provide clues.
8. Study maps of the area in which your ancestor lived. Property lines, county lines, even state lines, changed over time as new territories were created. Your ancestor may not have moved, but records were recorded in a new location.
9. Post queries on message boards and mailing lists. You may find someone who knows the answer, or you may find clues.
10. Read about research methods and sources in the area where your ancestor lived. Learning about what materials are available may give sources that you didn’t know about or that weren’t available when you began your research.
11. Continually check for new databases and finding aids. Ancestry.com adds new databases daily. Many books have been digitized and are now available online. |
OGS Conference