Next Wednesday and Thursday the National Archives presents a series of classes on genealogy over the Internet.
Free classes on how to access records in the various holdings of the National Archives will be accompanied by handouts and a call-in genealogy help line.
See the announcement here for the full schedule, links to downloading the handouts, etc. See you there:)
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Sorting it out
While there are people in my tree who lack enough information for me to find their ancestors, most of the people I have documented have the opposite problem: too much information. Although primary source information usually corroborates with other primary sources, even that may seem to fail at times. Usually there is a reasonable explanation for conflicting evidence, such as two people with the same name living in the same area, and further information will often sort them out.
It is the secondary sources with their derivative facts which most often produces conflicting evidence, and the reason is usually some kind of human error in the transcription. Again, comparing it to further information can usually sort out the facts from the confusion, but only if one has a way to evaluate each bit of evidence.
Early settlers in America often moved from their original place of landing, but they did not frequently change either their religious affiliations, or their occupations. The names of their children would remain the same except where a daughter changed to her married name, and frequently her husband's name will be found with her father's name in the local military or land or church records.
Wills are wonderful primary source documents which often reveal family relationships and married daughters, but since the eldest son was frequently given the home farm (as well as the care of his aging parents) he might not be mentioned in a will, as he would already be in possession of his inheritance.
For those who wish to delve a little deeper, I recommend the classic "Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian" by Elizabeth Shown Mills.
It is the secondary sources with their derivative facts which most often produces conflicting evidence, and the reason is usually some kind of human error in the transcription. Again, comparing it to further information can usually sort out the facts from the confusion, but only if one has a way to evaluate each bit of evidence.
Early settlers in America often moved from their original place of landing, but they did not frequently change either their religious affiliations, or their occupations. The names of their children would remain the same except where a daughter changed to her married name, and frequently her husband's name will be found with her father's name in the local military or land or church records.
Wills are wonderful primary source documents which often reveal family relationships and married daughters, but since the eldest son was frequently given the home farm (as well as the care of his aging parents) he might not be mentioned in a will, as he would already be in possession of his inheritance.
For those who wish to delve a little deeper, I recommend the classic "Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian" by Elizabeth Shown Mills.
The Geography of Genealogy
Geography shines understanding upon the migrations of our ancestors. Place names may either confirm or obscure the origination of families. To study my ancestors has been to learn how vital the natural features of the world was to their travels, commerce, and migrations.
Before the golden age of canals in England, there were rivers which carried much of their commerce, which made their travel easier, which powered mills for grinding their grains, and which provided fish for their tables.
Place names change through the centuries, or are misspelled in books and documents, and so confusion is cast upon which home village to look for a family name.
Latest case in point:
The Quaker John Pancoast (also spelled Pankurst) came to Burlington, New Jersey, with his eight children on the ship Paradise in 1680. He brought with him a written recommendation from his church in England. In the various books and documents citing this letter, he is said to have lived in Northamptonshire, an English county. His church is said to have been in "Ugbrooke". He is also said to have lived in or near Ashton.
Ugbrooke is a famous country estate in Devon which originally belonged the earls of Clifford. It is nowhere near the place where John Pancoast lived and went to church.
Bugbrooke is a small town on the River Nene, which also happens to flow through Ashton on its way to Northampton in Northamptonshire.
And so the simple dropping of a letter at the beginning of a word can raise confusion like dust, obscuring the real home village of an immigrant ancestor.
The life of a genealogist is one of details, chasing out the little devils that hide the facts. Looking up Ugbrooke, finding it in Devonshire instead of Northamptonshire, discovering the river that connects Ashton and Bugbrooke -- the simple joys of a researcher on the family tree.
Before the golden age of canals in England, there were rivers which carried much of their commerce, which made their travel easier, which powered mills for grinding their grains, and which provided fish for their tables.
Place names change through the centuries, or are misspelled in books and documents, and so confusion is cast upon which home village to look for a family name.
Latest case in point:
The Quaker John Pancoast (also spelled Pankurst) came to Burlington, New Jersey, with his eight children on the ship Paradise in 1680. He brought with him a written recommendation from his church in England. In the various books and documents citing this letter, he is said to have lived in Northamptonshire, an English county. His church is said to have been in "Ugbrooke". He is also said to have lived in or near Ashton.
Ugbrooke is a famous country estate in Devon which originally belonged the earls of Clifford. It is nowhere near the place where John Pancoast lived and went to church.
Bugbrooke is a small town on the River Nene, which also happens to flow through Ashton on its way to Northampton in Northamptonshire.
And so the simple dropping of a letter at the beginning of a word can raise confusion like dust, obscuring the real home village of an immigrant ancestor.
The life of a genealogist is one of details, chasing out the little devils that hide the facts. Looking up Ugbrooke, finding it in Devonshire instead of Northamptonshire, discovering the river that connects Ashton and Bugbrooke -- the simple joys of a researcher on the family tree.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Ancestry.com and new records
This week I checked on some of the 'brick walls' in my family tree, and was pleasantly surprised to find new records added to the already impressive and vast collection at Ancestry.com
Although most of my 'end of this line' branches remain the same, one branch grew fifteen new people,with documentation. In the chart above, most of the people on the right half were born and died in England, and most of the people on the left half were born in, or moved to, America.
These are some of my earliest immigrant ancestors. Some of them were Quakers. (Click on the picture to see a large version.)
They lived in Milford, Fairfield county, Connecticut, and in the last generation (Mary Coley), moved to Cohansey, Cumberland county, New Jersey, which was settled earlier by Quakers.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
MAGNA CARTA - CELEBRATE THE ANNIVERSARY
This Saturday, June 15, celebrate the 798th anniversary of Magna Carta. Hang out our flag. Tell a friend it is a special day.
Following is a brief calendar of the events concentrated immediately before and after King John put his royal seal to Magna Carta. This was just the beginning - King John gathered his troops and set out to defeat his barons.
He won some battles, tore down some castles and imprisoned some of his barons - but - he died October 8, 1216 before he could win the war.
Because of the legacy of Magna Carta, we have laws such as Habeas Corpus, the law requiring a person under arrest to be brought before the court to determine whether the government has the right to continue detaining them. People didn't always have that right, and could be held indefinitely without a trial by jury of their peers.
Habeas Corpus resulted from what is now known as Magna Carta clause 39, and may be one of the reasons the prisoners of the war against terror are held in Guantanamo Bay - it is our military base in Cuba and 'technically' is said to not fall under such laws. (To be strictly fair, our law of habeas corpus can be specifically suspended in cases of rebellion, invasion, and public safety.)
May 17, 1215 - London opens gates to barons (with at least 1,187 knights)
June 15, 1215 - King John sets his seal to Magna Carta
June 17, 1215 - barons sign their vow to enforce it
June 19, 1215 - barons renew their oaths of fealty to King John
July 19, 1215 - A formal document to record the agreement was created by the royal chancery: this was the original Magna Carta. Copies were created and distributed around England, however only four copies are known to still exist today, one of which is on display in our National Archives in Washington, D.C.
August 24, 1215 - Pope Innocent III issues a papal bull declaring Magna Carta null and void.
November 12, 1216 - Magna Carta abbreviated, reissued by John's heir, King Henry III.
England is planning a great 800th anniversary celebration for Magna Carta in 2015 - sure wish I could be there!
Sources:
Matthew Strickland, ‘Enforcers of Magna Carta (act. 1215–1216)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/theme/93691, accessed 13 June 2013]
'Featured Documents', National Archives, [http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/, accessed 13 June 2013]
'Magna Carta', Wikipedia, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta, accessed 13 June 2013]
Treasures in Full: Magna Carta, 'Timeline', British Library, [http://www.bl.uk/treasures/magnacarta/timeline/timeline.html, accessed 13 June 2013]
Following is a brief calendar of the events concentrated immediately before and after King John put his royal seal to Magna Carta. This was just the beginning - King John gathered his troops and set out to defeat his barons.
He won some battles, tore down some castles and imprisoned some of his barons - but - he died October 8, 1216 before he could win the war.
Because of the legacy of Magna Carta, we have laws such as Habeas Corpus, the law requiring a person under arrest to be brought before the court to determine whether the government has the right to continue detaining them. People didn't always have that right, and could be held indefinitely without a trial by jury of their peers.
Habeas Corpus resulted from what is now known as Magna Carta clause 39, and may be one of the reasons the prisoners of the war against terror are held in Guantanamo Bay - it is our military base in Cuba and 'technically' is said to not fall under such laws. (To be strictly fair, our law of habeas corpus can be specifically suspended in cases of rebellion, invasion, and public safety.)
May 17, 1215 - London opens gates to barons (with at least 1,187 knights)
June 15, 1215 - King John sets his seal to Magna Carta
June 17, 1215 - barons sign their vow to enforce it
June 19, 1215 - barons renew their oaths of fealty to King John
July 19, 1215 - A formal document to record the agreement was created by the royal chancery: this was the original Magna Carta. Copies were created and distributed around England, however only four copies are known to still exist today, one of which is on display in our National Archives in Washington, D.C.
August 24, 1215 - Pope Innocent III issues a papal bull declaring Magna Carta null and void.
November 12, 1216 - Magna Carta abbreviated, reissued by John's heir, King Henry III.
England is planning a great 800th anniversary celebration for Magna Carta in 2015 - sure wish I could be there!
Sources:
Matthew Strickland, ‘Enforcers of Magna Carta (act. 1215–1216)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/theme/93691, accessed 13 June 2013]
'Featured Documents', National Archives, [http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/magna_carta/, accessed 13 June 2013]
'Magna Carta', Wikipedia, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta, accessed 13 June 2013]
Treasures in Full: Magna Carta, 'Timeline', British Library, [http://www.bl.uk/treasures/magnacarta/timeline/timeline.html, accessed 13 June 2013]
Friday, April 5, 2013
Dictionary of Medieval Knighthood and Chivalry
Arrived today from Friends of Books, Volume one of two: concepts and terms. Volume two, on persons, places and events, is on the way.
Bouncing up and down in my chair, I opened the box and pulled out a thick book to an accompaniment of goose-bumps. As I cracked it open at random spots, I could tell it would not disappoint. Although the new version of this scholarly work is priced at $118.75 and up, my used library version was much less, and still in good condition. If there are any equivalent books on this arcane subject, I am not aware of them. At 604 pages, the volume covers concepts and terms from the years 1050 to 1400 thoroughly. Every glance at a page shows me the work of an author in love with his subject, a work fifteen years in the making.
This has been a difficult year for me, physically, but rewards like today make it all worth the effort.
Bouncing up and down in my chair, I opened the box and pulled out a thick book to an accompaniment of goose-bumps. As I cracked it open at random spots, I could tell it would not disappoint. Although the new version of this scholarly work is priced at $118.75 and up, my used library version was much less, and still in good condition. If there are any equivalent books on this arcane subject, I am not aware of them. At 604 pages, the volume covers concepts and terms from the years 1050 to 1400 thoroughly. Every glance at a page shows me the work of an author in love with his subject, a work fifteen years in the making.
This has been a difficult year for me, physically, but rewards like today make it all worth the effort.
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