Ancestry and Geneology

[Alaskan]

Here ya go yall.

Questions about researching ancestry, cemeteries, and such other interesting tidbits about people who have been long dead.

Be nice.

 

[kwhites634]

Here ya go yall.

Questions about researching ancestry, cemeteries, and such other interesting tidbits about people who have been long dead.

Be nice.

By golly, you're alright! Thanks. You've already addressed my 1st concern, but here's another: There are more than one ancestory site out there; do you have a favorite?

 

[SueT]

Here's an interesting story about my late mother and father inlaw, Roy and Marjorie T, whose house we now own. I found an old box Marjorie had saved, full of letters Roy had sent beginning in 1939 before they were married and some were before WWII began. He hadn't yet joined the Marines in the first letters. The stories he never told us unfolded as we read the letters. We discovered that the 2 of them married in secret as a Marine couldn't marry. They didn't even tell their parents. I typed out the letters and put them into a book form, filled it with pics of which we had many. I called it Letters to Marjorie and printed it out for our kids.

 

[room onthebroom]

Here's an interesting story about my late mother and father inlaw, Roy and Marjorie T, whose house we now own. I found an old box Marjorie had saved, full of letters Roy had sent beginning in 1939 before they were married and some were before WWII began. He hadn't yet joined the Marines in the first letters. The stories he never told us unfolded as we read the letters. We discovered that the 2 of them married in secret as a Marine couldn't marry. They didn't even tell their parents. I typed out the letters and put them into a book form, filled it with pics of which we had many. I called it Letters to Marjorie and printed it out for our kids.
View attachment 1558257 View attachment 1558258 View attachment 1558259

Very cool!!!

 

[oldrooster]

try libraries, many have classes and clubs for that type of research, also local history centers may also. If you have early American lineage the DAR may help.

 

[Alaskan]

By golly, you're alright! Thanks. You've already addressed my 1st concern, but here's another: There are more than one ancestory site out there; do you have a favorite?

Ancestry has the best resources and set up.

However, there are other sites where you can find worlds of interesting things.

I really like archived newspapers. I think the site I used and liked was newspaperarchive.com

For newspaper ads my ancestors placed, and obits too. But I found that they were on the board of Bluebell icecream, and vicepresident of a gun club.

Anyway, interesting stuff pops up. It helps if your ancestors are in a podunk town with it's own podunk paper.

That newspaper stuff isn't on Ancestry.

Ancestry has excellent census records, and organizes it easily and well. But there are lots of things that they don't have too.

They had most of the Texas farm schedules. (Actually , for most of the US), but they didn't have any of the very old tax roles of Texas that are only available on micro fische and microfilm, in person, at the Houston archive library.

Ancestry has a great collection of records out of New England, even old Mayflower stuff. They also have a huge amount of British records going back to about 1000, or whenever the Doomsday book was written. The exact date escapes me at present.

The German records are spotty. It depends on what region you are from. Germans tend to be informative, so those records are usually good.

Irish records are poor on Ancestry. I had more luck finding an Irish site that I paid for for 1 month, but the name escapes me.

Also, if there are specific things you are looking for.... like I wanted to know exactly where my twice great grandparents house was... there are usually state archive sites with good records.

I found a Texas site with antique maps you could look at for free. And the Texas state archive, all free online, has most land records from the early years of Texas.

But if you are close to where they lived... the local courthouse ROCKS! You can look up all land they bought or sold, all registered brands, and anything that went to court or that a lawyer filed. So wills, lawsuits, criminal cases, all pop up.

I had 2 direct ancestors that were called to testify infront of a congressional committee... on a suspected tar-n-feathering case after "the great unpleasantness ". It was a hoot, because every word was transcribed.

 

[Alaskan]

Here's an interesting story about my late mother and father inlaw, Roy and Marjorie T, whose house we now own. I found an old box Marjorie had saved, full of letters Roy had sent beginning in 1939 before they were married and some were before WWII began. He hadn't yet joined the Marines in the first letters. The stories he never told us unfolded as we read the letters. We discovered that the 2 of them married in secret as a Marine couldn't marry. They didn't even tell their parents. I typed out the letters and put them into a book form, filled it with pics of which we had many. I called it Letters to Marjorie and printed it out for our kids.
View attachment 1558257 View attachment 1558258 View attachment 1558259

Stuff like that is excellent!!! I am so glad you did that.

My dad's grandmother wrote a booklet thing for him with all of the things she thought were most important in life, as well as all of the family history that she knew. I love it!

 

[Alaskan]

try libraries, many have classes and clubs for that type of research, also local history centers may also. If you have early American lineage the DAR may help.

Some of the local history groups are excellent. The one in New Braunfels, back in the 70s and 80s recorded lots of the old timers, and you can buy copies of the recordings. My great grandmother and my great uncle both did a couple. They also keep all of the local obits and such, and organize them nicely. Sometimes they have copies of the local church records.

Often those same church records are in the local town library, and sometimes you have to go to the churches.

 

[SueT]

Much of my MIL's family is buried in a tiny cemetery near here. I took pics of gravestones to show the kids, and found this pyramid shaped one with this sobering inscription:

"Kind friends beware as you pass by,
As you are now so once was I
As I am now so you must be,
Prepare------- follow me...."
(not sure of that last line)

 

[WVduckchick]

Much of my MIL's family is buried in a tiny cemetery near here. I took pics of gravestones to show the kids, and found this pyramid shaped one with this sobering inscription:
View attachment 1558618
View attachment 1558619
"Kind friends beware as you pass by,
As you are now so once was I
As I am now so you must be,
Prepare------- follow me...."
(not sure of that last line)

Prepare, therefore, to follow me. ?

Wow!