Researching New York City

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Researching New York City Class 4 Christopher C.

1 Researching New York City Class 4 Christopher C. Child, Senior Genealogist of the Newbury Street Press Meet today s presenter Christopher C. Child Senior Genealogist of the Newbury Street Press OVERVIEW Presentation (60 mins.) Formation of New York City NYC records NYC repositories Q&A (30 mins.) Click to expand your user panel 1

2 New York City vs. New York State Basic Periods of Time New Amsterdam, English Period, After Rev. War separate Cities within different counties, annexation in the mid 19 th century 1898 Five Boroughs create NYC QUESTIONS? New Amsterdam,

3 QUESTIONS? New York City, 1829, stevemorse.org Present day counties of NYC New York County Manhattan Island present Westchester Additions 1874 western Bronx 1895 rest of Bronx 3

1683-1893, all of present day Queens and

1898- eastern Queens became a borough of

4 Kings County 1683 to present Brooklyn annexed all towns by 1895 Queens County , all of present day Queens and Nassau Counties were in Queens County eastern Queens became a borough of NYC while western Queens (North Hempstead, Oyster Bay, and most of Hempstead became the newly created Nassau County [except the Rockaways, which also joined NYC]) 1683 to present A few towns until 1898 when the island became a borough of New York City Richmond County (Staten Island) 4

Bronx County Part of Westchester County 1683-1874 (west) 1895 (east) New York

York) Tip Boundaries dictate record organization.

5 Bronx County Part of Westchester County (west) 1895 (east) New York County 1874 or 1895 to 1914 Bronx County 1914 to present (youngest county in New York) Tip Boundaries dictate record organization. Unique Features of NYC Has its own history, geography, ethnic groups, commercial interests, etc. Enormous volume of records Multi-layered bureaucracies make research difficult Corporate boundaries and even street names changed over time Municipal offices often hard to access 5

Positive Features Record-keeping usually better and began earlier than rural

historical societies) Newspapers and directories begin much earlier More and

Genealogical Resources in New York Guide to Genealogical and Biographical

6 Positive Features Record-keeping usually better and began earlier than rural areas Has more-centralized research facilities (i.e., libraries, archives, historical societies) Newspapers and directories begin much earlier More and more records are being made available on the Internet General Finding Aids Genealogical Resources in New York Guide to Genealogical and Biographical Sources for New York City, New York Family History Research Guide & Gazetteer QUESTIONS? 6

Published Source Material New York Genealogical & Biographical Record 1870-1923: available on AmericanAncestors.org Full run: available on newyorkfamilyhistory.

7 Published Source Material New York Genealogical & Biographical Record : available on AmericanAncestors.org Full run: available on newyorkfamilyhistory.org Collections of New York Historical Society Older volumes available at Archive.org Census Substitutes New York Tax Lists/ Assessment Rolls Freeholders Lists, 1702 and assessment rolls (FHL) Tax lists 1770s to 1780s (NY Archives) (NY Archives) Some in Record; Collections of New York Historical Society 7

IRS Assessment Lists New York, 1862-1866 Poll List 1768- NYC Poll List

Census New York City was undercounted during 1890 federal census Local

8 IRS Assessment Lists New York, Poll List NYC Poll List Jury census (Municipal Archives) New York City Police Census New York City was undercounted during 1890 federal census Local leaders had the police do a recount On microfilm at FHL, NYC Archives, and Ancestry.com 8

9 Census of Inmates and Poorhouses, City Directories New York City Directories Starting 1786 Usually published annually Show ancestor s precise location and occupation Follow ancestor from year to year NYPL has large collection on film & fiche; /23 now digitized and browseable, /49 coming soon Ancestry.com, Fold3.com, FamilySearch.org 9

10 New York City Directories Vital Records 10

11 Vital Records Marriages prior to 1784 Marriage Bonds th century onwards Vital Records (excluding 1847 attempt) Earliest Organization New York 1795 (d) City government Kings 1866 City government* Queens 1881 Town specific Richmond 1881 Town specific Bronx 1881 Westchester Co. *Town specific for towns not part of Brooklyn. Manhattan Deaths,

12 italiangen.org/records-search italiangen.org/records-search/grooms.php 12

13 FamilySearch.org Genealogical Copies certain areas: Kings County (except Brooklyn) Westchester County (Bronx) Queens County Richmond County Many on FHL microfilm 13

14 nycmarriageindex.com Religious Records Religious Records Vary by Denomination Access varies: Online (familysearch.org, Ancestry.com, or place of worship website) Microfilm (check FHL) Published transcriptions May require appointment at church or archive 14

15 Trinity Church, New York, NY Cemetery Records Cemetery Records 15

16 Cemetery Records Newspapers 16

17 Death and Marriages from the New York Evening Post Death and Marriages from the New York Evening Post The New York Times (ProQuest) Also Ancestry.com s Historical Newspapers, BMD,

18 bklyn.newspapers.com Probate & Wills Probate Records 18

19 New York Wills, Will Abstracts and Relationships Summaries Translated from Dutch (if applicable) Maps 19

20 Development of Brooklyn loc.gov 20

21 digitalcollections.nypl.org/collections/atlases-of-new-york-city# OldNYC.org, photographic views, 1870s-1970s OldNYC.org, photographic views, 1870s-1970s 21

Historical Society Brooklyn Historical Society

22 QUESTIONS? Research Repositories in NYC New York Public Library Municipal Archives of NYC National Archives & Records Administrations (NYC) New York Historical Society Brooklyn Historical Society Ackman and Ziff Family Genealogy Institute (at Center for Jewish History) New York Public Library 22

23 New York Public Library Contains the physical holdings of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Several NYC specific films (also available at FHL) Reference Collections: Milstein Division of U.S. History, Local History & Genealogy Map Division Art, Prints & Photographs Manuscripts, Archives & Rare Books 23

consolidated with the city in 1898) on microfilm Births to 1909 Marriages to 1937 (original applications) Deaths to

24 New York City Municipal Archives Municipal Archives Limited hours NO digital photography Can purchase copies of records NYC VRs at Municipal Archives Boroughs of New York City (including some towns and villages that were consolidated with the city in 1898) on microfilm Births to 1909 Marriages to 1937 (original applications) Deaths to 1948 New York State Censuses for Manhattan (1890 only), Brooklyn and Richmond City directories for Manhattan and Brooklyn 24

25 Other Records Coroner and Office of Chief Medical Examiner, Court records ( ) "Old Towns," City Cemetery, 's Almshouse Ledger Collection, Assessed Valuation of Real Estate, Tip Use online indexes to maximize your time 25

26 Index Information 26

1799 and almost immediately divorced Faced bankruptcy and lived with his father in later years

27 Case Study The Search for Thomas Herring Unknown in genealogies, spotty occurrence in city directories Family connections identified in letters of an unrelated individual Married in 1799 and almost immediately divorced Faced bankruptcy and lived with his father in later years QUESTIONS? Schedule a consultation consultations@nehgs.org Hire Research Services research@nehgs.org 27

28 AmericanAncestors.org/education/online-classes/new-york-course THANK YOU! AmericanAncestors.org/Education 28

Mastering New York Research Class #4: Researching New York City Christopher C. Child, Senior Genealogist Newbury Street Press,

Mastering New York Research Class #4: Researching New York City Christopher C. Child, Senior Genealogist Newbury Street Press, cchild@nehgs.org New York City vs. New York State There is often a big difference