Breaking Down Genealogical Brick Walls: Strategies for Success Class 1: Family January 2017

Breaking Down Genealogical Brick Walls: Strategies for Success Class 1: Family January 2017 Meet today s presenter Katrina Fahy Senior Researcher OVERVIEW Presentation (60 mins.) What is cluster research? Locating family and organizing your research Case studies Q&A (30 mins.) Click to expand your user panel 1

Voice of Voice of Katrina Fahy Senior Researcher Getting Started What is Cluster Research? A research technique used to learn more about an ancestor by examining records left by the ancestor's cluster Family Associates Neighbors 2

When do we use cluster research? Determining Parentage Finding maiden names Discovering origin of immigrant ancestors Cemeteries/Headstones Census Records Church Records City Directories County and Local Histories Genealogies Key Resources Land Records Naturalization Records Newspaper Articles/Obituaries Pension Records Probate Records Town Records Locating potential family members 3

Cemeteries Family Plots Individuals buried around an ancestor Cemetery Records http://www.stjoenew.com/genealogy.html Census Records 1790-1840: List head of household only 1850-1870: List all individuals in a household, but not relationships 1880-1940: list all individuals and relationships to the head of the household 4

1860 U.S. Federal Census, Putman, Fulton, IL 1880 U.S. Federal Census, Center Atchison, KS Tip Make a note of other households in the area with the same surname 5

Admission Records Removal Certificates Baptism and Marriage witnesses Church Records Church Records Church record of the marriage of John Lynch and Delia Kerwin 6

Occupation Addresses City Directories How common is the surname? Boston City Directory, 1885 County and Local Histories Often contain lists of early settlers or biographical sketches of prominent individuals of the area Can provide key information about your ancestor When they arrived in the area Origin Vital Record information History of McHenry County, Illinois Genealogies May not contain your ancestor, but may provide helpful information Information on potential parents/relatives Birth, death, marriage dates Movements from place to place Provide additional sources to check 7

Tip Be wary of the information found in secondary sources. Land Records: Things to look for Individuals buying and selling land repeatedly Same witnesses for different deeds Large tracts of land sold for little money Often $1 In consideration of love and affection References to former deeds pertaining to the lot Yates County, NY Deeds, 21:535 8

Tip Check date of formation for counties/towns. Naturalization Records Sworn statements by individuals on behalf of soldier/widow Provide information on soldier s service and life Pension Records 9

Probate Records Documents beyond wills Administration Records/Bonds Inventories/Debts owed Division of Estate Estate of Ellen Gallaway, Stamford, CT Estate of Ellen Gallaway, Stamford, CT 10

Obituaries Social News Travel Visiting family Newspapers Similar to Local Histories Helpful for: Finding early settlers When your ancestor first appears in the area Family s movements Town Records Tip Cluster research often uses a variety of records to make a connection. 11

Organizing your research Research Log Research Extract 12

Spreadsheets/Tables Name Baptism Parents Sponsor 1 Sponsor 2 Maria Russell 18 July 1818 James Russell and Betty Russell James Russell Mary Murphy Edmund Russell Oct. 1820 James Russell and Betty Russell Betty Russell 20 Apr. 1823 James Russell and Betty Russell Mary Russell 2 Jun. 1825 James Russell and Betty Russell Michael Russell 28 Sep. 1827 James Russell and Betty Russell Jno. Russell 19 Aug. 1832 James Russell and Betty Russell Mauce Russell Edmund Russell William Connell Denis Denahy Jno. Russell Margaret Denahy Mary Denahy Julia Daly Betty Connell Betty Russell Family Group Sheets QUESTIONS? 13

Using Cluster Research to determine parents Objective Who are the parents of Polly Fitch? Married Daniel Chase at Cornish, New Hampshire Is she a descendant of Mayflower passenger William Brewster? Step 1 Start with what you know 14

The Ancestry of Polly Fitch Step 2 Locate Potential Family Members Ancestry.com 15

Ancestry.com Step 3 Land and Probate Records Step 4 Secondary Sources 16

History of Cornish, New Hampshire History of Cornish, New Hampshire Fitches of Cornish, NH James Fitch?????? Hezekiah Fitch Samuel Fitch Zebediah Fitch Rufus Fitch 17

Descendants of the Reverend James Fitch, 1622-1702 Fitch Family of Cornish, NH James Fitch Hezekiah Fitch Zebediah Fitch Samuel Fitch Descendants of the Reverend James Fitch, 1622-1702 18

Will of Zebediah Fitch, Orange County, VT Family of Polly (Fitch) Chase Zebediah Fitch Polly Fitch Polly Chase Daniel Chase Daniel Chase Step 5 Connecting the Fitches 19

Ancestry of Polly Fitch Cornish Land Records Proximity in Connecticut 20

Proximity in Connecticut Naming Patterns Unique names used by Zebediah Fitch Billa Hezekiah Pulling it all together 21

QUESTIONS? Locating Immigrant Origins Objectives What are the full names of the parents of Mary (Hughes) Cassidy? From what part of Ireland did Mary come? 22

Step 1 Start with the known Origins of Mary Hughes Tip Gather as much information found in the U.S. as possible. 23

Hughes Surname Distribution https://www.johngrenham.com/surnames/ Dillon Surname Distribution https://www.johngrenham.com/surnames/ Step 2 Pulling together family members 24

1930 U.S. Census, Boston, MA 1930 U.S. Census, Boston, MA Marriage Register of St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Jamaica Plain 25

The Hughes Family so far What we know Mary Hughes married Patrick Cassidy in 1888 Parents: Patrick and Mary Hughes Death Record: Patrick Hughes and Mary Dillon Anna/Anne Hughes Potential family member Margaret McMahon Still Researching Is Mary s mother really Mary Dillon? Is Margaret McMahon related to the Cassidy or the Hughes Family? Where in Ireland? Familysearch.org Familysearch.org 26

Massachusetts Death Records, 1841-1915 Familysearch.org Familysearch.org 27

Step 3 Taking Siblings Forward Children of Patrick and Mary (Dillon) Hughes Patrick Hughes and Mary Dillon Mary Hughes b. ca 1860 Patrick Hughes m. 1899 Annie Hughes ca. 1878 1908 Margaret Hughes m. 1905, Patrick McMahon Della Hughes m. 1903 Margaret McMahon b. 1910 Massachusetts Marriages, 1841-1915 28

1900 U.S. Federal Census, Boston, MA 1910 U.S. Census, Needham, MA New England Petitions for Naturalization, 1791-1906 29

Step 4 Searching in Ireland http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/index.php Tip Don t get too attached to ages. 30

http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/index.php http://registers.nli.ie/ http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/index.php 31

http://ifhf.rootsireland.ie/index.php Homework Homework 1 Who are the parents of James Dinin? Are other relatives mentioned in the record? Who might they be? 32

Homework 2 Homework 2 What is the relationship between the grantors of the estate (Francis Blood, Patty Blood, Sally Heald, John and Submit Farrar, and William and Amelia Wheat)? Who is Sally Wheat? What other record could we look at to determine her relationship to the grantors of the estate? QUESTIONS? Schedule a consultation consultations@nehgs.org Hire Research Services research@nehgs.org 33

AmericanAncestors.org/education/online-classes/breaking-down-course THANK YOU! AmericanAncestors.org/Education Copyright 2017 34