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Your Ancestor Was Warned Out of Town. That’s Good News. REGISTER HERE Imagine finding this in a Massachusetts town’s records: in 1768, the constable was ordered to warn Jonathan and Hannah Pratt and their children to depart the town. It sounds like a scandal. What did they do? Most likely, nothing at all. New England […]
Experience the power of having your own personal guide for a full week as you research online and in the Family History Library. Students will review progress and findings in regular group meetings and one-on-one consultations throughout the week as they work on their own personal research projects. Assistance will be available as needed during […]
The Daughter Who Didn’t Quite Fit Register Here Imagine this: in the 1880 census, three-year-old Ellen is listed as the daughter of James and Mary Carter. But James and Mary didn’t marry until 1879, and nothing suggests James had an earlier wife. The family story says Ellen was “a cousin’s girl they took in,” though […]
The Stone Is Telling You More Than Dates register here You’ve probably stood in front of a stone like this: a weeping willow bending over an urn, a name, two dates, and at the bottom a line many old stones share: “Where I am, you will one day be.” Most of us take a photo, […]
Why Did She Need a Court’s Permission to Raise Her Own Children? REGISTER HERE You find it in the probate file: after her husband’s death, your ancestor petitioned the court to be appointed guardian of her own children. It seems strange, even insulting. Weren’t they already hers? Under the law of the time, not necessarily. […]
Your Ancestor’s Farm Is Hiding in Plain Sight REGISTER HERE “Beginning at a white oak on the east bank of Mill Creek, thence north 45 degrees east 120 poles to a stake by a hickory, thence south 30 degrees east 80 poles to John Hart’s corner…” Descriptions like this fill deed books across the eastern […]
Same Name, Same Person? Why “Close Enough” Isn’t Proof Register Here You’ve found him. John Smith, the right age, in the right county, in the right decade. It feels like a match, and it’s tempting to attach the record and move on. But what if there were two John Smiths in that county? What if […]
REGISTER HERE For many researchers, the story stops at the same place. You find your ancestors in the 1870 census, named and together as a family, and then, one census earlier, they seem to vanish. There’s a reason for that. The 1870 census was the first federal census to record most formerly enslaved people by […]
Reserve Your Seat Today Building a Strong Genealogical Research Process A successful research project rarely comes down to a single record. It depends on having a clear process—knowing what to do next, how to evaluate information, and when enough evidence has been gathered to reach a conclusion. Foundations: The Research Process focuses on building that […]
Reserve Your Seat Today At some point, many genealogists encounter it—a record, a birthplace, or a clue that leads to a German hometown. And with it comes a new set of challenges. Records may be written in unfamiliar handwriting. Place names shift over time. Multiple towns share the same name. Church and civil records follow […]