Mountain Press and Southern Genealogy Books
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Happy New Year!!! I hope your holiday season went well and now things are settling down to their usual dull roar. By now most of our resolutions have been dismissed and we are back into our routine. Here in lies one of our down falls in genealogy – routine. The New Year gives us a chance to stop what we are doing and review our progress, or lack thereof, as the new year begins. At this time of the year, with things at a slower pace and maybe a few…
Read MoreThis is the fourth part in our Census Series. You can also read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. This fourth article on the census will go beyond the decennial census authorized by the federal government. Each census serves a different purpose, and therefore, we have to understanding the concept behind each one to gain the most from them. As we have already noted, the federal government counts everyone in the United States every ten years for various reasons. In 1840 and 1890, the military records are more important…
Read MoreThe New Year is a time to begin all over again in our genealogical research. I don’t mean to toss out all that you have done for all those years. Instead, this is the time to revisit that research. Do you realize that in the past twelve months, there have been tens of thousands of new records surfaced to aide your research? Nearly every day in our office, we find new information in some of the strangest of places. The information might just be the one piece of the puzzle…
Read MoreGenealogy is more than just name, dates and places. The real heart of genealogy is an understanding of the time and events of the day in which our ancestors lived. With most of us celebrating the time between Thanksgiving and New Years, it is the perfect time to gather as much information as you can from the living in your family to at least grasp the life and times of those in memory. As your family gathers during the holidays, keep pen and paper handy. You will want to start…
Read MoreIn genealogy, we are all researching at least one if not multiple surnames. Most of us are aware that many of the names we are researching may come with different spellings. Take for example the name Faris. I was working on this surname with a friend of mine as he could not find anything on his grandfather. As we drove over to the county we were going to research, I commented that we would look for Farris and Fariss as well as Faris. He assured me that it was only…
Read MoreOne of our subscribers contacted me a few days ago and asked about finding an obituary for his Grandpa in the mid-1880s. The first couple of things one has to remember about obituaries is that every newspaper that prints them is different. The policy regarding their inclusion in the paper varied with each editor/owner. Some papers considered these a courtesy to the reader, while others placed these in the unnecessary category and could leave them out at will. Today, most newspapers contain these only for a fee. Like the lady…
Read MoreIn your research, one of the primary sources everyone must consult at one time or another is the Census. The Census was a process of counting individuals in the United States that Congress authorized to be done every ten years beginning in 1790. From the first Census in 1790 up through 1840, only the names of the heads of households were used. Therefore, starting in 1850, we find other names of those living in the household as well. For many, this is the real start of their search. Let us…
Read MoreIn our genealogical research, the marriage record is one of the most sought after items for the collection on our ancestors. Few realize that the recording of marriages has changed through the years. In the late 1600s in Virginia, the record consisted of just the name of the groom. The bride was not recorded, nor the date of the marriage itself. In later years, the Virginia marriage records were some of the most sought after because of all the information included in them. In the late 1800s, these records included…
Read MoreIn a study of outer space scientists have discovered “black holes” which are places in space where matter disappears. This is where our great-grandfather ended up, or so it seems. Some of our ancestors just disappear into thin air. We keep looking but cannot find them. Case in point – John Anderson, born May 5, 1750 the son of William and Elizabeth [Reid] Anderson of Augusta County, Virginia. John moved about 1773 to the real outback of society to the head of Carter’s Valley in what is now Scott County,…
Read MoreEveryone has “brick walls” in their research. In many cases, it is because they did not gather all of the information they had in hand from the beginning. Since I started in my teens to do genealogical research, I’ve had to repeat my steps many times. We did not have copy machines, computers, microfilm/fiche readers nor any of the great helps we have today. This meant a lot of mistakes and I copied minimal records at the time. The 1840 Federal Census is one of those sources we all consult…
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