Site Search

In the year 1086, King William I (William the Conqueror) ordered an inventory of England's lands to be taken. The purpose was to determine the amount of taxes owed from the reign of King Edward the Conqueror, the last of the Anglo-Saxon kings, conquered by William. The book was written in Medieval Latin and is difficult to read but has been translated for easier reading. You can now search the Domesday book online, free of charge at opendomesday.org. I would also suggest checking the name index in case there are spelling variations. You can also choose a place from the map, to see all the entries for the place. Click here for more free genealogy resources! Sources: Domesday Book images kindly made available by Professor J.J.N. Palmer. Images may be reused under a Creative Commons BY-SA license - please credit Professor J.J.N. Palmer and George Slater. The Domesday Book from Andrews, William: “Historic Byways and Highways of Old England” (1900) ISBN 9781406797541[1] #England #Domesday #WilliamtheConqueror #resources

The Pennsylvania State Archives has made thousands of family history records available online at Ancestry.com. Residents of Pennsylvania will be glad to know they have been granted free access to these files: Pennsylvania, Veterans Burial Cards, 1777-2012 Pennsylvania, Births, 1852-1854 Pennsylvania, Land Warrants and Applications, 1733-1952 Pennsylvania, Oyer and Terminer Court Papers, 1757-1787 Pennsylvania, Spanish War Compensation, 1898-1934 Pennsylvania, Naturalization Records from Supreme and District Courts, 1794-1908 Pennsylvania, War of 1812 Pensions, 1866-1879 Pennsylvania, Land Warrants, 1733-1987 Pennsylvania, Civil War Border Claims, 1868-1879 Pennsylvania, Marriages, 1852-1854 Pennsylvania, Deaths, 1852-1854 Pennsylvania, Records of Marriages, 1885-1889 Pennsylvania, Tax and Exoneration, 1768-1801 Pennsylvania, Septennial Census, 1779-1863 Pennsylvania, WPA Church Archives, 1937-1940 Pennsylvania, Veteran Compensation Application Files, WWII, 1950-1966 Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1964 Pennsylvania, Civil War Muster Rolls, 1860-1869 Pennsylvania, Birth Records, 1906-1910 Pennsylvania, WWI Veterans Service and Compensation Files, 1917-1919, 1934-1948 Pennsylvania, Prison, Reformatory, and Workhouse Records, 1829-1971 Pennsylvania, County Marriages, 1845-1963 Here's how to access the collection free of charge: First, if you have an account with Ancestry.com, log in to your account. A paid subscription to Ancestry is not required but logging in first will make the next step easier. In another tab or window, click this link to enter Ancestry's site through the State Archives: Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission In the page that opens, scroll to the bottom and enter your Pennsylvania zip code. After typing in the zip code, Do NOT press Enter on your keyboard. Simply click the link: "Go to Pennsylvania State Archives records at Ancestry.com". You will arrive at a search form, where you can enter the criteria of your search. If you aren't already logged into Ancestry.com, you will be prompted to create an account when you try to access a document. Once your logged in, you may browse or search the collection. Click here for more genealogy tips and resources! #Pennsylvania #vitalrecords #marriagerecords #landrecords #militaryrecords #pennsylvania #pennsylvaniaarchives

Mary "Polly" Brown was born November 12, 1838, reportedly in Genoa, Cayuga County, New York. Her name varied on records, sometimes being written Polly and at least once it was written Sarah, but she usually went by Mary. You can see the variations in my previous posts, where I shared the census records she was found on from 1855 to 1892, and from 1900 to 1915. Here in this embroidered "Family Record", hand made by Mary Polly Brown herself, she stitched her own name as "M . LEONARD . BORN . NOV. 12, 1838". (From Dryer Family Photos). Mary Polly Brown's father was said to have been Eugene Edwin Brown and her mother, Lydia King. (Documentation containing her parents' names was shared in my previous post). In this post I'll lay out the only clues I've found which may reveal Mary Polly Brown's whereabouts in 1850, when she was a young girl. If she was born Nov. 12, 1838, as recorded in the Family Record, she would have been 11 years old and would have turned 12 in November of 1850. Since she was reportedly born in Genoa and she also lived there at the age of 17 as a newlywed with Charles and a newborn baby, Joseph, she may have been in the same small town of 2,500 people when the census was taken in 1850. Sure enough, a search of the 1850 census does reveal a girl named Polly Brown living in Genoa, but her age was given as 12 and she was the only Brown in the home belonging to Peter and Lydia Shaver. The census in Genoa was taken on October 1st, a month before Mary Polly Brown's birthday, so if this was her, whoever gave the information to the census taker may have estimated her age, or perhaps she was really born in 1839, which is a possibility. It is interesting to note that on the 1900 census, "Nov 1839" was given as her birth month and year. Alternatively, this may not have been our Mary Polly Brown at all. Peter and Lydia Shaver (Shaffer/Shafer) report being born in Pennsylvania. They appear to have had two children in the home in 1850, Philip and Sally A. Shafer. By 1855, Sally was married to George Bower. Philip also married and had at least three children: William Shaffer, Edgar Shaffer, and Emma (Shaffer) Newman, all named in Phillip's will dated 1899. No will has been found for Peter or Lydia. Mary was not found in the Shaffer household in 1855, which supports the idea that this Polly Brown was our Mary Polly Brown because we know ours married Charles Russell Leonard about 1854 and when the census was taken in 1855, they had their own home in Genoa, as mentioned previously. Lydia Shaffer died on January 19, 1888 and is buried in Genoa Rural Cemetery (Findagrave). Whereas I had hoped this Lydia was Polly's mother, Lydia King, others claim this was Lydia Fetterman and so, for now, we'll have to assume the Shafers were not family and simply took Polly in, perhaps as a foster child, or perhaps as a servant, which wasn't uncommon for young people in those times. A copy of Lydia's death certificate should confirm her identity more definitively, however. (Certificate #2229 "Lydia Shaffer"). If you have a copy, please share! In my next post, I'll share what I've found in trying to locate Mary and her parents on the 1840 census. Stay tuned! Click here to learn more about Mary Polly Brown. Click here to learn more about the Leonard family. #marypollybrown #brown #leonard

Mary "Polly" Brown was my 3rd great-grandmother. She was born November 12, 1838, in Genoa, Cayuga County, New York. She married Charles Russell Leonard before 1854. Following are the census records Mary is found on between 1855 and 1900, during her marriage to Charles Russell Leonard. Despite combing many pages of census records, I have yet to find the couple on the 1850 or 1860 census. Stay tuned for more! Subscribe for updates! Click here to learn more about Mary "Polly" Brown. Click here to learn more about this branch of my family. #marypollybrown #brown #leonard #charlesrussellleonard

Mary Polly Brown married Charles Russell Leonard before 1854 and together they had at least 11 children. They were counted on the census together until 1880, which you can see in my previous blog. There you'll also find Mary's entry on the 1892 New York State census when she was living in Locke with two of her sons, Arthur and Irving Leonard. She and Charles had split up around 1888. Meanwhile, in February of 1892, Mariette Wilson, wife of Joseph Wilson, died at the age of 68. Eight years later, when the 1900 census was taken, Mary was still living in Locke, but she was reported as the wife of Joseph Wilson. We know this is our Mary for a few reasons. First, our family genealogies report she married Joseph Wilson, second, because she is buried in the same plot with Joseph Wilson, and finally, the most obvious reason - because her son, Irving Leonard was living in the home and his relationship to Joseph Wilson was "step-son". Joseph died on January 10, 1905 and later that year Mary was counted on the census, still in Locke, with only one other person in the home. It was her grandson, Victor Raymond, a son of Frank and Lydia (Leonard) Raymond. (Census shown above). Mary would go on to marry Peter Welch (or Walsh) on March 17, 1906, but the marriage would later be annulled when Mr. Welch discovered that Charles Leonard and Mary (or "Polly") had never been legally divorced. Click here for that story. Nevertheless, Mary kept Walsh's name until death. Her name was written "Polly Walsh" on the 1915 census, when she was still living in Locke, with a granddaughter, Bertha Leonard, in the home. She died two years later in 1917. Her name is written "Mary Walsh" on her death certificate, and "Mary Welch" in Bird Cemetery's burial records, although she is buried in the same section with Joseph Wilson. Read about the settling of her estate here. Click here to learn more about Mary Polly Brown. Click here to learn more about the Leonard family. #marypollybrown #leonard #brown

Finishing up my review of what we know about Mary "Polly" Brown, wife of Charles Russell Leonard, Joseph Wilson, and Peter Walsh, the following are the known facts about her death and burial. (The surrogate records for the distribution of her estate can be found here.) Mary's death certificate, shown here, indicates her father's name was "Eugene Brown". (My apologies for not recalling who to credit for this great find). The certificate also indicates she was born in Genoa, New York, on November 12, 1838, and she died on May 14, 1917, from "Paralysis Right Hemiplegia" or "Right Sided Hemiplegia", meaning she had paralysis on the right side of her body, with Chronic Nephritis as a contributing factor. Chronic Nephritis is inflammation of the kidneys, a type of kidney disease. For information on repairing your DNA to help prevent disease, click here! A typed genealogy report found at Dryer Family Photos elaborates, stating that her father's name was Eugene Edwin Brown and her mother's name was Lydia King. Mary is buried in Bird Cemetery with her second husband, Joseph Wilson. Hopefully a photo of her grave will follow soon! Next, I'll try to find more on Eugene Edwin Brown and Lydia King. Stay tuned and subscribe for updates if you haven't already! If you have information about this family to share, please share in the comments below or contact me! Click here to learn more about Mary Polly Brown. Click here to learn more about the Leonard family. #marypollybrown #birdcemetery #leonard #brown

This week, it was snowing here in Pennsylvania - a great time to do some digging but not the cold, backbreaking kind - the genealogy kind! I decided to revisit a question that pops into my mind every now and then: Who was Mary Jane Gorton? The question led me to finding the will and surrogate records of my 3rd great-grandmother, Mary Polly (Brown) Leonard. If you follow my blog, you know that recently I found a wealth of clues about my McGinnis and Smith connections from surrogate records and reunion announcements published in the local newspapers. In the same way, the mystery of Mary Jane Gorton came about. While searching for clues on one of my favorite sites, FultonHistory.com, I found two notices which seem to provide a glimpse into the extended family of Charles & Mary Leonard. From the Geneva Daily Times, June 10, 1918: "Mrs. Lydia Raymond was called to Moravia and Auburn last week in the matter of a will of her aunt for which she is named executor". From the Moravia Republican Register, Feb. 1919: "The people of the State of New York, to Arthur Leonard, Joseph Leonard, Irving E. Leonard, Susan Canavan, Charles Leonard, Flora Sherman, Bert Pease, Helen Hamlin, Luella Townsend, James Leonard, Albert Leonard, Elma Wilkins, Ethel Bross, Cyrus Gorton: Upon the petition of Lydia J. Raymond of the town of Lodi, N.Y., you are hereby cited to show cause before the Surrogate's Court of Cayuga County at the Courthouse in the City of Auburn on the 15th day of April, 1919, at 2:30 o'clock in the afternoon, why a decree should not be granted judicially settling her accounts as Executrix of etc. of Mary Jane Gorton, late of the town of Venice, N.Y., deceased..." Lydia J. Raymond was a daughter of Charles Russell Leonard and Mary "Polly" Brown, my 3rd great-grandparents. Lydia was born in 1874 and married in 1888 to Frank Raymond, born abt. 1865, a son of Fitch Hopkins Raymond. Because Mary Jane Gorton was called Lydia's "aunt", we can assume she was a sister of one of Lydia's parents - Charles Leonard or Mary "Polly" Brown, but it is also possible she was Lydia's husband's aunt - a sister of one of Frank Raymond's parents. As for Charles Leonard, we only know of him having one sister, Jenette (Leonard) Reynolds, although he could have had more. He did have several half-siblings from his mother's marriage to Thomas Knapp. I was able to locate Mary Jane's will and surrogate records on FamilySearch. In the papers, it clarifies that she was aunt to all of Charles Russell Leonard's children, eliminating my initial thought that Mary Jane could have been an aunt of Lydia's husband and not a sister of Charles or Mary. You can read, download, or print the pages from the surrogate records, shown here: Mary Jane Gorton died May 7, 1918 in Venice, New York. Cert #31644. News of her death was reported in the local paper as follows: "Mrs. Cyrus Gorton died suddenly Tuesday at her home in East Venice. Funeral services were held yesterday." (Moravia Republican Register, May 1918). This valuable clue from the New York Marriage Index indicates Mary Jane Gorton's maiden name was either Brown or Johnson and since she was Lydia Raymond's aunt, we know it could only have been Brown! It seems likely that she married a man named Johnson before marrying Cyrus Gorton at the age of about 53 in 1900. So Mary Polly Brown had a sister named Mary Jane Brown? Strange, but not impossible! It appears she was Mary Johnson at the time of her marriage, so I checked the 1892 census to see if I could find her. The following potential matches were found. I still haven't found the details of this Johnson marriage. If anyone has any information, please comment below or contact me. Cyrus and Mary were counted on the census of 1900 in Sullivan, Madison County, New York. In 1905, they lived in Locke, Cayuga County. In 1910, they lived in Venice and in 1915 they lived in Throop. Cyrus was a blacksmith, apparently moving frequently for work. Mary Jane Gorton is buried in Bird Cemetery in Locke, in the same section as Mary "Polly" Brown Leonard Wilson Walsh and her second husband, Joseph Wilson - Section PF-1. (These links to their corresponding Findagrave memorials). Her obituary and entry in Bird Cemetery's index are shown here: Six months after Mary Jane died, Cyrus married on November 16, 1918, to May E. Willson, also known as Marjorie Raymond, daughter of Ebenezer Raymond and Harriett Hartigan. Cyrus died on July 20, 1929, in Romulus, and is buried in Ovid Union Cemetery with Marjorie, who died on March 8, 1939. Cyrus Gorton was a descendant of Samuel Gorton, the subject of "Life and Times of Samuel Gorton", written by Adelos Gorton in 1907. His family is found on page 474 as follows: In May of 1892, Mrs. Wealthy Gorton died. According to her obituary, which corresponds with the Gorton book, she was born in Brookfield and married Daniel P. Gorton. They lived in Brookfield and in New York Mills. They had seven sons, including C. H. Gorton of Syracuse at the time of her death. She also had two brothers, Reuben Nash of Skaneateles Falls and Isaac Nash of Brookfield. (Utica Weekly Herald, May 31, 1892). Subscribe to my blog to follow my research! Stay tuned for updates coming soon! Click here to learn more about the Leonard branch of my family. #maryjanegorton #brown #leonard

Mary Polly Brown married Charles Russell Leonard. They lived together over 30 years and had nine known children and eventually separated. She married 2nd to Peter Welch in March of 1906 when she was about 68 years old. According to the media, however, she was never divorced from Charles and in 1908, just a few weeks before Charles died, Peter Welch filed for an annulment, which required the testimony of Charles, in addition to that of John Sherman, a witness who claims to have attended the wedding of Charles and Mary, to validate the marriage of Charles and Mary. Peter was finally granted a divorce in November of 1910. A few questions remain: 1) Why in the marriage announcement is her name given as Mrs. Mary Wilson? 2) Why in her 1917 death announcement is her name given as Mary Walsh even though she and Walsh had been legally divorced since 1910? The burial register at Bird Cemetery also gives her name as Mary Walsh. 3) Why is it that in the 1906 marriage announcement claim Peter Walsh and Mary were married by Dr. Taft, but in the 1908 article it states they were married by Rev. Clapp and in the 1910 article it names Rev. Campbell? (See all three articles below). 4) Was John Sherman related to Cora Sherman (daughter-in-law of Charles & Mary by their son Lewis Leonard)? Any clues or information would be appreciated. Comment below! Click here to learn more about Mary Polly Brown. #brown #leonard #marypollybrown

I knew it wouldn't be easy tracing the ancestry of my 3rd great-grandmother, Catherine (Smith) McGinnis but I finally made some progress! After finding mention of Nicholas Smith attending the Smith-McGinnis family reunion in 1911, I went down a rabbit hole tracing what I thought was his family. So, starting back at square one: Who was Nicholas Smith? With little to go in, Instead of trying Findagrave, this time I tried the census. The 1911 news clipping stated that Nicholas Smith of Newark Valley attended. With that information, I headed to FamilySearch to see what I could find. Sure enough, I found him and right away, I'm more confident with the match because this Nicholas Smith was born in New York abt. 1856 but his parents were born in Ireland. Notice, also, the "Delany" family in the entry proceeding Nicholas' family on the census. There were Delaney's who attended the reunion, too. This looks like a match! Going back a decade, to the 1900 census, we find Nicholas and Margaret in Newark Valley. He reports having been married for 18 years (est. 1882). A daughter named Mary M. Smith, age 17, was living in the home along with a laborer, Michael Ahern, age 21. Nicholas' birth date is given as Dec. 1855. Looking back to the 1892 census (New York State Census), the only Smith living in Newark Valley who was born in Ireland was John Smith. He was born about 1823 and was 69 years old. Trying to locate him on the 1875 census in the same town found only one John E. Smith, born in Connecticut. A dead end. Next, I decided to see if I could find Mary Delaney of Binghamton, who also attended a Smith-McGinnis reunion. I was surprised to find her easily on Findagrave and was even more surprised that she is buried at St. Patrick's Cemetery in Whitney Point, New York - the burial place of William & Catherine (Smith) McGinnis, where I visited this past summer and made a pretty thorough video tour of the entire cemetery. Findagrave offers a useful feature, allowing you to "See more Smith memorials in: Saint Patrick's Cemetery". Clicking on that gave me an even bigger surprise. Scrolling through the results I saw Nicholas Smith among the names. He was born in 1855 in Glen Aubrey, Broome County, New York. On the 1870 Census for Broome County, New York, I found what appears to be Nicholas' home in Nanticoke. We can see where Thomas Smith's property was in 1876 on this map from Historic Map Works. You can view or buy a copy of the full map from them through their site. Another look at St. Patrick's Cemetery shows that Thomas and his wife, Bridget were also buried there! The stone is somewhat confusing, but it contains two couples names on it. Thomas Smith (1827-1915) and his wife, Bridget Heffernon (1833-1915). William James Ryan (1858-1926) and his wife, Ann Smith (1861-1935). This appears to be the daughter of Thomas and Bridget. This Thomas is too young to be Catherine's father, however, since she was born in 1840. I looked to the census to see what I could learn about the family. In 1865, Thomas Joseph Smith's entry on the New York State Census was as follows. The family was living in Nanticoke, Broome County, New York. Thomas's wife, Bridget, reported having six children and they are all named on the census: Nickolas, John, Mary, Ann, Willie and Charles. Beneath Thomas' entry, however, we see an older couple - Nicholas and Bridget Smith. Who were they?? Read on and find out! In 1865, "Nickolas Smith" was age 60. He was born in Ireland, and his wife who was reportedly the same age was also born in Ireland. They report having six children, but only three were still living at home: Charles Smith, age 36 (born abt. 1829 in Ireland) Hellen Smith, age 34 (born abt. 1831 in Ireland) John Smith, age 30 (born abt. 1835 in Ireland) (Not in the home) (Not in the home) (Not in the home) Could these be the siblings of Catherine (Smith) McGinnis? They most certainly could! Catherine was born abt. 1840 in Ireland and was married around 1858. She was living with her husband, William McGinnis, on Fox Road in Freetown in 1865 and they already had two children, Mary Ellen McGinnis and Rosanna McGinnis: In 1880, Thomas and Nicholas were counted on the census in Nanticoke again, but Nicholas was widowed and living in Thomas' household, confirming his relationship with Thomas in the 1865 census above. Thomas was the head of the household in 1880, and Nicholas was his "Father". Thomas' mother, Bridget* had died on April 1, 1873. (*Thomas' wife was also named Bridget (Heffernan), potentially causing confusion). Continuing my search for records pertaining to Nicholas Smith in Broome County, I finally found what I believe provides substantial evidence that this was Catherine's family! On the 1855 New York State census of Nanticoke, Broome County, New York, we find in Nicholas' home - Catherine Smith, age 15 - born about 1840! The family reports having been in Nanticoke for four (4) years. Both Nicholas and his son, Thomas, were naturalized citizens and landowners. They arrived in Nanticoke in or before 1851. Where they came from before then is unknown. We know they came to America sometime after Catherine was born in 1840. Nicholas Smith's 1853 intention for naturalization is shown here. Stay tuned as I share a few more clues and connections in my upcoming blogs! See more: Learn more about this branch of my family Nicholas Smith Catherine Smith Wiliam McGinnis #smith #mcginnis #hollenbeck #broomecounty #newyork #irish #irishimmigrants

When searching for an obituary and search results fail to produce the results I'm looking for, I usually resort to browsing through newspapers the "old-fashioned" way - page by page. Manually searching for newspapers seems tedious, but it's not so bad when I think back twenty short years ago, when the only way to find old copies of newspapers was to take a special trip to the local library in whatever town the news may have been printed. Flipping through newspaper stacks or loading reel after reel of microfilm into the machine, scrolling and zooming with various knobs, and paying up to 25-cents a page to have copies of clippings printed. This would take hours and I always wished I had more time. How fortunate are we today, that we can sit in the comfort of our own homes, browsing thousands of newspapers online as often as we like? Many are available free of charge. (Click here for places to find some!) The best part is that many online newspapers are searchable, another major convenience and time-saver, but the search functions don't always find what I'm looking for and while browsing pages one by one, I get sidetracked and off on detours - like this one! While browsing through an 1895 edition of the Cortland Standard, I stumbled upon a lengthy article about Cortland's 100th anniversary. Several of my ancestors were early settlers of Cortland County and because this article is so old and sheds light on life in Cortland's early days, I felt it was worthy of being brought to the surface again. Read the article below! [Cortland Standard, February 22, 1895, p. 13] ONE HUNDRED YEARS OLD. CORTLAND JUST PASSED IT'S CENTENNIAL BIRTHDAY. Founding-Growth-Social Life-The Old Eagle-Interesting Incidents of Early Cortland. Cortland has just passed its one hundredth birthday. It was in 1794 that the pioneers Jonathan Hubbard and Col. Moses Hopkins climbed a tall tree on Court House hill and first looked out upon these regions. Noticing the number of valleys, seven in all, which centered about the hill or within a few miles of it, they predicted the site of future Cortland, of which they became the first settlers. The town was a part of Homer, but the village took its name from the county and the county from Gen. Peter Van Courtlandt, who had large land interests in the central part of the state. Of the primeval forest covering the land a few traces may still be seen on the farm of Mr. W. Randall and on distant hills. But long ago disappeared the bears, wolves, and deer which inhabited them. Early Cortland was an Arcadia, so one of our honored citizens says whose memory goes back to those days of beginnings when its best riches were brotherly sympathy and social unity. Certain it is that this village was fortunate in its founders. They were men of mark in their day and their influence is still felt in all that appertains to our present material, intellectual and moral development. In 1813 Cortland became the seat of the county court much to the chagrin of its rival sisters, Homer and Port Watson. Scarcely a brick remains to show the site of the first courthouse and jail on Court House hill. Once a day the four-horse mail coach from Syracuse announced its arrival by tooting its horn through the length of Main-st.,—the Main-st which the present day has almost shorn of its fine old homes and New England characteristics—for Cortland started as a New England village. On June 30, 1815, the Portland Republican, the first paper issued in Cortland, appeared. Its early numbers chronicled Napoleon's escape from Elba, the battle of Waterloo, and preparations for building the Erie canal. During the thirties, a daily paper found its way to Cortland, the Albany Evening Journal, with Hamilton White as its sole subscriber. He became the oracle of political news with a rapt audience always about him at mail time. What would that worthy generation have thought could they have foreseen the advent of a paper edited wholly by women, before their century closed. Port Watson was a settlement by itself, indulging in the vain anticipation of becoming the site of a populous village. It was the head of navigation on the Tioughnioga river. In the times of freshets arks of forty tons' burden, loaded with gypsum, salt, oats, potatoes and pork were floated down the river to Chesapeake bay where the cargo was sold and the rafts split up for lumber. Crowds of spectators were accustomed to assemble on the banks of the Tioughnioga just above the bridge at Port Watson-st. to witness the start of a fleet of arks and boats. The arks were dexterously steered by paddles front and back, and no small skill was needed to pilot them over the sluiceways, required by law to be built in every dam, for their passage. One of our older citizens tells the story of a Fourth of July celebration of ye olden times. Gen. Roswell Randall, proprietor of the Eagle store and Eagle tavern of former fame, also owned a fine specimen of the bird itself. It was kept in a cage upon Gen. Randall's lawn which once graced the corner now occupied by the Standard building. On one Fourth of July Gen. Randall donated the eagle to the cause of liberty and a grand celebration. A silver ferrule was made, engraved with the date and the name of the owner and was fastened upon the ankle of the bird. With appropriate ceremony the eagle was set free. Circling high up above the heads of the watching crowds, it turned toward the northwest and was soon lost to sight. A number of years had elapsed when an Indian, hunting in the forests of northern Wisconsin, shot and killed an eagle which seemed strangely undisturbed by the near approach of man. Finding the ferrule on the leg, the Indian traveled many miles to a white settlement where the inscription was deciphered and the ferrule eventually sent to Gen. Randall. Few people now remember a unique feature of the Presbyterian church of Cortland as it was first built. At the rear of the church was a big box pew, occupying the space of four common pews. It was furnished with a seat on three sides, a table in the center and a rocking chair and footstove as added luxuries. The pew was the property of Gen. Roswell Randall who certainly must have been a conspicuous personage as he appeared at church arrayed in his fresh ruffled shirt and carrying his goldheaded cane. With the advent of electric cars, come recollections of the opening of the first railroad through Cortland. On the 18th of October, 1854, the first train, consisting of twenty-seven cars, made a triumphal journey from Binghamton to Syracuse. A free ride was given to the immense crowd aboard. On the foremost flat car, as the train drew up to the Cortland station, stood the Hon. Henry Stephens, president of the road and a marked figure of old Cortland. The town was given up to a grand ovation. From every church, bells were rung, cannons were fired and bonfires and illuminations signalized the event. To Cortland fell the honor of dining the great body of excursionists. Tables were spread in and about the station ladened with the bounty which the entire town had turned out to provide, and be it said to the credit of Cortland women that in less than fifteen minutes after the arrival of the train, not a morsel of food remained to attest to the excellent quality of the cooking. With the presence of the many busy factories, with the introduction of electric cars, electric lights, waterworks, sewers and the thousand and one factors which go to make up the busy city of to-day, the youth of the rising generation can hardly imagine the Cortland of the early years of the century. There are many incidents that could be related that would throw a flood of light upon those good old days of our grandfathers, but time and space forbid. A few facts have been gathered from early records and from conversations with some of the older citizens whose memory goes far back and who have known of young Cortland from their fathers, and these facts are here presented. Click here to see more Cortland County history and resources. #cortlandcounty #cortland #history Check out this great book!

To me, learning about my family's history is more than just knowing who they were or where they came from or what genes or traits I inherited from them. There are so many other reasons I spend most of my spare time researching my ancestry. For me, it's about demonstrating to my children and family that we are part of a family much larger than we know. It's about how we are all interconnected and should respect and care for all people at all times. It's about realizing that our decisions often affect others, perhaps our own descendants down the line. It's about learning from the struggles and achievements of those who came before us. It's about avoiding repetition of the mistakes they made and continuing the practices that led them to prosper. It's about knowing that the past cannot be changed and someday people will look back at what we have done. It's about looking outside of ourselves at the bigger picture and realizing we each have the potential to make our world a better place. And it's about so much more. Family history is priceless! What does family history mean to you? Tell us in the comments below! Quote by Daniel Webster: There is a moral and philosophical respect for our ancestors which elevates the character and improves the heart. #famousquotes #quotes #wisdom #inspirational #motivation #genealogy

Luella Schriver (or Scriber) was a daughter of Betsy Austin and Benjamin Schriver. She was born around April or May of 1850 according to the 1850 census of Springport, Cayuga, New York. At the time she was listed as four months old, living in the household of Mortimer AUSTIN (22) and Ann AUSTIN (19, female). Also living there was Betsey SCHRIVER (19), Luella's mother. She was Betsy AUSTIN. Also living with them was Roxan AUSTIN, age 39, possibly the mother of Mortimer and Betsey. Also, Sophia AUSTIN who was 14 and Maria AUSTIN who was 8. On the next census page, this family's record continues with one last person, Luella SCHRIVER, age 4 months. The census was taken on September 3, 1850, which would mean Luella was born about April or May of 1850, conflicting with other dates reported on other records. In 1855 William and Betsey Lumbert lived in Springport. Following is their New York State 1855 Census entry: In 1860, the family was living in Savannah. Children in the home were: Ella LUMBERT (age 10, a.k.a. Luella SCHRIVER), Benjamin LUMBERT (age 7), William LUMBERT (age 6), Mary LUMBERT (age 3), and Charles LUMBERT (age 9 months). In 1865, Luella "Ella" was 15 years old and was living in the home of Sophronia (Burrill) Leonard Knapp, my 4th great-grandmother, with her 16-year old husband, William Knapp. By the time the 1870 census was taken, William and Luella had their own home in Groton, and three children. William's half-brother, Charles Russell Leonard, first son of Sophronia (Burrill), was also living in Groton with his wife and first four children at the time. Both census records are shown here: In 1880, William & Luella Knapp still lived in Groton and Charles and his family lived within 6 miles of them, in Locke (Cayuga County). Notice, William named one of his daughters Sophronia, after his mother. She was four years old when the 1880 census was taken, making her born abt. 1876. William's age was reported as 30 or 32 and Luella was 30. Sophronia KNAPP (b. 1876), later married Betsy & William LUMBERT’s son, Charles LUMBERT (b. 1868). In 1880, Ella's (Luella's) mother, Betsey, was still living in Rose (Wayne County) with her husband, James LUMBERT (age 60). Betsey was 50. Only one child remained in the home, Charles LUMBERT (age 13). James was a Day Laborer and was reportedly born in Illinois while his parents were born in New York. With the 1890 census destroyed by fire, we can only rely on the 1892 New York State Census for their next chapter. What we find is that sometime between 1880 and 1885, Charles and Mary’s family was broken up. As an important side note to prevent confusion in the future, there are some newspaper clippings regarding Charles Leonard who abandoned his wife in 1888, running off with a married woman who lived in the same house, according to the story. The time period, location, names and circumstances seem to line up perfectly, however, there are reasons to believe this was actually not Charles Russell Leonard. For one, the newspapers report that his "wife and child" were left destitute. We know that Charles Russell Leonard had nine or more children, however. Also, Luella and Charles report having been "married" 7 years when the 1892 census was taken. This would place their departure around 1885, three years before the news story. This Charles was, however, the son of Charles Russell Leonard. Adding to the confusion, this younger Charles was also married to a woman by the name of Luella. (Like father like son?) See my previous blog "Charles & Luella (Robinson) Leonard of Cortland" for more details and documentation. In February of 1892, Charles LEONARD (age 55) was counted on the New York State Census in Rose, Wayne County, New York, 52 miles from his former home in Groton. He was living with Luella LEONARD (age 42) and three of her children from her previous marriage to William KNAPP. They were: Sophronia KNAPP (16), Murray KNAPP (12), and Malvina KNAPP (9). It appears that Charles and Luella moved to Rose soon after the murder, probably to be closer to her aged, newly widowed mother. The census page is is poor condition but it appears that they didn't live together as they are found on separate pages. At first glance, one would eliminate this Charles as a match for Charles Russell Leonard, mainly because the age is off by 7 years. In fact, if the search on Ancestry's site wasn't performed loosely, it wouldn't even include him in the search results. Another reason to doubt it was him was because Luella was Charles' (half) sister-in-law. Still, if you read on and you will see why this must be our Charles Russell Leonard. Local newspapers tell a gruesome story about Luella's family - a horrific event that occurred in February of 1891. Luella's stepfather, James William Lumbert, was brutally murdered by her half-brother, George Lumbert. Several newspaper stories pertaining to the tragic event were published and shared in my previous blog but be warned - the details are quite graphic. When the 1900 census was taken, Charles and Luella were living in Lyons. They report being married 15 years, abt. 1885, although no legitimate wedding could have taken place, since Charles and his first wife, Mary, were never officially divorced. Luella's mother, Betsy Lambert, and daughter, Malvina (Knapp), Luella & William Knapp's daughter, were living with them. In 1905, Charles and Luella were back in Groton, living alone. Charles died three years later, on November 23, 1908, and was buried in Groton Rural Cemetery. Luella married Benjamin Wilson eighteen months after Charles died. The marriage was announced in the Auburn Democrat Argus, Tuesday, April 26, 1910: Moravia. Benjamin Wilson of this village and Miss Luella Leonard of Groton were united in marriage at the Baptist parsonage in Groton April 12. The marriage license confirms this is the same Luella, daughter of Betsey (Austin) and Benjamin Scriver. The Auburn Democrat-Argus, Tues., Feb. 6, 1912 reports: Moravia, Feb. 5 - Ella Leonard, wife of Benjamin Wilson, died at her home in North Main street about 2 o'clock yesterday morning. Mrs. Wilson was 62 years of age and death was caused by cerebral hemorrhage. Besides her husband, she is survived by seven children. Funeral services will be held at the Baptist church in Groton tomorrow at 2 o'clock, with burial at Groton. Luella's name on her death certificate is Luella Wilson but she is buried beside Charles Russell Leonard with the name Luella Leonard on her tombstone. Her tombstone reads only "1851-1912". Her mother, Betsey, died the following month and is buried in Groton Rural Cemetery in the same section where Charles Leonard and Luella are also buried (Section N Lot 62). Sources: Melvina Knapp's marriage license filed in Syracuse, Onondaga, New York, Feb. 10, 1910 gives her parents names as William Knapp & Luella Austin. She married Carl C. Webber. Sophronia Knapp married first to a Lambert because the license for her second marriage to John Goblney, which took place in Richford, Tioga, New York, April 11, 1925, gives her parents names as William Knapp and Luella Scriver. Her previous husband was living in Cortland. #leonard #charlesleonard #charlesrussellleonard #luellaschriver

For my fellow descendants of James Chilton, I am sharing these clippings from the Boston Transcript's Genealogical Column, pertaining to James Chilton. There are more, which I have yet to find, but perhaps these, published through 1915, may contain valuable clues about his descendants: Alternatively, you can download the PDF to your computer or device to zoom in or print the pages here: I also highly recommend this book for your family history library! More Resources: The Boston Transcript Mayflower Passenger List Free Genealogy Resources #genealogy #bostontranscript #jameschilton #mayflower #agbi

The Pledge of Allegiance was formally adopted by Congress in 1942, and was officially named "The Pledge of Allegiance" in 1945. The original pledge was inspired by a pledge written in 1887 by Captain George Thatcher Balch, an Officer in the Union Army during the Civil War. His pledge read: "We give our heads and hearts to God and our country; one country, one language, one flag!" The version we are most familiar with and use today was written by Francis Bellamy in August of 1892, as follows: "I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Early on, a minor revision was made: "I pledge allegiance to my Flag and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." In 1923, the following revisions were made: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." The following year, in 1924, it was changed again, as follows: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Finally, in 1954, per 4. U.S.C. §4, is exactly as follows: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Schools of the pledge in schools each morning, as I remember doing as a child. Congressional sessions and many government meetings also open with the recital, a beautiful American tradition heartfelt by patriots both past and present across the land. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pledge_of_Allegiance #patriotic #american #american #patriotism

On this day four-hundred years ago, December 12, 1620, our pilgrim ancestors were finally able to leave the Mayflower. After a voyage of 66 days and weeks docked in the harbor, the passengers finally came off the ship to pursue their new lives in America. They were mourning the losses they suffered along the way and were undoubtedly cold, hungry, and weary. Today when we take trips, we have accommodations awaiting us. Transportation and accommodations are made to ensure our comfort upon arrival. The pilgrims had no physical comforts but they had two greater comforts: their faith and their new found freedom. See more: Mayflower Database The Great Migration William Bradford's Journal Virtual Tour of Plimouth Plantation The Mayflower Compact Mayflower Resources Great Migration #mayflower #pilgrims

Being a genealogy addict, one of my favorite things to do is watch videos about the places and events of my ancestors' past. While watching an interesting series about the Irish immigrants to America, I heard an Irish-American folk song that peaked my interest when I heard my Irish ancestor's name - "McGinnis" among the lyrics. The song is called "Dear Old Donegal" written by Steve Graham. There are several variations of the song, but here you can listen to Bing Crosby singing a rendition of it in 1945, courtesy of Archive.org. Click the play button! Have a look around Donegal while you listen, courtesy of Google Maps. Click or tap on the image or the arrows to move or look around. Dear Old Donegal (Lyrics) Three years ago this very day I left the port of Cork And on a ship from Erin's isle I landed in New York Without a friend to meet me there The stranger on the shore But I wore an honest Irish heart And fortune came galore So here I am back again On dear old Erin's isle My friends say meet me on the quay And greet me with a smile For their faces there I've surely forgot For I was so long away But me mother she introduces all And this is what she say Shake hands with your uncle Mike, me boy Shake hands with your sister Kate And this is the girl you used to swing down on the garden gate Shake hands with all of the neighbors and kiss the Colleens all You're as welcome as the flowers in May to Dear Old Donegal Well they gave a party when I came back and they came from near and far And the road was lined for near a mile with Irish jaunting cars And the whiskey flowed like buttermilk to fill our hearts with joy And the piper played an Irish reel to greet the Yankee boy So tomorrow off to church I’ll go and wedded I will be To my pretty little Colleen sweet Bitty McGee, For Bitty was true and faithful to her Barney o'er the sea And we’ll join the harps and shamrocks for the stars of liberty There came Brannigan, Flannigan, Milligan, Gilligan, Duffy, McGuffy, Malackey, Mahone, Rafferty, Laugherty, Donnelly, Connelly, Dooley, O'Hooley, Muldowney, Malone, Colona, O'Honahar, Lanihan, Flannihan, Fagen, O'Hagen, O'Hoolihan, Flynn, Shannahan, Manahan, Fogerty, Hogerty, Kelly, O'Skelly, McGinnis, McGinn. Then shake the hand of your uncle Mike And the hand of your sister Kate And I’ll hug and I’ll squeeze as much as I please the girl in the Garden Gate Then invite all the neighbors to the wedding great and small And I’ll live content and pay no rent in Dear Old Donegal Click here for Irish genealogy resources. Click here to learn about my McGinnis ancestors. #irish #ireland #genealogy #music #song #irishamerican #folksong #mcginnis

This letter was written by my grandmother, Margaret (Dickinson) Reese, to her parents, William & Mary Dickinson, sometime in 1954. Margaret had only been married two years and had moved to Salamanca in western New York, where her husband became minister of the Assembly of God church. Their daughter, Cheryl, was born in November of 1953 and Margaret was soon after diagnosed with cancer. She had just undergone surgery to remove a tumor and was hopeful for recovery at the time of this letter. She died on September 11th of the same year. For more information, see Victory in death at the age of 24. See the Dickinson page and the Reese page for more on these families. #margaretdickinson #dickinson

Looking for information about he Pennsylvania Volunteers? Flip through the pages of this valuable collection of books now - no traveling, no dusty and brittle pages to handle, no cost! History of Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-1865 (Civil War) - Select one: Volume 1 - (1st Five Companies and 1st Regiment thru 50th Regiment) Volume 2 - (51st thru 84th Regiment) Volume 3 - (85th Regiment thru 118th Regiment) Volume 4 - (119th Regiment thru 179th Regiment) Volume 5 - (180th Regiment thru 215th Regiment and others) Includes Batteries A thru I, Colored Regiments, Independent Companies, Burial Record, and more. You may also be able to find a book published for the specific regiment your ancestor was in. Here's how: First, go to Archive.org, a priceless, yet free resource which contains millions of books, photos, movies, and recordings, all ready to access free of charge. (Donations are welcome on their site!) Next, type a term in the search box and click "Go". In this example, I searched "Pennsylvania Volunteers": This search produced 610 results, as shown below. You can now see how the books are titled and add words to the search to narrow the results, if necessary. You can also narrow the results by selecting an option from the left column. For example, you may want to check off "texts" to search only for books containing the terms. Notice, in some book titles, the regiment numbers are spelled out, and in some the numerical form is given. Here you can see an example. One is titled "History of the 121st regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers" and one is titled "History of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, Second Regiment". Try both! Archive.org is an excellent site, which has provided me with many valuable resources and information about the people and places of my roots. Do random searches, such as "Smith Family" or "Davis Genealogy" or "Davis history", and you may be surprised to find full volumes of your family's genealogy. Local histories may also contain biographies and histories about your ancestors. Try searching "Cumberland County history" or "Early Cumberland County" to find them. Book titles can vary, though, so if you have to, get creative using words like "settlement of Cumberland County" or "pioneers of Cumberland County". Do you have other ideas about how Archive.org can help trace family history? Share your tips and ideas below! Click here for more Genealogy Resources and Tips! #civilwar #Pennsylvania #pennsylvania #military

This book, published in 1895, was written by Charles E. Stickney. It gives an extensive history of Deckertown, now called "Sussex", in Sussex County, New Jersey. (See map, below). "History of Deckertown, N.J. Which includes a history of Crigar, Titsworth, and Decker families to some extent" can be read in full, below, courtesy of Archive.org: Note: Alternating blank pages are the back side of the page. If you had the book in front of you, text would only appear on one side of the page, as shown in the image at right. See the Decker page for more historical finds. #deckertown #NewJersey #Decker #decker #sussexcounty #newjersey #nj #historic

In this blog I'm going to rave about HeritageQuest Online, one of the best genealogy resources available, where you can find census records, directories, local and family history books, research aids, maps, mortality schedules, the 1890 veterans census, and my personal favorite - Revolutionary War pension files. Many indexes and lists can be found in a variety of places but these are scanned images of the actual letters and applications pensioners and their widows submitted to the government. I have found several of my forefather's pension files here and they are thrilling to read. It is an amazing tool and it is FREE but it is not like a typical website where you can just sign up and log in. "Heritage Quest Online is available to patrons of authorized institutions. Your institution will assign you a barcode or other membership ID to access online resources like HeritageQuest Online. If you don't know what your barcode or ID is, please consult your institution's Web site for help. Only your institution can provide this information." It would be to your advantage to get yourself a membership ID, if you're a genealogy addict, like me. If you have a library card, you may be able to access Heritage Quest online, as demonstrated in this old video I made a few years ago. My site looks different but accessing Heritage Quest is the same. In the video I show some of the great tools available. You can try entering your library card number at HeritageQuest Online here. If you're having trouble, call or visit your local library to request information! An Important Note about Census Records Even if you're already using another site to find census records (FamilySearch or Ancestry, for example), if you're having trouble finding a record, try Heritage Quest. Some of the handwritten census records are hard to read and when transcribed and indexed there can be many variations based on the transcriber's best interpretation of the image. In my own experience, I had one ancestor I couldn't find on the 1850 census when I searched other sites. Finally, I tried Heritage Quest, and was shocked when he came up in the results. It had been transcribed incorrectly on the other sites, to the extreme that it didn't even show up under 'close results'. It's always good to try searching all the available options if you can't find a census you're looking for. Click here to see my links to places to find census records for free online here. Where else can you find Military records? Finding military records can be frustrating and disappointing but after searching for over 20 years, so far I've discovered 40 of my forefathers who fought in the military. It is disappointing that there isn't a central database containing the names of ALL the soldiers of the American Revolution and ALL of the soldiers of the Civil War in today's age of technology. Instead, the details are scattered across hundreds of resources, hiding in dusty old books, journals, fragments of muster rolls, in pension files, census records. I suppose we genealogists and historians are all playing a part in digging these old records out and bringing them to light. See my full list of places to find military records online for free here. Believe it or not, some of your ancestors are named in old books There are a number of sites where you can find historical books containing information about your ancestors, that you never had a clue about. Although there are several places to find historical books online, no one site has ALL the books. That's why if you really want to dig deep and find great material to add to your family tree, you'll want to search as many sites as you can. Search old books for your ancestors names, trying different variations in spelling, if applicable. Some sites allow you to narrow results, enter the name in quotes. Also, search for historical books and journals about the places they lived. Click here for my list of places to find historical books online for free. I've also started a collection of books I've stumbled upon pertaining to specific surnames. Take a look and see if any of your family's surnames are found. You could find a connection! There are just a few of my favorite places to find old paper trails about my ancestors and their journey. Click here for more free genealogy resources available at your fingertips and don't forget to subscribe for updates! #americanrevolution #census #online #free #genealogy #military #militaryrecords #books

It may seem our ancestors made it difficult to track them by naming them after themselves and/or others in the family, however, knowing the traditional naming patterns in the family could reveal many clues and details about the rest of the family. For example, Margaret was a popular name given by supporters of Margaret, Queen of Scots. This is something to keep in mind when names that are not known to be in the family appear. Those who followed the rules left a trail of their ancestry via their children’s names. The names of many of the early settlers were English and followed traditional English rules for naming children. Though in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the popular practice was to give the first born son the father’s name and the first born daughter the mother’s name, which was the German tradition, not the English. At any rate, this practice resulted in more than half of the females in the colony having the name of Mary, Sarah, or Elizabeth. The second born son, (or in some cases the first born son) was given the paternal grandfather’s name. This causes a great deal of confusion. The English tradition in the 1700s and 1800s was to name the first born son after the child’s father’s father, the second born son after the child’s mother’s father, the third born son after the child’s father, the fourth born son after the child’s father’s eldest brother, the fifth born son after the child’s mother’s eldest brother or father’s second eldest brother. The first born daughter was named after the child’s mother’s mother, second born daughter after the child’s father’s mother, third born daughter after the child’s mother, fourth born daughter after the child’s mother’s eldest sister, fifth born daughter after the child’s mother’s second eldest sister or father’s eldest sister. If both the child’s father’s father and the mother’s father had the same name they would skip to the next naming rule, rather than naming two of their children by the same name, though it was very common to see the same name being used more than once within the same household if a child died young. For example, Alfred E. Leonard and his wife, Mary, named their first child Anna Rebecca Leonard. Sadly she died after living only four months in February 1837. Another daughter was born twelve months later, in February 1838, and she too was named Anna Rebecca Leonard. To their great disappointment, she also died early, living only to four years old. Their third daughter, who they named Mary, lived to adulthood and married. The Puritans in the New World are easily recognizable. When they left England, they left behind many of the English traditions. Though they did name their children after other family members, they often gave their children names of virtue such as Mercy, Thankful, Patience and Charity. About 90% of the Puritans had Biblical names such as John, Joseph and Samuel, Mary, Elizabeth and Sarah. Naming a child the Sacred Name of “Jesus” or the name of any angel was strictly forbidden, deemed too precious to be used by mankind. On that note, if a child is named Michael, Gabriel, Emmanuel, or even Christopher, you can bet the family was not Puritan. The German tradition was to name each daughter after the child’s mother, most commonly Anne, and each son after the child’s father, most commonly Johann (nickname Hans). Their middle name or “second name” would often be the name they went by. In some cases, the middle name was the name of their baptismal sponsor. In other cases, it was the name of another family member who had recently died. Other names used were the child’s mother’s maiden name, a saint’s name, or even a close friend’s name. The Pennsylvania-German, however, followed a different pattern. See this article. (Thanks to Robert F. for sharing this!) The Irish are easily recognizable with the name Patrick often given and with the last names preceded with “Mc” as in McDaniels. They tended to name the first born son after the child’s father’s father, the second born son after the child’s mother’s father, the third born son after the child’s father, the fourth born son after the child’s father’s eldest brother, and the fifth born son after the child’s mother’s eldest brother. The first born daughter was named after the child’s mother’s mother, the second born after the child’s father’s mother, the third born after the child’s mother, the fourth born after the child’s mother’s eldest sister, and the fifth born after the child’s father’s eldest sister. Many Irish names were changed when Penal Laws (c. 1607) outlawed the Irish language. For example, the Irish name “Sean” became “John”. The English version of the most common Irish names that were changed was Thomas, James, William, Patrick, Anne, Mary, Bridget, and Kathleen. Giving one or more children some part of the mother’s maiden name as a surname or middle name was another common tradition. The Dutch custom of naming children can be helpful to genealogists, but can also cause much confusion. The first son was commonly named after his paternal grandfather, and the second son was usually named after his own father. The first daughter was named after her maternal grandmother, and the second daughter was often named after her own mother. Click here to see Dutch baptismal names and their variations and translations. The Scottish naming patterns are quite informative. Traditionally, the first born son was named after his paternal grandfather and the second born was named after his maternal grandfather. The third son was named after his father and subsequent sons were named after their father's or mother's brothers. Similarly, the first born daughter was named after her maternal grandmother and the second daughter was named after her paternal grandmother. The third daughter was named after her mother and subsequent daughters were named after their father's and mother's sisters. If a child died, especially the first, second, or third born, the next child born would be given the same name, in order to preserve this tradition. See Genealogy Links for more great genealogy tips and tons of free resources to check out. Subscribe for updates at the bottom of any page! #namevariations #Christiannames #tips #meaningsofnames #namingpatterns #names

This historic map represents the United States as it was in 1800. The Spanish possessions in the Southwest, Texas, Louisiana, Indiana Territory, Northwest Territory, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia (disputed), Mississippi Territory, West Florida, New Orleans, East Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. This early map shows parts of Canada as well as Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington D. C., Delaware, New Jersey, and New York. Source: "New York's Part in History", by Sherman Williams, 1915. Click here for more maps. Click here for more New York genealogy resources. #maps #NewYork #historicmaps #America

In November 2020, it will be 400 years since the landing of the Mayflower at Cape Cod. It is a special time for Plymouth, Massachusetts, where thousands of people plan to visit for the quatercentenary. One of the major tourist destinations is "Plimoth Plantation", the village established by the Pilgrims upon arrival in 1620. Unfortunately, the plantation is closed due to coronavirus as of April. Hopefully operations will resume in time for the town's scheduled events and celebrations. If we can't visit, at least we can tour the plantation and most of Plymouth on Google Maps. Use the interactive map below to take your own virtual tour. Tap or click on the arrows to navigate and have a look around. You may end up inside one of the homes, where you can get a peek into what life was like for our Pilgrim ancestors at Plymouth. See the entire Mayflower Passenger list with biographical data, illustrations, resources and more! Find Collectible 300th Anniversary Mayflower Pilgrim Stamps Get your Commemorative Mayflower Print, complete with your ancestor's name! #mayflower #pilgrims #plymouth #plimothplantation #massachusetts #tour #photos #virtualtour

At the southern end of "The Battery", better known as "Battery Park", is a monument worthy of mention. It is the East Coast Memorial, a tribute to the thousands of American servicemen who died in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II. The memorial was commissioned by the American Battle Monuments Commission. The centerpiece, an 18.5-foot bronze eagle sculpted by the late Albino Manca (1898-1976), swooping down to place a laurel wreath on a wave, a traditional act of mourning those who died at sea. The pedestal of black granite is inscribed as follows: 1941 **** 1945 ERECTED BY THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN PROUD AND GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF HER SONS WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN HER SERVICE AND WHO SLEEP IN THE AMERICAN COASTAL WATER OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN INTO THY HANDS, OH LORD An additional inscription on the opposite side reads: 1941 *** 1945 IN ADDITION TO THE 4,597 AMERICAN SERVICEMENT HONORED HERE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN HER SERVICE AND WHO SLEEP IN THE AMERICAN COASTAL WATERS OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA HONORS THE 6,185 SEAMEN OF THE UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE AND THE 529 SEAMEN OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY TRANSPORT SERVICE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES DURING WORLD WAR II In front of this monument are eight massive pylons each standing 19-feet tall, inscribed with the names of 4,597 American servicemen whose final resting place was in the Atlantic, along with their rank and branch of service (Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Navy, or Marines). These were installed in February of 1963. The eagle and pylons all face the Statue of Liberty. "Every generation of Americans must be expected in their time to do their part to maintain freedom for their country." - John F. Kennedy, May 23, 1963. The memorial was dedicated by President John F. Kennedy on May 23, 1963. In his dedication speech, he so eloquently said, "It is appropriate for us to remember them and also remember those who in 1963 are doing the same thing not in the western Atlantic but much farther from our shores, who also on sea and land are bearing the burden of our defense." The same holds true today. Full speech: General Devers, Reverend ,Clergy, Senator Mansfield, Secretary Gilpatric, Mayor Wagner. Admiral Kinkaid, Sir John, Commodore, ladies and gentlemen: Admiral Rickover wrote me a few days ago describing the ceremony of the commissioning of a new Polaris submarine, the Andrew Jackson. He said to each captain of a new submarine he gives a plaque which contains an old Breton prayer which was said by fishermen from there for hundreds of years, and the prayer says: "O God, the sea is so great and my boat is so small." The sea has been a friend or an enemy of us all but it has never, since our earliest beginnings, carried special hazards for the people of this country. We started as a beachhead on this continent; our forebears came by that sea to this land. The sea has been our friend and on occasions our enemy, but to life in the sea with all of its changes and hazards was added the struggle with man, and it is that struggle of nature and man which cost us the lives of 4500 Americans whom we commemorate today. We commemorate them particularly appropriately here in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty. I am sure that their families who will come here and read their names may wonder on occasion whether this rather extraordinary act on their behalf was worthwhile. It is, after all, against the law of nature for parents to bury their children. Children should bury their fathers, and when it is necessary for a father or a mother to bury a son who may range from 18 to 28 with all of his life before him, it represents a special wrench. And I am sure they wonder, with all of the bright promises particularly of World War I and then World War II, what it all meant that we should be in such hazard today. I suppose it means that every generation of Americans must be expected in their time to do their part to maintain freedom for their country and freedom for those associated with it; that there is no final victory but rather all Americans must be always prepared to play their proper part in a difficult and dangerous world. These 4500 Americans did--dying in the western Atlantic--and nearly 20 years later it is appropriate for us to remember them and also remember those who in 1963 are doing the same thing not in the western Atlantic but much farther from our shores, who also on sea and land are bearing the burden of our defense. Thank you. Click here to see more from my visit to Battery Park Subscribe to my blog for free updates! #batterypark #ancestortrails #newyorkcity #dykeman #tourneur #newyork #nyc #manhattan #monument #memorial #immigration #landmarks

I stumbled upon this handy article while searching for the obituary of Margaret (Dickinson) Reese, who died on the day this paper was printed. It was the September 11, 1954 edition of the Canandaigua Daily Messenger, Canandaigua, New York, featuring valuable tips for gardeners growing tomatoes, like me! #gardening #tomatoes #notablenews #howto

Most of the 1890 U.S. Federal Census was destroyed by fire, to the dismay of genealogists past, present and future. The only portion that remains is the Veterans Census, which counted only (you guessed it) veterans. For more information about Josiah's family, see the Reese page. View the full census record at FamilySearch.org for free. Click here. To search the veteran's census for another name, click here. Affiliate Publication Title: Schedules Enumerating Union Veterans and Widows of Union Veterans of the Civil War, 1890. , Affiliate Publication Number: M123 , Affiliate Film Number: 85 , GS Film number: 338244 , Digital Folder Number: 004679000 , Image Number: 01061 Click here for more REESE genealogy. Click here for more resources for finding military records. Click here for thousands more free genealogy resources. #reese #veteran #civilwar #military #josiahreese

The Pennsylvania-German Society is an organization founded in 1891 for the purpose of studying and preserving the history of the Pennsylvania German people. Their biannual journals and newsletters were published into annual volumes and contain illustrations, portraits, minutes of their meetings in which papers were read discussing the culture, history, dialect, and people. Volume 1 [Link] 1891- Pennsylvania Germans in Church and State, Old Days, General knowledge, Society Constitution, By-Laws, Officers, meetings, etc. Volume 2 [Link] 1892 - Early literature of the PA Germans, true heroes of Provincial Pennsylvania, The PA German's place in history, Obituary notices Volume 3 [Link] 1893 - Pennsylvania Germans at the Battle of Long Island and other history Volume 4 [Link] 1894 - German Moravian Settlements in PA 1735-1800, PA German Day at the Pennsylvania Chautauqua, Education positions of PA Germans, Ancestral virtues of the PA Germans, Biographical sketches, Births & Baptisms of Trinity Lutheran Church and First Reformed Church of Lancaster Volume 5 [Link] 1895 - Biographical Sketches, Births & Baptisms of Trinity Lutheran Church and First Reformed Church of Lancaster continued Volume 6 [Link] 1896 - Biographical Sketches, Births & Baptisms of Trinity Lutheran Church of Lancaster continued Volume 7 [Link] 1897 - Biographical Sketches, Records of St. Michaelis and Zion Congregation of Philadelphia Volume 8 [Link] 1898 - Church Register of the United Reformed and Lutheran Church, Called Bliymers, in Hopewell Township, York County, PA, including births and baptisms from 1766-1834, Communicants from 1813-1831, Records of St. Michaelis and Zion Congregation of Philadelphia, continued. Volume 9 [Link] 1899 - Obituary Sketches, The Settlement of Germantown, The German Emigration from New York into Pennsylvania, Records of St. Michaelis and Zion Congregation of Philadelphia, continued. Volume 10 Part 1 [Link] Obituaries, The first German newspaper, Pennsylvania-German Literature. Volume 10 Part 2 [Link] Redemption of Redemptioners or Indentured Servants, Humanity of Christopher Saur, Death rate among immigrants, William Penn's terms/conditions, Index, Genealogies. Volume 11 [Link] Sketch of the First Reformed Church of Easton, Memorium. Volume 12 [Link] Biographical sketches, Memorium. Volume 13 [Link] Memorium, The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania, American History from German Archives with German Soldiers in the Revolution, the Picturesque Quality of the Pennsylvania German. Volume 14 [Link] Lebanon and its environs, Obituaries, Daniel Falckner's book that stimulated the great German Emigration to Pennsylvania, Records of marriages in St. Michaelis and Zion Evangelical Lutheran Congregation in Philadelphia. Volume 15 Part 1 [Link] Obituaries, The German Influence in its Settlement and Development, The Pennsylvania German in the French and Indian War, Frederick Great and the U.S., Old Historic Germantown. Volume 15 Part 2 [Link] Fort Henry, The Gap in the Blue Mountains, In Old Northampton, Franklin's account of the building of Fort Allen, Some Arndt (Orndt) Family Data, Fort Norris, Journal kept by John Van Etten 1757, Dupui's Fort, Colonel Bouquet and the Royal Americans, General Forbes Expedition against Fort Duquesne, Peace conferences with the Indians, The Paxtang Boys, Frederick the Great in the United States, Old Historic Germantown, Colonial mansions and houses, The first mills, Old time inns and taverns, Schools and educational institutes, Early churches, Early transportation. Volume 16 [Link] Obituaries, The Wreck of the Ship New Era on the New Jersey coast, Governor Joseph Heister and his genealogies, Record of indentures and servants. Volume 17 [Link] Obituaries, The PA German in the Revolutionary War, Gun makers of Old Northampton, Illustration including Battle of Monmouth, Gen. Daniel Morgan, Memorium. Volume 18 [Link] Historical papers, Obituaries, Diary of a voyage from Rotterdam to Philadelphia in 1728, Church Records of the Williams Township Congregation. Volume 19 [Link] Pennsylvania - The German Influence in its settlement and development, An account of the manners of the German inhabitants of Pennsylvania, Early German American Newspapers. Volume 20 [Link] Biographical sketches of deceased members, The Lutheran Church in New Hanover (Montgomery County), Volume 21 [Link] Obituaries, The German influence in Pennsylvania's settlement, A Unique Manuscript by Rev. Peter Miller, The Wayside Inns on the Lancaster Roadside between Philadelphia and Lancaster, Guide to the Old Moravian Cemetery in Bethlehem, Pa. including names by section and row, complete with age, dates, parents, family, and other biographical information. Volume 22 [Link] Volume 23 [Link] Volume 24-25 [Link] Volume 26 [Link] Volume 27 [Link] Volume 28-29 [Link] Volume 30 [Link] Volume 31 [Link] Volume 32 [Link] Volume 33-34 [Link] Volume 35 [Link] Volume 36 [Link] Volume 37 [Link] Volume 38 [Link] Volume 39 [Link] Volume 40 [Link] Volume 41 [Link] Volume 45 [Link] Volume 47 [Link] Volume 48 [Link] Volume 49 [Link] Volume 50-51 [Link] Volume 52-53 [Link] See also: Visit the Pennsylvania German Society's website at pgs.org for more information about their current publications and news. See also "German American Annals" Click here to see more Pennsylvania history and genealogy resources and more. Share this find with friends and family! #pennsylvania #resources #genealogy #magazine #german #history

Did you know you can access thousands of New York Naturalization Records online for free? I was thrilled to find a handwritten copy of one of my immigrant ancestor's handwritten declaration of intention of citizenship, filed soon after he settled in Central New York, in the early 1850s. You can browse or search the collection on FamilySearch using this link. Tip: Be sure to try various spellings and variations if you have a hard time finding a match. If you find a match, let us know! Share this find with friends and family! Click here for my Genealogy Dashboard containing thousands of free genealogy resources to help with your research. Subscribe for updates - it's free! #immigration #naturalization #naturalizationrecords #resources #newyork #citizenship

Introducing The Time Deductor! Sorry, it's not a time machine and can't take years of your age, but it can help with some tricky math, which is why I created it! How many times have you come across a record that gives a persons age on a given date, but doesn't give their birth date? This is the case with census records, some tombstones, cemetery indexes, and other records I've come across. Usually it's easy enough to calculate the birth date but I took on the challenge of creating a form to do the math anyway! It's a great way to double check for errors, especially when dealing with complicated dates, leap years, etc. First, enter the "end" date and year. Then enter the number of years, months, and days to deduct and click Calculate. The Time Deductor will then calculate the original date for you. You can access the Time Deductor from the Tools menu at the top of the page or click here to give it a try! Note: The information you enter is not saved or recorded. It is brought to you compliments of MyGenealogyAddiction simply for your convenience and entertainment. Enjoy! TIME DEDUCTOR TRY THE NEW TIME CALCULATOR TOO! Click here for more genealogy resources and tools! Subscribe to my blog for updates! It's free! #timedeductor #time #calculator #tools #genealogy

Here's another tool I created to help make some of the tedious sometimes complicated tasks easier while researching family history. Introducing "The Time Calculator". What's it for? Well, it's for calculating the difference in time, between two dates. For example, if you want to know exactly how old you are today or on any given day, this will quickly tell you. Just enter the birthdate and year and then enter the second date and year. Then click "Calculate" and see exactly how many years, months and days elapsed between the two dates. CLICK HERE TO GIVE IT A TRY Other ideas for this tool's use: Use it to determine the exact difference between two people's ages. Use it to determine how old a person was when they were married, died, etc. Use it to determine how much time has passed since any event such as a new job. Use it to determine how long has passed since you've seen a loved one. I found this tool useful recently when I heard that on the day President Trump was sworn in as President of the United States, he was 70 years, 7 months and 7 days old. I used the Time Calculator to fact check this interesting observation. President Trump was born on June 14, 1946. He was sworn in on January 20, 2017, so I entered these dates and found it to be a day short. On the day he was sworn in, President Trump was 70 years, 7 months and 6 days old but on the following day, his first full day in office, January 21, 2017, he WAS exactly 70 years, 7 months and 7 days old. Fascinating! You can find the Time Calculator from the Tools menu at the top of the page. Share it with your friends and family! Note: The information you enter is not saved or recorded. It is brought to you compliments of MyGenealogyAddiction simply for your convenience and entertainment. Enjoy! Subscribe to my blog for updates on new resources, tools and finds! It's free! #timecalculator #tips #tools #genealogy #dates