Spanish Flu

In the autumn of 1918, the deadliest pandemic in human history occurred. The Spanish Flu rocked the world just as World War I ended. This flu infected almost a half a billion people and killed 50-100 million people, more than who died in the war. It hit the young healthy people the hardest. The infected would get horrible nosebleeds, and their skin would turn blue because of lack of oxygen from their fluid-filled lungs. Hospitals were overwhelmed, and coffins were in shortage. This fall we recognize the 100-year anniversary of this deadly flu.

The flu took most of its victims in the prime of their lives. They were not married with a posterity to remember them. I searched to see if any of my ancestors had died in the fall of 1918 and found three people. One was a young woman, age 21, from New Hampshire. She suffered from the flu for ten days before she died. What a tragedy.

Vera Jones Vaughan from Malad, Idaho survived the Spanish Flu, and we are lucky that she recorded her experience for her posterity. Vera was visiting relatives in Pocatello, Idaho when the flu struck that town. From their windows, they would watch the ambulances with sirens going to the flu victims and the hearses taking away the dead.

One day. Vera’s cousin asked her how she felt because she didn’t look well. Vera said she felt fine and went to hang out the laundry when suddenly, her legs gave out on her. She had to crawl to the back door dragging the laundry basket. At least a dozen people watched her crawl to her house from their windows. Vera was put in a tub and given a glass of castor oil mixed with lemon juice sprinkled with pepper. Her fingers went black and stiff, and eventually, her face went black. The man who delivered her groceries got the flu one day and died the next. Eight people in her neighborhood died. Vera was one of the lucky ones to survive, and she remembers being weak for a long time.

What do we know about our ancestors who either perished or survived the Spanish Flu? This autumn is a great time to remember them. We can tell their story and share with our children and grandchildren. These stories would be great to add to FamilySearch. Let us not forget those that are often overlooked.

Unofficial Ancestry.com Workbook

The Unofficial Ancestry.com Workbook by Nancy Hendrickson is “A How-to Manual for Tracing Your Family Tree on the #1 Genealogy Website.” Amazon.com sells this book along with other genealogy book retailers. Each chapter in this book focuses on a specific record type in Ancestry and teaches you how to get the most out of your record searches. This book takes you step-by-step through each record set and shows you how to search and includes images of the search results. By learning how to use Ancestry’s massive record collection, you can save time on your searches and feel confident that you have not missed information that may be valuable to your research.

Each chapter starts out with an overview of the collection so that you get a good idea of what is in each group. For instance, the section on census records gives the reader a good impression on what census records are available and how to use them in their research. The chapter also includes exercises to help you get hands-on experience in searching census records. The first exercise has you find a Herschel B. Hendrickson in the 1940 census. It goes through three steps to locate him and includes pictures of the search results. It even includes an exercise in using a mortality schedule, so you feel comfortable using those. At the end of each chapter are blank forms to help you record your findings.

The author starts off with a lesson on how to use the Search form and the card catalog. There are times you will want to use each of these search formats. The author feels that this first chapter is one that you will not want to skip over because this is essential knowledge to know when researching each collection. There is even a chapter on how to use your AncestryDNA test results so that you can include your results in your research.

Whether you would like to understand how to use maps, military records, and even immigration records, this book will help you maximize your search queries to save you time and help you feel confident that you have done an exhaustive search in each record set. The book is set up with exercises with step by step instructions. There are forms in each chapter to help you record your results. An excellent book for those wishing to improve their searches on Ancestry.com.

School Records

The summer is almost over, and it’s time for school to start again.  It is surprising the amount of information schools keep on their students, staff, and teachers.  Many do not realize that the information from school records can be a treasure trove for genealogists. 

Findmypast.com has a great blog article “How School Records Can Help You With Your Genealogy Research.”  This article gives visuals on what the actual records look like and provides a list of information you can find in these records. This list includes:

1.     Child’s age and date of birth. Information such as this can help you find birth records.  You need to keep in mind that this information may not be accurate as some parents fibbed about the age of their child to get them in school sooner or there were errors in the recording of this information.  It is always best to find other sources to verify this information.

2.     Parent’s names.  The records give the name of the parents of the child.  It may not provide the mother’s name or maiden name, but it will give the father’s name.  It will also contain the name of the guardians if they do not live with their parents.

3.     Parent’s occupation. Finding information about how the parents earned a living can help in identifying that you have the right child.

4.     Address of your ancestor and if they moved.  The address of your ancestor can point you to census records, land records, and even newspaper articles.  Be sure and check the “Remarks” column as it may indicate that the child moved, left school, and when.

5.     Death information. Again, check out the “Remarks” column as it may indicate that the child has died.  Listing the death of a child gives a year to look for death information.

6.     Glimpse into your ancestor’s school life.  School logs can provide information about your ancestor especially if they “misbehaved.”  These logs also give you an idea of what day to day school life was for them.

Findmypast has over ten million school records.  Ancestry and FamilySearch have school records too.  State archives and libraries, historical societies, google books, newspapers, and even the school itself are great places to search for school records.

In searching for your ancestors, don’t forget to include school records.  It is in these unexpected places that you may find the information you need!

Family Roots Conference

Need a fun get-away where you can learn, laugh, and meet new people? We are fortunate to have the perfect escape coming to St. George. A family history conference, sponsored by Family Roots, is happening September 28-29, 2018 at the Dixie Convention Center. The Family Roots website (familyrootsconference.com) states that it will be “two days of exploration, education and fun experiences that will connect your family for generations.” Sounds like lots of fun!

Each day starts off at 9:00 am with a keynote speaker. Friday’s keynote speaker will be Lisa Louise Cooke, CEO of Genealogy Gems. Her topic will be “Finding the ‘we’ in your family tree.” Saturday will have two keynote speakers! Todd Hansen from The Story Trek will be the first keynote at 9:00 am and Jason Hewlett, a motivational speaker popular at Rootstech, will follow at 10:00 am kicking off the special Saturday youth event for youth 12-18 years old.

There will be 40 classes each day with something for the novice to the experienced genealogist. The classes range from international research to organizing your photos. There is even a class on how to create a musical biography. Wow! That should be interesting. There is something for everyone at this conference.

If you have attended one of the conferences previously, you will notice something different. The exhibits are now in the halls and Garden Room that is right outside the Ballroom. This change will make it easier to access the exhibits as you go from class to class. There are some fun exhibits for the youth including panning for gold, Pioneer weaving, and candle making.

Saturday not only includes the regular classes but also has a free youth event that includes great speakers and “fun, interactive classes.” Also, on Saturday, attendees will enjoy a Pow Wow presented by the Native American Tribes.

The cost is reasonable. An adult 2-day pass is $49, and the 1-day pass is $29. The youth event is free for all youth. For those wanting to attend the Saturday night Jason Hewlett concert and would like preferred class seating (never miss a class you want to attend) there is a Platinum ticket for $69.

The best news of all is that Family Roots is giving the readers of the Senior Sampler a 15% discount off the ticket price! To get this discount use the discount code VIP15. Thank you so much Family Roots.

Occupations

Have you ever wondered if you descend from farmers, seaman, tailors, or even shoemakers? Studying the lives of your ancestors and how they earned their living can be exciting and rewarding. When I found out that my 4th Great Grandfather served in the British Navy under Admiral Nelson that was all I could talk about to my children or anyone who would listen. This grandfather left a history of the ships he served on and the famous battles such as Battle of the Nile that he fought in. I immediately started studying books on Admiral Nelson and that era of history. I even found a children’s book full of drawings on what life was like serving in the British Navy during the Napoleonic wars. Livelihoods provide a great insight into how your ancestors lived, but they also are essential to your genealogical research.

Knowing your ancestor’s occupation can help you differentiate between two John Smiths that are the same age, living in the same location, and both have a wife named Mary. If one John Smith is a farmer and the other is a blacksmith, it will be easier to keep them separate. Many sons followed the occupation of their fathers so knowing the father’s occupation can help you sort children to the right parents.

Occupations also give us clues to what other records may exist for your ancestor. Farmers would have land records if they owned their land. Those who worked for the railroad could possibly have a pension that could give clues about their family. FamilySearch Wiki has a listing for occupations and will give you a list of records available for the different professions. A Google search for occupations will bring you sites for occupations from different countries and time periods.

FamilySearch also has a great blog about “How to Discover Your Ancestor’s Occupation.” In this blog is a list of records that specify occupations. Some examples the blog gives are:

· Census records

· European parish records

· Obituaries

· City directories

· World War I and II draft registration cards and pension records

· Passenger lists

· Death and probate records

Whether you had an ancestor who ran a flour mill and practiced dentistry on the side (without a license) or was a farmer, understanding your ancestor’s occupation can help bring them to life and can also point you to other records that may help you extend your line further back.

Google Books

There is one type of genealogy resource that helps us move beyond the names and dates of our ancestor's lives. This resource is a wonderful place to find wills, obituaries, family stories, land ownership records and much more. These resources are in old books found in Google Books.

Google Books has lots of county histories. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, there was a push for county histories and biographical compilations. These books have geographic, social, economic, political and religious notes about specific areas. In the second half of the books are biographical sketches about prominent people in the area and these sketches may include relevant dates, lists and information on family members, and stories about these people.

Google Books is a collection of digitized books and magazines from around the world. Many are out of copyright and in the public domain. Some books you may only have a snippet view of the book, but there are many books that you can view the entire book and even download them as a PDF. For those books that only allow a snippet view, Google does help you find places where you may purchase a copy or even find a copy in a library near you.

You can search Google Books by your ancestor’s name and town or county where they lived. There are even books on court records, patents, and military books from the area you are searching. There are books about churches and congregations that my list your ancestors as attending these churches. By clicking control and f, you can do a search in these books for specific names or information you are researching.

First, go to Google Books (books.google.com), and you can start with a narrow search for books with your family names. As an example, I always start my search out with the family surname I’m looking for and add genealogy (Brinkerhoff family genealogy). I might even include the state, county, or town where they lived. Then look for ‘Tools’ at the top of the page. Click on it and choose ‘Any books’ from the drop-down menu. Next click on ‘Any books’ and from that drop-down menu choose ‘Free Google Books’ to get the books that you can read its complete version.

Next time you are researching, be sure and give Google Books a try! These books are great for finding information that may not be elsewhere.

Newspapers

Newspapers contain a variety of information that is useful to genealogists. Often, they are the last item that we check when searching for our ancestors, but they should be what we check next when vital records do not give us the information we need. Family Trees need the details that are found in newspapers.

Obituaries give us death dates, burial locations, and often provide information about the family such as spouse, children, siblings, and parents. Obituaries may provide biographical information about the deceased.

Birth announcements may contain the name of baby, birth date, place of birth, and parent’s names. Many times, they included the names of grandparents and other children in the family.

Marriage and engagement announcements give the name of the bride and groom and the date of marriage. These announcements may contain information about the wedding day such as what family and friends attended the wedding. You may be fortunate to have a photo of the couple included in the announcement.

You can find legal records in the newspaper. Probate records and court cases contain information about the ancestor such as names, relatives, and places of residence.

Many passenger lists are in newspapers. Many times, if you cannot find a passenger list for the ship your ancestor arrived on, it will be in the newspaper.

Photographs of your ancestor may be in the newspaper. You may find obituaries, weddings, birthdays, and family reunion photos in newspapers.

Even the advertisements can be useful for genealogists. The advertisements give us a glimpse into the styles of the day, the type of appliances that were popular or new and other social information that will help us understand how our ancestors lived. We may find the advertisement for an ancestor’s place of business.

Chronicling America (chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/) is a great free website from the Library of Congress. It has newspapers from 1789-1924.

The Ancestor Hunt List of Newspaper Research Links (theancestorhunt.com/newspaper-research-links.html) contains a list of links by state of free online historical newspapers.

Elephind.com allows you to search over three million newspapers across the country. They add collections regularly so if you don’t find what you need now check back later.

Searching for your ancestor in a newspaper can be overwhelming, but with the help of free websites like those listed above, your search can be more manageable. Don’t forget to search in newspapers when looking for information about your ancestors.