Michael John Neill's Genealogy Website
At some point while writing this blog I had the big idea to include Evidence Explained style citations in every post. At some point I stopped. It was not because properly crafted citations are not important, but because sometimes in writing them it takes time away from writing. That may sound like an excuse. It is. Citation […]
One of the challenges researchers in rural areas of the United States have is the dearth of directories. Many urban areas beginning in the 19th century have extensive runs of yearly directories. While these publications have their pitfalls (generally only listing “heads of household” and working adults in the household), at least they exist and […]
I know precious little about Irishman John Neill. He lived in the NewtownLimavady area of County Derry, Ireland, in the 1860s when his son Joseph married in the Drumachose Parish at the Derrymore Presbyterian Church. John had another son Samuel. The brothers were born in the 1830s. What I have learned about John and about […]
I’ve decided to keep my spreadsheet of references I’ve located to various family members in the Warsaw, Illinois, newspapers that have been digitized on the site sponsored by the Warsaw Public Library. I’ve about got the spreadsheet the way I like it, but I may refine it as time goes on. I have decided to […]
Elizabeth Shown Mills’ popular Evidence Explained has a recently released updated and revised third edition. Until 11:59 EDT on 18 May 2017, this revised edition is on sale at 25% off. I’ve been putting off getting my new copy, but now is probably a good time. I have an earlier edition that’s starting to show quite […]
Ancestry.com has updated their “U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942.” This draft registration is often referred to as the “Old Men’s Draft,” because of the age of the men who were registering. This fourth registration was conducted on 27 April 1942 and registered men who born on or between 28 April 1877 and 16 […]
Anna Dirks (Goldenstein) was born in 1861 near Coatsburg, Adams County, Illinois, and died in 1932 in Golden, Adams County, Illinois. She married Focke Goldenstein in Coatsburg, in the early 1880s. Some things I learned about research and life from Anna: Life is not always easy. Anna and Focke had a child, Johann, who died […]
I’ve been in the Hancock County Courthouse in Carthage, Illinois numerous times over the past thirty-five years. It is a beautiful building and is well-maintained by the County Board. It’s the third courthouse the county has had and was constructed in the early 20th century. I really had not given much thought to the construction […]
