The 1836 property tax list for Jackson Township in Coshocton County, Ohio, contains an entry for Jonas Rampley. It’s clearly Jonas as the first name on the record. There’s little doubt that it says Jonas. And yet, it is not Jonas. At least I’m 99% certain it isn’t. James Rampley is shown as owning that […]

In “Can You Read that Last Name?” we asked what the last name was in this census image: It was Habben. I’ve always thought it was amazing that the first names were pretty much all correct and the last name was a little more misdirected. It could have been due to Habben’s family low-German dialect […]

Genealogy “how-to” books discuss citation of sources and how to analyze information that has been located in the context in which it was created. Those are definitely worthwhile activities for reasons we’ve discussed before. But citation and analyzing what has been located is only part of the process. Tracking your process is important too, especially […]

When determining a way to solve your genealogical problem, ask yourself when that problem-solving process might not work. That does not mean that the process should not be used, but using a process without thinking about the drawbacks can create additional problems. If using personal or property taxes to find potential relatives of your ancestor, […]

Conrad Haase stated in October of 1884 in open court that he had lived in Hancock County for thirty-three years and had never been out of the county “since he came here.” A few moments after making that statement, he said “I crossed the river and married her in Ft. Madison.” Technically he had left […]

A few quick thoughts on searching for names in online databases. Last names Keep a list of all spelling variants. You will not remember all of them all the time. Spelling variants usually result from pronunciation issues and transcription issues. For those with surnames that are not English the name may also have been anglicized, […]