The 2 April 1902 will of Barbara Haase of Warsaw, Hancock County, Illinois, includes the names of two witnesses. One was written in English and the other was written in German. I didn’t do too bad of a job reading them, but wish I had read the entire set of documents from Barbara’s probate before […]

Databases and indexes have their limitations. Items can be overlooked. Names can be transcribed incorrectly. Putting those problems aside (while not forgetting them), databases created from original records can afford us the opportunity to make discoveries that would be nearly impossible if a manual search of the records were necessary. Databases can save a great […]

It can be difficult sometimes to know exactly what you are looking at. That difficulty can be compounded when an image has been copied and shared by someone whose excitement in locating something has surpassed their concern about remembering when and where something was located. This also assumes that the person who located something realized […]

This is the short obituary for Keziah Elliott Holden who died in Adams County, Illinois, in 1878. The last sentence struck me as slightly unusual, ending with she “passed away like a fruit fully ripened for eternity.” One just has to love obituaries with phrases like that. Keziah’s son Daniel P. Holden’s step-daughter likely married […]

There’s so much about your ancestors that DNA will not tell you. DNA will not tell you when your ancestor was born. DNA will not tell you when your ancestor died. DNA will not tell you what your ancestor’s occupation was. DNA will not tell you the house or lot where your relative lived. There […]

From several years ago—I’m hoping to make a similar discovery, but not holding my breath. I had downloaded digital copies of the Aaron Sargent’s 1895 Sargent Genealogy: Hugh Sargent, of Courteenhall, Northamptonshire and His Descendants in England a couple of times, so my seeing it at the Allen County Public Library on my group trip […]

There’s still time to join me in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, at the genealogically renowned Allen County Public Library. In addition to the vast collection of books the Allen County Public Library (ACPL) has, the library is a FamilySearch affiliate. That means that some of the digital images on FamilySearch I cannot access at home I […]

It is the only lineage society to which I belong. Years ago, when I was still pretty much a kid, I realized that one of my ancestors qualified me for membership in First Families of Ohio. At least I thought I did. Membership in the organization is limited to those who have a descent from […]