Michael John Neill's Genealogy Website
Many genealogists use the phrase “brick walls.” I’ve used it myself. But sometimes I really wonder just how accurate that phrase is. More importantly, I wonder if it is possible to surmount every “brick wall.” Sometimes when I mention brick walls that “can’t be beaten,” the response is: one must work harder there’s something out there–keep […]
Typed documents can sometimes be just as difficult to read as handwritten ones. This 1924 disbursement was made as the result of a court case over the estate of Heipke Dirks of Coatsburg, Illinois. The digital image used as the illustration in this post was made at the Family History Library from a microfilmed copy […]
I found myself writing the phrase “In 1920, Nancy Rampley told the census taker…” And then I stopped and thought. The phrase was not accurate. I realized that any genealogical editor worth their salt should not allow that phrase to be used for one simple reason: We don’t really know who said what in the 1920 […]
Packed in an old Bee Gees record cover, I nearly thought I had been shipped the wrong item when my recent Ebay purchase arrived. I had not purchased a copy of “Spirits Having Flown.” Fortunately the picture of a 1914 grand jury was tucked away instead of the actual album. The record label served its purpose […]
The problem with names that are somewhat common is precisely that–they are somewhat common. In April of 1811 there was a payout from the estate of Stephen Gibson in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. One of the sons listed in John Gibson. It is believed that this John Gibson may have moved to Vermont. There is just one […]
They were always referred to collectively as “the babies.” I don’t remember when I first became aware that Mom had two siblings who died at birth. Their grave went unmarked for nearly thirty years in a plot adjacent to my grandparents. A part of me thinks I always knew about “the babies” and another part of […]
Readers of this blog are well aware of my difficulties in locating Benjamin Butler in several records, particularly the 1860 census. He’s been found in others: 1850 in Port Huron, St. Clair, Michigan 1870 in Soap Creek Township, Davis, Iowa 1880 in Drywood, Vernon, Missouri 1860 remains a mystery. Searches for Benjamin (using a variety […]
We’ve picked up quite a few new readers since the start of 2016 and we welcome them to the Rootdig blog. A few general comments follow. Longtime readers should already be aware of these “editorial concerns.” For those who are new, here goes: I don’t post genealogy “news” here–at least the vast majority of the time. I don’t […]
“Sources are original or derivative.” It is on the inside front cover of the 3rd edition of Elizabeth Shown Mill’s Evidence Explained. The statement is made in numerous other methodology manuals as well (including the shorter Genealogical Standards Manual–which does not include the citation references that Mills book does). And yet the use of the word “or” suggests […]
