The new Third Edition of Genealogical Research in Ohio, by Kip Sperry is not only completely up to date but also comprehensive in its coverage. The new edition examines the holdings of major Ohio archives and libraries and identifies the many resources available to researchers, such as census records, church records, military records, land and[…]Read more
The vast majority of Irish census records prior to 1901 no longer exist. Consequently, as Brian Mitchell explains in his New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy, census substitutes are of great importance to Irish researchers. Perhaps the most important, and certainly the most famous, substitute is Griffith’s Primary Valuation. Conducted between 1848 and 1864, the[…]Read more
As we’ve noted before, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, our genealogy guide is divided into two parts. Part I (“For All Generations–Preparing to Research”) discusses such things as relationships between family members, naming practices, genealogy software, how to review existing research, and the basics of DNA testing. Part II[…]Read more
As we have noted on a number of occasions, Val D. Greenwood’s Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy discusses and explains in detail all the major sources for genealogy research in the U.S. The volume devotes two chapters to census records that explain the contents of and differences between the official U.S. censuses 1790-1940, colonial censuses,[…]Read more
The central premise of our new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Guide to the Basics of Genealogy, by Drew Smith, is that rookie genealogists will fare better when they commence their research with the record categories most likely to produce results. For this reason, the second half of the book discusses the research process[…]Read more
The history of Belgium is entwined with the religious and political wars of early modern Europe. Part of the Low Countries–which today comprise Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg–Belgium was ruled by Hapsburg Spain from 1516 until 1713 and was an important battleground in the extraordinarily violent Thirty Years War from 1618 to 1648. Over the next[…]Read more
Chapter Thirteen of The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy (Fourth Edition) is all about vital records and their use for genealogy. Author Val Greenwood explains why most states outside of New England were so slow to require and standardize records of birth, marriage, death, and divorce. In fact, for a number of states vital recordkeeping[…]Read more
Did you know that boundaries of the State of Arizona were not finalized until the Gadsden Purchase of 1853? Gold strikes played an important role in enticing Americans to settle in Alaska. Can you name the dates of the strike at Sitka, Sindham Bay, or the Yukon? Following the American Revolution, a number of the[…]Read more
As author Robert Bell notes in his learned Introduction to The Book of Ulster Surnames, “The surnames of Ulster stem from many different peoples and many eras and can be difficult to unravel.” Surnames came into common usage in the Province of Ulster in the Eleventh Century; since then, the following groups and historical events[…]Read more
English-speaking researchers and historians working with Spanish documents, as well as native speakers unfamiliar with early Spanish handwriting, face two hurdles—understanding the handwriting and vocabulary, and grasping the records’ institutional, historic, social, and cultural context. The new book, Mastering Spanish Handwriting and Documents: 1520-1820, by George R. Ryskamp, Peggy Ryskamp and H. Leandro Soria, addresses[…]Read more
English-speaking researchers and historians working with Spanish documents, as well as native speakers unfamiliar with early Spanish handwriting, face two hurdles—understanding the handwriting and vocabulary, and grasping the records’ institutional, historic, social, and cultural context. The new book, Mastering Spanish Handwriting and Documents: 1520-1820, by George R. Ryskamp, Peggy Ryskamp and H. Leandro Soria, addresses[…]Read more
(Excerpted from Michael J. Leclerc, “Crafting Family Histories,” Elizabeth Shown Mills, ed.,Professional Genealogy: Preparation, Practice & Standards (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2018), 519–44.) Writing family histories is one of the most meaningful ways we can communicate the results of our research to our family members and even ourselves. Our projects can be large or small.[…]Read more
