Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Genealogy Tip of the Month



The Latter Day Saints catalog of records on microfilm contains countless numbers of records that are not yet online. These records can be found on: FamilySearch.org



Their records are, generally, located in Salt Lake City, Utah and have yet to be transcribed and placed online. You can search their catalog of records from your home computer. If you find pertinent records for your research, you can place an order for the microfilmed documents to be sent to the Leesburg Public Library where you can view them and make copies of them. The cost for each microfilm reel is generally $7.50.

You will need to establish a “free” account on FamilySearch.org prior to placing your order. When the Leesburg Public Library receives the items they will send you an email that they have arrived.

Keep in mind that you should always check for online records at Family Search, too. Very often they will have different records than Ancestry.

Here are the following steps to search their inventory of microfilmed records:

1. Hover over "Search" on the toolbar located at the top of the page.

2. Place your cursor on "Catalog" and click.

3. You can search by: place, surname, titles, author, subjects and keywords. Click on the one you prefer.

My example will be to search for records in a "place."

4. Type in the name of the "place" (Example: Buffalo, Erie, New York) and hit the search button. You will see that a long list of records are available.

5. Scroll down to whatever records you are looking for and click on it. My search was for church records of which there are 93). When I clicked on "church records" another list of records comes up.

5. Click on the record you want. I clicked on the records for the St. Louis Parish. The information about the record will come up. If you scroll down to "Film Notes" you will see the kind of records contained on the microfilm along with the order number under the heading "Film/DGS."

A couple of things to know about the icons you see on the far right of the screen:

* An old movie film reel indicates that the information is on microfilm. 

* A camera indicates that this information is contained online and you can view it immediately by clicking on it.

* A magnifying glass indicates that an index of the records is available to look at prior to ordering. Click on it and you'll be able to view the list of those individuals listed in the records. You can also search (left sidebar) for specific names and any other information you might have to see if a record for them exists. Keep in mind that the index may not be definitive(translations of the names on the records may result in spelling errors), and you might want to order the microfilm and view it yourself. 

6. Click on the microfilm icon (old movie film reel) to place your order. Each roll costs $7.50 and will be sent to the library of your choice (which you must select). The Leesburg Library (genealogy department) is the only library in Lake County that has microfilm machines. Once it arrives in Leesburg, the library will notify you by email that the records are available for viewing. You have 90 days to go there and view the films.

If you have trouble placing an order, volunteers are available at the W.T. Bland Public Library on Wednesdays from 10 to Noon to assist you.

Tracking Your Ancestors when State and County Boundaries Change

















Our group meeting on April 25th covered a lot of material in an hour and half.  Some of our members have gone north for the summer, but we were fortunate to have a few new people join us for the first time today.

Getting "stuck" in genealogy research is a common occurrence that we're all too familiar with. There are many reasons why people have trouble finding records for their ancestors, and our discussion revolved around two of them - (1) county and state boundary changes and (2) records that are not yet online.

We watched an informative video (link listed below) on how this has happened and why it is important to us as family historians. We also explored some websites that help determine the county changes over time, as well a book we have available on Wednesdays (from 10 to 2) in the library.

Since there are far more records than what appears on line, we had a demonstration on how to search the LDS website (familysearch.org) for microfilmed records that can be ordered and viewed at the Leesburg Library.

Lastly, we had a short presentation by Michael Ondrasik of Home Video Studio in Mount Dora. He spoke about the services he offers regarding transfering movies, slides and photos to DVD (and the options available regarding these), old photo enhancement and videotaped interviews with family members. It was very informative as to what he can do to preserve these past memories and create some new ones.

Read on to learn more about State & County Boundary Changes  (Click on the link in the upper right hand corner for a printable version of this handout).

Have your ancestors disappeared?

It may not be because they moved. In the past, state and county boundaries changed many times before becoming permanent. Your ancestor may have lived in the same house for many years, yet lived in different states and several counties during that time period. Initially, the counties were quite large, and as the population grew they were divided – sometimes several times – into smaller counties.

Why is this important to my genealogy research?

#1 – When a new county was formed, the records from the old counties did not move there. In order to find vital records (land, court, marriage, birth, death, census, etc.) you will need to search multiple county records to find what you’re looking for.

#2 – If you can’t find your ancestors on a census but are sure they stayed in the same place, it’s most likely due to a county boundary change.
NOTE – It was often easier for people to go to a courthouse in another county if it were closer. You may need to check the records in 2 or more counties when researching.

Where can I find out about the county boundary changes?

Some of the more popular sources for tracking boundary changes are:

#1 – The FamilySearch History Research Wiki for more information on boundary changes. 

#2 – The NewberryLibrary’s Atlas of Historical County Boundaries compiles all boundary changes chronologically and geographically (interactive map and PDF downloadable file).

#3 – Historical U.S.County Boundary Maps (Randy Majors Maps) utilizes the Newberry’s Atlas data and lets you look up the boundaries of a specific place as of an exact date in time, overlaid on a present-day Google map.

#4 – Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County and TownResources. Scroll down to locate a state (click on it). Locate the “county resources in the right sidebar column (click on it) for boundary changes. History and other resources are available on this site.       

#5 – The Mount Dora Genealogy Group has a reference book covering all 50 states available in the library on Wednesdays from 10 to 2 or at any of our monthly meetings.
 
#6 – Why You Can’t Find Your Ancestors in that County:Boundary Changes Video by Amy Johnson Crow. 

Update: One of our members, Darryl Getman, sent the link to this article regarding our topic discussion today. Click here to read the article on Using Maps in Genealogy. "This data base contains 2 million entries,including the names of places that no longer exist, as well as variant names for existing places."

Another member, Frank Ford, sent a link to Historic Map Works. Enter a town and state into the "Search" box at the top of the website to find a listing of maps for different time periods. The best part is that some of the older maps actually have family names and locations where they're lived on them. 

Frank also provided 2 websites for topographic maps which are good because the often refer to geographic areas no longer on current maps. Ones that may be mentioned in old census records, wills, probate papers, etc. The 2 websites are: USGS and U.S. Board on Geographic Names


Create a timeline of changes

Creating a timeline of the county changes is one of the most beneficial steps you can take. It won’t take long using one of the sources listed above, and it will keep you focused and organized.

Sample timeline:
1821 – St. Johns County, St. Augustine
1824  - Orange County
1887 – Lake County

Other Changes that create problems

Changes in street names and house numbers also may create a problem in locating your ancestors. Many cities standardized their street names and their numbering system in the late 1800’s or early 1900’s. Main thoroughfares have taken on a more popular name or have been renamed to honor national or local heroes. The implementation of the 911 System necessitated changing many house numbers from 3 digits to 4 or more. Streets or entire neighborhoods have been replaced by interstates or other highway projects.

Check with a local library, genealogical society and city directories for a guide to local street name changes.

Create a personalized map of your ancestors’ homes and events

At Ancestral Atlas you can create a personalized map that pinpoints the locations of your ancestors’ homes. This site is free but requires you to register (no credit card details required) and establish an account. You can make your map open to the public or private for your own use.

With Ancestral Atlas you can:
  • Attach your own family history to the map on the location where the event took place, and share it with everyone else, or keep it private.
  • Find out who else has family events in the same area by browsing the map and collaborate with them in a secure environment.
  • Build your own "Ancestral Atlas" and visualize your family history.




©2017 Mount Dora Genealogy Group

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Genealogy Tip of the Month


This website is a HUGE database of every imaginable genealogy resource available online!

Cyndi’s List is a compilation of approximately 332,625 links to online genealogy resources. These links are broken down into 213 categories. Some of the more obscure websites with genealogy information can be found here.  Take a look at Cyndi's List, when you've exhausted all other resources you can think of, to keep your research alive.