Deconflicting “The Same Name”

John Smith?

One of the most common errors for new genealogists is falling into the trap of “The Names The Same”. What we mean by that is that because we see someone with the same name, living in the same place, we jump too quickly to assume it is our ancestor (or person of interest). This is one of the good reasons we shouldn’t jump around sporadically in census records, but rather work methodically back, slowly but surely. The goal should be to recreate identities–and a person’s identity is far more than just their name. In my previous post, I listed this concept as one of my 10 key genealogical principles.

A person’s identity is made up of things like:

• who their spouses and children were
• who their parents were
• who their neighbors and friends are
• what their birth, marriage and death dates were
• where (specifically) they lived
• what their occupation was
• what their religion was
• what their economic/financial standing was

Or John Smith?

…and lots of other things. I read a quote once that I love. It said if you always assume there is at least one other person living in the same area with the same name, then you will force yourself to use other criteria to identify that person. If you want to freak yourself out, Google your own name and see how many other people you find with it. Kinda scary.

We all use the census and vital records initially, but I have found that things like tax, land and court records are especially good at helping to discern identity. Everyone knows I believe in using charts in my genealogy, and this  is something that can be analyzed very well with charts.  Make a list of the prospects in the first column, using numbers—for example, Jane Johnson #1, Jane Johnson # 2, etc. Then make additional columns where you fill in the distinctive data for that individual: birthdate, marriage date, spouse(s), land, occupation, children, etc.  Pretty soon, you’ll start to see patterns emerge, and you should be able to have a better sense of who was who.

Maps are important during this process–something as simple as seeing where people lived could be enough to help you see it’s not your person of interest. Complicating factors are really common names, people who lived in the same vicinity, were born around the same time and married around the same time. There are lots of examples of these things happening. And two people named Bill could marry women both named Mary. I’ve seen it!

However, the more evidence you gather and scrutinize, the more you will be able to distinguish between them. I am doing this “deconflicting” right now on my gggrandfather, John Smith (yes, you read that right). And you would not believe how many black John Smiths, born ca. 1880, lived in the same district of Jacksonville, Florida in the early 20th century. So this has been no simple task.

So, take a look back over your research and ask yourself if you have really done due diligence in this area. Especially if you’re stuck, have you glossed too quickly over a person, and attached him/her to your tree? I like to say if the only reason you believe someone is your ancestor is that they have the same name and are living in the same place, then you have more work to do. I’d love for people to add to my short list above of criteria that helps define identity.

Robyn’s 10 Key Genealogy Principles

When I teach my classes, I start with the following list of what I call my “10 Key Genealogy Principles“. I have garnered these from the best & the brightest and take no credit for any of them.  These are the most useful techniques and methodologies I have learned in my years of research that I keep coming back to again & again. I hear one or more of these principles taught at every conference and in every article I read, even if they are called different things, and utilizing one or more of these has been responsible for every breakthrough I’ve ever had.

So, I share them here with you, my family–they are in no particularly order. And, I’d love to hear what principles you’d add to this list?

Robyn’s 10 Key Genealogical Principles:

• 1. Proceed from the Known to the Unknown
• 2. Always Seek Original Sources
• 3. Always Cite Your Sources
• 4. Any Source Can Be Wrong
• 5. Search Broadly and Deeply (Use Multiple Locations, Types of Records & Generations)
• 6. Research to Uncover Identities (Not Names)
• 7. Rebuild Communities (Don’t Collect Individuals)
• 8. Use Evidence to Build A Case
• 9. Watch Your Assumptions (And Revisit them Often)
• 10. Don’t Isolate Records (View them in Context)

Tennessee State Archives Gets 5 Stars!

I am so fortunate to be researching in Tennessee. I have always felt their Archives website is one of the better ones and for 12 years the service they have provided me has been outstanding. Living in Maryland, I email them questions all the time & I always get a timely, detailed, courteous response.

Well, lo and behold, they have outdone themselves by recently posting a PDF file entitled, “A Guide to African-American Genealogy-Related Documents Prior to 1865 in the Collections of the Tennessee State Library and Archives”. I read this document in utter amazement last night.

In short, it’s sort of a manuscript finding aid, but includes more than just their manuscripts (You are searching archives, historical societies and universities for their manuscript collections, right?).It also includes their diaries, the Acts of Tennessee, Supreme Court cases, legislative petitions, etc. Sixty-eight (68) pages of great stuff.

What makes this guide outstanding, is the amount of detail provided. It tells you what county (when ascertainable) each entry is from! I cannot tell you how many guides I read from other repositories and wish that information alone was included. I’ll see “Jones Family Papers. Slave Inventory.” and I think…”The Jones Family in what county? When?” Arrgghhhhh. (Addendum: The Library of Virginia’s Afro-American manuscript guide is also pretty darn good.)

Tennessee’s new guide gives precious details about each entry. For example:

“Claiborne Family Papers, 1846-1938. County, Davidson. Box 2, Folder 5:  Slavery–list of negroes owned by Mrs. Annie Armstrong (Maxwell) Overton, 1865″.

In some cases actual slaves’ names are listed. The document covers the Acts of Tennessee, which has information on many slaves and freedmen/women. For example:

“Benjamin (slave), Gibson County, Jacob Bradley is authorized to emancipate him, 1832.”

This represents a phenomenal effort and a huge leap forward in my eyes. This is what (in my dreams) I’d love to see other state archives & historical repositories do. Yes, I realize many are short-staffed and underfunded, but I can still dream right?

Today I had to send the Tennessee State Library an email of Kudos. Here’s a bit of what I wrote:

As a genealogist and instructor whose specialty is African-American research, I can tell you that what you’ve released is heads and tails above anything I’ve seen from other repositories…I can’t express to you how necessary this is, and how welcome and how wonderful…The process of African-American research is incredibly difficult because of slavery, but you have shown a respect and an understanding of the hurdles we face. You have provided a tool that we can really make use of. As the descendant of enslaved Tennessee ancestors, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

If you are from Tennessee, you’ll want to check this out as soon as possible. They also posted a Bibliography you won’t want to miss.

Slavery in the South

I just discovered another terrific resource, and you know I believe in sharing. The book shown at right, “Slavery in the South”, by Clayton Jewett and John Allen, was originally conceived as a textbook for seniors and college students working in the subject area. But it turns out to be a dream resource for African-American genealogists.

The book gives a history and timeline for each state, of slavery. I just purchased the book, and I am profoundly impressed. Each section provides that state’s unique history, including their laws re: slavery and freed blacks–that is such a critical piece of understanding your ancestor’s lives. It includes plenty of primary material from the enslaved, and I think the inclusion of that (as opposed to material created and written by slaveowners) is what pushes this book into the ‘exceptional’ category. Each section includes a bibliography, and there are a good dose of statistics (for example, numbers of slaves at various times) and Appendixes provide additional contextual information. Although this book was not conceived for genealogists, to have all this information in one place is quite phenomenal. Great information to add to the write-up of your family’s story.

The book is not cheap ( I bought a used one for $60) but GoogleBooks has it, and if you do an internet search, you could always just copy the information for your state of interest. That’s how I found out about it. But you know me–I’m always looking to add to my genealogy library;)

Check it out, family.

Wordless Wednesday

My granddad Luther Holt and his aunt Magnolia (Nola) Bradley, ca. 1928, Chester County, TN.

Forum Network Lectures

I have no idea how I’m going to keep my job. The internet keeps offering these incredible websites that beg for hours of exploration.

The American Historical Association blog highlighted the Forum Network website the other day and it is mind-blowing. It’s a collaboration between PBS and NPR to offer free audio and video lectures on hundreds of topics.

They have 129 lectures in the African American culture series alone.  One series, “Slavery and the Making of America” offers the following lectures, among many others:

• “Nat Turner: A Troublesome Property”
• “Slave No More: Two Men Who Escaped to Freedom”
• “Robert Smalls: Yearning to Breathe Free”
• “Clinging to Mammy: Our Relationship to Slavery”
• “Complicity: How the North Profited from Slavery”
• “Modern Slavery: MIT-BBC Symposium”

It doesn’t end there. There’s a series of lectures on the Civil War, Native Americans, the Civil Rights Movement, Ken Burns Jazz, and Abolition—all kinds of stuff. Not just history, there’s science and culture and most any other topic you can think of.

All you need to do is sign up for a free username and password and you’re ready to go. I am in heaven!!!!! Thanks again to the American Historical Association. There are simply not enough hours in the day.

Down in The Delta

This is one of my favorite all-time family history related movies. It’s called “Down in the Delta” and was released in 1998 and directed by Maya Angelou. It’s about a woman named Rosa Lynn, living in Chicago, who sends her troubled daughter Loretta and her grandchildren down to her family home in rural Mississippi. What follows is the best of family movies, a tender tale showing how the love of family can heal the deepest of wounds. There’s a terrific segment about the family’s enslaved roots and I found as a genealogist that this film particularly touched me. Please rent it if you haven’t yet. And tell me what you thought!

more about “Down in The Delta“, posted with vodpod

Marriage Records: What Exactly Are You Looking At?

Marriage Records are a key component of everyone’s genealogical research. However, when it comes to those marriage records, are you sure of what you’re actually looking at? Are you viewing:

a marriage register/index?
a marriage certificate?
a marriage bann?
a marriage bond?
a marriage license?
a marriage license application?
a marriage announcement?
a marriage record book?
a marriage intent?
a minister’s return?

Depending on your locality’s laws and customs, the types of documents necessary to legalize a marriage will likely be one or more of the above types, but there are subtle differences between them all and it will help you in all of your research to scrutinize and understand the differences between them. Most professional genealogy books, such as Evidence Explained, will discuss them, in addition to all the good genealogy articles and training available online.

Many localities had pre-printed forms such as the one shown above from Hardin County, Tennessee. This page is from the “Marriage Records” book–sort of a catchall term whose contents can vary greatly from location to location. A prudent researcher who examines the above page closely will notice that it has several different sections:

• the posting of a bond that requires a surety
• a section requiring consent if underage
• the actual license to marry, and
• a space for the minister to “return” the actual date of marriage.

This represents a common scenario. Most ministers were required to have a license from the couple giving him permission to perform the marriage. Sometimes, the county court clerk tracked marriage license applicants in a register–or it may be called an index. I’ve seen places where the register survives, but the actual licenses do not that may contain more information, such as parents names.  The minister was supposed to “return” the information regarding the actual marriage date and place; you’ll find some places had entire books of nothing but those “minister’s returns“. Maybe the court clerk’s marriage books don’t survive, but dusty boxes full of the actual licenses do. Maybe none of the official documents survive and you’re left with those marriage announcements in the newspapers–in Hardin County, they were published almost every week. Perhaps you were lucky enough that your ancestor saved their marriage certificate gently pressed in the middle of the family bible, containing all the details of their nuptials.

So go back and take a look at all your marriage documents, and ask yourself: what exactly are you looking at?

Digital Library on American Slavery

The Digital Library on American Slavery is a web-based database that contains 18 years worth of research from the Race and Slavery Petitions Project. The site has been updated and anyone researching slaves and slavery should take some time to utilize this wonderful resource.

Here’s a little background from the site:

The Digital Library on American Slavery offers data on race and slavery extracted from eighteenth and nineteenth-century documents and processed over a period of eighteen years. The Digital Library contains detailed information on about 150,000 individuals, including slaves, free people of color, and whites. These data have been painstakingly extracted from 2,975 legislative petitions and 14,512 county court petitions, and from a wide range of related documents, including wills, inventories, deeds, bills of sale, depositions, court proceedings, amended petitions, among others. Buried in these documents are the names and other data on roughly 80,000 individual slaves, 8,000 free people of color, and 62,000 whites, both slave owners and non-slave owners…Established in 1991, the Race and Slavery Petitions Project was designed to locate, collect, organize, and publish all extant legislative petitions relevant to slavery, and a selected group of county court petitions from the fifteen former slaveholding states and the District of Columbia, during the period from the American Revolution through the Civil War. ..The Project now holds 2,975 legislative petitions and approximately 14,512 county court petitions.

Here’s a chart showing the states represented:

You can search the site from the home screen using the basic search criteria or choose several other advanced searching options. You can also limit the searches using keywords, for example, you could put your county name in to pull up those entries only. I did a search for petitions from Maryland during the period of 1820-1850 and got 533 results:

Each entry is numbered and summarized and the site explains how to order copies of the actual petitions for yourself if you find one relevant to your research. Here are two examples:

Claiborne County, TN, 1841
Abstract: Lewis, “a man of Color,” represents that “he was the property of William Graham Esquire … and was by him (amongst others of his slave property) [directed] in his will to be emancipated.” Noting that Graham’s executors “have performed the trust confided to them,” Lewis laments that “the act of assembly require for them to leave the State.” He further submits that “he is now getting old” and that “he has a wife & several children, from whom he feels a great hardship to be separated.” The petitioner therefore “prays that your Honorable body would … so modify the Law, that he might be permitted to remain in this State.”

TN, 1841
Abstract: Thirty-one petitioners, lamenting the deplorable condition of people of color and citing rights promised in the Constitution, seek a gradual end to slavery. The petitioners argue that slaveholders should be permitted to free their slaves on terms that will not involve their estates so long as the emancipated slaves can maintain themselves. They also argue that descendants of slaves born after the passage of an emancipation law should be freed when they reach a certain age. Black people to be freed should be taught a useful occupation and to read the Scriptures. Lastly, a law should be passed prohibiting within the state “the inhuman practice of separating husbands and wives.”

The website  is easy to use, beautifully organized, and a wealth of information. Take a look at some of the categories of entries, which you can also browse:

Obviously, it does not contain every single record, but it does contain a very large (in fact huge) representative sample that is outstanding. Kudos to Loren Schweninger and his entire research team for making a tool that both historians and genealogists can utilize.

Using Charts in Your Genealogy Research

The best way for me to interpret and analyze any sort of data has always been to represent that data as a drawing, picture, tables or a chart. Even in engineering school, I could never solve those advanced mathematical problems if I couldn’t visualize it. We all have different learning styles and types of intelligence and its been a natural progression for me to apply this knowledge to my genealogy. I recently shared this with my class and thought it would be a good topic to blog about. Of course, the core documents for genealogy are charts—descendant and ancestor charts and family grouping sheets. You’ll also notice that many NGS Quarterly articles include the use of charts—I think it greatly helps to organize your research with regard to clarity if you are publishing.

The third step in the Genealogical Proof Standard involves analysis and correlation of your data. I find that tables are perfect for helping to do this. Most of the time I find it easiest to create a table in Microsoft Word, although sometimes I will use Microsoft Excel.

Here are some of the custom tables and charts I have created in my own research. Most of us are familiar with census tracking charts and timelines, so I’ll omit those, and most of these are several pages long so I’ll just show the first page. The possibilities are endless and only limited by your imagination:

• Birthplace Tracking Chart: I’ll organize birthplaces from a set of census records (say 1870-1930) in order to figure the most likely place of birth:
  
• Birthdate Tracking Chart: Using a set of census records to estimate a birthdate range for individuals
• 1870 Neighbor Chart: Because analyzing the neighbors in 1870 is especially crucial for African-American research, I have a chart where I track them. I also use the Formatting options to shade and color certain cells. Here, my family is shaded yellow and a potential slaveowner is blue:
• Tax Tracking Chart: Self-explanatory.  On this chart, the index listings are yellow and my primary families of interest are blue:
  
• Land Records Chart: I saw this in Emily Croom’s book Unpuzzling Your Past. She made a chart where she traced each piece of land for an ancestor, but also recorded where that land went (i.e., showing the person selling the land, and showing who bought or inherited that same piece of land). I do charts like these for all the members of a particular family, for example. Here’s Emily’s example in the book:
  
• Slaveholder Tracking: I do lots of different slaveholder tracking. I have charts of “potential” slaveholders, showing their slaveholdings from census records. I have charts of their family structures, their deed transactions involving slaves, and of their entire probate processes. Here are 2 examples:
  
  
• Slave Charts: This is related to the slaveholder charts, but once I amass enough information on a group of slaves, I will typically chart those separately.
• FHC Film Charts: I chart all the films I order from the FHC. Over the years, I’d forget what I’ve already viewed if I didn’t:
  

On all these, I usually include the FHC film number (if that’s what I used), book numbers (if applicable), the dates I did the research, the location if it’s done at a repository, microfilm information, page numbers, and any special notes or comments.

Of course, there are plenty of good websites online with blank charts of all types to use for your genealogical research. Cyndi’s List has a category for Supplies, Charts, Forms, also Ancestry, Family Tree Magazine , and Rootsweb have assorted charts and forms. My favorite census forms are Gary Minder’s at the Census Tools website. He’s also got plenty of other useful forms. There are also a wide array of private vendors who offer these sorts of products, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my buddy Michael Hait again and his terrific disk called Family History Research Toolkit, available from the Genealogical Publishing Company.

If you haven’t expanded beyond the basic genealogy charts, I encourage you to take a look at some of these downloadable charts and also don’t be afraid to create your own. You may see something in a new way or notice something you’ve never seen before. In the comments to this post, please feel free to make any other chart suggestions that you utilize or any other websites you know about that have unique forms.