Member of ISOGG
Archive for April, 2012
News from around the web.
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Now that sites have completed their 1940 US census image collections and are working
on indexing the records, census news is coming more slowly. Here’s where to find 1940
census records and the indexes that are available so far:
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Ancestry.com:
Record images for all US states and territories are available free, as are searchable
name indexes for Delaware and Nevada. An index for Washington, DC, is “in process.”
A chart on the 1940 census page lets you see indexing progress.
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FamilySearch:
Digitized records are available here for all US states and territories.
The name index for the state of Delaware is now completed and available to researchers. Search
Delaware here.You can use the
map at FamilySearch’s 1940 census site to see the indexing progress of the 1940
Census Community Project. The darker the state, the more records volunteers have indexed.
The completed indexes will become searchable free on FamilySearch,
as well as its commercial partners Archives.com and FindMyPast.com.
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MyHeritage:
Records for all states and territories are available now for free, as is an index
to all of Rhode Island. MyHeritage
also has updated its mobile app so you can search 1940 census records from your
iPhone, iPad or Android phone.
The 1940 census record images also are available
on FamilyLink.com, which MyHeritage purchased last year. You’ll need to register
for a free account on the site (if you don’t already have an account there) to view
the records.
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National Archives:
Records for all states and territories are available here for free.
P.S. The Ancestry Insider blog has a good
comparison of the census record image viewers on the four sites listed above.
It might help you decide which site to use for your 1940 ancestor search.
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This post would be more exciting if my
courthouse research last week (right before I womanned our Family Tree Magazine booth
at the Ohio Genealogical Society conference in Cleveland)
had panned out.
But it was kind of a bust, genealogically speaking—no new information and some red
tape.
I did learn a few things about courthouse research, though. If that’s what’s on your
genealogy to-do list, these tips might help:
1. Ask a local. Cleveland genealogist and Family
Tree University instructor Diana Crisman Smith gave me the lowdown on the Cuyahoga
County courthouse, parking and other details. If you don’t know someone knowledgeable
about the place you’re headed, see if the local genealogical society has an online
message board.
2. Have backup parking plans. The parking garage was full, so I drove around
downtown and finally snagged the last space in a surface lot. Smaller towns might
not have the same issues.
3. Be as prepared as possible. The Cuyahoga County probate court has an online
docket you can search to find the case file numbers you need.
Other ways to be prepared: Call ahead and make sure there isn’t a furlough day or
special holiday on the day you plan to go. See if there are any restrictions on what
you can bring (such as pens or backpacks). Bring cash for parking, copy fees and other
expenses.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask. I’m sure things work differently in every courthouse,
but there was a procedure here. And there was no hand-holding, so I had to ask. I
was told to write the case number on a request card for a clerk to retrieve the file.
But for my relatively recent probate files (1980s and 90s), I was to use the computers
to get microfilm numbers, then pull the film.
I thought all the microfilm readers were equally bad, but I should have asked about
that too—a clerk walked by and showed me a better reader. Because the computerized
docket didn’t extend back as far as my great-grandfather’s death, I had to ask about
any earlier files, too (and unfortunately, I found out the court didn’t have anything
for him).
4. Keep a smile on your face. Even if you think you’re bugging someone with
your questions, a smile increases your chances of getting the help you need (as does
a succinctly worded question).
5. Bring a camera. There was no place to photocopy the microfilmed records,
so I photographed the reader’s screen with my cell phone.
I don’t have a tip for this situation: The file I most wanted to look for, a 1924
commitment hearing for my great-grandmother to the Cleveland State Hospital, was confidential—if
it exists. Disappointing.
I politely asked enough questions (is it possible to request a search just to see
if there’s a file? how long are the records closed? what’s the law declaring them
closed? what’s the procedure for having a file opened?) that I got to speak with a
magistrate. He complimented my interest in genealogy, asked about my family history,
and said that if the record exists—and chances are slim—the only way to have it opened
would be a change in the law.
In the excellent book Annie’s
Ghosts: A Journey Into a Family Secret, journalist Steve Luxenberg describes
his quest to uncover 1940s-era institutional records in Michigan for an aunt he’d
only recently learned he had. I don’t think I want to let this drop quite yet, but
I’m also not sure I’m ready for a struggle like Luxenberg’s. I’ll dig a little and
maybe be able to offer tips in the future.
Get Family
Tree Magazine‘s guide to courthouse research, a $4 download, from ShopFamilyTree.com.
Surname Forum Activity
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My family settled in Scranton. It’s where I grew up. So, I’ve done much research on Manleys there. I have some church records for a James Manley and Anna O’Hora. Could this be them?
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Surname Forum Activity
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They probably are related at some pooint. Are you aware of the Manley/Munnelly reunion in Co. Mayo Ireland in June? Mayo is where the surname originates. See my site www.munnellysofcountymayo.com and the Facebook group ‘Munneelly Connection’ . My Manleys were from outside Scranton. Kathy
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Surname Forum Activity
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I have an ancestor, James Manley, who was born around 1825 in Pennsylvania and lived in Philadelphia (Manayunck area). Manayunck is known to have been popular with the Irish, so I am wondering if he may be related? His wife was named Anna Mary and I know of 2 children, Sarah A. and Oscar R. (My ancestor is Sarah). I see that there is a James and Anna M. Manley that lived in Scranton- do you know anything about this couple?
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Good morning, everyone! I’m posting today to ask if you can help one of our fellow researchers. Our new friend David, from Ontario, Canada, is trying to track down a Manley, so we’re turning to you for assistance. He is hoping to find the maiden name of:
Abigail Manley, wife of Flavel Manley (son of William and grandson of Lazarus) residing in late 1700s/early 1800s in Sandisfield,Berkshire County, Mass.
If you have any information that might be of assistance to David, please leave a comment below or drop us an email!
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Do you have living people in your Ancestry family tree? It’s great to add your children, siblings, cousins, and other living relatives, but how are living people protected? At Ancestry.com there’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to make sure information about living people stays private. The first thing we do is determine who’s living and who’s not—and safeguard information about those who are living. When other Ancestry members view your tree, living people will appear as “Private” and any information entered about them is hidden.
So how does Ancestry determine who’s living and who’s not in your family tree? This happens a couple of ways: First, when you add or edit a person on Ancestry.com you set whether the person is deceased or living—and we respect that setting. Secondly, if you add someone through a GEDCOM upload or link a tree from your Family Tree Maker software (where there’s not a living/deceased setting), then we calculate the living status based on the following rules:
- First we look for death information, anyone with death information (date, place, etc.) is dead—that one’s easy.
- If there’s not death information entered we look for a birth date, anyone younger than 100 is considered living.
- The tricky part is if we don’t have birth or death information. In this case we look at the birth dates of close relatives to estimate a birthdate; if the birthdate is less than 100 years ago, they are considered to be living.
- If all else fails and we can’t make a safe estimate, we assume the person is living to err on the safe side.
There may be times when you’ll want to let others see living people in your family tree. You can share your tree with others and give them permission to view living people, or take it away, at any time (go to your tree, under Tree Pages select Tree Setting, and click on the Sharing tab). We encourage you to be thoughtful about what you share on Ancestry.com, please only post living information you have permission to, especially when sharing with others.
Privacy of living information should be taken seriously—it’s a priority for us. For additional information about how we keep living information safe or to learn about other privacy topics, read our privacy philosophy.
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One of the best parts about my job is how often I come in contact with historic locations. Most of these places I never dreamed I’d be fortunate enough to see outside the pages of a history book. Twice, in the last five years, I have had the opportunity to work with artifacts and locations that were directly linked to the Titanic. My first experience with this infamous ship came when I was brought in to work with artifacts that were recovered from the wreck. These pieces, collected from the ocean floor, were believed to be haunted by those who died in the disaster. I will be the first to say that I nerded out a bit over the opportunity. My second encounter with the Titanic came when I was sent to a little seaport town called Cove for work.
In November of 2010, I had found myself in southern Ireland boarding a small fishing boat. We were headed out to work for the night on an island just off the coast of Cove. Once aboard, I noticed this old, rotting pier that jetted out into the water in front of a yellow, weather-beaten building. This building displayed a sign that read, “Titanic Bar Restaurant” and sat adjacent to our pier. After asking one of the locals with us, I learned that Cove, once known as Queenstown, was the last port of call for the Titanic.
On April 11, 1912, 123 passengers used that old, rotting pier to board the Titanic before it headed out for its ill-fated, maiden voyage. Three days later, just before midnight on April 14, the Titanic struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic. Within a few hours, in the early morning of April 15, this enormous ship sank, taking with it 1,517 out of the 2,228 lives on board. Out of the 123 passengers who boarded in Cove, only 44 would survive.
A century later, the Titanic is still considered one of the greatest maritime disasters in history. We all know about the disaster and the number of people who died, but who were the men, women and children that made up those figures? With help from the new Titanic Collection on Ancestry.com, we are now able to get a better look at who these passengers and crewmembers were. Through this collection of scanned original passenger lists, crew records, fatality reports and coroner’s records the passengers become more then just a number. Becoming aware of the passengers personal details makes this event less about cold statistics. It makes us turn our attention to what made the Titanic such a historic tragedy; the large loss of life.
I will never forget the sadness I felt while looking at that timeworn pier in Cove. I could imagine the people waiting, excited to board the enormous luxury liner that was believed to be unsinkable. The whole town must have turned out; thrilled to welcome this massive history making ship to their seaport. I also found it difficult to shake the eerie feeling I got as we set out on our little boat. For some, on April 11, 1912, this same colorful seaport skyline would be the last town they’d set their feet and eyes on.
By Kris Williams
Twitter: @KrisWilliams81
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One hundred years ago today the Titanic set out on her maiden voyage amid much fanfare. So much has been written and produced about that fateful voyage that anything I try to write sounds like so much cliché. But I have been thinking about the trips my own ancestors took as they immigrated to America. They were full of hopes and dreams as they boarded other ships, on other dates, setting sail across that same ocean into new lives. That fate could have so easily been their fate. Any one of them. But, it wasn’t. And because of that I am here now.
Today as we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the sailing of the Titanic I invite you to discover more about the details of the passengers and crew. I imagine that as you learn about those people, who they were, where they came from, what they went through, you just might get a glimpse into what some of your own family experienced.
I have come to know that family history is both personal and universal. The things we endure, while filtered through our own unique perspective, are not really unique at all. We are all born, we live, we love, we work, we die. Taking the time to know and understand the experiences of others often helps us understand our own experiences, and those of our ancestors, better.
That is one of the reasons I take the time to study more about the history of the time and place my ancestors lived. I learn about the things they experienced, witnessed, endured. I look into the news they read, the politics they discussed, the religions they embraced. I feel I know them better when I can start to see the world as they saw it – whether it was 72 years ago or 100. And that makes me feel a little bit like a voyager setting sail into the unknown.
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What a difference a week makes. Since the National Archives released the 1940 Census to us last Monday, we’ve been hard at work to get every one of the 3.8 million 1940 Census images online. And while we were at it, we indexed two of the states, Nevada and Delaware, and made them searchable by name.
Visit the 1940 Census, to find the state you’re interested in. Look above the Browse box for a link to our FREE research guide to help you find your family in 1940, if your state isn’t yet indexed. And remember, you can search by name in Nevada and Delaware.
By the way, we’re not slowing down anytime soon. We’re continuing to index states. And we’ll let you know the minute the ones you’re interested in are ready.
Learn more about 1940 at www.ancestry.com/1940.