Use for questions relating to ancestors living or visiting the USA, and records originating in the USA. This includes previous political entities within the geographical boundaries of the present-day USA, such as the relevant European colonies.
4
votes
3answers
46 views
What does it mean for woman to have the title of Mistress in a marriage record?
I found a marriage record* where the woman has the title of "Mistress". What does that title mean in this case? I know that title of "Mistress" has multiple meanings.
The woman was previously married ...
3
votes
2answers
91 views
Brick Wall: Searching for Grandfather - C&EI Railroad Employee in 1948 - who the heck was he?
I will do my best not to make this a novel. My mother never knew her father. She was the product of a very "brief" relationship that took place when my 16 year old grandmother was visiting her ...
5
votes
0answers
58 views
Who are the Ancestors of William Yensull?
William Yensull (also spelled Yensule or Yencule) became a Naturalized Citizen of the United States on April 20th, 1896. Based on his Naturalization Certificate, issued in the Illinois county of ...
5
votes
1answer
68 views
Would an immigrant to the US pre-1800 be hiding beans? (When were food restrictions first placed on immigrants to the US)?
I am looking into "Mitchell Family Beans," purplish beans pinto like with brown spots (see below). These have been passed down a couple generations in a Mitchell family of Idaho (formerly Missouri). ...
3
votes
3answers
62 views
What does the occupation “Works in Woods” mean?
In an 1880 US Census entry, the occupation of Daniel Card is listed as "Works in Woods." What does that mean?
Where I grew up, the word "woods" was a synonym for forest so I immediately thought ...
4
votes
2answers
43 views
Brierton/Brereton Spelling Causing issues
I have been searching, in vain, for my gr.gr.gr. Grandfather, Samuel Brierton. All information I have says that he was born in Pennsylvania abt. 1800, parents were born in Wales and he then doesn't ...
3
votes
2answers
62 views
Finding a Ship Record from 1902
Where do I begin? I know my great-grandfather, Josef Boksa, 2/28/77 was born in Warsaw. And recently found his naturalization papers from 1917. It lists the date of his arrival as 8/16/1902 and that's ...
9
votes
2answers
99 views
1910 Census - and the last three columns
The last three columns in the 1910 US Census (columns 30, 31 and 32) have four numbers in them. Column 30 is supposedly about survivors of the Union or Confederate army, 31 is if you’re blind and 32 ...
4
votes
3answers
70 views
Ellis Island immigration record handwriting help
I've had an Ellis Island record for my great grandfather for several years, but have never been able to read the 'relative or friend's name and address' column for that record. I'm hoping someone ...
6
votes
5answers
166 views
Why was my great-grandfather honorably discharged from the US Army so many times?
Just this morning I found the military records of my great-grandfather. The first thing I noticed among them are an unusual number of honorable discharge papers.
Dates of Service | Reason ...
7
votes
2answers
136 views
Was there a special Marriage license for Non-US Citizens in 1925?
My Great Uncle and Aunt sailed from Belfast, Northern Ireland to New York in August 1925. They were married on 25th November 1925 in Philadelphia and i have never been able to obtain a wedding ...
2
votes
1answer
39 views
Pennsylvania Tax Records
In a 1791 tax record for Bedford County, PA, my relative is listed as a single freeman "on hous and lott". Does this mean he owned the property, was renting, or lived with someone else? He would have ...
2
votes
1answer
85 views
South Carolina indentured servant
I suspect my great-grandmother may have arrived in South Carolina as an indentured servant early in the 19th century. I believe she was of Scotch/Irish origin. Any ideas where I might find evidence ...
10
votes
1answer
100 views
Andrew Wilson remains an enigma
I am trying to find the parentage and immigration for Andrew Wilson my 2nd great grandfather. According to family search he was born on August 1, 1838 in Gulladuff, Maghera Parish in Londonderry ...
6
votes
2answers
147 views
My Great Grandfather Dissappeared - would like to find out what happen to him
My great grandfather John Albert Draper was born March 23, 1877 in Marshalltown Iowa to Nathan and Mary Ann Draper.
He married my great grandmother in 1905 and by 1906 had left the family home. My ...
3
votes
2answers
227 views
When WWII Army enlistment records list “Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA”, what does that mean?
On Ancestry.com [library edition] U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946
there is a record where the Branch and Branch Code is listed as "Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA". What ...
4
votes
0answers
48 views
Where might I find General Orders No. 77 dated 11 Nov 1943?
I have found a document that notes the renaming of Edinburgh Field, Trinidad to Carlsen Field (click image for full size):
To get more information about the renaming (and the individual behind it) ...
2
votes
1answer
74 views
Where can I get information about people who came to Baltimore in the 1900s-1910's
I know someone who arrived to Baltimore directly (without going through Ellis Island) in the early 1900s. Are there any listings of passengers on these ships?
7
votes
2answers
93 views
Old German script. What is the wife's name in this 1837 baptismal ledger from Stark County, Ohio?
The partial image below is from an 1837 baptismal register of a church located in Paris Township, Stark County, Ohio. It is written in old German script. At least to our knowledge, these ledgers have ...
5
votes
1answer
61 views
From visa to naturalization
I have found an arrival record (Ancestry.com) for Annelise Morgenthau, age 20, arriving in New York on 26 Nov 1947 on the ship Marine Jumper. Her visa number is given as QIV 6631 (issued on 26 Sep ...
3
votes
1answer
79 views
Getting from New York to Chicago in the late 1800s
In an earlier question, GeneJ offered some evidence for how some of his ancestors traveled from Quebec to Wisconsin. I am wondering whether there are any records other than private recollections or ...
4
votes
0answers
68 views
Immigration from Norway: seeking information about 1871 passage from Quebec to the US
This question is similar to Rob Hoare's "Sources for Border Crossings between Toronto and Chicago in early 1890's?" but the circumstances are different. My question concerns immigration 20 years ...
6
votes
1answer
52 views
Help determine date of photo from Tuscaloosa
I would appreciate any help in ascertaining the date of the photo below.
The photograph is a cabinet card, taken in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, by photographer FM Turner. There are no markings on the back ...
16
votes
3answers
120 views
Making your first trip to a courthouse
I am lucky enough to live within an hour's drive of a Texas county that is significant to my family history.
I hear many people talk about going to the courthouse for research, but I still find it ...
6
votes
4answers
151 views
Where would I find an overhead scanner for public use/rent?
While I am unable to purchase an overhead scanner I cannot see another path to digitizing some of the family assets I have. I am hoping such scanners are available for use/rent in e.g., public ...
7
votes
1answer
102 views
1935 residence in the 1940 census
The 1940 census includes fields for the person's residence in 1935. The fields are city, county, and state. When it says "same place" for the residence in 1935, does that refer to the town or to the ...
3
votes
1answer
72 views
Locating additional details on “Thomas Tunin” - b.1836, d.1912
I'm trying to locate the birth location and parents of "Thomas Tunin". I have done extensive Google searches but have so far ended up at a deadend on these particular details. Any suggestions on ...
3
votes
3answers
78 views
Locating the parents and siblings of someone born in 1903?
My grandfather was possibly born in Dewey, Oklahoma. I'm trying to locate his siblings and parents.
I've Googled and found the following:
Tunin, Robert T. 1903 – 1989 (Grandfather)
Tunin, Abbie ...
10
votes
4answers
281 views
Can anyone decipher the comment above Louis' name on this 1940 census record?
Finally posting my first question, after answering many ;-)
The following 1940 census record from Bronx, New York has a comment written above Louis' name. It seems to start with "Party has" or ...
7
votes
4answers
133 views
Where can I search for elusive vital records (birth, names of parents, death) for my great grandmother, Celina Drollet?
Celina/Salina Drollet (or Drowlette,Drolet,Draulette,Drollette,etc) (b. abt 1866) and James Comstock (b. 1874) were the parents of my grandmother Mary Amelia Comstock (b. Mar 1897 Saranac, NY).
...
5
votes
1answer
68 views
What information can be gleaned from these Naval Academy accomplishments?
Attached are a series of accomplishments/details about a 1921 Naval Academy graduate. They are listed immediately below a brief biography:
For Google's sake, they are:
Two Stripes;
Clean Sleeve;
...
7
votes
1answer
54 views
Name change records for NYC?
One of the people I am researching appears to have changed her name: in the 1915 NYC census she appears as Reva Osernoff, living with the Axel family:
Similarly in the 1920 federal and 1930 ...
3
votes
1answer
51 views
Incorrect NYC marriage index?
I looked up the marriage between Lilly Axel and John J. Corper in the NY marriage index, and found this record.
The wedding occurred on Dec 25 1919, and was registered in early 1920.
I then ordered ...
9
votes
2answers
90 views
What is this individual's military service number?
Below is a clipping of a 1942 military document detailing promotions of personnel. The column listing "service numbers" seems to specify them in an abbreviated fashion. Given that assumption and ...
4
votes
2answers
69 views
Looking for San Francisco maps c. 1912
I have a project that would benefit greatly from an area map of San Francisco. The dates of the project range from 1911-1913 so I would like to find as large-resolution map as possible of the ...
5
votes
1answer
61 views
US Military inquiry came back needing details; how do I get them?
From a very helpful question (or rather, one of its answers) I filled out and mailed an SF-180 requesting military information for an individual. I received word back from NARA last week that the ...
20
votes
4answers
560 views
What does it mean if cause of death is listed as “Insanity” in late 1800s?
My great, great grandmother's cause of death is listed as "Insanity" on her death record, and I'm not sure what this means. She died in Winsted, McLeod County, Minnesota in 1872 at age 37, and had ...
5
votes
3answers
85 views
How to a locate a particular grave (Capt. Robert Eells) in Hanover Center Cemetery, Hanover, Massachusetts?
I am trying to help a friend. He has a Revolutionary War ancestor, Captain Robert Lenthall Eells, buried in the Hanover Center Cemetery in Hanover, Massachusetts (
findagrave, googlemaps).
I grew up ...
8
votes
2answers
152 views
Seemingly missing NYC birth records
EDIT: Correctected Sidney's birth
I am looking for birth records for the children of David Nechemias and Etta Ehrensaal. From census records, I have Beatrice (b. abt 1897), Helen (b. abt 1904), ...
7
votes
2answers
108 views
What is a plausible explanation for this inconsistency?
In the 1910 census, I have a family headed by Elias Riback (b. 1876), with wife Sophia (b. 1873) and children Annie (b. 1898), Harry (b. 1902), Bessie (b. 1904), David (b. 1906), and Bernard (b. ...
4
votes
4answers
97 views
Missing enumeration of Union St. in Flushing, Queens, NY in 1940 census?
I am looking for the resident of 42-42 Union St, Flushing, Queens, NY in 1940. I tried searching the 1940 census ancestry.com, restricting the search to Flushing with the street name as union (exact). ...
5
votes
1answer
100 views
What were the rules about Massachusetts town marriage intentions ca1811?
They say sex and scandal sells. Maybe an updated question that adds a little of both will spice up and clarify my question.
For years I have recorded Massachusetts marriage intentions in my family ...
5
votes
2answers
78 views
What does the term “Intervale” mean in the context of New Hampshire land transactions and deeds?
I have found the term "Intervale" used in the property descriptions of different Rumney, New Hampshire deeds; these descriptions generally rely on metes and bounds ("from the large rock at the stream ...
4
votes
4answers
97 views
What does the “Copy of Record No” field on a naturalization petition index card mean?
I found the following image, and would like to know where it is referring me. What does the line across it mean?
6
votes
3answers
95 views
Seeking publication specifics for a 20th century news article (USA)
Charles H. Dillon (1889-1967) worked in different capacities for Western Union in Dallas, Texas. In the 1940s and 1950s, he wrote articles about the telegraph for the Texas Almanac and other ...
10
votes
1answer
204 views
How can I locate a New England telegraph man ca1850? (Lemuel Keyser Preston seems to be hiding.)
Charles H. Dillion, a 20th-century Texas telegraph man and author, called Lemuel Keyser "L. K." Preston the "pioneer of the telegraph in Texas."1
According to his earlier 1852 marriage record ...
5
votes
3answers
56 views
How do I obtain historical Articles of Incorporation in California?
I am trying to discover the individuals who originally founded the Green Investment Company in San Francisco. Some searching online revealed that they filed their Articles of Incorporation on Tuesday, ...
3
votes
1answer
118 views
What are the names of Marie Horjas' parents?
I am looking for the parents of Marie Horjas. She is referenced to in this obituary. She married Charles Kuchar (b. 1893 in St. Louis). She was born in ca1899 in Missouri. They married sometime ...
7
votes
2answers
44 views
Are all NARA services/records available at all locations?
I've found the NARA locations page but cannot seem to figure out if these locations all provide the same services or contain the same set of records. If I visit the NARA location in Los Angeles is as ...
4
votes
3answers
140 views
How do I corroborate Charles Foster's military service (circa 1880)?
I am looking for information on Charles J Foster (b. 3 Feb 1849, New York d. 9 May 1929, San Francisco, CA).
At one point I came across information that he was a retired Colonel (I'm assuming with ...
