Female Ancestors – locating a Wife’s Massachusetts Court of Sessions

Finding Female Ancestors

As genealogists all of us have stone walls: may be any time, spot or location. There is absolutely no one solution for re solving an end that is dead our lineage. Every issue has to be approached differently. Because many records in many areas and cycles are focused around males, we frequently have actually just a name that is first of spouse, or frequently, no name after all. We just understand she ended up being the spouse of Thomas Jones. To fix this type of dilemma we ought to figure out the time, location and circumstances in accordance with our female ancestor. We should lay the groundwork for attacking the situation in a unique means.

Possibly the many straightforward option to strike such a challenge is create a schedule of her life. Collect all information understood about her. If you don’t much is well known, give attention to her spouse. Where had been they whenever, from wedding and even delivery, into the time they had kids, to your close of the life.

1. Try to find the wedding record it self. Discover the marriage record that is original. The wedding licence or application could be more valuable compared to initial. In surrounding areas, or check various marriage indexes if you can’t find the marriage, seek it.

2. Always check all records that are possible spouse to have clues to simply help figure out whom she had been.

3. If ancestor fought within the military, check retirement papers for the widow. Military retirement Papers important, specially if spouse outlived spouse. Great for Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican War, Union Civil War, Spanish-American War, Indian Wars, etc.

Ancestry.com has Union Pension Papers. A female needed to show that she ended up being wife that is lawful widow of soldier. Refused Pension Applications frequently contain sigbificantly more details than accepted people.

4. Land records, deeds., homestead documents or any other court documents might provide wife’s name that is first and on occasion even her maiden title. Land Records: One of major sources for determining maiden title. They are maybe not useful in large towns and cities or if the grouped family rented. If man passed away without having a might, their estate that is real had be divided among heirs. Included all young kiddies, even daughters with married names. See them in grantor-grantee indexes. Court Public Records Test.

Salem, Essex, Massachusetts Court of Sessions of Peace 26 Dec 1710

Rachel Codury of Marblehead seems and confessed herself guilty of ye

criminal activity of fornication with Andrew Tucker Jr. Of Marblehead.

5. Immerse yourself in most the documents regarding the area. Learn other families, specially her husband’s family members, their career, socio-economic status, etc. Did spouse go often, or result from a well-established category of the region? Did he handle individuals of other surnames? He may been employed by along with his wife’s dad, therefore discover with whom he previously company transactions. Whom did he purchase and to/from/with sell land? Don’t simply concentrate on the partners. Broaden your quest. Exactly just just What took place to the young ones? Possibly another descendant has information.

6. Trace your family in most census that is possible. US or Canadian censuses, particularly 1841 or 1851 and soon after. Husband’s sibling married in nj, so check always N.J. and you also will dsicover their wedding here too. Census: U.S. 1790-1930 could possibly get access to most census returns on line. 1940 or later can be had for the charge.

Uk census 1911, 1921 could be searched by correspondence.

Canada through 1901; FamilySearch 1880 and 1881 census

Old girl coping with household in census, may be mother-in-law. Look for her DC

7. Check always papers that are private your personal household documents and records, household Bibles, etc.

8. The wedding may well not have now been recorded anywhere that endures, particularly if in N.Y., PA, Southern States, or any frontier. Even a married relationship in brand brand New England may well not endure.

9. When a lady had been widowed, she became mind associated with household. She turn to act as a surety in a bond or witness to land transaction when she needs assistance as a single woman or a widow, who will? She shall probably head to her brothers or daddy in your community. Names on appropriate documents working with a widow might be her family members.

10. Sources to test to find her title:

a. Church documents

HENRY IRISH IMMIGRATED FROM BRITISH ISLES TO NYC IN 1819. HE LIVED IN NYC AND QUEENS. 1850 CENSUS STATED BOTH HE AND WIFE BORN ENGLAND. LOST MONITORING OF FAMILY IN 1920’S. DISCOVERED A COUSIN INTERESTED. UNCOVER WHAT SHE KNOWS CONCERNING THE IRISHES. A LARGE was had by her PULPIT BIBLE WHICH CLAIMED:

HENRY & ANN IRISH MARRIED 1 JAN 1807 KINGSTON, PORTSEA, ENGLAND. HENRY WAS SON OF JOSEPH AND SARAH (LANGE) IRISH. HENRY WAS CREATED 15 NOV 1787 AT HAVANT, HAMPSHIRE. ANN IRISH WAS DAUGHTER OF JOHN AND MARY (REED) HILL, BORN PORTSMOUTH, HAMPSHIRE, ENGLAND.

GENEALOGICAL EPIPHANY. ! It struggled to obtain David Dearborn, it might meet your needs. Seek family members and bibles on Web, etc.

c. Newspaper notices of wedding, delivery, death, going, etc.

Example:

Montrose Democrat, PA. 9 Apr 1873

Hitched at Franklin township, Susquehanna, PA 28 Mar 1873, Henry Dearborn to skip Cordelia Annis, child of Mr. Robert Seamans (just source of wedding for that period of time). 24. Private Documents

d. Private journals, diaries, letters in family’s possession, etc. Families have histories, MS or printed. Samplers – needlepoint and cross-stitch, Asia ink or watercolor. Includes Family Group, parents and children’s names, delivery times, view of household farm.

Banton Family (masonic rock symbols)

Samuel Banton (passed away, age) md. Rebecca Gilham (died and age)

ag e. Gravestones or cemetery documents. Took 30 years to even find the parents after discovered the death stone. Found descendants a few generations later on to get required information.

Esther spouse of William Barth passed away Feb 28, 1832 age 78 years

child of Thomas and Tabitha Barlow of England

Had currently traced William Barlow to Esther Bantin. Rock stated, “Esther Barlow had a few young ones.”

f. Death certification of a female need to have her maiden title on it, in addition to her moms and dads’ names and birthplaces. Her husband’s death certificates needs to have her maiden name. Her children’s death certificates additionally might have her maiden name. Her children’s wedding documents additionally could have it. Civil or public record information, for instance, California Death Index: Pembrook Banton died 1940 in Ca. Marital Reputation: Divorced. Searched divorces and discovered them. Divorce papers suggested:

Hitched in Dubuque, Iowa 14 Mar 1887

We never ever knew they ever lived in Iowa. Their siblings additionally were present in Iowa.

g. Obituaries of spouse, spouse or family relations.

Brand New Hampshire Morning Celebrity, Dover, N.H.

Died in Jackson, N.H. 16 Dec 1850 Mrs. Martha, wife of Moses Anderson and daughter that is youngest of Mr. George and Mrs. Catherine Johnson, aged 17 years 8 months. An infant was left by her child. (Death certificate doesn’t offer any one of this information. Obit much more valuable)

h. Divorce records: often give wife’s maiden name, or tell where so when hitched. May inform where from

i. Probate record of her daddy or her brothers. You may need certainly to read all wills within the county to find out her title. Probates may be published, abstracted and indexed . brand New Hampshire has all wills abstracted and published having an every title index. NH State Papers, vol. 31-39.

11. Prepared or published Indexes:

• IGI or FamilySearch.com
• VRI
• FHL surname catalogue
• NEHGS or any other major libraries, neighborhood towns, universities, etc.
• There are numerous CDs with marriages for the continuing state or province
• United states Genealogical & Biographical Index (AGBI) has a huge selection of volumes. Indexes all true names in 1790 census, includes all soldiers whom fought in Revolutionary War. Indexes countess county histories, esp. Brand New England. It really is at NEHGS.
• Every-name index to NEHGR – available on CD or posted. This published that is quarterly since 1847. It really is a treasure trove of data.
• PERSI – index of journal articles from 19thC for this. Can look for all entries of the surnames, not indiv >County histories, particularly Midwest – OH, IN, MI, IL, PA, NY areas. Called Midwest “mug books” by Vanity Press Publications. Information had been self-serving, flattered individuals to place your very own bio and picture of self, household or farm. Not necessarily accurate.

NEHGS has CD along with information inside their number of bibles.

13. Other Sources to ukrainian brides delete account locate name that is maiden

• Transcribed or posted monograph or article in log on your own surname.
• That which was faith? Today Don’t assume same as you are. RC, Protestant, Jewish, which branch?
• Variance in documents: Church record calls her Harriet Irish; civil enrollment calls her Sarah Irish.

There are numerous sources, documents and methodologies for getting a name that is maiden.

*Your ancestor would not appear away from nowhere. Had life and lived somewhere just before wedding.

*When ancestor married her family didn’t disappear – they probably are now living in the area that is same.

*Learn in regards to the area: history, topography, faith,

*There is not any guarantee we are going to find name that is maiden. We look and appear, look for recommendations and sources and how to approach an issue.

*Look during the entire family – all kids, siblings, of spouse. The partners might have hitched siblings of just one another. Seek living descendants, bibles, death certification of family members, to resolve a name problem that is maiden.

Bibliography

Allen, Donna Murray, “12 approaches to Find an Ancestor’s Maiden Name, Family Chronicle, 7:1 (Sept/Oct 2002);62

Carmack, Sharon DeBartolo, A Genealogist’s guide to Discovering Your feminine Ancestors (Cincinnati: Betterway Books, 1998).

Deerborn, David C., “Methods to determine a Wife’s Maiden Name,” The Essex Genealogist, 12 (1992):3-15

Dollarhide, William, “Identifying Female Ancestors: Some Case Records,” Heritage Quest, 17:3 (May/June 2001):8-17.

Hogan, Roseann R.. “Female Ancestry,” Ancestry, 12:2 (March/April 1994): 26-28.

NEHGS Lectures on Tape

Types of Finding a Wife’s Ma >Schaefer, Christina Kassabian, The concealed 1 / 2 of the family members: A sourcebook for women’s genealogy (Baltimore:Genealogical Publishing Co., 1999)