Case Studies
Heirlines Daily Adventures in Genealogy
Apr 26th
It has been said of our work, “Who am I? Where do I come from? Why am I here? Begin the Journey With Genealogy!”
Today we touched the past globally as we asked questions and found answers in a collection of immigrant letters. We were able to acquire and translate 3 letters held by the library of the University of Erfurt for a US client who leaves tomorrow for where his ancestors walked in Hesse-Kassel, Germany. The letters lead back to the ancestral home and another generation. Thank heavens for email and the professionalism of these curators.
We are so fortunate to be able to do research on a daily basis at the premier world-wide genealogy facility – the Family History Library. While we are grateful for all of the online resources including free and subscription websites and databases, full-time research requires much more access to records than can be found on the Internet alone. We are located at the hub of ancestral research here in Salt Lake City, Utah and today we really made use of the FHL collections for over 150 countries. We moved up and down between the floors housing microfilm, books, maps and other resources. We sought and found answers for research questions for multiple localities, historical eras and ethnicities including US and International such as Kentucky, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Canada, British Isles, Germany, Italy and Russia. What a fun-filled day of research it was!
We closed off the day with New York probate work in modern day records. Somebody is going to be happy with this report of heirs!
In our spare time, we are making good progress on our New Archives African American Project in preparation for our upcoming trip to Sullivan County. We want to find their New York town records that were created because of the 1788 Law for the “Purpose to Manumit and Set Free Slaves” and the 1799 Law for the “Gradual Abolition of Slavery”.
Today we heard back from a local historian about her Town of Neversink and its history and early records. Our search now broadens because she notes they had no town office in 1798 – 1809 when Neversink was part of Ulster County so town clerks would report directly to state government, or hold these early records in their homes. We learned this practice continued following the formation of Sullivan County in 1809 and they have no early records existent today in Neversink. It appears they have been lost either to historical obscurity, and most certainly forgotten due to historical amnesia. We know such records still exist in other New York counties so now our quest for Sullivan Co takes us to the former capital of New York, Kingston of Ulster County, and Albany, today’s governmental seat. Hopefully we will find answers there regarding the early black records that were to be created because of the 1788 and 1799 laws on registering black slavery births and manumissions.
James W. Petty, AG, CG
Copyright © 2013 Heirlines All Rights Reserved
Heirlines Daily Adventures in Genealogy
Apr 24th
Life is never dull for us as we daily provide Certified Family Trees ™ and professional solutions and answers on genealogy and family history for our US and International clientele. Today we helped a family find where their great- grandfather was buried in Martha’s Vineyard so they could decorate his grave for Memorial Day and share family stories with their children. Knowing where to look and how to read handwriting and interpret old records really helps on this kind of a job.
Then we delved into DNA testing for the heritage of an adopted child whose new parents generously wanted her to have all that they could provide about her ancestry. It was an open adoption, and after helping them identify and document the biological mother’s pedigree to her slave ancestors, we helped them with a DNA test that will become even more valuable over the years as the science and technologies of this industry grows and develops. Since Jim got his B.S. degree in Genealogy Technology in 1973, we have seen the family history world expand because of this scientific explosion. It isn’t your grandma’s genealogy anymore!
We next moved onto a family health history question for a man who had been abandoned as a baby by his father and never knew his grandparents or any paternal family member. Now that he had a son, he wanted to know any physical traits or health issues that his boy may inherit from these previously unknown ancestors. We found three generations including a military description of the great-great grandfather that mirrors his own physical likeness.
Intermittently throughout the day we worked on our upcoming research trip to Sullivan Co, NY for our New Archives African American Project. We are conducting historical research in antebellum records relating to early Black Slavery. On February 22, 1788, the State of New York passed laws to assist slave owners in the process of freeing, or manumitting their slaves in the State and counties of New York. On March 29, 1799, a law was passed for the gradual emancipation of slaves in New York by designating slaves born after March 29, 1799, as being eligible for freedom at the age of 25 years, and thereby requiring town clerks throughout every county to record the birth records of every slave child born in their towns after that date. Almost every day for the past several months I have interacted with people from Sullivan as we look to uncover these historically obscure records that have been lost through historical amnesia. You really have to be open-minded when you get into this kind of research because it is a journey of discovery, with no known pathway. Oh are we having fun as professional genealogists!
We closed off the day with a value appraisal of a genealogy collection for charitable donation IRS tax write-off purposes. 43 years’ experience in genealogy records and resources was just what this project needed!
James W. Petty, AG, CG
Copyright © 2013 Heirlines All Rights Reserved