Genealogist Helper

I have worked for the Social Security Administration for the last 15 years. I worked in various local offices as a claims representative for 9 years, and have spent the last 6 years as a computer systems analyst at headquarters, 4 1/2 years of that in the Enumeration Systems Branch. I have put together several messages which will address the questions you have about getting information from the Social Security Administration for genealogical purposes. Sysops may wish to combine the messages into a file for people to download. Although I am employed by SSA, I am sending these messages as a private individual, not as a representative of the Social Security Administration. I hope they clear up a lot of the confusion about what is and isn't available and how to go about getting what is available.

DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

Disclosure of information by SSA is governed mainly by the Social Security Act itself, the Freedom of Information Act of 1974, the Privacy Act of 1974, and the Tax Reform Act of 1976. In general,information about a LIVING person MAY NOT be released to a third party unless the individual has signed a written authorization for release of that information. The fact of an individual's death, date of death,and place of death or burial may be disclosed to anyone. Any other information, other than tax return information, in a DECEASED individual's record MAY BE DISCLOSED as long as any information in the record pertaining to other living individuals is deleted from the record prior to disclosure. The Tax Reform Act of 1976 prohibits disclosure of tax return information without the consent of the individual to whom the record pertains. This prohibition continues even after the death of an individual. Requests for tax return information for a deceased individual may be released to the legal representative of the estate; surviving relative (spouse, parent,child); or heir at law, next of kin, or beneficiary of the deceased. Proof of one of the listed relationships must be provided with the request for information.

REQUEST FOR EXTRACTS OF PRIOR SSN APPLICATIONS

SSA originally maintained paper files of all applications for original SSN's and applications requesting a change in the record. In the 1970s, these files were converted to an electronic database. The application forms were microfilmed for retention and the paper forms destroyed. Current applications are microfilmed; the paper forms are retained in the Federal Records Center for 5 years and then destroyed. There are 2 types of SSN application extracts which can be furnished upon request.

(1) The Numident printout is a computer printed record which contains all the information on the original application form except the address and signature of the applicant.

(2) A microprint is a print of the microfilmed application form. Either of these items may be furnished to anyone upon written request and confirmation of death where this is not detrimental to the estate and there does not appear to be an unwarranted invasion of privacy of a living person; i.e., the parents of the deceased who are listed on the application form. There is no charge for this service. The microprint will not show the SSN assigned as a result of the application; thus, the requester will receive both a microprint and a Numident printout when a microprint is requested. TO REQUEST AN EXTRACT: call your local SSA office and request form SSA-L997 SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER RECORD THIRD PARTY REQUEST FOR EXTRACT OR PHOTOCOPY. The form asks for identifying information as follows:

1) SSN, if known

2) full name of the person now used (or last used, for deceased ind)

3) name shown on last social security card

4) the individual's full name at birth

5) the individual's date of birth

6) the place of birth

7) sex

8) full maiden name of the mother

9) full name of the father

The form does not provide a place to indicate which type of extract you want, so enter the following legend on the form: "Microprint Required, Printout Not Sufficient". The form also does not include a place to indicate that you are requesting information on a deceased individual. I would annotate the form with a statement that the individual is deceased. Attach proof of death, if you can, to expedite the request. Information about the death of an individual has not been maintained on the Social Security Number records, so your request may be delayed or denied if it is not obvious that the person is deceased. It will take from 4-8 weeks to receive a response to your request. The 9 items above are the same information you would provide if you went to apply for a social security number or a replacement card. Here's how the SSN system works (much simplified) - there are 2 major files: the numerical identification file which contains the information sorted by SSN; and the alphabetical identification file which is sorted by name. If an SSN is provided, the numerical file will be queried and the printout compared to the information you provided. If an SSN is unknown, the name file must be queried. The information you provide is compared to the information for each person with that name and a score is assigned based on which information matches or doesn't match, and how closely the information matches. For example, if the year of birth is within 5 years it will score lower than an exact match but higher than if they were 10 years apart. Possible SSNs will be identified based on the score. Someone must look at all the printouts for the possible SSNs to determine which record if any is the one you requested. The more information you provide, the more chance you have of getting the information you want. After all, there have been about 320 million SSNs assigned since Social Security began in 1937. SSA assigns about 500,000 new numbers each month.

REQUEST FOR SOCIAL SECURITY EARNINGS INFORMATION

Contact your local Social Security office and request form SSA-7050.Yearly totals of earnings will be provided free of charge. However,for genealogical purposes, you will want detailed earnings information. Detailed earnings information includes periods of employment or self-employment and the names and addresses of employers. A fee is charged for the detailed earnings information because you want it for purposes NOT directly related to Social Security. The fee chart is included on the form and varies, depending on the number of years for which you request information. The minimum fee is $15 for 1 year, and the maximum fee is $92 for 52 years. The fee can be waived if you show that giving the information to you will benefit the general public. You must attach an explanation of why the fee should be waived to the form. (If you are requesting your own earnings information, there is no fee if you have reason to believe that your record contains incorrect information. If this is the case, please contact your local office and discuss your problem with them. They will help you resolve any discrepancies in your earnings record.)You can request earnings information from the record of a deceased person if you are the legal representative of the estate, a survivor (spouse, parent, child), or an individual with a material interest who is an heir at law, next of kin, beneficiary under the will or donee of property of the decedent. Proof of death must be included with your request. Proof of appointment as representative or proof of your relationship to the deceased must also be included. You may have to wait a while for the information. Once the employer identification numbers and years worked have been obtained from the master earnings file, someone will have to sit at a microfilm reader looking at employers' quarterly and annual wage reports to find the individual.

CONTACTING A MISSING PERSON

Regulation No. 1 of the Social Security Act does not permit SSA to disclose information about the whereabouts of a missing person except as provided for the Parent Locator Service (service for locating a parent who has skipped out on child support payments). However, circumstances may arise when it would be proper to inform the missing person of information about which he would want to know. Where strongly compelling circumstances of this nature exist, SSA may forward a letter to him/her. The letter forwarding policy is restrictive because:

1) the inquirer can be helped only if the addressee replies to the letter. It would serve little purpose to forward a letter to an individual unless it contains information that he/she could reasonably be expected to want to receive and which would cause him/her to reply.This excludes requests which are primarily for the benefit of the requester rather than the missing person.

2) SSA does not want to burden employers. Most letters must be forwarded through the last employer of record. Some large employers have asked SSA not to send letters to the employees in care of the company.

3) If all requests to forward letters were honored, the volume would significantly interfere with normal SSA operations.

4) The addressee may consider receipt of the letter as an unwarranted invasion of his/her privacy. A letter will not be forwarded unless the following conditions are met:

1) There are strongly compelling reasons for wanting to get in touch with the missing person such as: a close relative of the missing person is seriously ill, is dying or has died; a child is left without parental care because of the death or incapacity of the remaining parent; a defendant in a felony case is seeking a defense witness; a parent wishes to locate a missing son or daughter; the consent of the missing person is needed in connection with an adoption proceeding for his/her child; the missing person is the beneficiary of an estate and the executor is trying to locate him; other instances where the missing person is due money or valuable property; a doctor or hospital wishes to contact a missing person for health reasons.

2) The missing person would want to know about the contents of the letter.

3) The missing person's disappearance occurred far enough in the past that SSA could reasonably expect to have a usable mailing address (wages are reported by employers only once a year, so the most recent information SSA has will be at least a year old).

4) All other possibilities for contacting the missing person have been exhausted.

In order to forward a letter, SSA must have sufficient information to locate the missing person's record. The name and SSN are needed for this. The letter to be forwarded must be submitted in a plain unsealed, unstamped envelope bearing only the missing person's name and SSN. If the SSN is unknown, you must furnish as much identifying information as possible. The letter will be reviewed by SSA personnel to ensure that it is not inflammatory or derogatory, contains no obscene language, and will not cause embarrassment if opened by someone other that the addressee. SSA cannot be sure that the letter will reach the missing person or that he/she will reply. If SSA attempts to forward a letter, SSA cannot inform you of the results of that attempt. Subsequent letters for the same purpose will not be forwarded. No fee is charge for forwarding a letter for humanitarian purposes. The current charge for forwarding letters involving a monetary or valuable consideration is $3 per letter. Contact your local SSA office if you want to have a letter forwarded to a missing person. Please be aware that the situations described in these messages are not run of the mill requests that offices deal with all the time. The person you talk to may not be aware that disclosure of the information is allowed or may not be familiar with the procedures involved. In the 9 years I spent working in various local offices, I received 2 requests to forward letters to missing persons and no requests for detailed earnings information or for copies of Social Security number application forms. I was not aware until recently that you could get some of this information. If they refuse to give you the information, saying it isn't allowed, ask them to look it up in the manual. If all else fails, as a last resort, you can write to your congressman, describing your contacts with the local SSA office, and include a copy of your request. Congressional inquiries get special treatment, but the local offices don't like them.Anytime you have questions about Social Security issues, or need help with a Social Security matter, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE call your local office. You will get the best information from them. Please don't waste time speculating or asking neighbors or friends (unless they work for SSA). I can still remember being on the receiving end of "but my Uncle Joe says" or "so-and-so told me thus-and-so and he ought to know because" and not being able to convince them that Uncle Joe and so-and-so didn't know what they were talking about. The Social Security Law is quite complicated and encompasses much more than just retirement benefits. No one can know it all, but your local office is the place to get official information. That's what they are there for. End of sermon.

Each office should have a copy of the Social Security Laws and Regulations and the POMS manual (operational instructions to implement the laws & regs). These manuals, except for portions related to security procedures, should be available for you to use at the local office. I would think that all law libraries would also have copies of the law and regs and possibly the operations manuals.

The Social Security Number

SSA has continually emphasized the fact that the SSN identifies a particular record only and the Social Security Card indicates the person whose record is identified by that number. In no way can the Social Security Card identify the bearer. From 1946 to 1972 the legend "Not for Identification" was printed on the face of the card. However, many people ignored the message and the legend was eventually dropped. The social security number is the most widely used and carefully controlled number in the country, which makes it an attractive identifier. With the exception of the restrictions imposed on Federal and some State and local organizations by the Privacy Act of 1974, organizations requiring a unique identifier for purposes of controlling their records are not prohibited from using (with the consent of the holder) the SSN. SSA records are confidential and knowledge of a person's SSN does not give the user access to information in SSA files which is confidential by law. Many commercial enterprises have used the SSN in various promotional efforts. These uses are not authorized by SSA, but SSA has no authority to prohibit such activities as most are not illegal. Some of these unauthorized uses are: SSN contests; skip-tracers; sale or distribution of plastic or metal cards; pocketbook numbers (the numbers used on sample social security cards in wallets); misleading advertising,commercial enterprises charging fees for SSN services; identification of personal property. The Social Security Number (SSN) is composed of 3 parts,XXX-XX-XXXX, called the Area, Group, and Serial. For the most part, (there are exceptions), the Area is determined by where the individual APPLIED for the SSN (before 1972) or RESIDED at time of application (after 1972). The areas are assigned as follows:

000 unused 387-399 WI 528-529 UT

001-003 NH 400-407 KY 530 NV

004-007 ME 408-415 TN 531-539 WA

008-009 VT 416-424 AL 540-544 OR

010-034 MA 425-428 MS 545-573 CA

035-039 RI 429-432 AR 574 AK

040-049 CT 433-439 LA 575-576 HI

050-134 NY 440-448 OK 577-579 DC

135-158 NJ 449-467 TX 580 VI Virgin Islands

159-211 PA 468-477 MN 581-584 PR Puerto Rico

212-220 MD 478-485 IA 585 NM

221-222 DE 486-500 MO 586 PI Pacific Islands*

223-231 VA 501-502 ND 587-588 MS

232-236 WV 503-504 SD 589-595 FL

237-246 NC 505-508 NE 596-599 PR Puerto Rico

247-251 SC 509-515 KS 600-601 AZ

252-260 GA 516-517 MT 602-626 CA

261-267 FL 518-519 ID *Guam, American Samoa,

268-302 OH 520 WY Northern Mariana Islands,

303-317 IN 521-524 CO Philippine Islands

318-361 IL 525 NM

362-386 MI 526-527 AZ

627-699 unassigned, for future use

700-728 Railroad workers through 1963, then discontinued

729-899 unassigned, for future use

900-999 not valid SSNs, but were used for program purposes when state aid to the aged, blind and disabled was converted to a federal program administered by SSA. As the Areas assigned to a locality are exhausted, new areas from the pool are assigned. This is why some states have non-contiguous groups of Areas. The Group portion of the SSN has no meaning other than to determine whether or not a number has been assigned. SSA publishes a list every month of the highest group assigned for each SSN Area. The order of assignment for the Groups is: odd numbers under 10, even numbers over 9, even numbers under 9 except for 00 which is never used, and odd numbers over 10. For example, if the highest group assigned for area 999 is 72, then we know that the number 999-04-1234 is an invalid number because even Groups under 9 have not yet been assigned. The Serial portion of the SSN has no meaning. The Serial is notassigned in strictly numerical order. The Serial 0000 is never assigned. Before 1973, Social Security Cards with pre-printed numbers were issued to each local SSA office. The numbers were assigned by the local office. In 1973, SSN assignment was automated and outstanding stocks of pre-printed cards were destroyed. All SSNs are now assigned by computer from headquarters. There are rare cases in which the computer system can be forced to accept a manual assignment such as a person refusing a number with 666 in it. A pamphlet entitled "The Social Security Number" (Pub. No.05-10633) provides an explanation of the SSN's structure and the method of assigning and validating Social Security numbers.

LETTER TO SEND TO CHURCHES IN GERMANY FOR GENEALOGICAL DATA

1. Fill in the date in upper left-hand corner of the letter.

2. After the word "ueber", fill in the name of your ancestor, after "geboren", his birth date, and after "in", his place of birth.

3. Enclose the equivalent of 10 DM (or if in the States, a money order and 2 International Reply Coupons). Enclose an IRC if sending to country other than Germany.

4. Address envelope to:

An das
Evangelische (or Katholische) Pfarramt
Zip Code Town
Country

Sehr geehrter Herr Pfarrer!

Zur Vervollstaendigung meiner Familiengeschichte benoetige ich naehere Angaben ueber___________ geboren___________ in ___________. Ich bitte Sie freundlichst um Uebersendung eines vollstaendigen Auszuges ueber diesen Vorfahren aus dem Geburtenregister der Pfarrei. Sollte es Ihnen moeglich sein, mir zusaetzlich Auszuege ueber Geburt, Heirat oder Tod seiner Eltern anzufertigen, die am selben Ort gewohnt haben sollen, so waere ich Ihnen auch fuer diese Bemuehungen sehr dankbar.

Ich lege Ihnen zehn Mark zur Begleichung anfallender Gebuehren bei. Sollten Ihnen weitere Auslagen entstehen, so bitte ich Sie, mir dies mitzuteilen. Fuer Ihre Hilfe danke ich Ihnen herzlich im voraus. Mit vorzueglicher Hochachtung.

Your name

Address

****TRANSLATION*****

Dear Pastor:

In order to complete my family history, I would need information about my ancestor ___________, born ___________ in ____________. May I kindly ask you to send me a complete extract of the birth record from the parish register for the above named. Should it be possible to send me extracts of the birth, marriage or death records for his parents, who are supposed to have lived in the same town, I would be most grateful for this help.

I am enclosing ten DM to cover the necessary fees. Should you incur additional expenses, please let me know.

Thank you in advance for you aid.

Respectfully yours,

Your name

Address

=================================================================

LETTERS TO SEND TO REGISTRAR'S OFFICE AND ARCHIVES IN GERMANY

Address envelope to:

Standesamt (Staatsarchiv or Stadtarchiv)
der Stadt (town)
Street Number
Zip Town
Country

Follow instructions for the church letter.

Sehr geehrte Dame, sehr geehrter Herr!

Zur Vervollstaendigung meiner Familiengeschichte benoetige ich naehere amtliche Angaben ueber die Familie des/der ______________, geboren am __________ in ___________. Ich bitte Sie freundlichst um Uebersendung eines vollstaendigen Auszuges aus Ihrem Geburts-/ Heirats-/ Sterberegister zur vorstehend genannten Person.

Sollte es Ihnen moeglich sein, mir ebenfalls Auszuege ueber Geburt,Heirat oder Tod seiner/ihrer Eltern anzufertigen, die im gleichen Orte gewohnthaben sollen, so waere ich Ihnen fuer diese Hilfe sehr dankbar.

Zur Deckung Ihrer Gebuehren lege ich zehn Mark bei. Sollten Ihnen weitere Auslagen entstehen, so bitte ich Sie, mir dies mitzuteilen.

Fuer Ihre Hilfe danke ich Ihnen herzlich im voraus.

Hochachtungsvoll,

Your name

Address

*****TRANSLATION*****

Gentlemen:

In order to complete my Family History, I am in need of more precise official data on the family of ________ born ______________ in _____________. I would kindly like to ask you to send me a complete excerpt from your birth-/ marriage-/ death registers for the person mentioned above.

Should you be able to let me have, in addition, the birth-,marriage- or death records of his/her parents who are said to have lived in the same place, I would be most grateful for your assistance in this matter.

To cover your fees, I am enclosing 10 DM. Should you incur additional expenses, please let me know.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Sincerely yours,

Your name and address

===============================================================

LETTER TO JOIN A REGIONAL GENEALOGICAL ORGANIZATION

Shr geehrte Dame, sehr geehrter Herr!

Da meine Ahnen urspruenglich aus __________ stammen, moechte ich gerne Mitglied Ihrer Gesellschaft werden. Zur Deckung des Mitgliedsbeitrages lege ich Ihnen DM __________ bei.Ich bin besonders an folgenden Familiennamen interessiert: ______________________________________________________________.

Auch wuerde ich gerne wissen, ob es schon Familienvereine zu den oben genannten Familiennamen gibt. Im Falle, dass solche Familienvereine bestehen, moechte ich Sie freundlichst bitten, mir deren Anschriften mitzuteilen.

Fuer Ihre Muehe bedanke ich mich herzlich.

Mit vorzueglicher Hochachtung

Your name and address.

*****TRANSLATION******

Dear Madam, Sir:

Since my ancestors originally came from __________, I would like to become a member of your organization. To cover the membership fee find ____ DM enclosed.

The family names for which I have the greatest interest are as follows:

___________________________________________________________.

I would also like to know whether there are any family organizations related to the the above mentioned surnames. If there are, would you be so kind to convey to me their addresses.

For your help I am most grateful.

With kindest regards,

Your name and address

==========================================================

The following information was also included with the above form letters

which appeared in the MVGS bulletin. I have included it with this file since

it will also be useful in researching German ancestors.

GERMAN RESEARCH ADDRESSES

Dr. Heinz F. Friederichs has published a booklet, "How To Find My German Ancestors And Relatives". It is printed in English and includes a map and lists addresses of German Archives in German states, cities, genealogical societies and collecting centers. You can order this publication from:

Verlag Degener & Co.

Inh. G. Gessner

Postfach 1380

8530 Neustadt/Aisch

Federal Republic of Germany

Die Heimatstelle Pfalz (Research Center) at Kaiserslautern, West Germany,is a record repository on over 300,000 persons who immigrated from the Rhineland-Pfalz area of Germany. Herr Roland Paul, the Assistant Director,would like help in enlarging the center's holdings. Please submit a 3x5 card per person/ancestor, their name, where settled in the U.S., who they married, date/place of death, giving where buried, occupation and religion if known (perhaps including the village in the Pfalz where they immigrated from and date, if it is known.) The address is:

Die Heimatstelle Pfalz

Benzinoring 6

Postfach 6

D-6750 Kaiserslautern

Federal Republic of Germany

Census Schedules - U.S. Federal

LaVona L. Ness

The Mortality Schedules - In 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880, census enumerators were directed to secure in addition to the usually required census data, information as to all persons dying within the 12 months preceding the census taking. These lists became known as the "Mortality Schedules". See pages 252 and 253 of "Genealogical Research Standards" by Derek Harland for a list of places to find these schedules.

Limitations of the Census Schedules

1. Time.

a. No census was taken before 1790 in the U.S.

b. Earlier schedules contain less information than later ones.

2. Incompleteness

a. Some families were missed, due to the length of time it took to take the census, or people were away visiting relatives, or some families lived in multi-dwelling units and were overlooked, etc.

b. Parts of the censuses were lost or destroyed.

3. Indifferent enumerators

a. Many enumerators were not well qualified.

b. Instructions were not followed (i.e. initials only, no birth places

listed, etc.)

c. Some families were not home so enumerator got information from small

children or neighbors or guessed the answers himself.

d. Padded population.

4. Incorrect information given by family members:

a. memory might be poor (most people did not read or write)

b. Unfamiliar abbreviations and ditto marks (i.e. Conn., Ct., Cn., Cnct. were all used for Connecticut).

c. Poor quality paper and ink

d. Difficulty in reading microfilm copies (due to poor photography, double papers or pages filmed, making writing too small, etc.).Also filmer might miss a page by accidentally turning 2 pages.

5. Place of residence must be known

a. If census has not been indexed then at least the county must be known to start a search, except in 1880 and 1900 censuses - the soundexes can be used.

b. If your ancestor lived in a large city, you will have to know which part of the city of "ward" he lived in, in order to search the census.

Where to Find a Census

1. 1790-1890 - on loan from the LDS Genealogy Department to branch LDS Libraries. Some branch libraries can get them on loan from the Federal Archives and Record Center also.

2. 1790-1900 - available for use at Federal Archives Center in San Bruno, Calif (and other regional centers).

3. 1790-1840 for all states available on film at Santa Clara Public Library. They also have California census through 1880.

4. Sutro Library has some and will loan out through inter-library loan with your local library.

5. Oakland LDS library and San Jose LDS Library have quite a few on hand (1790-1890) for use in their libraries.

General Points to Note

1. 1790 census - earliest one taken. Only heads of families named, parts missing.

2. 1800, 1810, 1820 - parts missing. Use tax lists to fill in.

3. 1840 census - shows Revolutionary War pensioners and ages

4. 1850 census - first census naming everyone living in family, and the place of birth.

5. 1870 census - shows details of parentage - if of foreign birth

6. 1880 census - first showing relationship; birthplace all parents, soundex made.

7. 1890 census - 99% destroyed by fire. Use Veterans Schedules to fill in.

8. 1900 Census - available only at National Archive (in 1979), much information, Soundex made

9. 1910 and since (confidential)

10. May be State census years between Federal censuses.

11. Mortality schedules: 1850, 1860, 1870 & 1880 census.

Census Data 1790-1900

1790

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males of 16 years and up, including heads; free white males under 16; free white females including heads; all other free persons; number of slaves.

1800

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males and females under 10 years of age, 10 and under 16, 16 and under 26, 26 and under 45, and 45 years and upward; all other free persons, except Indians not taxed; number of slaves.

1810

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males and females under 10 years of age, 10 and under 16, 16 and under 26, 26 and under 45, and 45 years and upwards; all other free persons, except Indians not taxed; number of slaves.

1820

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males and females under 10 years of age, 10 and under 16, 16 and under 26, 26 and under 45, and 45 years and upward; number of free white males between 16 and 18 years; foreigners not naturalized; male and female slaves and free colored persons under 14 years, 14 and under 26, 26 and under 45, and 45 and upward; all other free persons, except Indians not taxed; number of persons (including slaves) engaged in agriculture, commerce, and manufactures.

1830

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males and females in 5-year age groups to 20, 10 year age groups from 20 to 100, and 100 years old and over; number of slaves and free colored persons in six broad age groups; number of deaf and dumb under 14, 14 to 24, and 25 years and upward; number of blind; foreigners not naturalized.

1840

Name of head of family; address; number of free white males and females in 5 years age groups to 20, 10 year age groups from 20 to 100, and 100 years old and over; number of slave and free colored persons in six broad age groups; number of deaf and dumb; number of blind; number of insane and idiotic in public or private charge; number of persons in each family employed in each of seven classes of occupations; number of schools and number of scholars; number of white persons over 20 who could not read and write; number of pensioners for Revolutionary or military service.

1850

Name; address; age; sex; color(white black or mulatto) for each person; whether deaf and dumb; blind, insane or idiotic; all free persons required to give value of real estate owned; profession, occupation, or trade for each male person over 16; place of birth whether married within the year; whether attended school within the year; whether unable to read and write for persons over 20; whether a pauper or convict.

1860

Name; address age; sex; color (white, black, or mulatto) for each person;whether deaf and dumb; blind, insane or idiotic; all free persons required to give value of real estate and of personal estate owned, profession. occupation, or trade for each male and female over 15; place of birth (State, Territory, or country); whether married within the year, whether attended school within the year; whether unable to read and write for persons over 20; whether a pauper or convict.

1870

Address; name; age; sex; color (including Chinese and Indian); citizenship for males over 21; professions, occupation, or trade; value of real estate; value of personal estate; place of birth; whether father and mother were foreign born; born within the year; married within the year; attended school within the year; for persons 10 years old and over whether able to read and write; whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, or idiotic.

1880

Address; name; relationship to head of family; sex; race; age; marital status;born within the year; married within the year; professions, occupation, or trade; number of months unemployed during census year; whether person is sick or temporarily disabled so as to be unable to attend to ordinary business or duties; if so, what is the sickness or disability; where blind, deaf and dumb, idiotic, insane, maimed, crippled or bedridden; attended school within the year, ability to read and write, place of birth of person, father, and mother.

1890

Address; number of families in house; number of persons in house; number of persons in family; name; whether a soldier, sailor, or marine during Civil War (Union or Confederate) or widow of such person; relationship to head of family; white, black, mulatto, quadroon, octoroon, Chinese, Japanese, or Indian; sex; age; marital status; whether married during year; mother of how many children, and number now living; place of birth of person, father, and mother; if person is foreign born, number of years in the U.S. whether naturalized; whether papers have been taken out; profession, trade or occupation; months unemployed during census year; ability t9o read and write; ability to speak English; if not, language or dialect spoken; whether suffering from acute or chronic disease, with name of disease and length of time afflicted; whether defective in mind, sight, hearing, or speech, or whether crippled, maimed, or deformed, with name of defect; whether a prisoner, convict, homeless child, or pauper; home rented, or owned by head or member of family; if owned by head or members, is it free from mortgage; if head of family is a farmer, is farm rented or owned by him or member of his family; if owned, is it free of mortgage; if mortgaged, give post office address of owner.

1900

Address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; number of years married; for women, number of children born and number now living; birthplace of person and parents; If foreign born, year of immigration, and whether naturalized; occupation; months not employed; school attendance; literacy, ability to speak English; whether on a farm; home owned or rented; if owned, whether mortgaged. Supplemental schedules for the blind and for the deaf.

Missing Persons
Genealogy
Dating Services
Class Reunions

DATES,DAYS AND MONTHS

The following days of the weeks and months of the year may help you translate tombstones or other material:

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| THE DAYS OF THE WEEK |

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| * Welsh does not use Sun-day as in English. Sunday would be Dydd Sul. |

| Sunday night (Sun-night) would be Nos Sul. One also has to watch for |

| mutations in night references to Tues-night, Wednes-night, and Fri-night |

| which become Nos Fawrth (instead of Mawrth), Nos Fercher (instead of |

| Mercher), and Nos Wener (instead of Gwener). |

| THE MONTHS OF THE YEAR |

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| May | Mai | Keten | Mai | Mai | Mai |

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FOOTNOTE: Notice the obvious influence of Latin, the "language of the church," on the days of the week and month, as in March, for the god of war, Mars.

Remember that in the ecclesiastical calendar, December was the tenth month,

hence the names September (Sept=7), October (Octo=8), etc. The "Old Style"

calendar was in effect in the British Empire before 1752, when the present

calendar was adopted. The historical calendar recognized January 1 as the first day of the year, while the ecclesiastical calendar recognized March 25 as the first day. Thus, dates between those two days were often written with both year numbers (e.g., January 5, 1712/13). Also, the old calendar was defective by 11 days, so when the switch was made to the new calendar on September 2, 1752, dates were often made compatible with it by adding 11 days. Folks went to bed September 2 and woke up the next day on September 13; there were many protests against the thought of losing 11 whole days out of one's life!

Example: Under the double-dating system, George Washington was born February

11, 1731/32 ("Old Style" or "O.S."). Adjusting this to the new calendar made it February 22, 1732 ("New Style" or "N.S.").

LOCATING AN ANCESTOR’S PLACE OF ORIGIN

Some types of records are better than others at pinpointing the exact place of birth. For example, we know that U.S. Census records before 1920 show only the state or country of birth, not the exact town. However, 1900, 1910t 1920 have information about arrival and citizenship status.

Here are some suggestions about the types of records that might show where he or she was born. These are the records you will want to locate anyway at-you complete your family history:

* Family personal papers-- a Bible, letters, diaries--and records the family may have brought with then, such as passports and church documents. If your family does not have these papers, try to locate any and all other descendants of this saw immigrant. These papers may be in the Possession of a very' distant relative.

* Naturalization records, particularly the Declaration of Intention or "first papers"

* Other court records--probate, guardianship, divorce, criminal, civil

* Passports, if they returned to the old country

* Death certificate

* Birth certificate for a child

* Church records--confirmation, death/burial, marriage, baptism of a child

* Obituaries--especially in foreign-language or church-related newspapers

* Other newspaper accounts--birthdays, anniversaries, advertisements for missing heirs

* Gravestones and cemetery records

* U.S. military records--pension applications, WWI draft records

* Organizations' records--lodge, insurance, etc., also these groups" newspapers

* Passenger arrival records

* Emigration records--Hamburg passenger lists, published records

* County or church histories or other publications where the ancestor may be mentioned

Once you find the name of a town, check where it’s currently located and where it was located at the time of emigration. The town didn’t move, but the political jurisdictions and the name of the town may have changed. If that town is not found in a current detailed atlas, look for a specific historic atlas of that country. For Germany look in Meyers Orts= und-Verkehrs-Lexikon des Deutsches Reich’s (L.D.S. microfilm 496,640 and 496,641; fiche 6000,00l-6,000,029). Or send the name of the town to: Omega Translations, P. O. BOX 745, Iowa City IA 52244 with $10.00 per name and an SASE.

Then, you can see if records from that town has been microfilmed by the L.D.S. or, you can write to the town registrar, church, or archives.

RECOMMDED: "Research Outline: Tracing Immigrant origins" from L.D.S. Family History Library, item 134111, 75 Cents. Order from Distribution Center, 1999 West 1700 South, Salt Lake City UT 84104-4233, or call 1-800-537-5950.

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NAMING TRENDS

(This is the text file of the "talk" given on July 11 about finding your ancestors through naming trends. I have also added "Kinship Terms" describing relationships in earlier times.)

First of all, I want to welcome everyone tonight. This information comes from a lecture I attended given by Marsha Hoffman Rising in 1991.

Too often the genealogist focuses research on those individuals bearing the surname and often only in the direct line. For this reason, records that may clarify relationships "prove" ancestral connections or add evidence to support a hypothesis can be overlooked. It is important that the researcher emphasize the family network rather than linking via surname.

This lecture is about finding your family by early naming practices and studying collateral kin. Since data regarding the direct line is often not available, you can make the connections by studying the collateral kin. One of the ways of finding your collateral kin is by utilizing naming practices.

In the early colonies, the law of primogeniture was in effect. It is an exclusive right of the eldest son to inherit the father's estate. To ensure that the eldest son inherited, in the event the father died intestate, the eldest son was generally given the same name as his father. The second son was often given the first name of one of his uncles, generally the father's oldest brother. Later, families devised their own system to ensure that their offspring inherited. i.e. giving all children the same middle name, denoting the fact that all with that name could inherit, and not just the oldest son.

As many families were very large, it is possible to find collateral kin and thus an earlier ancestor by studying the names of your ancestors siblings.

As stated earlier, the eldest son had the same name as his father, the second son, the first name of one of his uncles. (Paternal usually, unless the father had no brothers, then a maternal uncle). The middle name was either his mother's maiden name, or grandmother's maiden name. Basically, as more children were born, more maiden names were used, but generally those in the direct line. Great grandmothers, great great grandmothers, etc. Interestingly, after the fifth child, there will be names of famous people. I.e. Joseph Wheeler, Robert E. Lee, etc.

Second generation immigrants often deviated from the original family names. They often named their children after local heroes. It is not uncommon for a southern family to name male children after famous southern political personalities, such as Robert E. Lee, Francis Marion, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, etc. However, the following generation often returned to the names of the previous generation. Therefore, when you find a generation of "local heroes", don't be discouraged. Ignore the names and try to concentrate on the more common names. This will help guide you back to the earlier ancestors.

Women's names follow the same practices as men's names, but generally follow the maternal line. The eldest daughter is often named for her maternal grandmother. Once again maiden names are often used as middle names. Sometimes, if the family is very large, you will only find one or two of the daughters with a maiden name as a middle name. Ironically, to find your female ancestor, you might have to take the first name of the eldest daughter, and the middle name of the second son.

Another interesting tidbit regarding women's lines. If you have the marriage record of your ancestor, and have no information about the wife other than her name, make a note of the person that married them. Many times the minister who performed the wedding is a relative. Her name may be different because she was a widow, thus being referred to by her first husband's name, instead of her maiden name.

It is often difficult to prove identity when there are several individuals with the same name. Aside from analyzing the family through the naming trends, one should attempt to learn everything about their ancestor; wife, children, children's spouses, minister, debtors, creditors, occupation, religion, neighbors, siblings, politics, etc.

Find his neighbors by studying the description of every parcel of land that he owned. Try to learn as much about his neighbors as possible.

If you own primary research, assume this to be true until you find out differently. Reconstruct and track the lives of the various same name people in question. Study the people, not just the names you are looking for.

There are some key principles to remember when researching collateral lines. First, names may change, particularly with women, but the relationships will remain, no matter how often the name changes.

The strongest kin ties appear between women. The most enduring bond occurs between mothers and their grown daughters. This means that you may find more information by looking for a different surname than the direct line you are researching. Ties to the wife's kin are generally stronger than those to husband's, unless male ties are crucial to the husband's occupation. It is therefore necessary to learn the occupation of your ancestor.

Social relationships among kin are not broken by geographic mobility. This is important because you may be looking in an area where the records have been destroyed. You may find your information from one that is geographically removed from the destruction.

Genealogical organizations and literature are based on surnames. Too often, female lines are neglected.

Be sure you understand the meaning of kinship terms in the period in which you are working. In colonial times, "in-law" referred to the relationships that we now call "step".

KINSHIP TERMS

Affinity - relationships which exist because of marital ties. The contemporary term for these relations is "in-laws."

Augmented family - extension of nuclear family to include people bound together by law, rather than blood; e.g. half siblings, adopted children, stepparents, stepsiblings, etc.

Aunt - in American society, this term can refer to a woman in four different relative positions: father's sister, mother's sister, father's brother's wife, and mother’s brother's wife.

Brother - in addition to obvious meaning may also include (1) the husband of one's sister (2) the brother of one's wife (3) the husband of one's sister-in-law, (3) half-brother (4) stepbrother. Genealogists must also be aware "brother" may refer to a member of one's church.

Collateral family - referring to relatives who are "off to one side" i.e. not in the direct lineal ancestry, but who share a common ancestor. In western society, these people are called aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.

Consanguinity - refers to persons who share common decent or biological heritage.

Cousin - very general term in American society referring to someone with whom you share a common ancestor. Can refer to a person occupying relationship on either mother or father's side; may also refer to someone related only by affinity. If this person is in a different generation, the term "removed" is used giving the number of generations apart.

Extended family - when families of more than two generations compose a household or relationship.

Full sibling - one who has the same biological mother and father (thus the same ancestry) as oneself A half sibling has one of the same parents (and therefore shares only one side of the lineage) as oneself.

In Law - in contemporary society, term used to designate someone to whom you are related by your own marriage or that of a sibling. In colonial society, this term also referred to relationships created by the marriage of a parent, currently called "step" relationships. Thus a "mother-in-law" in the 17th century, may have been a father's second wife.

Natural child - when the term "natural" is used the researcher should not jump to a conclusion that it denotes an illegitimate relationship. It is meant to indicate a relationship by blood rather than one by marriage or adoption. An illegitimate child may be called "my base son" or "my bastard son."

Nephew/Niece - one who is the child of a sibling (or a half-sibling, or step-sibling, or a spouse's sibling, or your spouse's spouse's sibling. Since the term derives from the Latin term, "nepos" meaning grandson, it is possible an early colonial reference may have this meaning.

"Now wife" - often assumed that the testator of a will with this term had a former wife. While this may be true, it is more likely the testator is indicating the bequest is intended only for his present wife and not necessarily to any subsequent wife he may have. Donald Lines Jacobus wrote, ".... It is to be doubted whether any other legal phrase has fooled so many of our most experienced genealogists."

Nuclear family - a family group consisting of mother, father and dependent children.

Stepsibling - one related by virtue of a parent's marriage to an individual with children by a former marriage or relationship. While no relation by blood, there can be strong ties of emotion and tradition between stepsiblings.

Uncle - in American society this term can refer to a man in four different relative positions: father's brother; mother's brother; father's sister's husband; mother's sister’s husband.

Medical Terms from the 18th Century and Todays Meaning

AGUE: used to define the recurring fever & chills of malarial infection

APHONIA: laryngitis

BILIOUSNES: jaundice or other symptoms associated with liver disease

CAMP FEVER: typhus

CANINE MADDNESS: hydrophobia

CHLOROSIS: iron deficency anemia

CORRUPTION: infection

CORYZA: a cold

COSTIVENNESS: constipation

CRAMP COLIC: appenditis

DROPSEY: edwma (swelling), often caused by kidney or heart disease

DYSEPSIA: acid indigestion

EXTRAVASTED BLOOD: rupture of a blood vessel

FALLING SICKNESS: epilepsy

FLUS OF HUMOR: circulation

FRENCH POX: veneral disease

GREEN SICKNESS: anemia

HIP GOUT: osteomylitis

JAIL FEVER: typhus

KINGS EVIL: tubercular infection of the throat lymph glands

LA GRIPPE: flu

LUES VENERA: veneral disease

LUMBAGO: back pain

LUNG FEVER: pneumonia

LUNG SICKNESS: tuberculosis

MANIA: insanity

MORTIFICATION: infection

NOSTALIA: homesickness

PUTRID FEVER: diptheria

QUINSY: toncillitis

REMITTING FEVER: malaria

SANGUINOUS CRUST: scab

SCREWS: rheumatism

SCROFULA: see KINGS EVIL

SHIPS FEVER: typhus

STRANGERY: rupture

SUMMER COMPLAIN: baby diarrhea caused by spoiled milk

VENESECTION: bleeding

SPECIAL HELPS FOR LOCATING AN ANCESTOR"S ORIGIN IN GERMANY

Familienkundliche Nachrichten (FANA). Queries published six times a year by Verlag Deneger & Co.,'Postfach 1350, 91403 Neustadt/Aisch, Germany. Individuals may place queries in this publication that is distributed with German genealogical journals. You may write a brief letter in English and they will bill you, generally around $25-30.00. For surnames previously published, check with Immigrant Genealogical Society of German Genealogical Society of America.

Praktinche Forschungghilfe (ProFo), C. A. Starke Verlag, Postfach 1310l, D-65549 Limburg/Lahn, Germany. Similar to FANA, above.

Familiengeschichtliche Quellon. 13-volume family name index of family histories published in Germany. Compiled 1926-50 by Oswald Spohr, reprinted by Franz Heinzmann Verlag, Am Gengeltr¬ sschen 10, 40404-Dò sseldorf, Germany. LDS book: 943 B2fg; LDS microfilm: #547,17l, #496,680-496,682.

Glenzdorfs Internationales Genealogen Lexikon. Over 3,500 German genealogists over 100,000 surnames and 16,000 places. Check with German Genealogical Society of America or Immigrant Genealogical society.

Ahnenlistenkartei. Indexed ancestral charts. Check with German Genealogical Society of America or Immigrant Genealogical society,

Deutschen Familienarchiv. Check with Immigrant Genealogical Society to see which surnames have been indexed in Volumes I through 100.

International Genealogical Index (IGI) and other indexes. Check at local L.D.S. Family History Center, or public or genealogical library.

Search of German telephone books on CD-ROM for persons with a specific surname. Check with Immigrant Genealogical Society, or other sources. Service includes letter in German.

Germanic Emigrants Register. Currently has 277,000 entries for persons who departed Germany without official permit, 1895-1918. Check with Immigrant Genealogical Society.

Zentralstelle fò r Genealogie, K¬ the-Kollwitz-Strasse 82, 04109 Leipzig. New address for only genealogical organization permitted in German Democratic Republic (East Germany). You may write in English.

Addresses:

Immigrant Genealogical society, P. 0. Box 7369, Burbank CA 91510. Has a library with many publications from Germany. Has a handout of forms for research services at a reasonable fee.

German Genealogical Society of America, 2125 Wright Ave., Suite C-9. La Verne, CA 91750-5814. Also has an extensive library and does searches, but does not furnish forms for searches.

German-Texan Heritage Society, P. 0. Box 684171, Austin TX 78768-4171. Dues $15.00 per year; publishes a Journal and Newsletter three times a year. Has a genealogy consultant/editor.

For your local L.D.S. Family History Center, look in telephone directory or write to: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Family History Library, 35 North West Temple St., Salt Lake City UT 84150.

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LDS Research

Some of the resources are available at the Salt Lake City LDS Genealogical Library. Some are also found in the local LDS libraries. Excerpted from "A Guide to Research - Genealogical Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints", by Corporation of the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 1983.

Family Group Records

The Family Group Records collection consists of about 8 million Family Group Record forms submitted by members of the LDS church and others. These forms contain information on families from all over the world. They also provide LDS temple ordinance dates. The collection is divided into two sections: the Archive section and the Patron section. The two sections relate to who the submitters were and the time period in which they were submitted. The Patron group is the most recent of the two. (The Library is in the process of organizing the latest "mass" group of submissions which may prove to be as large as each existing section). The sheets are filed alphabetically by the husband's name and then in order by birthdate. E.G. to find a sheet on Robert Patton Frazier (born 20 Mar1853) you would look for the sheets with the name and then look for the sheet with his birthdate. You can have a sheet photocopied for 5cents.

IGI

The International Genealogical Index (IGI) is a computerized index of various records. It lists the names of over 68 million deceased persons from many countries and time periods. It is printed on microfiche. To find your ancestor's name in the IGI look for the place where he or she was born or married. E.G. if you ancestor was born in Tennessee, look in the United States section for Tennessee. Then look for the microfiche where your ancestor's name would be listed. The IGI lists such information as the names of the parents or spouse and the dates and locations of births, christenings, marriages, orother events. It also contains LDS temple ordinance dates. The columns of information on the fiche are:

1. Name (last,first)

2. Name of father/mother or spouse

3. Sex (M/F) Husband/wife (H/W)

4. Type of event (marriage, birth, christening)

5. Event date

6. County, town, parish name

7. Batch number

8. Serial Sheet

If you find your ancestor's name in the IGI be certain to note the source numbers from the two last columns. These numbers can help lead you to the actual document. There you may be able to find additional information or identify the person who submitted the information. There are records available for decoding the batch/serial sheet numbers. For example, they may refer you to a microfilm record of original documents.

Original Documents

Original documents are records created at the time of important events in your ancestors' lives, such as births, marriages, and deaths recorded by the local church of government. Some major type of documents are civil,church, census, probate, land, military, immigration, court. Most originaldocuments in the Genealogical Library are microfilm copies of records found in courthouses, churches and other archives throughout the world. Most of the records date before 1900. To find original documents, look in the computer catalog (microfiche) in the locality section. For example, if you were looking for a record of Ray County, Missouri, first you would find the microfiche for Missouri, look on that fiche for Ray County, and then for the record type. E.G. you may find abstracts and indexes of deeds, deed records, probate records, birth records, church records, etc.

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