Preview of My Year in Genealogy - 2019

2019

I'm looking forward to a busy and rewarding year of #genealogy challenges, fun, breakthroughs, and connections in 2019.

As mentioned in my previous post, I went happily down the rabbit hole of unexpected family history developments in 2018 (including the very welcome surprise of receiving Farkas Family Tree documents, related to my mother's family, to scan, index, and share with cousins).

That's why I didn't accomplish all I'd planned to do when I previewed my 2018 agenda at the end of last December, so these two items are carried over to 2019.

• I have two new family memory booklets in the planning stages. One will be about my mother (Daisy Schwartz Burk, 1919-1981) and her twin sister (Dorothy Helen Schwartz, 1919-2001). The other will be about my husband's parents (Marian McClure Wood, 1909-1983 and Edgar James Wood, 1903-1986).
• I was planning more intensive investigations of my DNA matches, beginning with color-coding matches to see who fits where in the family tree. Then I heard about DNA Painter at RootsTech2018. Still, this went to the back burner in 2018. Not sure whether DNA will be a front-burner activity in 2019, but I will follow up the most promising of my DNA matches.

Another "resolution" for 2019 is to continue my genealogy education through attendance at Family Tree Live (London) and the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference (Washington, D.C.). It will be wonderful to meet other genealogy buffs, chat with speakers, and connect with blogging/tweeting friends in person at these conferences. 

Most of all, I am excited about staying in touch with my cousins--perhaps even making contact with cousins I didn't know about. The family tree is alive with leaves representing cousins of all ages, all over the world, connected by our #familyhistory. I am so grateful for you, cousins, sharing what you know about our ancestors and forging new bonds that we hope will endure into the next generation.

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This "resolutions" post is the final #52Ancestors challenge for 2018. As always, thank you to Amy Johnson Crow for a year of thought-provoking prompts. 

Wisdom Wednesday: Always Check Local Genealogical Societies

When I attended the FGS 2013 conference in Ft. Wayne, I picked up business cards and bookmarks from many local genealogical societies as I walked through the exhibit hall. Now, five months later, I'm still following up.

Today I unearthed the bookmark from the Emmet County Genealogical Society from Michigan. I clicked on its site to see what resources might help me figure out why a branch of the McClure family transplanted themselves there. The surname search on this society's home page turned up nothing related to McClure.

However, the society's link to the Greenwood Cemetery in Petoskey, Michigan led me to a small gold mine.

For example, here's the death cert of Mary Ann McClure Cook, daughter of Benjamin McClure and Sarah Denning McClure. It was available--for free--by searching for all "McClure" burials in this cemetery and then clicking on Mary Ann Cook's name. What a find!

I found the death cert for her husband, Reverend John Cook, in the same way. Now I know his parents' names and exact death date. Many other names on the cemetery's list include obits or death certs or both, all for free.

So always check local genealogical societies to see what links they suggest! They know the local resources better than out-of-staters. Thank you, Emmet County Genealogical Society, for pointing me in the right direction.

PS: Brenda of Journey to the Past asked about Reverend Cook's denomination and suggested some sources for me to check. Thanks to her idea, I learned that Reverend John J. Cook was Presbyterian, and served several churches, according to this excerpt from a history of the First Presbyterian Church of Petoskey:

In view of the departure of their pastor, the church now invited Rev. John J. Cook, then pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Little Traverse, and now of the Presbyterian Church of Crooked Lake, to serve them as temporary supply. Though zealous and faithful, the duties of his own field and the distance between the two churches he was serving, rendered Mr. Cook's labors very arduous and difficult. From a letter which I [Reverend Potter] received before coming to Michigan, I learned that he longed for the coming of a pastor to the Petoskey church, who should relieve him of a part of his responsibilities. Mr. Cook supplied the pulpit about nine months, closing his labors here on the arrival of the present pastor, June 14, 1878.

Furthermore, Rev. Cook was a pensioner in 1881. How he injured his left hand and throat, I don't know, but he received $10 per month starting in March, 1881.

Thriller Thursday: Researching Sideways Reveals "Burglariously" Charge

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A few days after attending Debbie Parker Wayne's FGS talk about tax and land laws, I had a chance to apply her ideas while researching the Steiner family in Upper Sandusky, the county seat of Wynadot County, Ohio.

Visiting the Heritage Room of the Upper Sandusky library, I systematically checked each genealogy book on the shelf for any mention of a Steiner. One book listed names mentioned in early probate entries and court of common pleas law cases. There, to my surprise, I found hubby's great-grand uncle (the brother of his great-grandpa Edward G. Steiner) in an 1870 entry titled: "State of Ohio vs. Samuel D. Steiner."

Hubby scrambled off to the elegant Wyandot County Courthouse a few blocks away and came back with photos of this case's paperwork. It turns out that hubby's great-grandpa Edward G. Steiner was mentioned in the case after all! Most mysterious of all, this was a breaking and entering case, as you can see:

The State of Ohio, Wyandot County

To the keeper of the jail of the county aforesaid, greeting:

  Whereas Samuel D. Steiner late of said county has been arrested on a complaint signed and sworn to by John Price, that Elisha Holmes on the 30th day of October in the year of our Lord 1870, in the night season of the same day, to wit:

  About the hour of 8 o’clock p.m. in the county of Wyandot aforesaid, into a certain store-house of one Matthew Mitchell, is there situate and being, did willfully, maliciously, burglariously, feloniously, break and enter with intent then and there and thereby, feloniously, burglariously, to steal, take, and carry away the personal goods, chattels, and property of value of Matthew Mitchell and John B. Mitchell in the said store-house then and there being.

  And the deponent aforesaid being sworn as aforesaid further says that Samuel D. Steiner, Edward G. Steiner, and John Sheehy, before said felony was committed as aforesaid by the said Elisha Holmes, to wit:   On the 30th day of October in the year of our Lord 1870, in the county of Wyandot aforesaid, did unlawfully, feloniously, purposely, and of deliberate and premeditated purpose aid and abet and procure the aforesaid Elisha Holmes the said felony in manner and form aforesaid to commit.

  And whereas the said Samuel D. Steiner has been brought before me, to answer to said charge, and has by me required to give bail in the sum of $1,000, for his appearance before the court of common pleas in said county of Wyandot on the first day of the next term thereof, which requirement he has failed to comply with.

  I command you to receive the said Samuel D. Steiner into your custody in the jail of the county aforesaid, there to remain until he shall be discharge by due course of law.

  Given under my hand and seal this 9th day of November 1870. – M.W. Welsh, J.P.  

This is still a thriller because I don't yet know what happened--no other paperwork was in the folder or mentioned in the transcribed listing of names in lawsuits. But you know I will be digging deeper to find out. If I hadn't followed up on Samuel's name in the records, I wouldn't have known about Edward's involvement at all.

$1,000 bail was a ginormous amount in 1870. What could great-grand uncle Samuel and great-grandpa Edward have done to be accused of aiding and abetting so feloniously and burglariously a theft??

Motivation Monday: FGS + ACPL = New Ideas and Info

Wrapping up the FGS experience, the various tracks really offered something for everyone: Records; Methodologies; Tech; Brit Isles; Writing/speaking/publishing; Military; Midwest Religious Communities; Online resources; Midwest; Migration; African-American; German; European; Transportation; Genetics; Ethnic origins; NARA.

Given my focus on hubby's midwest ancestors, I stuck to the Midwest track for most of my sessions, enjoying talks by Melissa Shimkus, Elizabeth Plummer, Kris Rzepczynski, Harold Henderson, and Amy Johnson Crow. Two great lunch speakers: Josh Taylor on Saturday and Audrey Collins on Thursday, both motivational and entertaining.

As tempting as it was to go to sessions all the time, I devoted two afternoons and one evening to the Allen County Public Library. (No, no costume for the dance, just research.)

Who said libraries are going away? Not anyone who's ever been to ACPL. Its printed materials are genealogy gems, its librarians and volunteers are experts and friendly to boot. In one place I could consult books about Indiana and Ohio, the two main areas where Steiners, Rineharts, McClures, and other ancestors of hubby lived. I'm coming home with about 300 photos (not photocopies) of pages from history books, genealogies, old directories, cemetery listings, etc. That's enough raw material to keep me busy for many weeks. Some bull's eyes, some clues, lots to evaluate and check.

Also I networked with FGS attendees as well as with people in other areas (Wabash, Upper Sandusky, Wyandot) to further the research effort. More about this in future posts. So many ancestors, so little time!

Those Places Thursday: My Brick Wall in Crawford County, Ohio

Tod is that sliver of a town at far left of Crawford County, Ohio. And Tod is where one of my hubby's brick-wall ancestors lived. During the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in August, my goal is to blast this brick wall out of existence by doing research at the Allen County Public Library and in Bucyrus, the county seat of Crawford.

The brick wall's name is Jacob S. Steiner. He was born about 1802 (estimate based on Census data) and his occupation was tailor. Jacob and his wife Elizabeth (maiden name UNK) and their oldest child, William, were all born in Pennsylvania (Census again). Everybody else in their family was born in Ohio.

I know Jacob died sometime between the 1850 Census and the 1860 Census, because he's not in the 1860 Census. His wife Elizabeth is the head of the household in 1860 in Tod, and she has two of her adult children living with her, plus two of her teenage children, plus a two-year-old named Albert J. Steiner. Given Elizabeth's age, I have to believe that Albert is her grandson, but so far, I haven't identified who he belongs to. Elizabeth died in 1864 and is buried in Oceola Cemetery #2, in Crawford County.

So when and where did Jacob die? Who were his parents and where in Pennsylvania was he born? And the biggest question of all: Where in the Old World did the Steiner family come from? One family story says the Steiners (and another family in our tree, Rinehart), were Austrian. Another says they were Swiss. Well, we're going to do our best to track Jacob and family back through the 18th century and see where the trail leads! UPDATE: No breakthrough yet on Steiner and Rinehart origins, as of 2022.

Thank You, FGS--I'm a Winner!

#FGS2013

Will you be at the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in Fort Wayne, Indiana this summer?

As one of the FGS Conference Ambassadors, my name was entered into a random drawing for a free conference registration--and I won! Thank you so much, FGS :)

If you haven't already registered, you have until July 1st to get the early-bird rate and save big. Registration details are here.

The program features a number of exciting tracks: African-American genealogy, British Isles genealogy, ethnic origins, European genealogy, genetics, German genealogy, and "how to and lessons learned." I'll be mixing and matching my sessions throughout the week. Hope to see you there!

Planning for FGS 2013: Surname Networking Cards

Once hubby and I decided on a trip to the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference, we ordered business cards for surname networking. (We chose VistaPrint, which prints good-looking cards at a reasonable price.)

Here's what the back of the networking card looks like. The card stock is white and the lettering is black. I've put it against a yellow background so the card is more readable here:

Now, if we meet people interested in these surnames or researching these counties, we can hand them a card and stay in touch. Who knows, someone might know someone who knows someone . . .

Here's the front of the card, with one of our fave photos of the Steiner sisters of Upper Sandusky, Ohio, and of course our contact info (this blog's URL plus e-mail addresses and phone number, but no address).

The green tree clip art was part of the card design we chose, a perfect symbol to represent our efforts in climbing our family tree.

I was inspired to create the card by reading how other gen bloggers use cards for surname and family history networking--thanks, in particular, to Gena's Genealogy and Barbara Poole's Life from the Roots for good ideas. 

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I'm an Ambassador for the FGS 2013 Conference...if you want to register as an ambassador, please check it out here.

Those Places Thursday: Genealogy-Friendly Crawford County, Ohio

Getting ready for the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in August, I'm organizing my research so hubby and I can make the most of our time in Indiana and Ohio.

Two weeks ago, I wrote a snail-mail note to the Crawford County Probate Court, requesting death records for four ancestors on my "most wanted" list: Elizabeth Steiner (d. 6 November 1864), Jacob S. Steiner (d. between 1850 and 1860), Margaret (maiden name UNK) Rinehart (d. 11 June 1873) and William Steiner (d. 11 March 1899). All lived in Tod, Crawford County, or thereabouts.

Lisa at the court could only locate the record for William--but she kindly gave me the name/phone number of a local genealogical official and suggested I call to ask for ideas on tracking down the other records, which wouldn't be available at the county level because reporting didn't start until years later.

That call led me to the super-friendly folks at the Crawford County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society. Mary recognized the Steiner surname right away and she also has suggestions for identifying Margaret Rinehart's maiden name.

If you have any connections to Crawford County, OH (or wish that you did!), click through the above link to check out the many local genealogy resources and publications at their site. I can't wait to visit during the summertime.

FGS Conference Quest: In Search of Steiners and Rineharts

This is my quest, to follow that star as far as Fort Wayne, Indiana and beyond!

Hubby's ancestors, the Steiner family and the Rinehart family, lived in Ohio and Indiana, so by attending the FGS Conference in Fort Wayne, Indiana, we're following that star into the 18th century. Our quest: To break down Steiner and Rinehart brick walls by determining where in the Old World they were originally from and locate their arrival time/place in the New World.

Our research plan includes:

• A visit to Crawford County, OH to locate birth/death/land/probate records for Elizabeth Steiner (maiden name UNK), who died in November, 1864; Jacob S. Steiner, who died before 1860 (he was in the 1850 Census); and Margaret Rinehart, who died in June, 1873. Maybe we'll get lucky and find parents' names? Fingers crossed...
• A visit to Wyandot County, OH to see the homes where the Steiner sisters (Etta, Minnie, Carrie, and Floyda) and their spouses lived and where hubby visited them during school vacations. Of course we'll look for land/probate records and pay our respects at Old Mission Cemetery in Upper Sandusky, where some Steiners are buried.
• A visit to Wabash, IN to do research into the McClure and Larimer families who were early settlers in this area. Cemetery visits are a must, in addition to hunting for vital records and newspaper reports.
• Attendance at FGS sessions that pertain to our quest, including "Beginning Swiss Research" (in case the Steiners or Rineharts are actually Swiss, as family legend suggests); "Buckeye Beginnings" (for those Crawford Cty folks); and "First Steps in Indiana Research" (to get a good overview of resources and repositories).
• Rooting around at the Allen County Public Library for family roots (still coming up with a plan for tackling this almost overwhelming place!). This is our first visit, but hopefully not our last.

And I'm looking forward to meeting genealogy folks from all over the country at the meeting. See you there!

2022 Update: The Genealogy Center at Allen County had a key book about the McClure family that enabled us to fill out the branches of that line (I bought a personal copy for reference). Also we received many newspaper clippings from the Wabash archivist. A special part of this trip was visiting the Old Mission Cemetery in Wyandot County, where we wandered among family headstones while photographing for Find a Grave and family trees.