Showing posts with label SS-5. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SS-5. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

One Generation Back for $27 Plus an Eight Week Wait


Researching the Yurko family, an in-law line on my hubby's family tree, I wanted to discover the names of the parents of Joseph John Yurko (1873-1954), born on this day 152 years ago.

Believe the death cert?

According to Joseph's death cert, his father was John Yurko and his mother's name was unknown. Indeed, in Joseph's generation and later generations, the names of Joseph Yurko and John Yurko appear more than once. Clearly these were beloved family names.

However, the informant on the death cert was John's youngest daughter, Mary L. Yurko (1916-2001), I doubted her ability to remember her grandparents' names. Why? Mary was born 17 years after her own parents left their homeland to come to America. She was 37 when her father died. Although she may have heard her Yurko grandparents' names as she grew up, Mary probably never met those relatives, and I imagine the stress of her father's death impeded her ability to recall the names clearly. 

I didn't feel confident that Mary's memory was correct...which led me to shift my research in another direction. Where would I find Joseph saying the names of his parents?

Social Security application = first-hand info

Joseph applied for a Social Security card in 1937. The application form asks for birth place/place, current residential address, names of parents, and employer, among other details. This is first-hand info supplied by the applicant. 

In the past, I've had great success getting a generation back when I paid to receive a copy of the SS-5 (Social Security) application for other ancestors. IMHO, the information is valuable enough to invest in obtaining it for certain ancestors of interest.

As shown in image at top of this blog post, we can order either the SS-5, which costs $27 at the moment, or a Numident, which is an extract of the info on the application. ALWAYS spend the extra buck or two for the SS-5 because we should see with our own eyes what the applicant wrote on the form! Forget the Numident 👎

Eight weeks later, info arrives

Late in February, I made a Freedom of Information Act request for Joseph John Yurko's SS-5. I had to supply information to help the government ascertain that it was giving me the correct person's form. And of course I had to pay. Note that there are restrictions on such requests, such as how long the person has been dead. In my case, because Joseph was born in 1873 and died in 1954, there were no impediments to obtaining his SS-5.

After eight weeks, I received an email containing the image shown above. Just looking at the form, I think Joseph verbally gave the info and was shown where to sign his name. The info confirms what I believed were his date of birth and birth place, also showing that he worked for the WPA (as shown in the 1940 US Census), and confirming his long-time home address, a house in Cleveland that has since been torn down.

I was delighted to see the names of Joseph's parents. His father was NOT John but was Andrew Yurko. And now I also know his mother's full name for the first time. Joseph and his wife presumably named their older daughter Anna, after Joseph's mother. For me, all these details were worth the investment of $27.

By the way, Joseph and his wife Mary Gavalek (1879-1943) were married in 1896 in their hometown of Hazlin, according to his naturalization papers. Joseph and Mary had no sons named Andrew that I've found (still looking in their hometown) and no grandsons named Andrew either. Hmm. 

Paying for a record

I decided to pay for this record because it provided info that was furnished by the applicant, even though he didn't actually write anything but his signature. Having exhausted other avenues of research, I felt it would be worth my while to see this document and all the details on it. 

Not every ancestor in my ever-expanding family tree is worth an investment of $27, but I decided that the SS-5 was the only way I would learn about this ancestor's parents and be confident that the info was accurate because it came from the man himself. Plus I would see the actual image, not an extract or transcript, which is of great value.

Sunday, October 18, 2020

Free Genealogy Websites -- But Sometimes It Pays to Pay!


Randy Seavers issued a Saturday Night Genealogy Challenge this weekend: "Your Top 10 Free Genealogy Sites."

My summary page for "Genealogy--Free or Fee?" shows many top picks for free genealogy.

The Ancestor Hunt by Kenneth Marks

One free website I'm adding to my list is The Ancestor Hunt, a very useful website by Kenneth Marks (on Twitter at @marksology). 

As shown at top, the site links to free genealogy resources (arranged by U.S. state and Canadian province) such as newspapers, birth-marriage-death records, photos, school yearbooks, directories, immigration, divorce, and lots of other categories!


Here's a sample of what these state-by-state links look like. Definitely worth taking a look and clicking for the state where our ancestors lived! Be sure to look at all the headings. There's a lot here, thanks to Kenneth Marks.

When It Pays to Pay


Sometimes I need information that I just can't find for free. Direct line ancestors (parents, grandparents, great-grannies, etc) are a key priority. If those key vital records aren't available for free, I order and have them in hand for careful scrutiny. More than once, I've noticed tiny details that changed my understanding of an ancestor's life! And, as my friend Linda Stufflebean points out, the free version of a record may not have all the info that is available on the original version ordered for a fee.

I also pay for birth, marriage, death, and other records when I need to find out (or confirm) a maiden name, get an exact date, or see info that my ancestor actually wrote. This includes original photocopies of my ancestors' Social Security applications (SS-5). 

In general, vital records tend to get more expensive as the years go by--if they are available at all. Some states are restricting access, unfortunately. If I want that record and it's not available for free, I'm going to buy it now and keep it.

Before I send money, I always look at a blank copy of the record to be sure I understand what will (and won't) be on it. If I'm hoping to learn an exact birth date but early marriage records show just an age or state whether bride/groom are over 21, I may look for a different record to obtain the birth date.

Tuesday, October 13, 2020

A Genealogy Record Actually Got Cheaper!


Prepping for my "Free and Almost Free Genealogy" talk this week, I double-checked the cost of sending for an ancestor's Social Security (SS-5) application. 

Although there is a fee for obtaining SS-5 documents, they are filled with detail. Don't bother with the "computer extract" which usually doesn't have all the details on the actual application. Go straight for the "photocopy of original application" even though it costs a little more. You want to see the original with your own eyes!

When I couldn't find my great-grandma's maiden name any other way, I paid to get my grandpa Isaac's Social Security application. 

As shown directly above, Isaac applied for a Social Security card on December 1, 1936, giving the following info on his application:

  • First name and surname
  • Home address
  • Employer name and address
  • Current age AND birthdate AND birthplace (including country)
  • Father's full name
  • Mother's given and maiden name
  • Sex, color
  • Date of application and signature 
The price of obtaining this SS-5 has varied over the years. Two years ago, it was $24 for the photocopy. 

Today, as shown at top of this post, the cost of a photocopy is only $21. Rarely does a genealogy record get cheaper. If you, like me, want to get more info about an ancestor who had a Social Security account, I encourage you to spend the money to see the photocopy. IMHO, the investment can be quite worthwhile. Here's the link to get started.