Search Find a Grave Bios for Genealogy Clues

Not long ago, Find a Grave added yet another way to search its memorial pages: By key words or names in the biography section.

As shown above, I tested this search by looking for a name in my husband's family tree: Frank Bentley Curtis. Actually, I already knew this name appears in at least three generations descended from my husband's 3d great-grandfather, William Tyler Bentley (1795-1873) and 3d great-grandmother, Olivia Morgan Bentley (1799?-1838). 

Searching without quotation marks returned more than 170 results, so I did another search for "Frank Bentley Curtis" in quotation marks. Only 6 results, including 2 memorials that are sponsored--meaning someone has paid to remove the ads, upload 10 more photos or documents, and showcase the page with a premium look.

I put red arrows on the image below to indicate sponsorship of two of these results. Usually someone who pays to sponsor a memorial has some relationship to the deceased person, which means those memorials are definitely worth a closer look. Find a Grave sponsorship is optional, see the help page here. You can actually search for a memorial according to whether it's sponsored or not, but I didn't do so in this case.

I investigated each memorial in the results list and wow, did I come away with a ton of fresh clues and insights. The creator of these memorials wrote about personally speaking with or corresponding with descendants, visiting cemeteries, looking for proof of marriages, and so on. The creator also posted ancestor photos, vital records, and other relevant images. Happily, each memorial is linked to at least a few of that ancestor's parents, siblings, children, spouses. 

Currently, I'm double-checking some of the bio details but I feel grateful for these information-packed memorials as a headstart to better understanding this branch of hubby's tree. And as always, I'm grateful that Find a Grave remains free for research like this (and for posting bite-sized bios and photos as cousin bait).

There are so many ways to use this new bio search...perhaps by searching for a specific place or occupation or military unit or rank as part of FAN club research (friends/family, associates, neighbors). Give it a try on its own or as part of a search where you look for someone by surname and/or date and/or cemetery location and/or sponsorship.

Redoing Research = Fresh Results

During the summer, the Library and Archives Canada website launched a new website, redesigned for accessibility and easier navigation. 

Today, with Canada's Thanksgiving Day on my mind, I retraced my steps to redo my research into hubby's great uncles from the Slatter family tree, all Canadian bandmasters.

Ancestor search

As shown here on the main search page, the choices are "library search" and "ancestor search."

I used "ancestor search" to look for results related to Captain John D. Slatter (1864-1954), the renowned bandmaster of the 48th Highlanders of Toronto. 

He served in that post for 50 years and both wrote and arranged lots of military music. Two musical pieces show up as the first of 65 items in the results. Although I know a lot about the good Captain, I'm always interested in discovering new nuggets of family history, like these.

Look at all results

Interestingly, because of the way the search function operates on this website, I found not John D. Slatter, but his oldest son, Albert Matthew Slatter (1887-1970), on page 3 of the results. 

Clicking to view the result, I found in the Canada Gazette of November 15, 1919, Albert was mentioned in a long list of changes in military status (promotions, demobs, medically unfit, etc) announced via this paper. 

I knew of Albert's military service, because I have his attestation and other documents, but this aspect was a new wrinkle. So I'm happily redoing other searches for the Slatter bandmasters, expecting a few fresh results to turn up!

By the way, my genealogy friend and blogger Linda Stufflebean left a comment that reinforces the idea of redoing research as time goes on: "Today, it always pays to refresh because of all the new records becoming available." So true!

Happy Thanksgiving to my friends up north.

I Did a Double-Take When I Saw This Date!

 

I do a lot of horizontal genealogy research, adding siblings, their spouses, and their in-laws to my family tree. More than once, I've discovered some of these folks are actually distant cousins of my ancestors!

This man's relationship to me is not very close: sibling of husband of sister-in-law of 1c1r.

Still, by looking closely at Ray Klein and his siblings, I'm seeking to determine whether and how their mother might be related to my maternal Waldman cousins from Hungary. 

I did a double-take when this database info turned up. Anybody think this is an actual birth date?? 

Um, no. 

Automated indexing and extracts don't always get the details right. That's why I aim to look at original documents myself. 

A Look Ahead to My Genealogy Projects in 2022

 

As 2022 approaches, I'm looking forward to making progress on a number of genealogy projects.

• Census research: I can hardly wait until April 1st, when the 1950 US Census will be released. I'm ready to browse with names, street addresses, and enumeration districts. If the surname search function is operational, so much the better. I can sort my listing of most-wanted ancestors alphabetically by surname or numerically by ED. This Census could help me solve some vexing family-history mysteries! A true highlight of 2022.
• Census research: On January 6, the 1921 Census for England will be released. My hubby had ancestors in London at that point, and I had paternal cousins in Manchester and London. Should be quite interesting to locate these people and learn more!
• Bite-sized bios: I'll be writing and posting (in public) more bite-sized bios for ancestors in my family tree and my hubby's family tree. For instance, I haven't written any public bios for aunts/uncles other than my Auntie Dorothy, who was a WAC, although all of these ancestors are mentioned in private family-history booklets sent to relatives. Also I'll be working on bios for great aunts and great uncles, and for ancestors who served in the military.
• Photo management: It's time (past time, really) for reorganizing old family photos. I bought one archival photo album as an experiment started scanning photos before slotting them into the album. In 2022, I plan to test a different type of album and increase momentum. Regardless of the albums I use, captioning is key!
• Research priority: Other than searching newly-released Census records, my top research priority is to follow up on clues uncovered by the incredible WikiTree team a few weeks ago. There are so many intriguing possibilities for improving my family tree and adding more ancestors/bios/sources on WikiTree.
• DNA matches: Who knows what the future holds here? Maybe 2022 will be the year I make a big breakthrough! I'm fishing in many ponds and keeping my fingers crossed.
• Presentations: It is an honor to be presenting virtual programs to audiences near and far. My talk about the 1950 US Census is currently the most popular. Until full indexing is complete, I'll be explaining the enumeration quirks and demonstrating the three-step process for finding ancestors through efficient, informed browsing. 
• Genealogy education: So many virtual learning opportunities are ahead in 2022. I'm thankful that once again, RootsTech will be all-virtual and worldwide, offering hundreds of talks on genealogy topics for all levels and all interests. I'll miss seeing my genie friends in person, but the next-best thing is having access to world-class talks without leaving home. At least to start the year, all of the genealogy groups to which I belong are hosting speakers virtually--especially convenient in the winter, when weather is iffy. 
  

Dear readers, I wish you a new year filled with successful genealogy research, interesting learning opportunities, and great progress on your family history projects!

- "Future" is the final prompt for Amy Johnson Crow's #52Ancestors challenge of 2021. 

Looking for Free, Downloadable Genealogy Forms?

I really appreciate free, blank genealogy forms I can download and use in analyzing research sources and recording my family tree. 

Forms help me stay organized and record data in a standardized format. 

They're also great for sharing information with relatives and researchers.

Here are just four of the many sites that offer downloadable genealogy forms for free:

• FamilySearch. A great source of downloads for everything from blank Census forms (Canada, UK, US) to blank forms for pedigree charts and research logs. Scroll down for links to lots of other excellent sources of free downloadable sources (via Cyndi's List, and more).
• Misbach. Not all forms are free on this site, but there are good selections that cost nothing. I especially like the free pedigree charts and free 6-generation fan chart.
• National Genealogical Society. A bit of color adds to the readability and appeal of these free, downloadable charts. Just type in your info and these are ready to share. 
• Kentucky Genealogical Society. Whether or not you have Kentucky ancestors, these free downloadable charts are pretty and add a touch of color to your family tree details.

Although it's easy to electronically share these forms after I've entered data, I also like to print and put into my files (and send to relatives), as backup! Check whether your local genealogical society has forms for free download, or use one of these sources. Write it down so you and later generations will have the information you need.

The Thrill of Discovery, the Work of Writing

Isn't it exciting to discover something new about family history? I still remember cranking the old microfilm reader in a library and gasping audibly when I suddenly found my ancestor's record! 

Writing a Dorothy and Daisy Booklet

These days I've been clicking to do research as I work toward completing a family history booklet about my Mom and her twin sister (see cover of booklet at right). 

Mom and Dorothy lived in the Bronx, NY with their parents and brother until World War II began. Then their lives diverged during and after the war, with different career paths and different family situations.

Already, I've arranged 15 photos interspersed among 20 pages about the twins. I really want descendants to know more about these strong women in our family tree.

Fun and Work

Yet even during a pandemic year, when I have more time to focus on genealogy, I find that writing feels like work, whereas searching out new discoveries feels like fun. 

Just today, I made a small discovery: Dorothy's book about her WAC unit is listed in book about military women in World War II. I have the history she wrote, but it was just plain fun to find my aunt's postwar project acknowledged in this way! 

Sharing Discoveries Keeps Ancestors Alive

Future generations won't know very much more than the bare facts about the twins unless I stick to the hard work of writing about their lives and incorporating the fun discoveries I've made as well as memories of those who knew them so well. 

So I'm continuing to write one sentence at a time, and insert family photos one at a time, until I complete the joint story of Dorothy and Daisy. The finish line is in sight!

FREE: City Directories on HeritageQuest

Did you know you can access US city directories via HeritageQuest Online, for free? In Vermont, Los Angeles, New York City, and in many other areas, all you need to access the free HeritageQuest genealogy databases from home is a public library card.

In my previous post, I discussed how I used city directories to solve a family mystery. HeritageQuest has lots of town and city directories . . . ready to be searched or browsed from your own keyboard, in your bunny slippers, at any hour.

Does your local library offer HeritageQuest?

Check your local or state library's website or ask your friendly neighborhood librarian about how to access HeritageQuest from home. Usually all you need is a library card number.

Once you log in, go to the "Search" section of the HeritageQuest site (as shown at left).

There you'll see several choices of databases to search--including, as shown at top, the many city directories.

Now you'll have three choices of databases: "people," "publications," and "city directories" (see image at right).

Search name and family member

Click on "city directories" to search by name, with a family member (which sometimes helps), indicate gender, and indicate residence year.

Dates can be approximate--the results usually cover a range of years. Go ahead and click, it's free with your library card. You never know who you will find (or, as in the case of the family mystery I was researching, who you will not find).

--

This is a brief excerpt from my how-to presentation, Getting the Most Out of HeritageQuest Online. For more about my talks, please click here.

HeritageQuest is only available in Connecticut with a free state library card, by the way, due to budget limitations.