where2look4ancestors

Category: Genealogy

  • Killed by the Cars

    As much as we’d like to think the 19th century was a kinder gentler time, the truth is that everyday life was filled with close calls. People frequently dashed out of the way of fast-moving horses, streetcars and trains. And, as is reported in the article below, they weren’t always…

  • Get to Know the Cemetery Caretaker

    Several unrelated couples in my family tree eloped from Chicago to St Joseph Michigan. One day I asked my great-uncle (his mother was 1/2 of one of those couples) why? Uncle Fran said it was a lovely beach resort community and that people would not only elope to St Joseph,…

  • Happy Grandparents Day!

  • New Collections in Ancestry

    I booted up my computer to draft a blog post about my Schmitt ancestors for this Surname Saturday. While things were warming up, I checked email. And found this: 54 is a large number of new hints, which in itself is interesting. More interesting however, are the hints that stem…

  • Name That Ancestor

    I’m addicted to I really enjoy watching genealogy-related shows like Who Do You Think You Are?, Finding Your Roots, Genealogy Road Show, and History Detectives. I have an idea for another show Ancestry dot com could host. I’d call it Name That Ancestor. Here’s how the show would work: Ancestry…

  • Labor in My Family Tree

    Otto Victor MUELLER was the son of Elise SCHMITT and Anton BIDENHARN. He was adopted (informally I surmise) by Elise’s second husband Jacob Koebe MUELLER. A wonderful snippet about Otto appeared on page 5 of the October 6, 1905 Suburbanite Economist [Chicago Illinois]; “Otto V. Mueller, a former Englewood business…

  • Chicago Daily News Obituaries; 18 September 1886

    Ancestors who die between census years can often be difficult to trace. Perhaps the following obituaries, published on page 6 of the Chicago Daily News on September 18, 1886 will be of some help to genealogists doing research in the Windy City. The names of the deceased (including a dozen…

  • Documenting a Source that Isn’t

    Last week I mentioned a sourcing “opportunity” I had. It could complicate citing the marriage of my great-grandfather Alfred Jacob Mueller’s parents on the timeline I am preparing about his life. While drafting this post and attempting to document the aforementioned marriage, I relived the steps I took long ago…

  • Only that She Existed

    But of her? I really know only that she existed.

  • Applying Advanced Genealogy Research Techniques

    It’s time to get serious about my family history research. Particularly when it comes to breaking down a brick wall that is preventing me from getting across the pond. Toward that end, for the past few weeks I’ve been devouring reading George G. Morgan and Drew Smith’s book Advanced Genealogy Research…