On Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:06:31 -0500, Brian <drmorrisnospam@comcast.net> wrote: >Thanks but I think my ancestors came to NY in the early 1800's. I was >not aware of the many variations in spelling. >I have noticed some family trees that I know are incorrect because >I've done research into records. There is one fairly distant relative >that I tried to communicate this to but she still has the incorrect >information posted. >I look at any trees as places to get ideas that need to be researched. Sounds like you are headed in the right direction. But, when comparing my efforts to some in this forum I consider myself a rank amateur. I am more inclined to go with irrefutable preponderance of evidence than the purists. If they came to NY perhaps they came through Ellis Island. There is also a listing of ships with passengers, ISTG? available. In my listing of facts I have Sullivans at POEs at more Southern ports before 1800. You are fortunate in a fashion by ancestors being in NY. Most VA and NC records were destroyed by war as late as1865 and by fire and flood otherwise. That's the main reason my preponderance is irrefutable. It's sorta late for long-time researchers, but I suggest that newbies record every fact they find, by year state and county, on a word processor. It's easy to move the facts to a genie program later. But the listing of facts can also be done later in alpha order by county, and in the order that counties were formed from each other, to assist in linking people. One thing you quickly notice is that a person might never move yet he could live in as many as 4 counties because the county lines changed. It would appear to the casual observer that he had moved 4 times. Hugh

On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 13:52:45 GMT, Eagle@bellsouth.net (J. Hugh Sullivan) wrote: >On Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:06:31 -0500, Brian <drmorrisnospam@comcast.net> >wrote: > >>Thanks but I think my ancestors came to NY in the early 1800's. I was >>not aware of the many variations in spelling. >>I have noticed some family trees that I know are incorrect because >>I've done research into records. There is one fairly distant relative >>that I tried to communicate this to but she still has the incorrect >>information posted. >>I look at any trees as places to get ideas that need to be researched. > >Sounds like you are headed in the right direction. But, when comparing >my efforts to some in this forum I consider myself a rank amateur. I >am more inclined to go with irrefutable preponderance of evidence than >the purists. I tend to write that sort of evidence into my record but I also indicate that it is probable, but not proven. If someone later on happens to find that evidence that probably doesn't exist, we can all rejoice. :-) >If they came to NY perhaps they came through Ellis Island. There is >also a listing of ships with passengers, ISTG? available. In my >listing of facts I have Sullivans at POEs at more Southern ports >before 1800. Don't forget that many came through Castle Garden before Ellis Island opened, though. IIRC that change was about 1890. >You are fortunate in a fashion by ancestors being in NY. Most VA and >NC records were destroyed by war as late as1865 and by fire and flood >otherwise. That's the main reason my preponderance is irrefutable. The Quaker records for North Carolina apparently survived better than the official records, and there were Sullivans of various spellings among them, as well as among my tribe who passed through North Carolina ca. 1790 - 1835 (a lot of them stayed, of course). In the off chance that Brian's Sullivans had Quaker links he might want to look up Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, Vol. I, which is all about North Carolina records. I got a lot of my North Carolina information from it, because a lot of men in my tree had the good sense to marry Quaker women so I got birth, marriage, death, and other information not only for my men but for many of the women they married. You can find Hinshaw and other Quaker material via Ancestry by searching the Card Catalog with "quaker genealogy." >It's sorta late for long-time researchers, but I suggest that newbies >record every fact they find, by year state and county, on a word >processor. It's easy to move the facts to a genie program later. But >the listing of facts can also be done later in alpha order by county, >and in the order that counties were formed from each other, to assist >in linking people. >One thing you quickly notice is that a person might never move yet he >could live in as many as 4 counties because the county lines changed. >It would appear to the casual observer that he had moved 4 times. Very common everywhere in the US during the expansion/frontier years. -- Don donsgenes@charter.net

On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 11:36:10 -0800, Don Kirkman <donsgenes@charter.net> wrote: >The Quaker records for North Carolina apparently survived better than >the official records, and there were Sullivans of various spellings >among them, as well as among my tribe who passed through North >Carolina ca. 1790 - 1835 (a lot of them stayed, of course). In the >off chance that Brian's Sullivans had Quaker links he might want to >look up Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, Vol. I, >which is all about North Carolina records. I got a lot of my North >Carolina information from it, because a lot of men in my tree had the >good sense to marry Quaker women so I got birth, marriage, death, and >other information not only for my men but for many of the women they >married. You can find Hinshaw and other Quaker material via Ancestry >by searching the Card Catalog with "quaker genealogy." Some of my wife's ancestor's may have been Quaker and I'll tell her about that reference. However, my ancestors on my father's side were all Roman Catholics as far as I know.

On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 13:52:45 GMT, Eagle@bellsouth.net (J. Hugh Sullivan) wrote: >Sounds like you are headed in the right direction. But, when comparing >my efforts to some in this forum I consider myself a rank amateur. I >am more inclined to go with irrefutable preponderance of evidence than >the purists. I know that I am very amateur. > >If they came to NY perhaps they came through Ellis Island. There is >also a listing of ships with passengers, ISTG? available. In my >listing of facts I have Sullivans at POEs at more Southern ports >before 1800. They came before Ellis Island. I have found a little information through Castle Garden. > >You are fortunate in a fashion by ancestors being in NY. Most VA and >NC records were destroyed by war as late as1865 and by fire and flood >otherwise. That's the main reason my preponderance is irrefutable. > >It's sorta late for long-time researchers, but I suggest that newbies >record every fact they find, by year state and county, on a word >processor. It's easy to move the facts to a genie program later. But >the listing of facts can also be done later in alpha order by county, >and in the order that counties were formed from each other, to assist >in linking people. > >One thing you quickly notice is that a person might never move yet he >could live in as many as 4 counties because the county lines changed. >It would appear to the casual observer that he had moved 4 times. > >Hugh That is the case with an ancestor of my wife. He emigrated to MD from an unknown location and where he lived has been in 3 or 4 different counties. His descendants moved away, many to the south. My wife was born in GA and moved to MD when we married. She now lives about 30 miles from where her ancestor did.

On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 22:01:15 -0500, Brian <drmorrisnospam@comcast.net> wrote: >On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 13:52:45 GMT, Eagle@bellsouth.net (J. Hugh >Sullivan) wrote: >>One thing you quickly notice is that a person might never move yet he >>could live in as many as 4 counties because the county lines changed. >>It would appear to the casual observer that he had moved 4 times. >> >>Hugh > >That is the case with an ancestor of my wife. He emigrated to MD from >an unknown location and where he lived has been in 3 or 4 different >counties. His descendants moved away, many to the south. My wife was >born in GA and moved to MD when we married. She now lives about 30 >miles from where her ancestor did. A cupla thots... If he moved South he might not have remained Catholic. In rural areas of the South there may only be 1 Catholic Church in a county. But the Primitive Baptist Churches are "one axle greasin'" apart. That's about 10 miles. The four male generations before me were all Primitive Baptists in AL and I have actually attended services at each of the churches they did. Also a number of immigrants first went to Jamaice or other islands before continuing the journey to the mainland. I have a census listing of Sullivans in MD for 1800 and 1810 if that would halp. It does not include household members because I do not research MD. You can easily obtain the same info through Heritage Quest if you have a library card. Remember to try various spellings including Sullivant. HQ is particular about spelling. Hugh