Thanks for the detailed answers to my questions. I realized after reading your responses that the wording of some of my questions was either imprecise or just plain wrong!!! On 7 Aug 1998 08:37:40 -0700, Del Stanley <dgstan@earthlink.net> wrote: > >Boltfan2@anti-spam.worldnet.att.net wrote: > >> I have recently been researching my ancestors using census info from >> the LDS center in Los Angeles. One of the "how to" documents from the >> LDS center talked about not relying on the Soundex and examining the >> actual census records. I was wondering if anyone has any idea how >> accurate is the Soundex? Is it really necessary to look at the entire >> census for a county or state if a person did not appear in the index? > >The Soundex will provide data so you can easily locate family in the >census w/o having to go through the entire census. >It gives limited information, whereas the census will give >more detailed information. The Soundex will give name, ages >and relationships of family members. It gives enough info so that >you can be fairly sure you have the correct family when you go to the >census records. Some people stop here w/o looking into the census. >That is why you got the warning. Spellings may differ, etc. Note that >even census records may have incorrect spellings, birthdates, etc. >Trying to find a family w/o the info obtained from the soundex can >indeed be very time consuming if no other index or abstract can be >found. Again, Soundex is primarily a census locator. > >Also note that the 1910 Soundex is not complete for all states. >Mississippi as well as all other southern states ARE included >however (in Soundex or Miracode). > >> For example, my GGrandfather appeared in the 1920 (Mississippi) census >> with his family but did not appear in the 1910 or 1900 Soundex. I >> feel he should have appeared since some of his children were born >> after 1910 in Mississippi. > >If he had children born AFTER 1910, and they lived with him then >they should appear in the 1920 census. Since you say they did, I >don't know what your point is here. Perhaps you mean he had children >born BEFORE 1910 in MS, and therefore s/b in the 1910 census? Otherwise >if the children were born after 1910, why do you assume he MUST be >in the 1910 MS census? What's the connection? I did mean BEFORE (sorry). My gm was born in 1909 so I thought the family should have appeared in 1910. As it turns out (in the 2 weeks it seems to take for messages to post to this group), I did find them in 1910 while I was looking for someone else in the same county. Unfortunately, the child who is the age of my gm has a different name (Lucy vs. Mariah). Is there a reasonable explanation for this? I knew her as Mariah Alice and she appears as Mariah in 1920. I have no idea why Lucy would have been mentioned. She did have a sister who was about twelve years younger named Lucy. Now I can't find this ggf in 1900. In 1920 (+oral history) he says he and his parents were born in Alabama. In 1910 he says he and his mother were born in Georgia. I looked on the MS, GA, AL Soundex for 1900 and found no sign of him. I have the name of his mother who I've also unsuccessfully searched for in the 1900 and 1880 Soundex for all three states. Any suggestions on where to look? I know he wasn't married in 1900 because I found my ggm (his future wife) as a teenager living with relatives in this census. I'm inclined to go with Alabama since that is where the oral history indicates he was born. Is there a way besides the Soundex to pinpoint the county where he was born? I can't imagine searching the entire state of Alabama line by line to find him!!! >> Should I look at the entire census for the >> county in which he lived or can I rely on the fact that if he does not >> appear in the Soundex than he was just dropped in the county by aliens >> in 1919? > >Are you certain he lived in Mississippi at the time of the census? Do >any family members know if perhaps he came to MS from say Alabama, >Tennessee, etc.? The 1900 census day was June 1st. If your ggf was >born July 1, 1900 he would not (should not) appear in the 1900 census. >If the family moved there (from another state) after June 1, they will >not appear in MS. Wherever one is at the time of the census, is >generally where he will be recorded even if in transist. Note that >aliens need not have dropped off your ggf in MS in 1919. The 1910 >census date was April 15, 1910. Thus he could have appeared on April >16, 1910 for the 1920 census, but not be in the 1910 census. > > If you KNOW he was in MS during those census years, and does not appear > in the Soundex then consider the following: > >(1) When transcribing for the Soundex, the transcriber may have errored. > Sometimes an "I" looks like "J", which sometimes looks like an "S". > Some records were written in some very beautiful handwritting, but > sometimes those flourishes are hard to understand. In other cases > the handwritting is simply poor. Bad news. > >(2) Try to obtain a city directory for that year, and note the address > for your relative. Find that address on a map (probably an old one). > For 1900 and 1910 there are volumes for Enumeration District > Descriptions. "1/4 mi. south of White Rock creek at the intersection > of Smith Lake." If this descrption fits, then note the number, 55 for > example. Instead of looking up everybody in the county census, just > go to that ED # for the county. In other words find ED 55 in the > county census, then start looking there. > >(3) If (2) doesn't work, (which is likely) then try this. Your ggf may > have had bothers and sisters. In those days it was quite often that > relatives lived close together. This is why you should include his > brothers and sisters in your search. I believe this is called > "cluster genealogy", or extended family search. Many times you can > gather a great deal of info about your direct line this way. > > Lets say he had a brother that you are able to find. When you > find the brother or sister, look at the entries above and > below him/her. These families are neighbors. Some may be > relatives, and your ggf may be nearby. Again note the ED, > and look at the entire district. Note the ED for other > relatives, and search those too. Sometimes a relative is > living with another. Look at ALL the names in a nearby > household. > >(4) Possible research problems on your part. If you are looking up > say John Smith in Quitman county, and did not find him, did > you just stop there? I would look up all John Smiths in ALL > counties in the state. He may have moved from one county to > another. Also, sometimes county names and boundaries change. > One may be born in one county, but that county is CURRENTLY > incorporated into another county, and thus another county name. > One may have the same birthplace, but the county name may > changed. Your library may have copies of county boundaries > that have changed over the years. Check there also. You may > have to check records in different county seats. > >> Another GGrandfather appeared as a child in the 1900 census but not as >> an adult in the 1910 or 1920 Soundex. Would it be necessary for me to >> examine the actual census records of the counties where he lived as a >> child and the county where his daughter (my Grandmother) is living and >> all counties in between? > >Did he move to another state, another county? If your gm is still living >she may be the best source for where he was at the time. If you know for >sure where he was, then see above. > >I don't know if you can obtain "actual" census records. What you get >is a film of the actual records, but not THE actual records. If too >many hands are on delicate records, the records may be destroyed. You >may pay for copies. Again, I don't really know if you are allowed to >examine actual census records. I meant the microfilm copy of the census. I was trying to distinguish these records from the Soundex. > >If you cannot find census records, then you will have to examine >other records such as vital statistics, etc. Birth, marriage, >death records. County tax records are another source which may >help in determining whether your family was in a certain county >during a certain time. The best one place source for most records >is the LDS records in Salt Lake City. Check with your LA LDS branch >to see if some records can be transferred to LA from SLC. Still >however, if your family is from Mississippi, you will almost >certainly have to go there eventually; depending how thorough and >accurate you want your records. Cannot be done in LA alone, unless >of course someone else has already done it for you. These county >records, however will likely be the "actual" records. Check wills, >probate records, etc. > >> Also, I was wondering about the migration patterns of Blacks living in >> the South around 1870 - 1920. Did people move easily? Did entire >> families move together or did one person move and others follow? > >I can't help you much on this. I know that during the Civil War, many >slaveowners moved their slaves to Texas to avoid losing their >slaves in areas hotly contested areas. Falls county, Texas was once >considered the slave refugee capital (a safe haven to stash your "property"). >My gggf (Scruggs) came this way from Clarke County, AL. My gggm from >(Bryant) from TN. > >Watch out for "slave clusters". These are many unrelated slaves who >had the same master, and also took the master's name. Thus all black >Watleys living in the same county at a goven time, are not neccesarily >related. They may just have the same slave name. Avoid the "we must be >related" because we live in the same area and are black syndrome. Could >be, but not neccessarily so. > >> Thanks in advance for any info..... >> >> Surnames researching in Mississippi -- >> >> WATLEY, WALKER, CASTON, JACKSON, GREENFIELD, MCKNIGHT, WRIGHT Also GRAY or GREY ********* To Reply, Please Remove anti-spam ********** "Sometimes you're the windshield, Sometimes you're the bug!!"