I saw this article and thought it would help me and maybe others out there. So I'm sending it on. Hope it helps someone. BFC << << George G. Morgan: "Along Those Lines . . ." --- Searching Alternate Research Paths Genealogists are an intelligent lot, I've always found. They are tenacious researchers who learn from their experiences and are more than willing to share with one another. With training and experience, I believe we become adept at finding ancestral evidence in even the most unlikely places. In "Along Those Lines . . ." this week, let's discuss some ways of locating records by searching alternative research paths. When There Are No Records To Be Found Brick walls are the bane of a researcher's existence. Search as we may, sometimes there just aren't any records to be found to prove the fact or hypothesis we need to verify. Even the most basic vital records such as birth and certificates weren't required to be kept in specific areas until the Twentieth Century. Going down alternative research paths and seeking substitute records may be your only options to obtain the proofs you need. Your job is to use your creative mental processes to figure out which other records might give you what you need. To do so, you need to ask yourself some questions: 1. Who is the person I am researching? 2. Where was this person located? 3. What was the time period? 4. What type of record am I seeking? 5. Why would the record have been created? 6. Who would have created it? 7. What governmental entity had jurisdiction of the area at the time? 8. Did that governmental entity require that a record be created? 9. If so, where would it have been stored? 10. Might the record have been destroyed or moved to another location? 11. Would some other entity have received a copy that might have survived? 12. If the governmental entity did not require a record to be created, who else might have created a record and why? 13. Where might I find a copy of that record? 14. How can I obtain the record? 15. How will I cite my source(s) for the alternative record? This logical question and answer process may just prompt you to determine other resources to investigate. Let's use some examples. A Birth Record In the United States, most states did not require the creation of official birth records. Thus, birth certificates are comparatively new documents in the U.S., and also in other countries. Many people, in order to obtain a passport or to file for Social Security benefits had to apply for a delayed birth certificate. If they could do it, you can employ the same principle. What other alternative records can you use as a substitute? A family Bible in which the event was recorded at the time is, of course, an excellent place to start. So are religious records, such as baptismal, christening, confirmation, and bar and bat mitzvah records. School records provide another resource, especially considering the amount of information that parents or guardians needed to provide for enrollment. Diaries, journals, and family letters also provide details. And perhaps there are photographs depicting a child, labeled with name, age, and/or date of birth. A Marriage Record Let's say you were trying to locate a marriage record for your great-great-grandparents who were married in 1845 in a county in which the courthouse was destroyed by a fire or tornado. The marriage books may have been lost and therefore there is no official record of the marriage. What other alternative records can you use as a substitute? Other records that may have recorded details about the marriage might include a church, parish, or synagogue register. A family Bible may contain an entry made at the time. A diary or journal, or letters between family members describing the wedding, may provide the types of documentary evidence you need to confirm the date and location of the marriage. Don't forget to check newspapers for marriage announcements and church records for announcement of banns. A divorce or annulment record can be used because they typically include the marriage date and location. Some census records indicate the number of years a couple was married, as well as the children's names and places of birth, which may lead you back to the place where the couple was wed. A Death Record Death certificates are also relatively recent records. There are numerous alternative places to find death records. Newspaper obituaries, church membership records, funeral home and mortuary records, a cemetery's property and interment records, coroner's report, police report, doctor's records, tombstones, the family Bible, library memorials, probate court records and probate packets, Federal census mortality schedules (for the 12 months prior to some censuses), diaries and journals, military service and pension records, veterans' widows' pension records, the Social Security Death Index, church and denominational newspapers and other publications, union membership records, and life insurance policies. All of these and others may provide data for you. Proof of Residence Locating the place where an ancestor lived can often be easier than you think. While most of us consider censuses as the end-all for this purpose, there were often people omitted from the enumeration or subsequent transcription of records. However, there are records for both the landowning and non-landowning persons. These include deeds, indentures, tax rolls, tax delinquency rolls, voter rolls, jury lists, gun permits, city directories, telephone directories, school records (including yearbooks), religious membership records, alumni association directories, passports, immigration and naturalization records, union and trade membership records, employment records, Social Security SS-5 forms, military service and pension records, death certificates, obituaries, public notices published in newspapers, insurance policies of many types, funeral home and mortuary records, and will and probate records. Certainly this is not a comprehensive list, but there are many records to provide proof of a person's residence. Family Information Perhaps you have reached a dead end in locating the parents of one of your ancestors. Do you know the names of any of their siblings? It may be possible to make an end-run around your brick wall by working on a sibling's records, tracing them backwards to his/her parents, and then proving the descent of your own ancestor from the top down. This is contrary to the cardinal rule of genealogy, "Start with yourself and work backward." However, this may be your only recourse. I have used this approach successfully several times, including once when I found a sister's name in an obituary, traced her to her parents, and then traced my own ancestor's descent. An Imagination Appoarch As you can see, it takes an imaginative approach to think of all the record types that might possibly provide the proof you need. Try to put yourself in your ancestor's shoes at the place and time you are researching. Imagine his/her life, the events they experienced, the ones for which records may have been created, and who might have created them. Focus on the fact that many life experiences are shared with others, and that more than one person may have recorded the event in some written form or another. Even a letter from one family member to another describing a wedding can provide evidence of the wedding, where it was performed and by whom (a church?), the names of persons who attended, even addresses of various sorts. Your knowledge of your family, the time period in which they lived, the geographic area and the history of the area, the political/social/economic/religious climate, and your own creative imagination can collaborate help locate substitute records. An alternate research path may lead you to the evidence you seek. Happy Hunting! George >> George G. Morgan is a proud member of the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors, Inc. (<A HREF="http://www.rootsweb.com/~cgc/cgc2.htm">ISFHWE</A>). He would like to hear from you at [email protected] but, due to the volume of e-mail, he is unable to answer every e-mail message received. Please note that he cannot assist you with your individual research. <A HREF="http://ahaseminars.com/atl">Visit George's Web</A> site for information about speaking engagements. >>