Thank you, Fran, from me and, I am sure, from many others for such a detailed explanation of the source of those vital records. Thank heavens also for people like you who are willing to give of your precious time to create valuable tools to aid genealogists of today and days to come. God bless you all. Jean Rhoads Camas ----- Original Message ----- From: "Fran Salyers" <fallingoaks@mac.com> To: <KYMUHLEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, April 10, 2006 9:10 AM Subject: Re: [KYMUHLEN] Birth Records 1874 - 1878 > Yes, the indexing project is quite an undertaking -- mostly because of > the elaborate and sometimes undecipherable handwriting. Several of you > wrote to me off-list about the source of these records. I'm responding to > the entire list. I'm including info on how you can find out online what > records are available (at least at the state level) for any Kentucky > county for any given year. > > Kentucky did not keep comprehensive, official birth and death records > until 1911 but did maintain lists of births, deaths, and marriages, filed > by county, from 1852-1862, 1874-1879, 1891-1910 in the State Auditor's > Office. These records are available at the Kentucky Department of > Libraries and Archives. (Note: The state didn't do a great job of > mandating these records in those years, so not all counties complied > records for all years.) > > Our ancestors in Muhlenberg County, bless 'em, apparently saw the > importance of keeping the records. We're working with microfilmed copies > of the original pages -- huge ledger books with columns under these > headings: > date of birth > name of child > sex > born alive or dead > place of birth (which sometimes differs from Muhlenberg, but recorded > because the parents are residents of Muhlenberg) > name of father of child > name of mother of child (maiden names are listed) > color (white, black, mulatto) > birthplace of father > birthplace of mother > residence of parents > > So there's plenty of good info here if you just happen to be looking for > someone born in 1874 - 1878. For some reason, the microfilm (available at > the Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives in Frankfort but not > yet indexed) does not include 1877 for Muhlenberg County. I don't know > what happened to that year -- or whether or not it might be available in > Muhlenberg County. > > Kentucky Libraries and Archives is the repository for all county records, > so the staff there can tell you what's available there for Muhlenberg or > any other Kentucky county -- for these 5 years and any other years. In > case you want to inquire, the phone number is 502-564-8300. Ask for the > Archives Desk. Or check out their research listings at www.kdla.ky.gov. > Click on "Research Service." When you get to the Research Services page, > look on the far right side, down the page a bit, for a link to "check > records available by county." > Also, there are links here for requesting look-ups and copies of records. > The agency charges a fee for this service. > > Fran Salyers > Frankfort, Kentucky > > P.S. Here's more vital records info from the Libraries and Archives web > site: > Kentucky passed a comprehensive vital statistics law in 1911 to issue > official certificates of birth and death. Death certificates from > 1911-1955 are available at Libraries and Archives. Birth records after > 1911 are available from the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics. Death > certificates issued after 1955 are available from the Office of Vital > Statistics. > > Marriage records are created by county clerks in Kentucky's 120 counties. > Many of these marriage records are available at Libraries and Archives or > at the offices of individual county clerks. The state auditor also > maintained lists of marriages, filed by county, from 1852-1910, and the > KY Office of Vital Statistics began recording marriages in 1958. > > > On Apr 10, 2006, at 12:58 AM, Jean Rhoads Camas wrote: > >> Dear Fran, >> >> That seems to be quite an ambitious undertaking! >> >> I was not even aware that any birth records existed for that time frame. >> I know that births and deaths were recorded for a brief time during the >> 1850's, but until which time that reporting of all births and deaths >> became mandatory (around 1914 or so?) I didn't think there was any other >> time when births were recorded in Muhnlenberg County. Where did you >> find those records? >> >> Please let me hear more about those records. That is soooo >> interesting!!! >> >> Jean Camas >> >> >> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Fran Salyers" <fallingoaks@mac.com> >> To: <KYMUHLEN-L@rootsweb.com> >> Sent: Sunday, April 09, 2006 1:40 PM >> Subject: [KYMUHLEN] Birth Records 1874 - 1878 >> >> >>> Dear Muhlenberg County family researchers: >>> Several Kentucky Genealogical Society members have volunteered to >>> index Kentucky's birth records of 1874 through 1878. >>> >>> I am working on the Muhlenberg County records. If you are looking for >>> a birth that occurred there in the time frame 1874-1878, please let me >>> know the name. I'll be glad to check the records for you. >>> >>> Unfortunately, the printouts I got from the Kentucky Department of >>> Libraries and Archives include no records for 1877. Apparently the >>> birth records for that year were lost before the microfilming process >>> took place in the 1960s. I don't know if the info for 1877 is >>> available in Muhlenberg County or not, but it's doubtful that it is. >>> The Archives inventory of county records is fairly complete. >>> >>> As you might imagine, I'm having quite a time trying to decipher the >>> 19th-century handwriting on these records. But what a treat to see so >>> many familiar Muhlenberg County surnames! >>> >>> Fran Salyers >>> Frankfort, Kentucky >>> Researching these direct ancestors with Muhlenberg County ties: >>> Wilkins, Cardwell, Roark, Lewis, Jarvis, Millard, Ingram, Diver, >>> Nelson, Davis, Griffith >>> >>> P.S. Please forgive me if you received this message more than once. I >>> thought I had sent it weeks ago but today found it in my "drafts" file. >>> >>> >>> ============================== >>> New! Family Tree Maker 2005. Build your tree and search for your >>> ancestors at the same time. Share your tree with family and friends. >>> Learn more: http://landing.ancestry.com/familytreemaker/ >>> 2005/tour.aspx?sourceid=14599&targetid=5429 >>> >> >> > > > ============================== > Search Family and Local Histories for stories about your family and the > areas they lived. Over 85 million names added in the last 12 months. > Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13966/rd.ashx > >