I hope you find the following article from ancestry.com helpful. I repeat with permission. For the next two weeks, an interesting and oftentime humorous look at courtship, engagement and marriage during the Victorian era. Sandi TIP # 375 - GAZETEERS & MAPS IN GENEALOGY RESEARCH By permission of and copyrighted to: MyFamily.com Inc. and its subsidiaries.), "Ancestry Daily News" (http://www.ancestry.com/dailynews) By David Thackery, July/August 1994 Vol. 12 No. 4, Ancestry Magazine, by permission. Abstracted. "Genealogy is, among other things, an exercise in geography. Successful research often hinges on identifying the locality in which one's ancestors lived. Once we know the locality, we are in a position to consult the records and histories for the area in an effort to piece together the lives of our forebears. "Often, a geographical reference to a town or county is easy enough to track down by consulting a standard national or international atlas at the nearest public library, but sometimes it of is not so simple. Place names may have changed, or the scale of maps may not permit sufficient detail to include smaller communities. A geographic clue may center around the name of a stream or church rather than a town. Conversely, the same name may have been used for several different locations-some of which may not appear in a standard world atlas. Genealogical research, which may confront us with the geography of an area one, two, or three centuries in the past, often demands more information than can be found in the current Rand McNally atlas. "For these reasons, the genealogist may need to resort to a gazatteer. A gazatteer is a geographical dictionary. It identifies the location of a place, whether it be a village, pond, or manor, usually indicating longitude and latitude, and perhaps including historical or descriptive information. "The most comprehensive gazetteer for current American research is the OMNI Gazetteer of the United States of America (Detroit: Omnigraphics, 1991), which contains almost one and one-half million entries in 11 volumes. Based in large part on the Geographic Names Information System, a database amassed by the U.S. Geological Survey, OMNI covers not only all populated places, both incorporated and unincorporated, but also natural features (such as hills, streams, islands, etc.) and "entities that have been built or shaped by human activity" (such as cemeteries, churches and schools). The exact longitude and latitude is included in all instances. The OMNIan usually be found at major research libraries and at many medium-size and large public libraries. "Of course, such detail in gazetteers is a relatively recent development; however, that does not mean that older gazetteers have become useless. This is clearly not the case for genealogical research, in which the identification of towns which have either ceased to exist or undergone a name change may be of critical importance. For example, the world gazetteers published by the Philadelphia publisher J.B. Lippincott before the turn of the century can be very helpful in this regard. In addition, a Lippincott entry often provides a snapshot of the community and may tally the population and describe the conditions of industry, commerce, and agriculture. An older state gazetteer may have similar research value. In addition to reflecting the geography of times past, it may contain grater detail than a gazetteer of national or global scope. "Many Americans whose ancestors immigrated to the United States from Europe in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries may have special need of gazetteers. A passenger list manifest or a naturalization record may note a place of birth in the old country that does not appear on a map. In fact, it may not be clear where the place falls within present national boundaries. These researchers may find useful a basic, no-frills series of gazetteers covering countries all over the world. Published by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, the first volumes appeared in 1955. No historical information is provided only longitude and latitude are noted; however, the scope is fairly wide, including topographical features (streams, forests, etc.), as well as populated areas. In addition, cross-referencing from "variant" names to "approved" names can be especially helpful for towns whose names have changed when shifts in national boundaries occurred. "When searching for a gazetteer in a library catalog, the researcher should know that more than one subject heading may be used. The most obvious is: "[name of place]-description and travel-gazetteers." Also encountered on occasion is "Names, geographical-[name of place]." The subject heading for ghost towns is usually "Cities and towns, ruined, extinct, etc.-[name of place]." (David Thackery is a past curator of Local and Family History at the Newberry Library in Chicago, Illinois. He is also a regular contributor to Ancestry Magazine. Copyright © 1998- 2002 , MyFamily.com Inc. and its subsidiaries All use and access to Ancestry.com subject to license Using Maps and Gazetteers in Your Research by Juliana Smith "Maps and gazetteers are necessary tools for family historians. They are the key to finding the records of our ancestors. Record Location Pinpointing where your ancestors lived is critical to locating records. Addresses are often found in directories, vital records, court records, military, and naturalization records. By plotting these addresses on a map along with local churches, it is possible to determine where our ancestors worshipped, and where more records are kept. The addresses can also tell us what civil districts to pursue in checking for locally created records. Knowing addresses can also help us overcome misspellings. For example, I was recently searching for my great-great-grandfather, Thomas Howley, in the 1870 census. We had found him in the 1860 and 1880 U.S. federal censuses in Brooklyn, NY, but our attempts to locate him in the 1870 census had failed. So I decided to try some Soundex searches on the AIS Census Index. A search for Howley in NY using the Soundex got me 32,000 hits, and entering subsequent information helped to narrow the search results down a bit, but not enough. I had an address for him on Front Street from an 1870 city directory of Brooklyn. Using a map that listed ward numbers, I was able to determine that he lived in the 2nd Ward, and upon entering 2 W Brooklyn in the Township field (as I had noted it listed in a previous search), I was rewarded with only seven entries, the last of which was one Thomas Holey. The actual census record showed that it was indeed Thomas Howley; the census taker had just left out the 'w.' Changing Boundaries One thing that you might want to keep in mind is whether your ancestor lived near a boundary or border. Did these boundaries or borders change over the years? Your ancestors may appear in a different county, state, or even country without ever moving. My great-grandparents were from Gomor County (or Megye) in Hungary. Looking for Gomor Megye in Hungary on a current map would be fruitless, though, because it is now in Slovakia. Changing Place Names Changing place names are another challenge we face as family historians. Places of origin that were given by our ancestors in records of the day may no longer exist, or may be called something entirely different. It may be necessary to learn a bit about the area and its history to find out where the records will be located and/or what the area is called now. Migration Patterns Maps help us trace the migration paths our ancestors took. More detailed maps will show what routes were available at the time, including railroads, waterways, early roads, etc. The Library of Congress has a wonderful collection of railroad maps online that show great detail, listing stops and spur lines (link below). It is important to trace the path our ancestors took because there may have been records created along the way. The naturalization process may have been started at the port of entry, and the records may be scattered in stops along the route to the final destination. Ethnic and religious groups often traveled together, and your ancestors' travels can be traced by tracking others in their group. Also, on the long journey west in the United States, babies were born, people married, and people died. There may have been records of events created along the way. Other Reasons to Study the Area It also pays to study the area around that of your forebears. What was the region like? If there was a mountain, river, or some other topographical feature between them and the county seat, they may have chosen to take an easier route and create records in the next county. This is also true of areas with differing regulations. In states with less stringent marriage laws, "marriage mills" sprung up. Lake County, Indiana is a well-known example of this. Many couples from the Chicago area crossed the border into Indiana to get married. This is by no means a comprehensive list of how maps can help with research. You will doubtless find many more uses for them as you set out to familiarize yourself with the areas that hold the key to your roots. Further Reading "Using Maps in Family History Research," by Donn Devine, CG, CGI (Ancestry Magazine, September/October 1998, vol. 16, no. 5) Maps, Gazetteers, and Other Helpful Resources for Researching Locations (Ancestry Daily News, 5/24/2000) Links to online maps. "Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps," by Michael John Neill (Ancestry Daily News, 5/31/2000) "Location, Location, Location," by Michael John Neill (Ancestry Daily News, 6/13/2000) American Memory Collection, Library of Congress Railroad Maps, 1828-1920 Map Collections, 1544-1999 Odden's Bookmarks: The Fascinating World of Maps and Mapping More than 10,000 links to online maps! Ancestry.com Map URL: http://www.ancestry.com/search/rectype/reference/maps/main.asp Juliana Smith is the editor of the Ancestry Daily News and author of The Ancestry Family Historian's Address Book. She has written for Ancestry Magazine and Genealogical Computing. Juliana can be reached by e-mail at: editor@ancestry-inc.com, but regrets that she is unable to assist with personal research. Col. Sandi Gorin, 205 Clements, Glasgow, KY 42141 (270) 651-9114 Publishing: http://ggpublishing.tripod.com/ SCKY resource links: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/Gorin.html < >< God Bless America ><>