This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: carolannemoriarty Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.3/mb.ashx Message Board Post: All deeds are kept at the Real Property Tax Office in Hudson, NY. That's the county seat. Phone # is 518-828-7334. For historical information in Canaan, you should call the Canaan Town Hall 518-781-3144 and she can put you in touch of the historian. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: dlgizzi Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hi Cliff: I just wanted to say Thanks for putting together this page on Columbia County wills. Like all the pages on your site this page is concise, easy to use, and extremely helpful. Thanks again for maintaining such a wonderful site and resource for Columbia County researchers. PS: I hope this isn't a repeat, there was apparently an error the first time I attempted to respond. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: clifflamere33 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.2/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Wills are kept at the county level in New York State. The Columbia Co. Surrogates Court in Hudson has wills, letters of administration, and letters testamentary copied into ledgers. They also have many of the original old wills. Columbia Co. formed in 1786 from Albany County. Wills prior to that, if they exist, should be stored in Albany Co. I had so much information about wills that I decided to make a webpage instead of trying to get it all into this email. The webpage will allow for additions later. Just go to: http://www.genealogy.clifflamere.com/Rec/Wills-Deeds/Wills/Wills-ColumbiaCo.htm Cliff Lamere Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Douglas, Douglass Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.2.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hello, Thanks for responding to my request for 1812 Asa Douglas will in Canaan, Columbia NY. I have been to the site Sampubco. I contacted David Samuelson direct and he looked through what he has and was stumped to. Do you know how or where in Albany I might look? Albany and their records seem to be all over the place. This is why I am reaching out to folks hoping to narrow down my search. Help is appreciated Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: dlgizzi Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.2.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Oppps, sorry. Not sure why it double posted! Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: dlgizzi Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.2.2/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Have you tried looking on the Sampubco site: http://www.sampubco.com/wills/ny/newyork.htm Check surrounding counties as well, especially Albany, for that early a date. Good Luck. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: dlgizzi Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Have you tried looking on the Sampubco site: http://www.sampubco.com/wills/ny/newyork.htm Check surrounding counties as well, especially Albany, for that early a date. Good Luck. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.3/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Chuck Travers, Sorry I forgot to ask where the deeds (1812) for Canaan Columbia, NY would be? Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.2/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Chuck Traver, Thanks much for the info. Would a phone call be sufficant or is it best to file a form? Not looking for legal advice, just the will of my 4X Gr-Gr-fa, Asa Douglas who died 1812 in Canaan, Columbia Co. NY. to prove lineage. Thank-You Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: higgeroo Surnames: Keyes, Higgins, Kees, Keys Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: I've been to the Hudson, NY court house and found some info on property owned by my ancestors. It was great. One other thing I looked for but didn't find was some info on my GGGM, Catherine Keyes, and I'd like some advice on this. According to my grandfather's research notes, Catherine, who lived first in Germantown and then in Hudson, lost her husband Thomas in 1880. The notes say, on one page, that he "disappeared," but on another page they say he was murdered by robbers. But Thomas is not buried in the Hudson City or the Cedar Park Cemetery (I checked thoroughly). Although the 1880 Hudson City Directory lists Catherine as a "widow," this may have been a case of abandonment, and maybe the "murder" story was invented to cover up the disgrace. I just don't know. Can someone recommend some other kind of legal records I can look for to shed some light on this? Thanks. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

-----Original Message----- From: nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of gc-gateway@rootsweb.com Sent: Sunday, March 28, 2010 1:52 AM To: NYCOLUMB-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [NYCOLUMB] Question?? Wills/Deeds in Columbia Co., NY This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: CharlesTraver63 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.co lumbia/4935.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Joan, Wills for Columbia county are located at the surrogate's court in Hudson, NY. I can not remember if they go back as far as 1812. I know I found several for the 1830s. Below is the address and telephone number for the Columbia County Surrogate's Court. 3rd Judicial District Columbia Surrogate's Court 401 Union Street, Hudson, N.Y. 12534 (518) 828-0414 Hon. Paul Czajka, Surrogate Hon. Jonathan Nichols, Surrogate John Couch, Esq., Law Clerk John Clark, Esq., Law Clerk Lee Norton, Chief Clerk Hours of Operation Monday - Friday 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (except State Holidays) Directions and Parking Please do not hesitate to contact our office by telephone with any questions. Please be advised that questions must be of a general nature only. Legal questions cannot be answered by staff as we are precluded, by law, from offering legal advice. Find our forms at our OFFICE, on Surrogate's Court Home Page , or at www.courts.state.ny.us or you may purchase the HOT DOCS program from the New York State Bar Association. I hope that this helps. Regards, Chuck Traver Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NYCOLUMB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

I went to that Court House a couple of years ago and found a lot of deeds from my ancestors. They had drawers full of original wills and deeds on old paper, tied with ribbons. It was amazing to see them. But I was also looking for something about my GGGM, Catherine Keyes and didn't find it. She lost her husband Thomas in 1880. My grandfather left behind some research notes that contain conflicting information. One page says Thomas disappeared, and another page says he was murdered. But he's not buried in either of the towns adjoining cemeteries (Hudson City or Cedar Park). In those days would a new widow have taken any legal steps, like filing her status somewhere, etc., that would be on record? If not at the Court House, maybe elsewhere in NY State? On the other hand if Thomas did "disappear" it sounds like a case of abandonment, so maybe she divorced him. Does anyone know where I can look up divorce records? (Although here may not have been a divorce because they were Catholic.) Thanks for any info. Clare Higgins -----Original Message----- From: nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of gc-gateway@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, March 27, 2010 7:50 PM To: NYCOLUMB-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [NYCOLUMB] Question?? Wills/Deeds in Columbia Co., NY This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.co lumbia/4935/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hello, I am trying to find a will and deed dated 1812 from Canaan, Columbia Co. NY. Would these items be, if they exist, in the County Court House in Canaan or at the county seat of Columbia? I think county seat is Kinderhook?? Help Appreciated Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NYCOLUMB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

County Clerks, Hudson, NY -----Original Message----- From: nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:nycolumb-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of gc-gateway@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, March 27, 2010 7:50 PM To: NYCOLUMB-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [NYCOLUMB] Question?? Wills/Deeds in Columbia Co., NY This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.co lumbia/4935/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hello, I am trying to find a will and deed dated 1812 from Canaan, Columbia Co. NY. Would these items be, if they exist, in the County Court House in Canaan or at the county seat of Columbia? I think county seat is Kinderhook?? Help Appreciated Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NYCOLUMB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: CharlesTraver63 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Joan, Wills for Columbia county are located at the surrogate's court in Hudson, NY. I can not remember if they go back as far as 1812. I know I found several for the 1830s. Below is the address and telephone number for the Columbia County Surrogate's Court. 3rd Judicial District Columbia Surrogate's Court 401 Union Street, Hudson, N.Y. 12534 (518) 828-0414 Hon. Paul Czajka, Surrogate Hon. Jonathan Nichols, Surrogate John Couch, Esq., Law Clerk John Clark, Esq., Law Clerk Lee Norton, Chief Clerk Hours of Operation Monday - Friday 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (except State Holidays) Directions and Parking Please do not hesitate to contact our office by telephone with any questions. Please be advised that questions must be of a general nature only. Legal questions cannot be answered by staff as we are precluded, by law, from offering legal advice. Find our forms at our OFFICE, on Surrogate's Court Home Page , or at www.courts.state.ny.us or you may purchase the HOT DOCS program from the New York State Bar Association. I hope that this helps. Regards, Chuck Traver Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: joanvangorder Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4935/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hello, I am trying to find a will and deed dated 1812 from Canaan, Columbia Co. NY. Would these items be, if they exist, in the County Court House in Canaan or at the county seat of Columbia? I think county seat is Kinderhook?? Help Appreciated Joan Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: rtwhalen1 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4934.2.1.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Cliff That's great advice. I was never sure on how protective NYS is over access to the index. At the NYC location you can just sit yourself down at the index and look at however many microfiche's you want to. But when I went to the Rochester Public Library they made you give them your license and you could only take out one sheet at a time. I know other libraries are similar to that. If they did give us permission to work on such an undertaking I do see how an army of volunteers would be needed. Someone suggested speaking with the private sector ie Ancestry or Familysearch. If that was the route I'd rather go with Familysearch as it is free and many of their projects are dependent on volunteers. My internet savvy is next to none when it comes to actually creating a webpage or that kind of thing. But I do have some computer whiz friends. Hopefully we can make something happen Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: clifflamere33 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4934.2.1.2/mb.ashx Message Board Post: The NYS Archives has the birth, marriage, and death indexes on microfiche. I was told a few years ago that they were made from typed sheets of that information. From the slightly blurry appearance of the text on the microfiche, I think they may have been made from carbon copies. The director was only kidding about the volunteering, but if you want to consider it as a serious project, here is part of what would be involved. a) Someone would have to find and organize an army of volunteers who live in New York State, then receive their work, organize it, and pass it on to the webmaster. b) The volunteers could access the microfiches which are available to the public at the following 8 locations. I don't think the state is against this information being online, so I don't think there would be any attempt to stop the project. 1) Albany - New York State Archives 2) Buffalo - Central Library, headquarters of the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library System 3) Elmira - Steele Memorial Library 4) Glens Falls - Crandall Public Library 5) New York City - National Archives--Northeast Region 6) Rochester - Rochester Public Library 7) Syracuse - Onondaga Central Library at the Galleries 8) Watertown - Roswell P. Flower Memorial Library c) All information for a particular year would have to be recorded in the same format (a Soundex system was used in some years). d) All data would have to proofread to avoid misleading the genealogists who view it. A large number of typos are to be expected. Proofreading is extremely important, but most genealogists won't do this. The proofreader should be a different person. d) The data would have to assembled in a form, such as an Excel database or spreadsheet, which could be accepted by a webmaster. e) A webmaster must be found. That person would have m------------uch more work to do than any other volunteer except the organizer of the project. A decision would have to be made whether to make the data browsable or only accessible using a search engine. I would recommend against the latter because people won't be able to guess all of the surname spelling variations and the typing errors of the people who made the lists from the original handwritten certificates, nor those made by the volunteers in the project. I would guess that 10-15% of the names could only be found by browsing through the lists of names. As a wild guess, I think you would be dealing with about 6 million records. If 1000 records were listed on each webpage, that would be 6000 webpages. Another scenario. If a way could be found to enlarge the microfiche data, a way might be found to photocopy or photograph it. Then, the images could be viewed by an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) program. It would convert the names to text. It would then be proofread. Cliff Lamere Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

who would you write to. would you start a petition yourself on line. i would sign it, and i know some more people who would sign, also. thanks. ----- Original Message ----- From: <gc-gateway@rootsweb.com> To: <NYCOLUMB-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 7:00 PM Subject: Re: [NYCOLUMB] Vital Records Issue -- PLEASE READ > This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. > > Author: rtwhalen1 > Surnames: > Classification: queries > > Message Board URL: > > http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4934.1.1/mb.ashx > > Message Board Post: > > Thank you for your input. When I first started writing my letters and > asking other genealogists to write as well I had a scene from the movie > Shawshank Redemption in mind where the main character, Andy Dufresne, > decides to write to the state government for funds to create a new prison > library. The warden told him they wouldn't do it but he decided to go for > it and it eventually happened though it took over 6 years. > > With the wonderful bureaucracy of New York State I realize it would take > an act of God or nature to get something like an online vital records > index in a year. I have no delusions that this will happen any time soon > but we must begin somewhere. > > I really don't think making the index available online would eliminate a > source of revenue. You still need to write in and pay for a copy of the > death certificate. The index only gives the name place and date. > > But regardless of the states current financial woes I think it would be > worth our time to start now and maybe 5 or 10 years from now something > would happen. > > Sometimes I think the gov't depends on our complacency towards the status > quo. haha. > > Please write. > > Important Note: > The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you > would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link > above and respond on the board. > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NYCOLUMB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: cindyb2614 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4934.2.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: You might want to get in touch with John Martino from the Italian Genealogy Group. He has been leading the way to indexing the NYC records. You can find their website online and his contact information is there also. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: rtwhalen1 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.columbia/4934.2.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: I've always thought the world of genealogy hobbyists were full of volunteers and do-gooders. If they are willing to give the job to volunteers I think that is great. I'm not sure how to go about tackling something like that. Any ideas? Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.