In a message dated 1/10/2005 4:56:19 PM Eastern Standard Time, haynie@iowatelecom.net writes: > I know that the Quakers have a different dating system than our calendar > and I have a hard time understanding it. Is there someone who can explain in > plain English how to decipher dates to our calendar? Quakers do NOT have a different dating system. They use the same calendar that everyone else uses, but traditionally preferred not to use the "pagan" names of the months and days of the week. Instead they called the months--1st month, 2nd month, 3rd month, etc.---and the days of the week 1st day (Sunday), 2nd day, 3rd day, etc.. This creates no problem back to 1752 when the change was made from the Julian calendar to the present-day Gregorian calendar. Before 1752 the year started not on Jan 1, but on March 25. So in the old style calendar, 1st month is not January, but March; 2nd month is April, and 3rd month is May, etc. There are some other nuances to understanding this calendar conversion,--(both for Quakers & non-Quakers) but that is the basic premise. The best thing to do is to record the date as it is found (e.g. 2nd 8mo 1732) , which not only is the accurate date, but also gives the additional info about your ancestor, that he was a Quaker. If you feel compelled to convert them, be sure and do it accurately--and for dates of the 1700's, indicate whether the date are OS (old-style) or NS (new-style). Joyce Joyce Overman Bowman Indianapolis, IN

Joyce Overman Bowman wrote: <snip> >Before 1752 the year started not on Jan 1, but on March 25. <snip> Just a slight clarification. The year from January to December always existed, but it was common in parish registers to use a year beginning on March 25. You quite often see a change over to the latter in the sixteenth century - the parish register that I'm using at the moment, for instance, starts in 1542 with a January-December year, but changes over to a March-March year in 1570/1. The parish next door made the same change with a new rector in 1596. Probate records also started the year in March. Chris

Does anyone have information about the Whilldin family in Philadelphia (early 1900s)? Jan Porter jporter.edu@adelphia.net ==== QUAKER-ROOTS Mailing List ==== Quaker-Roots Archives - Search List Messages From 1996 On http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl

I've just noticed that the National Archives here in the UK has a page that gives some facts and figures (if not on Quaker dates!) that some of you may find useful. http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/palaeography/quick_reference.htm Chris

Yesterday we were at the Bush River Quaker Cemetery in Newberry SC and found this actual transcription: NEMIAH THOMAS was born the 10 of the 9 month 1740 old stile and decest 31 of the 5 month in the year 179_ Judy Russell Bogart GA ----- Original Message ----- From: <Jeobowman@cs.com> To: <QUAKER-ROOTS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, January 10, 2005 5:42 PM Subject: Re: [Q-R] Quaker dates > In a message dated 1/10/2005 4:56:19 PM Eastern Standard Time, > haynie@iowatelecom.net writes: > > I know that the Quakers have a different dating system than our calendar > > and I have a hard time understanding it. Is there someone who can explain in > > plain English how to decipher dates to our calendar? > > Quakers do NOT have a different dating system. They use the same calendar > that everyone else uses, but traditionally preferred not to use the "pagan" > names of the months and days of the week. Instead they called the months--1st > month, 2nd month, 3rd month, etc.---and the days of the week 1st day (Sunday), > 2nd day, 3rd day, etc.. This creates no problem back to 1752 when the change > was made from the Julian calendar to the present-day Gregorian calendar. > Before 1752 the year started not on Jan 1, but on March 25. So in the old style > calendar, 1st month is not January, but March; 2nd month is April, and 3rd month > is May, etc. > > There are some other nuances to understanding this calendar > conversion,--(both for Quakers & non-Quakers) but that is the basic premise. The best thing > to do is to record the date as it is found (e.g. 2nd 8mo 1732) , which not only > is the accurate date, but also gives the additional info about your ancestor, > that he was a Quaker. If you feel compelled to convert them, be sure and do > it accurately--and for dates of the 1700's, indicate whether the date are OS > (old-style) or NS (new-style). > > Joyce > > Joyce Overman Bowman > Indianapolis, IN > > > ==== QUAKER-ROOTS Mailing List ==== > HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: Send an email to: > QUAKER-ROOTS-L-REQUEST@RootsWeb.com > The ONLY word in your message should be UNSUBSCRIBE. > >

Quakers do NOT have a different dating system. Joyce, They do use a different dating system A date such as August 19, 1748 will never be found. Rather it would be written as "19th da 6th mo 1748." Sometimes this will be written as 6mo 19da 1748. Yes it the same calender but read how they write the dates you will think it different. Why 6th month since August is the 8th month? The Quakers, along with everyone else in the American Colonies and England, did not begin using the Gregorian calendar until 1752. Under the Julian calendar the year began on March 25th; March was the first month and February was the twelfth month. This is something of a problem when an event occurred in the months of January, February or up to March 25th, for then the date is given as 1748/1749. Such a dating practice satisfied everyone, including civil authorities, if for instance an inheritance was being established. http://www.illuminatrix.com/andria/quaker.html This site that Marla, helps all of us to understand it better Janet -----Original Message----- From: Jeobowman@cs.com [mailto:Jeobowman@cs.com] Sent: Monday, January 10, 2005 4:42 PM To: QUAKER-ROOTS-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [Q-R] Quaker dates In a message dated 1/10/2005 4:56:19 PM Eastern Standard Time, haynie@iowatelecom.net writes: > I know that the Quakers have a different dating system than our calendar > and I have a hard time understanding it. Is there someone who can explain in > plain English how to decipher dates to our calendar? Quakers do NOT have a different dating system. They use the same calendar that everyone else uses, but traditionally preferred not to use the "pagan" names of the months and days of the week. Instead they called the months--1st month, 2nd month, 3rd month, etc.---and the days of the week 1st day (Sunday), 2nd day, 3rd day, etc.. This creates no problem back to 1752 when the change was made from the Julian calendar to the present-day Gregorian calendar. Before 1752 the year started not on Jan 1, but on March 25. So in the old style calendar, 1st month is not January, but March; 2nd month is April, and 3rd month is May, etc. There are some other nuances to understanding this calendar conversion,--(both for Quakers & non-Quakers) but that is the basic premise. The best thing to do is to record the date as it is found (e.g. 2nd 8mo 1732) , which not only is the accurate date, but also gives the additional info about your ancestor, that he was a Quaker. If you feel compelled to convert them, be sure and do it accurately--and for dates of the 1700's, indicate whether the date are OS (old-style) or NS (new-style). Joyce Joyce Overman Bowman Indianapolis, IN ==== QUAKER-ROOTS Mailing List ==== HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: Send an email to: QUAKER-ROOTS-L-REQUEST@RootsWeb.com The ONLY word in your message should be UNSUBSCRIBE. -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 265.6.9 - Release Date: 1/6/2005 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 265.6.10 - Release Date: 1/10/2005