Hi Folks, Ancestry Daily News is free. It contains articles written by experts on various topics that often relate to our favorite topics on this list. This article below is on surnames and their spelling. It says: "However, the alternate spellings on the same document were likely irrelevant due to the concept of idem sonans." Read below and learn all about idems sonans. You can subscribe to this at www.ancestry.com with out spending a nickle. It's well worth it too -- without more learning, we are not likely to break through our brick walls. Today it is possible to learn a little more every day without spending any money or even driving down the block to the meeting of the local genealogical society. Linda Merle ---------- Original Message ---------------------------------- From: "Ancestry Daily News" <newsletter@reply.myfamilyinc.com> Reply-To: <unsubscribe2.i46s444.8.0.116@unsubscribe.myfamily.com> Date: Wed, 07 Dec 2005 08:22:34 -0000 ===================================================================== ANCESTRY DAILY NEWS ===================================================================== Brought to you by the publishers of "The Source" and "Ancestry" Magazine Sponsored by: Ancestry.com - Over 2 billion searchable family history names http://www.ancestry.com/rd/home.htm MyFamily.com - Upload and share your family tree on a private website http://www.myfamily.com/banner.asp?ID=ancestrynews3 ===================================================================== For contact and subscription information, please see the bottom of the message. ===================================================================== GET YOUR OWN FAMILY WEBSITE --- Easy, secure and private --- Post and view photos, news, recipes and more --- Send and receive email --- Perfect for the family historian Learn more at: http://www.ancestry.com/s19285/t6177/rd.ashx =================================================================== Your Daily Dose of Genealogy for 07 December 2005 ** You can view this issue of the "Ancestry Daily News" online ** http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=A1073201 In this issue: - Ancestry Classic Database --- American Emigrant Ministers, 1690-1811 --- Brandenburg, Prussia Emigration - Today's Featured Map --- Saint Peter, Nicollet County, Minnesota 1870 - Beyond the Index: "Ancestral Signatures: Part II," by Michael John Neill - APG Election Results: Moody Elected APG President - Ancestry Quick Tip - Fast Fact: Pearl Harbor Links and Resources - Thought for Today - Clipping of the Day - Ancestry Daily News Product Pick of the Week --- "Names, Names, and More Names: Locating Your Dutch Ancestors in Colonial America," by Arthur C. M. Kelly http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=P1445 This book is the result of more than thirty years of research of the Dutch patronymic naming system. In it, Arthur C. M. Kelly offers a comprehensive treatment of Dutch patronymic surnames, their variations and origins. Sale price $10. =================================================================== SHARE THE "ANCESTRY DAILY NEWS" Do you have a friend who might enjoy one of today's articles? Why not send it on to them and let them know about our free service? The "Ancestry Daily News" sign-up box is at: http://www.ancestry.com/learn ===================================================================== ANCESTRY CLASSIC DATABASE ===================================================================== AMERICAN EMIGRANT MINISTERS, 1690-1811 This volume contains a list of ministers and other clergy who applied for and received funds from the English crown to compensate for passage to the Americas. Included in the geography are the areas of the West Indies, the entire United States, and Canada. This record includes the emigrant's name, date of departure, destination, and other interesting facts. This data will be helpful for those tracing British clergy. Source Information: Ancestry.com, comp. American Emigrant Ministers, 1690-1811. [database online] Provo, UT: Ancestry.com, 2000. Original data: Fothergill, Gerald. A List of Emigrant Ministers to America, 1690-1811. London: Stock, 1904. Ancestry.com subscribers with access to the U.S. Immigration Collection can access this database at: http://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?sourceid=831&dbid=4760 _____________________________________________________________________ Brandenburg, Prussia Emigration Records A province of the Prussian Empire, Brandenburg stretched from the Elbe River to beyond the Oder River and into modern Poland in the 1800s. This database, newly updated, is a collection of government records regarding persons emigrating from the province in the 19th century. Each record provides the emigrant's name, age, occupation, residence, destination, and year of emigration. Part of an ongoing project, the database now contains the names of more than 36,800 persons. The records were taken from microfiche copies of records kept at the main archive in Potsdam (Brandenburgisches Landeshauptarchiv Potsdam). Copies are held by the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For researchers of German ancestors, this can be a helpful source of information. Source Information: Wolfert, Marion, comp. Brandenburg, Prussia Emigration Records. [database online] Provo, UT: Ancestry.com, 2001. Original data: Auswanderungskartei (emigration cards) located at Brandenburgishes Landeshauptarchiv in Potsdam, Germany or Family History Library microfiche #6109219 (22 total rolls). Ancestry.com subscribers with access to the U.S. Immigration Collection can access this database at: http://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?sourceid=831&dbid=4121 =================================================================== TODAY'S FEATURED MAP =================================================================== NOTE: The Ancestry.com Map is available to subscribers with access to the Family and Local History Collection. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/s831/t5367/rd.ashx SAINT PETER, NICOLLET COUNTY, MINNESOTA 1870 http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&db=locmaps%2c&f3=&f7=Minnesota&f10=&year=&yearend=&gskw=&ti=0&ti.si=0&gss=angs-d&fh=17&recid=1043&recoff=5 Perspective map not drawn to scale. Reference: LC Panoramic maps (2nd ed.), 412 Includes illus. and index to points of interest. =================================================================== BEYOND THE INDEX: "ANCESTRAL SIGNATURES: PART II," by Michael John Neill =================================================================== Many readers responded to the recent column on ancestral signatures. Readers who missed this column can view it here (http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=10668). Additional sources of signatures were mentioned, including declarations of intent and autograph books. In a nutshell, any paper your ancestor might have written on could contain his signature. The difficulty is in finding that paper! It was noted that your ancestor's occupation may have resulted in numerous examples of his signature. Census enumerators, county clerks, record keepers, justices of the peace, judges and others may have left their signature (and numerous examples of their handwriting) in many permanently recorded materials. USES OF SIGNATURES Several readers wrote in with creative ways they use their relative's signatures. Some scan at least one signature of every ancestor and use it in addition to or in place of a photograph in their genealogical database. Others have created family trees using signatures instead of pictures. Additional ideas included creating chronologies of signatures showing the change over the years. There are other ways to use ancestral signatures. From a research standpoint, signatures are often used to distinguish between two individuals with the same first and last name. The difficulty lies in obtaining information on your ancestor where the actual paper he signed was retained instead of being transcribed and recorded in that fashion by the clerk. In locations and time periods where it is impossible to obtain a precise date of birth for an individual, linking a "name" to a physical signature may be one way to separate out two seemingly indistinguishable people. OUR ANCESTOR'S HANDWRITING Most of the time the only writing we have on a document from our ancestor is his signature, but we often have nothing for comparison. Our ancestor probably did not actually write out his own will or fill in the blanks on his draft card. Someone else did. This reality increases the difficulty in reading the name if the handwriting is questionable. In many cases, there may be no other writing of the individual with which to compare the signature. A technique used by many genealogists with some documents is to read several pages of records written by the same person so that those writings can be compared to a specific entry or name that is questionable. Most of us cannot do that with an ancestral signature. Compounding the difficulty is that clerk may have been taught a different style of writing from our ancestor, if our ancestor even had formal schooling. TIME PLAYS A ROLE Your ancestor's handwriting might have changed over his lifetime, especially if the signatures cover a fifty year time span. A marriage bond may have been signed when the individual was hale and healthy. A will may have been signed when the person in question was in very ill health. The result is signatures that may look very distinct. Perhaps even different enough that one suspects another person actually signed the record. As with any document, remember we are not privy to exactly what was transpiring when a document was written or signed or how healthy the signer was. All we have is the document; the circumstances under which it was signed have pretty much been lost to history. SPELLING, SCHMELLING Our ancestor might not have known how to spell his name. He might not have cared if he spelled it consistently from one record to another. He might not have cared if it were spelled different ways on the same document, assuming he could even read the paper he signed. To some today the variations seem significant (and sometimes they may provide clues as to how the ancestor might have pronounced the name). However, the alternate spellings on the same document were likely irrelevant due to the concept of idem sonans. According to Black's Law Dictionary idem sonans means, "sounding the same or alike; having the same sound." A term applied to names which are substantially the same, though slightly varied in the spelling. Your ancestor (unless he had a legal background) did not know what idem sonans meant. But idem sonans is why there was no problem when a man is deeded land under the name of James Ramply and sells the same land under the name of James Rampley. Today most of us are pretty obsessive about having our names spelled correctly on various documents and in various databases. Our ancestors were not as concerned and even their own spelling might have reflected it. SIMILAR SIGNATURES There is always the chance that what you think is your ancestor's signature is not actually his signature. An early nineteenth century Fleming County court case contains the signatures of my ancestor Enoch Tinsley and his father James. The writing looks extremely similar. So similar that I think there is a reasonable chance that one person signed both names (I have joked that they had the same second grade teacher, but that is extremely unlikely). One person likely signed both names. I have encountered this more than once. There are two separate occurrences of the signature of my ancestor Sarah (Gibson) Rampley in Harford County, Maryland, and several different instances of her husband James' signature. On a document where both sign, Sarah makes her mark and James signs his name. On an earlier document involving Sarah's inheritance, Sarah's signature appears. Interestingly enough, the "Rampley" Sarah made on the inheritance paper looks very similar to the "Rampley" James wrote on the document where Sarah made her mark. I am now wondering if the signatures were made by the same person. At any rate, they are extremely alike. Remember that interpreting handwriting also requires you to know your ancestor's ethnic background. A native born German was taught a different style of writing from his contemporary growing up in rural Kentucky. Readers who would like to try their hand at reading handwriting can view twenty samples (with answers) that have been posted on my site. (http://www.rootdig.com/signatures/) ___________________________________________________________________ Michael John Neill is the Course I Coordinator at the Genealogical Institute of Mid America (GIMA) held annually in Springfield, Illinois, and is also on the faculty of Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg, Illinois. Michael is currently a member of the board of the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) http://www.fgs.org. He conducts seminars and lectures nationally on a wide variety of genealogical and computer topics and contributes to several genealogical publications, including Ancestry Magazine and Genealogical Computing. You can e-mail him at mailto:mjnrootdig@myfamily.com or visit his website at: http://www.rootdig.com/, but he regrets that he is unable to assist with personal research. Copyright 2005, MyFamily.com. PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=A1073301 =================================================================== APG ELECTION RESULTS: MOODY ELECTED APG PRESIDENT =================================================================== Sharon Tate Moody, a Certified Genealogist (CG) from Sun City Center, Fla., has been elected president of the board of directors of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the world's leading professional organization of family history and related professionals. She will succeed J. Mark Lowe, CG, of Springfield, Tenn. Moody, currently vice president of APG and genealogy columnist for the Tampa Tribune, said, "One of our focuses over the next two years will be to educate the consuming public and the professional community about the broad possibilities of activities that come under the term 'genealogist.' We like to think of APG as an umbrella under which we have gathered researchers, lecturers, editors, publishers, columnists, authors, project managers, librarians, language specialists, photographic experts, heir researchers, adoption specialists, historians, and family reunion organizers." Moody added, "Of course, we will continue to seek opportunities to support professionals in their growth and service to their clients." She was among 15 candidates elected to the APG board for two-year terms starting on Jan. 1, 2006. Jake Gehring of Woods Cross, Utah, currently an APG director and a technology writer and lecturer, was elected vice president of the 1,600-member organization. John V. Wylie of Grand Prairie, Texas, vice president for education of the Dallas Genealogical Society, was elected secretary. APG Secretary Beverly Rice, CG, of Coos Bay, Ore., was elected treasurer. She is also secretary of the Board for Certification of Genealogists. Nine regional director positions will be filled by: Suzanne Russo Adams, Accredited Genealogist, Orem, Utah and Gordon Gray, Colorado Springs, Colo., Region 1 (Western U.S.); David McDonald, CG, DeForest, Wis., and Nancy Waller Thomas, Columbia, Mo., Region 2 (Midwest); Craig Scott, CG, Westminster, Md., and C. Ann Staley, CG, Jacksonville, Fla., both re-elected from Region 3 (Southeast); Pamela S. Eagleson, CG, Kennebunk, Maine and incumbent Maureen A. Taylor, Westwood, Mass., Region 4 (Northeast); and Cornelia Schrader Muggenthaler of Ostra, Italy was returned to office in International Region B. Gary Mokotoff, Bergenfield, N.J., and Pamela Boyer Porter, CG, CGL (Certified Genealogical Lecturer), Chesterfield, Mo., were elected to one-year terms on the nominations committee. The Association of Professional Genealogists (http://www.apgen.org/), established in 1979, represents professional genealogists, people in related professions, and others who do professional-quality work for hire or for themselves. =================================================================== ANCESTRY QUICK TIP =================================================================== CROPPING SAVES INK Before printing out digital images of documents, census records, etc., I run the image through Photoshop Elements and crop the black off the edges. Cropping is the answer! Most photo editing software will do cropping. Joanne Franklin ____________________________________________________________________ Thanks to Joanne for today's Quick Tip! If you have a tip you would like to share with researchers, you can send it to: mailto:ADNeditor@ancestry.com Quick Tips may be reprinted, with credit to the submitter, in other Ancestry publications, so if you do not want your tip included in a publication other than the "Ancestry Daily News" and "Ancestry Weekly Digest," please state so clearly in your message. PRINTER-FRIENDLY http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=A1073402 ==================================================================== FAST FACT: PEARL HARBOR LINKS AND RESOURCES ==================================================================== Pearl Harbor Remembered (National Geographic) http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/pearlharbor/ Pearl Harbor Raid, 7 December 1941 -- Overview and Special Image Selection (Department of the Navy-Naval Historical Center) http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/pearlhbr.htm Pearl Harbor: Remembered http://my.execpc.com/~dschaaf/index.html Pearl Harbor Casualty List http://www.usswestvirginia.org/fulllist.htm The History Place http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/timeline/pearl.htm Sequence of events and some photos U.S.S. Arizona http://dizzy.library.arizona.edu/images/USS_Arizona/USS_Arizona.shtml History, photo sources, and list of links U.S.S. Arizona Memorial http://www.nps.gov/usar/ Air Raid on Pearl Harbor Today in History, American Memory Project, Library of Congress http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/today/dec07.html (scroll down) For more information from the Library of Congress, search the American Memory Project at http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/ammemhome.html NARA American Originals Exhibit: "Air Raid on Pearl Harbor. This Is No Drill" http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/american_originals/fdr.html Radiogram and FDR Congressional address, 8 Dec 1941 NARA WWII Exhibit: A People at War http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/a_people_at_war/a_people_at_war.html Pearl Harbor Survivors Association http://members.aol.com/phsasecy97 =================================================================== THOUGHT FOR TODAY =================================================================== Let me, tonight look back across the span Twixt dawn and dark, and to my conscience say- Because of some good act to beast or human- The world is better that I lived today. --- Ella Wheeler Wilcox ===================================================================== CLIPPING OF THE DAY ===================================================================== "The Charleston Daily Mail" (Charleston, West Virginia), 08 December 1941, page 1: U.S. DECLARES STATE OF WAR One Battleship Lost, 1,500 Killed in Hawaii FDR Aide Bares Toll In Air Raid Navy's Failure to Block Quick Blow Explained Washington, Dec. 8. (UP).--The United States forces have destroyed "a number of Japanese planes and submarines" in operations against Japan in the battle of the Pacific, the White House announced today, and the Japanese dive bomber attacks on Hawaii left 3,000 casualties. White House Secretary Stephen T. Early announced that 1,500 persons were wounded and about the same number killed in the dive bomber attacks which Japan launched on the island of Oahu at dawn yesterday. He added that despite the large number of bombs dropped upon the city of Honolulu itself, there were relatively few casualties there. Asked how he deemed it possible for the Japanese aircraft to pierce the outer defenses of the United States' strongholds in the Pacific, Early gave this explanation as representing "expert consensus": "Probably most if not all, of the planes that attacked came from Japanese carriers. The planes were the dive-bomber type. The attack came at dawn and the carriers naturally would have had all night, under cover of darkness, to approach. Counter-Offensive Begins Naval officials, meanwhile, said that the counter-offensive against Japan began the moment the first Japanese bomb exploded on the islands. The White House statement said: "American operations against the Japanese attacking force in the neighborhood of the Hawaiian islands are still continuing. A number of Japanese planes and submarines have been destroyed." ____________________________________________________________________ View this clipping (free database) at: http://content.ancestry.com/Browse/view.aspx?dbid=6246&path=10010.1.1&desc=December+8%2c+1941+-+Pearl+Harbor To subscribe to the Historical Newspapers Collection at Ancestry.com, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?sourceid=831&targetid=3505 =================================================================== ANCESTRY DAILY NEWS PRODUCT PICK OF THE WEEK =================================================================== "NAMES, NAMES, AND MORE NAMES: LOCATING YOUR DUTCH ANCESTORS IN COLONIAL AMERICA," by Arthur C. M. Kelly http://www.ancestry.com/rd/prodredir.asp?sourceid=831&key=P1445 This book is the result of more than thirty years of research of the Dutch patronymic naming system. In it, Arthur C. M. Kelly offers a comprehensive treatment of Dutch patronymic surnames, their variations and origins. 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