Not only are Dr. Schweitzer's books a wonderful resource, attending his lectures is not only a wonderful way to develop better genealogy search skills, but it is an exciting way to learn history while being entertained. I believe he holds several degrees - in fields not necessarily related to genealogy. Anyone who has the opportunity to hear him speak should not miss doing so. Victoria (Vicki) McCarty [email protected] http://www.caretender.com ----- Original Message ----- From: Bill Gordon <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, August 19, 1999 5:21 AM Subject: [SCYORK] Re: South Carolina counties > Regarding queries about the changing political and administrative > boundaries within South Carolina, I would highly recommend the works of > Dr. George K. Schweitzer, PhD., of Knoxville, TN. I purchased two ~ 175 > pp paperbacks by Schweitzer from vendors at a genealogical workshop for > about $12 each. The titles are: "South Carolina Genealogical Research" > and "North Carolina Genealogical Research." Both of these works do an > excellent job of setting the geographical and administrative contexts of > these states, particularly in the case of ever-confusing South Carolina. > This work offers a clear, illustrated provenance of current county > divisions, starting from the earliest days of civil and religious > administration of the state. > > A last paragraph in each book following a descriptive list of the > genealogical guides Dr. Schweitzer has written modestly states that... > > "All of the above books may be ordered from Dr. George K. Schweitzer, > 407 Ascot Court, Knoxville, TN, 37923-5807. Or send a long SASE for a > FREE descriptive leaflet on any of all of the books." > > I do not know Dr. Schweitzer's academic field, although I would guess > history, nor do I know whether he is associated with a university. For > me, these issues are moot, as he has proven himself most valuable to me > in understanding what's involved in South Carolina genealogy research. > Each of these books is also appropriately replete with suggestions for > further pertinent reading in serious historical and academic works. The > books are packed with useful and practical information and represent the > best twelve bucks I have yet spent on genealogical information. > > Also, if you haven't yet heard of "Map Guide to the U.S. Federal > Censuses, 1790 - 1920", better get on your horse and get this baby. > Authors Thorndale and Dollarhide do a superb job of visually showing the > changing county boundaries within each state using a "snapshot" of those > boundaries at the time of each census. For example, in nine excellent > diagrams on nine pages, the changing boundaries of South Carolina are > presented. The state outline is shown, with black lines showing the > counties at, say, the time of the 1860 census. Overlaid on the same > diagram, in faint white lines, is the present county structure of the > state, making comparisons between then and now a no-brainer. This book > is a beautifully conceived and executed idea, helpful beyond words to > the serious researcher. I know it is available from ancestry.com and > amazon.com. > > Bill Gordon >