Esther's Journey

I attended the New England Regional Genealogical Conference this past week with a specific goal in mind. That goal was to discover Esther Agard's journey. Esther is the wife of John the Elder Agard, purported to be the founding father of the Agards in America. The only information we have of John in America is that he either died on the ship or upon arrival in Boston. Is that true? And if so, then it is actually Esther that is the founding member of the Agards in America. The research so far has them landing in Boston in April 1683 with the birth of their son, John the Younger in July 1683. Two years later we find Esther in Barnstable, MA marrying Samuel Storrs. The couple had three childre, Thomas Storrs b: 1686, Esther Storrs b: 1688, and Cordial Storrs b: 1692. That information isn't enough. I want to know if John made it onto America soil before he died. I want to know how Esther got to Barnstable, and why. I want to connect with her and learn about what her life was like. I realized through the conference that to get these answers, I'll need to read about the early history of Boston, try to find a death record for John, and trace Samuel Storrs. Finding out when and why he settled in Barnstable might give me a hint as to that migration pattern. The Massachuetts Genealogy Society staff were helpful and gave me some ideas. They also said Barnstable has great records. That historical society will be opening mid-May. The Fall River Historical Society will have information. I will have to bone up on Massachusetts laws at that time. A lot of work ahead of me, but at least I can now design a new research plan. The Mormons believe your ancestors want you to find them. I've learned that is true. You just have to work at it.

NERGC-2017 - Finding Someone Who Eluded Census Records

Directions to the Springfield, MA Civic Center provided by the New England Regional Genealogical Society were easy to follow. We exited I-91 at Columbus Street, onto Main Street, and within a few blocks was the Civic Center where the Fourteenth New England Regional Genealogical Conference was being held. Excitement was mounting!

Parking was right across the street; registration was easy. While we waited to meet our friends Wally and Marian for lunch, we had a long chat with speaker DonnaMoughty. We first met Donna when we lived in Newtown, CT, and she spoke to our newly formed genealogy club. Donna now lives in Florida, is a member of the Manatee Genealogical Society, as are we, so we see her there as well. It was nice to have a chance to visit in Springfield. Donna is a professional genealogist specializing in Irish research along with U.S. research, methodology and technology including Macs, iPhones and iPads.  She provides research, consultations and training. She is one busy lady!

After a delicious lunch at the Red Rose restaurant, my first NERGC session was Finding Someone Who Eluded Census Records, by Carol Prescott McCoy.

There are different types of censuses. The population census is the most used, but there are also industrial, agricultural, Veteran’s, some state censuses, and slave schedules. Note the date when the census was taken, i.e. in 1920, the date was 1 January. Check every year, every type. People moved and could have been missed. Or they were too far out in the country, in dangerous territory, where the census taker didn’t want to go. Sometimes ancestors are listed twice, if they were traveling between residences. And these could contain different information!

Copy/download entire census page to capture neighbors for future searches. Record all members of the household. Sometimes boarders or “servants” can be relatives. Record names, ages, and places exactly as in the census.

Name spelling issues are the most common. Try every variation. If that doesn’t work, find neighbors from previous census. If your ancestors stayed in the same place, finding the neighbors will locate your people. This was the only way we were able to find my New York City Nunn family in the 1900 census. When the census taker was told the last name was Nunn, he thought he was being told “none.” After several attempts at this misunderstanding, he finally wrote the deceased father’s first name “Joseph,” as the last name, scribbled in with the wife’s first name – a real mess. I located them because I found a 1905 New York Times article where Elizabeth Nunn (eldest daughter) sued her neighbor for return of money Elizabeth had entrusted with the woman in 1900. When I untangled that mess, I found the family!

Census Substitutes. Town records, tax lists, school lists, old maps, town histories, voter lists are all places where your ancestors’ histories reside. Hubby and I developed an 1890 Census Substitute for Newtown, Connecticut by using tax records, school and voter lists, and some church records. It was our hope that other towns would follow suit in order to fill in this 20 year gap.

My best takeaways: Develop a census database. This can be done for each person or by family, to sort by last name as well as date. Develop a timeline (I did that years ago, but it is a good reminder to review and update.) FAN Club - Follow friends, associates and neighbors. Be flexible!

Navigating the Past: Sailing into the Future

The latest New England Regional Genealogical Conference E-zine is available at its website 

The conference will take place April 15-18, 2015 in Providence, Rhode Island.  Registration is now open - early bird ends 28 February.  Hotel rooms are going fast.  Conference organizations have developed another great program with interesting and knowledgeable speakers.  Are you registered yet? We are.

Warnings Out and other things I learned at NERGC

Were any of your ancestors “warned out” of their New England town? My husband’s ancestor, Ephraim Cutter, was. In 1669 that meant that after three months of moving into a town (the time was later extended to twelve months) a family could receive a “warning out” notice. That meant that the decision had been made that the town would not be responsible for the family should hard times befall them.  It didn’t mean they had to leave, but it did mean they would not receive the same level of support as others in the town.  And it could have brought about a somewhat uncomfortable environment for the family.

Was your ancestor married in a Gretna Green?  For over 250 years this small town in southeast Scotland has been synonymous with quick and easy weddings. Over the years, some states had much easier marriage and divorce laws than others, and those states became known as “Gretna Greens.”  (www.gretnaweddings.com) An example of Gretna Green in the U.S. is Las Vegas.  What about divorce, inheritance laws, dower rights? Helen Shaw’s presentation, “Genealogy and the Law,” showed a number of examples of how local laws affected our ancestor’s lives.  Since each state had their own particular laws, she repeated over and over, “Check the law at the time in the state your ancestor lived.”  Some Resources to find these answers are: Black’s Law Dictionary, Val Greenwood’s The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, and your state’s law library.

NERGC Report - Getting There and Back

Sitting in construction-related traffic for the better part of an hour on I-91 just south of Hartford notwithstanding, our first day of the New England Regional Genealogical Conference was great.  Like old home week, we ran into Leslie Huber in the parking garage, was behind our local professional genealogist Harlan Jessup at the registration desk, and continued to meet many friends and colleagues during the sessions we attended.

The conference was scheduled in two hotels, across the street from each other, with an above the street walkway between.  Unfortunately, it was a long twisty voyage from the Sheraton meeting rooms to the meetings scheduled at the Marriott.  After navigating this distance, I had the unpleasant realization that all the meetings in the Marriott were on the sixth floor with the only access being an elevator.  I do not like elevators, especially crowded ones. So I went back to the Sheraton and reworked my session schedule for those meetings in that venue.  Overhearing other participants, I realized I wasn’t the only one disturbed by the meeting location at the Marriott.  I did find it quite strange to have the grand ballroom and meeting rooms located on the sixth floor.

The absolute best session we attended was by Craig Roberts Scott on The Impact of Bounty Land on Migration within and out of New England.  I will write more on this topic in another post.

We, as well as many others, encountered a minor glitch as we tried to leave Sheraton’s overflow parking lot. Upon entry we were given a token that we were asked to have validated, which we did. Upon leaving, however, there were no attendants to be found, and the only way to pay once your token was put in the slot was with credit card. Unfortunately, several of the machines didn’t work and cars were stuck with lots of cars back upped behind them. Finally a kind gentleman assessed the situation and physically raised the bar so that the cars could exit.  A detail the Sheraton needs to work out.

One Lovely Blog Award

Several weeks ago Leslie Huber of The JourneyTakers blog honored me with the One Lovely Blog Award. The honor came at a time when I was inundated with transcription work, had company, and was running up against packing up and leaving beautiful Anna Maria Island, Florida for the cold northeast. But enough excuses!

I thanked Leslie and told her I looked forward to seeing her at NERGC that begins for us this Thursday, April 7. Can’t wait!!

The Rules are:

1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who granted the award and their blog link.

2. Pass the award on to blogs that you've newly discovered. (Leslie’s site stated 15; other award sites state various numbers, so I picked six.)

3. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

So many blogs; so little time. These are the ones I have chosen:

1.            Carolannkg’s writing in Adventures in Family History is concise, and I love her photos.

2.            Andrea in Stories from Springer Hill touches my heart. Andrea is a gifted writer, talented cook, and a good friend. I especially love her Lu Stories. Don’t miss her "Our 2000 Pound Neighbors" blog.

3.            Donna of Donna’s Genealogy Blog. Actually she has two; one for general genealogy information, the second dealing specifically with Irish genealogy. We have had the pleasure of attending Donna’s presentations at the Genealogy Club of Newtown (CT) and at the Manasota Genealogy Society (Bradenton, FL). Donna is very knowledgeable and is a gifted writer and teacher. She, too, will present at NERGC.  

4.            Heather of Leaves for Trees. This is a new Geneablogger blog with the goal of helping each other solve brick walls. We all need that – thanks, Heather.

5.            John of New York History. For those of us with Upstate New York roots, this is a great web site to keep up on current news dealing with New York History.

6.            Emily of Writing Your Memories. I appreciate tips on writing my genealogy research and journal posts. Thank you, Emily. 

NERGC - April 6-10, 2011

So many choices; so little time. I just filled out my registration form for this exciting and educational conference. This was not an easy task. I read through each session with a “fine tooth comb” finding sessions that would be most beneficial for my personal research. I just hate it when there are two or more sessions in the same time slot I want to attend. As it turned out, I mainly choose sessions in the Skills & Technology track. I am especially excited to attend the session on Effective Editing and Writing, as well Jean Nudd’s session on Examining the 1940 Census. I also choose the session on Erie Canal Genealogy, since we have family in Upstate New York with migrations west.

I had to sign up for Elissa Scalise Powell’s session on Genealogical Standard of Proof. She is a great teacher and after one of her sessions at the 2009 NERGC I purchased the BCC Genealogical Standards Manual thinking this would be my next goal - a goal I have not yet accomplished.

I also veered off the Skills track for the session on Irish Birth, Marriage and Death Records for the Beginner, as this session will explain the new computerized system of Irish civil records.

Reading through the sessions, I learned that the New England Historic Genealogical Society has a new website AmericanAncestors.org, which I will explore further, as well as exploring what Zotero, the Free Citation and Note Manager is about.

Our registration forms will be on their way to NERGC soon, but as in the past, I will continue to peruse the session write-ups to make sure I attend the sessions best for me.  What fun!!!!