Most genealogists eventually hit a brick wall in their family tree, something they don’t think they ever will solve. And then something comes along they didn’t expect.
In my own family, a family Bible surfaced on Find a Grave when someone went to record a family cemetery, and at the house next door they found the owners had the antebellum Bible, giving the date of death of my Revolutionary era ancestor. Who knew that existed?
Many finds are what I call wild cards — records or sources that could exist but you have no way of knowing whether they do. Among these would be a family memory that just happened to have been passed down. Or letters, like those including an antebellum family tree, that I discovered distant cousins had.
The January-February issue of Family Tree Magazine contains an article by David Fryxell in which he gives 41 suggestions of places to look, or look again, to see if the source might turn up another clue you overlooked.
Among these: Check all the witnesses to deeds and wills, and know how they may fit in. Follow the siblings in case they moved to a place where better records were kept or a biographical profile was published. Be sure the surname has not been anglicized. DNA is helpful in that category as well as others. Does the state where they lived have records unique to that state, sources you wouldn’t find in your home state? Were your ancestors first cousins?
The article will help you rethink things to try to get around an impasse, or at least reopen the case.
Beginning research
Atlanta History Center archivist Sue VerHoef will give a lecture from 10:30 a.m. until noon March 15 on beginning family research. She will cover tips, techniques and effective strategies for beginners, so it’s geared to the basics.
The lecture will be at the center’s McElreath Hall, admission of $10 for members, $15 for nonmembers. Space is limited; reservations are suggested. To reserve, call 404-814-4150. For information about the program, call 404-814-4042.
The history center has a great collection about Atlanta and the region as well as a special room dedicated to genealogy books.
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