Genealogists are always grateful when a large volume of published records has an index.
Too often, we search in haste, especially if we are in a library or an archives. We make our notes and, if our subject is found, look it up and make a photocopy. But how complete is said index?
For many years, some publishers have allowed alphabetical lists of people to stand alone and not be included in the book’s index. So, if you don’t take the time to study a book, you really don’t know if your subject is covered or not. Check the first page of an index to see if there is any explanation of what it will and will not cover. Beware of older books, especially courthouse record volumes that purport to have indexes. Court clerks were notoriously peculiar in how they chose to index. Is the estate indexed by name of the deceased, or the administrator? If it’s a long, supposedly alphabetical index, remember this: In the past, alphabetical meant roughly alphabetical. All the A’s, B’s and etcetera were grouped together, but the list wasn’t truly alphabetical as it would be today.
The book that I checked over the weekend that generated this discussion was published in 1981. I never realized that my ancestor was in the book’s 1798 tax list because he was not in the 44-page index. The 1798 clue, when he was 23 years old, is a major find, as someone else is paying his taxes and could likely be related to his first wife. Lesson learned: Study a book and its index carefully.
German database
The Rhineland-Palatinate State Archives in Germany has now placed online files on people who emigrated from that area between 1815 and 1914. Check it out at https://apertus.rlp.de.
Spelling differences, keep a list
Names may be spelled many different ways. Anyone who is researching must take that into account, although I have had some stubborn people claim their surname was spelled only one way. DNA shows there are many variants of the same surname. Names can be garbled, misread, and so forth. Some differences in spelling could place a name at the other end of the alphabetical listing, say Hinds, Hines and Hynds. Make a list of all options to use in your research.
Contact Kenneth H. Thomas Jr., P. O. Box 901, Decatur, Ga., 30031 or www.kenthomasongenealogy.com.
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