Extra! Extra! Research all about it

Newspapers are a great source for information. I have not made wide use of them in my own research, but I know they are out there. They are becoming easier to use as an increasing number are being digitized and indexed. You will find that some papers like the historic Cleveland Plain Dealer archive are available via a subscription held by your local library and others like the New York Commercial Advertiser are available through a subscription service available anywhere.

Here is a sampling of sources for newspapers. I have not used many of them and can offer no endorsements. Many of the fee sites offer short trial periods, which might be worth taking advantage of. If you intend to use the site for a research project for work or school, it is probably worth getting a subscription especially if they offer terms of less than a year. Also check to see what is available vie a your local library or university.

Subscription Sites: 
Newspapers.com 
GenealogyBank.com 
Ancestry.com 
NewspaperArchive.com **Read this article published in June 2104 before subscribing to NewspaperArchive. There have been complaints about billing, but not about content.**

Check to see what papers these sites have.  NewspaperArchive and GenealogyBank have maps on their homepage and a list of states; click on state to see city; then click on city to see newspapers and dates of publication included on the site. Newspaper.com has a similar process, just click on “see papers by location” first.

These aggregate sites exist primarily to serve the family historian, but there is no reason why students and historians cannot use them. Don’t be put off by the phrase “enter ancestor’s name.” Simply enter in the name of the individual you are interested in, like “John Witherspoon.” Or leave the name section blank and enter a term in the keyword section, like “slavery” or “immigrants.” The search can even be limited to state, city, or even a particular newspaper.  

Free Sites
Google’s United States Online Historical Newspapers here or here. Visit this page from About.com for tips for using newspapers on Google.

ChroniclingAmerica from the Library of Congress 

Lists of Digital Newspapers 
Historical Newspapers Online from the University of Pennsylvania  This is an enormous list . It is organized by state; the first column begins with Alabama, the second column begins with Missouri.

Wikipedia: List of online newspaper archives  This is a world wide list organized by country. You can skip to the USA (organized by state) by going here.

Your Local Library 
Check you local library to see what sources the offer. Here is what is available from the Cleveland Public Library. Most of their newspaper databases require a Cleveland Public Library card to access from home.

Articles on using  newspapers in genealogical research:
Using Newspapers for Genealogical Research
Family History in the News: How to Find & Use Newspapers for Genealogical Research

New Article: Do You Have a Question?

The best way to find the right answer is to ask the right question. I explore the technique of developing focused research questions in the January/February issue of Family Chronicle. 

Get your issue today at Books-A-Million, Barnes & Nobles, Chapters, through the app on iTunes, or a PDF version from the publisher.

Have Your American Ancestors Done a Disappearing Act?

A common complaint amongst genealogists is ancestors who are “missing” in a census or other document in which they “should” appear.  And it doesn’t really help that America is a really, really big place – theses ancestors, theoretically, could be anywhere.

An article by Michael P. Conzen, a geography professor, provide clues in his article “Local Migration Systems in Nineteenth-Century Iowa.” In this piece Conzen explores the migration fields in Iowa using the 1895 Iowa State census. A migration field, is simply, the area from which a destination draws its migrants.

What Conzen found in Iowa is that many people moved along the Rivers and later west along the railroad lines. In fact the connection between westward movement and the railroad was so strong, he basically said it wasn’t worth talking about. He also found that the larger the city, the larger the migration field.

On the ground, this means smaller cities in Eastern Iowa, like Keokuk sent plenty of migrants westward and only pulled in-migrants from a few surrounding counties. The two largest cities, Sioux City and Dubuque, pulled people from all over the state. In Ohio, where I do much research, Wellsville, on the Ohio River, would only pull from a small surrounding area. On the other hand, Cincinnati and later Cleveland, would draw people from a larger area. Similar patterns are seen in Great Britain.

How might Conzen’s study help you find your missing ancestors? For starters if you're trying to figure out where someone was before look eastwards. If you are looking for where they went next, always look west. Yes, Americans did move move in both directions, but the general trend was an east-west migration. 

Follow the major transportation networks: rivers, turnpikes, canals and eventually, the railroads.  I suppose your ancestors could have gone orienteering with a map and a compass to reach their destination, but it’s not very likely. 

If your ancestor is located in a small town in one census but not in the previous one, check all the surrounding counties in an expanding radius. If they are in a large town, follow the same procedure, but with bigger radiating circles. Basically, it is more likely that your ancestor would have moved, for example, from Brush Creek Township in Jefferson County, Ohio to either sizable towns of Wellsville or Steubenville than to have moved from Cleveland to Brush Creek Township.

*****

Conzen, Michael P. “Local Migration Systems in Nineteenth-Century Iowa,” Geographical Review, vol. 64, no. 3, (Jul 1974), pp. 339-361. Stable URL from JSTOR is here, which provides access to the first page unless you have subscription to JSTOR. You may be able to access JSTOR through your local library.

Paper & Proof from Genealogy Tip of the Day

I read this post, Genealogy Tip of the Day: One Piece of Paper Isn't Proof, the other day. And while I don't disagree with his premise, my contrary nature requires me to ask - How many pieces of paper are enough? What if there is only one piece of paper? Are researchers required to treat everything they find like it might be a double-agent from the underworld purposely sharing compromised intelligence?

I understand that all people at all times make all sorts of mistakes filling out forms and remembering the past. I also know that people, in the past and now, purposely try to hide information, like illegitimate births and bigamous marriages. It is important to be aware that information you find might be incorrect. But on the other hand, it might not be. Seriously. You might actually find something that is correct.