Preppers and your Genealogy–

A Prepper by definition is a person (usually under 40) who advocates readiness and self- reliance in times of disaster. The Prepper may leave the mainstream life and retreat into an environment more conducive to being prepared. The term is not always a compliment.

Genealogy is a pursuit that the better prepared you are to research your hard-to-find ancestors, the more you successful you will be. This may require you to leave the internet and the easily accessed databases and revert to more mundane techniques that only the truly dedicated genealogist still follows. Consider:

Your Genealogy Proof Awaits You in these Core Research Records:
__Marriage and Divorce Records. Did you know that there are at least 16 official marriage records and more than 125 different sources with marriage evidence? Marriage is the beginning of the family unit.  The marriage record provides the given name and surname of the mother—sometimes her nickname.  And usually, the father’s legal name. Most of us give up too soon in our search for these vital facts.
__Genealogies, Family Histories, and Pedigree Charts. Your genealogy may already be compiled–a survey I did of my clients’ surnames and the compiled sources at the Family History Library in 2000 revealed that more than 80% of my client surnames had one or more compiled genealogy records already on file in the Library! Break your Losing Streak! Search these sources. And first! You can get up to 300 years of genealogy in just one source. And when documented with copies of the original sources, you can save much time and effort in your work.
__Census Records, Inhabitants Lists, and Census Substitutes. More than 30 different kinds of census enumerations were recorded throughout the American Colonies before 1800: pre-1850 lists can be used to match other records that identify the members of the household. No other source category is better indexed, has such uniform and consistent data fields, or is as easily searched as American census records. Special search strategies can reveal “hidden” evidence often overlooked in your rush to gather ancestors quickly.
__Probate and other Court Records. Over 95% of all American adults have appeared in at least one court during their lifetimes. These records are essential to your genealogy and ignoring them or by-passing their data usually leads to an incorrect lineage or a connection to the wrong origins.  So plunge in and gather the evidence for your ancestors and their relatives—currently known or not.
__Land and Tax Records. Tax records list most adult males who live in a given area–they are recorded annually. Some localities record their population every 6 months! At what age can persons own land, buy and sell land, and gift land to others? Does the land come from the husband’s family or from the wife’s relatives? How do you read a deed? Are witnesses related to the people named in the documents? Which Jacob Hoffman is mine? And many other questions are raised and answered in land and tax records.
__Sources of Births and Deaths. You have no idea what source will yield birth dates and places of death–Like transfers of property title that list proof of death of the original owner. Or a tax roll where the local clerk recorded year of birth to differentiate between men of the same name. Until you search the records, these sources of vital records will remain “hidden.”
__Cemetery Records, in the cemetery and outside it. More and more tombstones are pictured and transcribed online. The correct spelling of ethnic and foreign names and evidence of ancestor origins often appear in cemetery data more than any other source—just didn’t seem right to bury Grandpa with a falsified name and place of birth.
__Other Important Genealogy Records:  Search these records to fill in gaps in dates, places, and relationships–Military Records. Church Sources. Newspapers and Obituaries. Genealogy and History Periodicals. Personal Genealogy Websites. And more.

You can use this checklist to ensure that you don’t miss significant sources in your search for hard-to-find ancestors. Your favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle  http://arleneeakle.com

PS And if you hire me to research for you, I search these records—and, in this order!

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