Newspapers

It used to be if you wanted to know something, go read the newspaper.  

Today we go online and google what we're looking for - and sure enough we'll find the information - and a whole lot of it may be questionable. Years ago, most newspapers had the information about what is going on in town. Sure some of it might not have the facts correct, or be an ad disguised as news - but oh the things there are to learn about the family in the newspaper.

Try  looking for those missing facts in the paper of the day.  Most my family tree comes from New York. NY is a state where getting information is difficult at best.  I find much of my information in the local news columns of the past. Most often i use the search for "Firstname Lastname" with the quote marks included.

Free resources online - 

Try http://fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html which  covers all of NY - an a little of other places. Read the FAQs section which is the link down at the bottom in the scrolling messages, it will assist you in the searching.

Or for those of us in the Hudson Valley, there is https://news.hrvh.org/  which is a smaller resource but seems to have different papers.  Putnam County Courier used to be on its own website, but it has been added here and is much more searchable this way.

Any county in New York, can be searched at the  NY Historic Newspapers website,  and you can search one or multiple counties at the same time if you choose.  Open each search result in a new tab here, which makes it easier to go back to your original search.

For a wider network, there is the Chronicling America website Which runs 1789 to 1963 all over the United States in various papers. The advanced search options here will give you better searches.

For other newspaper resources look at Cyndi'sList to see if  there are better newspapers for your area of interest that are free.  Ifyou're ready to pay for your searches, there are many susbscription services as well, like Newspapers.com. 

Ira J. Cornell - May 30, 1874 - March 29, 1905

My Great Grandfather Lester Cornell had two brothers, Ira and Wright Cornell. Ira was the oldest, and he died young of tuberculosis, or so I’d been told, so he's been a bit of a mystery...

Then one day I was gifted with some old pictures. You know the kind, grey or sepia pictures of people on cardboard backing, usually they are faded and worn around the edges. Often there’s something somewhat familiar about their faces, but you’re not sure what.

The photographer is someone you never heard of in a place you’re not sure your relative ever went to; and to top it off, when you turn them over there’s no name on the back. Downright frustrating to be given a ton of great granny’s pictures… only to find out she was the only one who know who was in them.

This time it was different – I turned them over and there in spidery pencil was written names – some with question marks, but names all the same. I promptly started asking questions of anyone from that branch of the family and in that way I discovered many things from those few pictures.

Great Grandpa Lester was much younger than his brother - 15 years younger – and since Ira didn't have kids and died young not much was known about him. Other family members seem to recall his wife lived in CT in her later years after he died, but they’d lost track of her over the years. So, armed with a couple of old pictures and some sketchy data, I began the hunt.

First – the census. In 1880, I find Ira is 6, living with his brother Wright with his parents Joshua and Alice in Yorktown, Westchester Co, NY. In 1900, I find his family all in Yorktown, but Ira requires some more searching. There are 9 Ira Cornells in the census for that year, He is the one living with his wife Almira with her parents Henry and Jennie in Manhattan.

 

This sort of goes with a family comment that he did “some photography down near the city” at one time. In 1910, I find lots of Iras, But not the one I’m looking for. In CT I find an Almira Cornell, the correct age, widowed, living with her mother – So by this I believe Ira has died. I find his mother, father and Lester living in Yorktown again. Alice is listed as having borne 3 children, 2 of which are living and this backs up my hunch that Ira has died. in 1920, I find no Ira that fits this family... so I move on to other records.

In some cemetery listings for Westchester county I do some more searches for the missing Ira. I find a possible one in Mahopac and reach out to a cousin who might know if this is the correct one. Jeanette and her mom Lois (Lester’s daughter) going for a drive one weekend and find the stone I mentioned in Mahopac. They find a full death date and he is buried among the Fisher family – His Wife, Almira’s family. There’s a marking for the Masons on his stone, which adds a bit of information too.

Online at the Mahopac Library I find copies of the Putnam county paper dating way back… and give it a few looks to see what I can find on Ira Cornell. Sure enough,. A few days after his death I find a column describing his death and where he’ll be buried. He was 30 years old and died of consumption.

Knowing Almira's full name and the fact Ira married by 1900, I began to look for marriage records. Nothing is found in Westchester county where Ira was born. However now knowing he was in NY city in 1900, I look at the NY city indexes and find success. Ira J Cornell married Almira Fisher in Manhattan, NY on February 21, 1899. I wonder if any of the family traveled to the city that day to celebrate with them.

So by looking in several places and some help from other family members I've been able to piece together a bit of information to fill in the mystery of Great-Grand-Uncle Ira.  Ira didn't have any children, so my search doesn't go much further with his story. But finally we know a little more of one of Lester's brothers.

But where do you find all this information?

I've been researching my family tree since 1995, and yes it has become an obsession. I never thought it would hold my attention as long as has. everytime I figure out who someone was, where they lived, and the dates of thier lives I discover 2 more puzzles, more commonly known as that person's parents. I always laugh to myself when someone says "oh yes, I have a relative that did all my family tree" because every family line expands back in time. I have over 10,000 relatives and collateral relatives in my family tree - and I'm far from finished.

Not only do I enjoy digging on my own genealogy (yes, its spelled G-e-n-e-a-l-o-g-y) but I also like helping folks with theirs. Lots of folks are interested in where great-grandma was from and what great-grandpa did but not everyone knows how to find out. The most common question I hear is - "Where do you find all this information?" There's a million places to look - but today I thought I'd give you some places you can check out yourself to see if you can dig up your family roots. Some are free, some require a membership (check and see if your local library has one you can use) and some require looking at at actual books or microfilm at a library. this is by no means an exhaustive list, but I'd probably consider it as my first line of attack with a new puzzle.

Do remember just because it's online doesn't mean its true. if its a record like a death index or a tombstone, it'll be a much more reliable date than that in a family tree someone else put together. Whenever possible find 2 or more sources for a date, and always question someone else's work.

http://www.cyndislist.com/ - the biggest collection of genealogy links anywhere.

http://www.heritagequest.com/ - which most local libaries will be able to hook you up with. Actual revolutionary war pension papers can found here as well as the census and historical books.

http://www.legacy.com/ - this will help you search for obituaries and the social security death index, both good sources of information.

http://www.findagrave.com/ - a index of tombstones put together by volunteers. If you have time and the inclination, add information from your local cemeteries to this database and help someone find their ancestors.

http://www.rootsweb.com/ - this volunteer site is especially helpful in hooking you up with someone else looking at the same names.

http://www.ancestry.com/ - This is a subscription site. They have some free indexes too. Some libraries and/or genealogy societies have memberships that may make it easier to access this site.

Enter the place and the word Genweb in your search engine - this should take you to a website with genealogy resources for the area you're looking for.

Find the local paper for the area you're looking in - and see if they archive their obituaries online. Also find where they can be looked at (usually at a library) which will help you find data in the news about your family.

That being said, a local library often has family information you won't find anyplace else.

There's a million other places to look - but that gives you a few to start you off. Just thought you might like the thrill of the hunt as much as I do. After all, I do enjoy sharing my hobbies with others.