While researching a divorce case believed to be the brother of my great, great grandmother, I came across a book on Google Books that tells of those acts of “extreme cruelty” which could make a divorce possible. The book is dated 1917 and the list was quite enlightening! It starts by stating “it is not essential that the misconduct charged as extreme cruelty should be of a criminal character, or such as the guilty party can be prosecuted for in the criminal courts, but it is sufficient if the acts are such as are calculated to destroy the plaintiff’s happiness,...
I’m a member of Gen Proof Study Group 37 which is currently studying Mastering Genealogical Proof by Thomas W. Jones. We are learning about GPS or the Genealogical Proof Standard and have each chosen a research question which we are using throughout the course. Judy Russell, The Legal Genealogist, blogged about a Webinar a few days ago. The Webinar, which took place tonight, was “Complex Evidence” by F. Warren Bittner. I was a little afraid it’d be over my head as it was hosted by the Board for Certification of Genealogists, but it was perfect for me! He started with explaining the...
As I prepared for my genealogy road trip to Kansas, I wanted to organize my paperwork so I could share it with my relatives. I have thought a lot about going digital, but I am a very visual person and find that I work better with actual papers. But, how should I organize them? My filing system I decided to use hanging files, rather than notebooks, because it was both faster and cheaper. Also, I liked how tidy it looked. My filing system I created a hanging file for each couple who were my direct ancestors. And, I color coded...
It looks like Ancestry has had old yearbooks on their site for awhile, but I think they recently added some new ones including one that is useful to me: Arkansas City High School in Kansas. My grandmother, Hazel Peters, graduated from there in 1928. Hazel Peters (1910-1975) (married to James Edward Stewart) Senior Photo – original in possession of family I don’t know what is legal to post from Ancestry, so I’m thankful that Hazel’s senior photo is on the possession of my family. (Note: the hair looks odd because it was digitally colored & I changed it back to...
On April 9th, 1865, General Robert E Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia after his 28,000 troops were surrounded by Grant’s men. Lee and Grant met at the home of Wilber McLean in Appomattox Court House, Virginia. In the terms for surrender, all of the Confederate men and officers were pardoned. The very hungry men were also given food rations and allowed to keep their private property including horses to help in the late spring planting. Officers were even allowed to keep their side arms. U.S. Postage Stamp, 1965 issue, commemorating the centennial anniversary of the Confederate surrender at...
After discovering Ephraim P Bennett in the Missouri State Prison on the 1900 census, I emailed the Missouri State Archives about his penitentiary records. First of all, they were incredibly helpful and emailed back within hours. And, they explained how to order his two-page record. The cost: only $1! I had never seen a penitentiary record before and wasn’t sure what it would contain. It is actually quite interesting and helpful! The record book is obviously a large book as I got two 11×17 pages. I don’t have a scanner that can scan that will scan those, so I’m going...
As genealogists, we come across some really interesting items that don’t directly relate to our family tree. I decided to start a series called “Not My Family” Friday where I can share some of these amazing finds. If you’d like to join along, please post a link to your post! I’d love to see what you’ve found! I’ve written four previous posts about the “notorious Brawdy family” which was our class project at GRIP this summer. We uncovered some amazing newspaper articles! Family members were accused of larceny, assault, running a “bawdy” house (brothel), and even murder! The article I’m...
I recently wrote two posts about two men whom I thought were brothers of my great, great grandmother, Elizabeth Bennett (1849-1914). The first was titled “Doing Time in the Missouri State Penitentiary” and the second was “Skeletons in the Closet: Rapist & Murderer.” I had uncovered some prison records which seemed to be her brothers. I hired a researcher in Missouri and received a package from her last night. The man who was found guilty of 2nd degree murder is actually Elizabeth’s brother. It’s a fascinating story that I’m still researching. But, the man who committed “assault to rape” was...
I didn’t enjoy history class when I was growing up and have only grown to appreciate it in the past decade or so. Now, I love watching war movies and visiting war sites. But, I was really confused as I read over a 1911 Civil War Questionnaire today. This one is for a brother of my great, great grandfather, James B Dickson (1840-1902). James didn’t live long enough to participate in some questionnaires that went out for the 50th anniversary of the start of the war, but two of his brothers did. Photo of Pointe du Hoc from our visit...
1900 census listing Ephraim Bennettt as an “prisoner” of a state prison Cole County, Missouri In my genealogy research, I have now come across the word “inmate” listed under “occupation” on a census twice. Neither person was a prisoner. The only time I had an actual prisoner on a census record, he was listed as a “prisoner.” (See image above.) RESIDENTS OF “OLD SOLDIERS’ HOMES” The first time I came across an “inmate” on a census, I was pretty surprised. But, as I read the census better, I realized that this individual was actually living in an “Old Soldier’s Home.”...
