Roots & Branches

So often when I am doing genealogy I run across words that I am unfamiliar with. Everything depends upon what time period you are researching and the location you are working on. You must always put yourself in the place you are investigating.

Example: If you are searching for a grandfather in the South, meanings may vary from where you live now, such as the West. Slang and everyday terms may through you a bit, but try to look at it for the overall terminology. It really helps.

The thing is you may not always know where to look for these meanings. I start with a regular dictionary and thesaurus. These are good sources for the common words used in our modern day conversation and writing. You might need to look back in time. So it is necessary to branch out to other sources.

Cassell’s dictionary of Slang by Jonathan Green

The Macmillan Dictionary of Historical Slang by Eric Partridge.

How we Talk: American Regional English Today by Allan Metcalf

NTC’s Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears, Ph. D.

With today’s technology you might also try the web. Online there are glossaries and sites that provide a “theme specific” dictionary.

Cyndi’s List (www.cyndislist.com/) is always a great place to start. Throughout her site, you will see several places in which she and her staff provide words meanings and helpful hints for information from other countries.

Rootsweb (http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nsdigby/lists/glossary.htm) also has a great glossary that provides many of the most common and uncommon terms and their meanings.

Here are few that I find interesting:

ANTE – Latin prefix meaning before, such as in ante-bellum South,

“The South before the war”

BANNS - Public announcement of intended marriage.

COLLATERAL ANCESTOR – Belong to the same ancestral stock but

not in direct line of descent; opposed to lineal such as aunts, uncles & cousins.

DISSENTER - One who did not belong to the established church, especially the Church of England in the American colonies.

DOWER - Legal right or share which a wife acquired by marriage in the real estate of her husband, allotted to her after his death for her lifetime.

ESCHEAT – The reversion of property to the state when there are no qualified heirs.

ET AL – Latin for “and others”.

ET UX – Latin for “and wife”.

Please check out their website for more words and meanings.

Take a look a this great little clip put together by the Birmingham Public Library.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAxrLJ5nw_g

Hats off the person or people that thought this one up. I truly enjoyed it.

Sometimes when you are working on your family history, there are towns that may suddenly seem to disappear. Census records and family bibles may state that a grandfather is born in some tiny little town somewhere and then when looking in the next census record it is gone. A lot can happen in ten years. The census records where taken every ten years starting with 1790.

The question is, “What do I do now”?

Well, here is what I recommend. Start by checking back to which county the town is in. Most counties have a county courthouse and they should have the records for that area or they can get the information as to who else might have them. In Wyoming, chances are the older record would now be housed at the Wyoming State Archives. (http://wyoarchives.state.wy.us/) They are very helpful. Most states have a state archive. In the past I have used the Missouri State Archives for my research and they are wonderful. Any time I contacted them and made a request, they where right on it.

My great-grandparents lived in the Rock Springs area a couple generations ago. It was my understanding that they lived in “Gunny Sack”. Well I have not been able to locate a town of that name. Keep in mind, some towns sound similar, but people of other eras, sometimes nicknamed them. About 10 years ago, I found a long-lost cousin and he had written his memoirs. In his book, he talks of visiting our mutual great-grandmother’s death bed as a small child. (This was a treasure in its self, because she died before my mom was born and know precious little about her). He mentions that he and his mother visited them in “Gunn”. Well there is a “Gunn” on the old maps and is listed as part of Rock Springs. So, here you go, they are one and the same

Also try the BLM (Bureau of Land Management). Our local office has maps that do show many of the old towns. Try your local office to see if they have something similar or you might as for a Search and Rescue Map. These are usually available to the public. You just have to ask for one. These are great and have many of the towns, old roads, points of interest, etc.

Museums and historical societies are great places to verify old towns. Our local museum has in its collection, a set of bound coal mining camp magazines. In them are long forgotten articles about life in Sweetwater County from roughly 1910 to 1940’s. Also check back with the library or local newspapers. They often have microfilms of the old newspapers. Or there is a new trend in most states of digitizing old newspapers. Wyoming State Library is working on this type project now. It is now available to the public yet, but will be soon.

Once you find the “missing town”, find the next existing town that is closest to it and try looking in that town’s records. If you continue to have problems, try your county courthouse.

Good Luck!