Roberts Family, Murrell Family (Click for Family Tree)
Tuesday’s Tip: Don’t Limit Dates in Searches
A typical genealogical search on FamilySearch, Google, Duck, Duck Go, Elephind, etc., generally includes a name plus birth and death dates. Yes, it is important to limit the number of hits so one is still not searching at 3am ,* but sometimes NOT limiting the search can find even better information.
It is fine to limit the search with a birth date, using the earliest possible of the many dates suggested by a census, headstone, etc.- you know that person will not be in any record before that date.
But after that date? Many of us lose out by specifying the death date as the final date that there might be a mention of someone. Obituaries, cemetery records, probate, court cases, and even city directories may list a person after their death. As an example, city directories may list the widow with her deceased husband’s name in the listing, and we have seen directories that were printed just before the death of someone listed, so they suggest the person was still alive. The deceased may also be included many years later in the obituary of a spouse or child, or in a newspaper article about a community or church; an example is a former minister being listed in a church history.
The obituary of William Johns of Wilkinson, Indiana illustrates this tip. Researching the Henry Honts/Johns family of Virginia, Tennessee, and Indiana, we used a variety of search terms, and in one, did not include the death date, when searching for Henry’s children and grandchildren. Here is the result of that search, published in The Courier Times of New Castle, Indiana, on 12 May 1953:
William’s parents were early residents of Hancock County per the obituary, and it gives their names, verifying that information for us, as we already have them in our family tree.
Previous research tells us that William’s father, Henry Johns, was the son of Matthias “Matthew” Johns (1817-1899) and Ellen Maggart/Maggard (1822-1886). Earlier research also tells us that Matthias was the second son of Henry Honts/Johns (Sr.) (1769-1864) and Elizabeth (Firestone) [Lampert] Johns (1785-1862). Only Henry Sr. is actually related to us- these Johns family members were his second family. But knowing that Henry and Sara were pioneer residents of Hancock Co., Indiana, gives more weight to our other data that includes the fact that the Johns family was in Hancock Indiana for quite some time- we know at least by the 1840 US Federal Census, when Henry and Elizabeth moved there with their two sons, including Matthias.
We must, of course, be careful to not extrapolate too far using this obit as ‘proof’- it really only tells us about William H. and his parents. But it gives us clues to check, such as a county history or Pioneer Days Celebration article that might list William’s parents. Just the one word “early” when speaking of William’s parents as pioneers tells us that we should find more about what life might have been like for William growing up in a newly-settled (by whites) area of the frontier.
One more great point about this more-recent obituary- it tells us the names of persons who were alive in 1953, and there is more chance that they may still be around to share their memories. Now we can look for that grandchild or great-grandchild that may have the surname Johns, Gipe, or Gale, and may have lived in- or still be in- Hancock County. In addition to memories and family records, they may even have that unbelievable photo of an ancestor that you never thought you would find!
So try your searches in many ways-sometimes leaving information OUT will give you great hits you might not have found if you had left that search term IN.
* Well, okay- as a genealogist who is finding good stuff, it is hard to stop, so 3am may be chiming on the beautiful antique clock near your computer on a regular basis. But searching smart will help you to have moved on to another detail, rather than still searching for that one tiny bit of info in thousands of search hits.
Notes, Sources, and References:
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