SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Census Records
1880 census
1900 census
1910 census
1920 census
Birth Records
Death records
Marriage Fecords
Divorce Records
Barns and MarksBRANDS AND MARKS
Brands and marks were one of the earliest court entries in colonial America when all were required to register them. Many people of that era were unable to sign their names thus the reason for making the registration lega
Militray Records
Naturalization records
Acceptable proofs:
Family Bible Records
Tombstone
SSDI record
Birth Certificates
Death Certificates
Marriage Records
Land Records
Military Records
Census Records
Newpaper Articles
Court documents
Other proven "paper" records
Genealogy Quotes
"Why waste your money looking up your family tree? Just go into politics and your opponents will do it for you." -- Mark Twain
"In all of us there is a hunger, marrow deep, to know our heritage - to know who we are and where we came from. Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning. No matter what our attainments in life, there is still a vacuum, an emptiness, and the most disquieting loneliness." -- Alex Haley, Roots
"If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten; Either write things worthy of reading, or do things worthy of writing." -- Benjamin Franklin, May 1738
"There are only two lasting bequests we can give our children - one is roots, and the other, wings." -- Hodding S. Carter
"When a society or a civilization perishes, one condition can always be found.
They forgot where they came from." -- Carle Sandburg
"I don't know who my grandfather was, I am much more concerned to know what his grandson will be." -- Abraham Lincoln
"People will not look forward to posterity who never look backward to their ancestors." -- Edmund Burke
"Everyone has ancestors and it is only a question of going back far enough to find a good one." -- Howard Kenneth Nixon
"It is a desirable thing to be well-descended, but the glory belongs to our ancestors." -- Plutarch
"He who has no fools, knaves, or beggars in his family was begot by a flash of lightning." -- Old English proverb
"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance." -- George Bernard Shaw
"There is no king who has not had a slave among his ancestors,
and no slave who has not had a king among his." -- Helen Keller
"Genealogy" Tracing yourself back to people better than you are." -- John Garland Pollard
"I don't have to look up my family tree because I know that I'm the sap." -- Fred Allen
"We've uncovered some embarrassing ancestors in the not-too-distant past. Some horse thieves, and some people killed on Saturday nights. One of my relatives, unfortunately, was even in the newspaper business." -- Jimmy Carter
"Southerners are so devoted to genealogy that we see a family tree under every bush." -- Florence King
More Fun Stuff
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What day of the week were you born? CLICK HERE
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This Date In History
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FACT: One in five Americans (20%) are of German ancestry.
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Towns with Unusual Names
Alabama
Burnt Corn, Intercourse, Muck City
Alaska
Chicken, Deadhorse, Unalaska
Arizona
Boneyard, Carefree, Goobertown, Nothing, Why
Arkansas
Experiment, Okay, Toad Suck
California
Cool, Dunmovin, Frying Pan, Hells Kitchen, Secret Town
Colorado
Last Chance, No Name, Tin Cup
Georgia
Between, Hopeulikit, Jinks
Kentucky
Bug, Busy, Monkey's Eyebrow, Oddville, Ordinary
Missouri
Enough, Fairdealing, Tightwad, Useful
North Carolina
Lizard Lick, Speed, Tick Bite, Whynot
Oklahoma
Happy Land, Nowhere, Okay
Oregon
Boring, Half.com, Idiotville, Zig Zag
Pennsylvania
Corner Store, Fear Not, Panic
Tennessee
Defeated, Difficult, Life, Nameless, Only
Texas
Black Jack, Cut n' Shoot, Ding Dong, Hoop and Holler
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Analysis by 2000 Federal Population Census
A simpler version of the map above. German American Mexican Irish African Italian English Japanese Puerto Rican
A simpler version of the map above. German American Mexican Irish African Italian English Japanese Puerto Rican
The majority of the 300 million people currently living in the United States are descended from European immigrants who have arrived in the past 400 years. Most Latin American immigrants are from Mexico and Central America of which about half are descended from indigenous peoples of those regions and Spaniards (mestizo). African American people, most of whom are descended from Africa and the slavery era, form the next-largest ethnic groups. American Indians who were pushed into reservations by the English immigrants now form a small minority in the population.
Major components of the European segment of the United States population are descended from immigrants from Germany (19.2%), Ireland (10.8%), England (7.7%), Italy (5.6%), Scandinavia (3.7%) and Poland (3.2%) with many immigrants also coming from other Slavic countries. Other significant European immigrant populations came from eastern and southern Europe and French Canada; few immigrants came directly from France. Since French, French-Canadian and Acadian ancestries are overlapping, the number of counties with "French" as the main ancestry would also be larger if these three labels are added together.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maps_of_American_ancestries
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County names most commonly used:
Washington County - 31 states
Jefferson County - 26 states
Franklin County - 25 states
Jackson County - 24 states
Lincoln County - 24 states
States with the most counties:
Texas - 254 counties
Georgia - 159 counties
Kentucky - 120 counties
North Carolina - 100 counties
Virginia - 95 counties
States with the least counties:
Delaware - 3 counties
Hawaii - 5 counties
Rhode Island - 5 counties
Connecticut - 8 counties
New Hampshire - 10 counties
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You have a 1 in 4 chance of having a grand parent's surname (25%)
You have a 1 in 8 chance of having a great grandparents surname (12%)
You have a 1 in 16 chance of having a great-great grandparents surname (6%)
You have a 1 in 32 chance of having a great-great-great grandparents surname (3%)
d'Aboville SystemEdit
d'Aboville is a descending system very similar to the Henry system. It differs in that periods are used to separate the generations and no changes in numbering are needed for families with more than nine children.[2] For example:
1 Progenitor
1.1 Child
1.1.1 Grandchild
1.1.2 Grandchild
1.2 Child
1.2.1 Grandchild
1.2.2 Grandchild
1.2.3 Grandchild
1.2.4 Grandchild
1.2.5 Grandchild
1.2.6 Grandchild
1.2.7 Grandchild
1.2.8 Grandchild
1.2.9 Grandchild
1.2.10 Grandchild
This system was developed by Count Jacques d'Aboville in 1940 and is widely used in France.[3]
Favorite Genealogy Links
www.CyndisList.com --The best, most complete website for genealogical purposes I've seen. You can link to sites within all 50 states as well as some national sites.
www.familysearch.com --This is the "search" site for the Church of Latter Day Saints. Search many databases, download Gedcoms...
www.familytreemaker.com --I have a member page on this which has gotten many inquiries regarding my family names. Search many databases, others' family trees,much much more!
Jim's web site on Family tree maker, hopelessly out of date. Some day...
Lisa Gerving's page on Familytreemaker.com --Lisa is a very distant relative, descended from Fargo Lugers and Dornbirn Rhombergs.
www.ancestry.com --another good site with many features
www.genealogy.com --Bills itself as the leading resource for family history. Has a virtual cemetery and a "members only" online data library
www.genforum.genealogy.com --bulletin board of sorts for people with genealogy questions or leaving feedback for others researching your family name.
ebay.com --Believe it or not, EBAY is a great resource for genealogy; from genealogy reference guides to historical documents and items relating one's family.
Family Contacts
You can contact the following people by mail, phone or e-mail (where appropriate) for more information about our family:
Name & Address Phone Numbers E-Mail Address Family Names
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Jim Ericson
3541 Benjamin St. NE.
Minneapolis, MN 55418 612.781.8254 (Home)
763.717.4021 (Work) jime@isd.net All of them!
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Sandy Knupp
PO Box 1556
Buena Vista, CO
81211-1556 719.395.8008 psknupp@amigo.net My Mother's Side
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Damon (Peter) Taverna
Indiana ptav806977@aol.com Damon and I are both descended from Saloman von Taverna, born in Kublis, Switzerland, 1803
Genealogy Links
Ancestry.com ~ The best membership research site on the Web.
FamilySearch ~ The Internet Genealogy Service of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
GenForum ~ Surname, Regional, General Topics message boards at Genealogy.com
Genealogy.com ~ Another good membership research site.
RootsWeb ~ The oldest and largest genealogy site on the Web.
WorldConnect Project ~ RootsWeb's WorldConnect Project Global Search page.
USGenWeb ~ The USGenWeb Project consists of a group of volunteers working together to provide Internet websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States. The Project is non-commercial and fully committed to free access for everyone.
USGenWeb Archives
USGenWeb Census Project
Ancestor Search ~ A free genealogy search engine.
Cemeteries & Cemetery Records ~ A cemetery transcription library.
CousinConnect ~ A free genealogy query and surname database.
OneGreatFamily.com ~ A membership research site.
Virtual Cemetery ~ A free service from Genealogy.com.