My quest didn’t stop with Clinton. I wanted to know more about his father (George) who immigrated to the US from Frankfurt in the early 1800’s.

As a genealogist, digging deeper to learn why decisions were made by our ancestors is putting the flesh, heart and soul into understanding—to know the fullness of their humanity. The bones are the documents, the basics. Correlating those documents, conducting family interviews for clues, and researching the historical events during their life helped me to discover their humanity and what led to their decisions. I created a timeline putting together all three types of information. This revealed the connections of the history to the documents. Historical newspapers and court records provided much detail showing how these ancestors viewed themselves and how others thought of them.

Family History versus Historical Fiction

Having researched this lineage of my family for many years, I wanted to be able to tell their story in a narrative for my adult children. I knew my children would not dive into the genealogical documents to put the story together. While they are interested in our family history when I tell them what I have learned, genealogy isn’t their thing, and that is okay.

A written genealogy of a family is often factual — names, dates, marriages, children and those children’s children. It comes with well written citations of documentation showing where those documents were found to support the written genealogy. About twenty years ago I wrote about George’s life as an immigrant from Frankfurt. I wanted it to be a narrative and not the typical genealogical Register format which doesn’t provide for the writing of much family detail. But what I wrote was very sterile and quite frankly boring. Yes, the true factual documentation was there as it should be, but it didn’t bring to life who my ancestors were as people and what the world around them was like at the time. As I mentioned in a previous article, the documents only tell part of the story. The history of events gives context to the decisions they mad. It may have even changed the trajectory of their lives.

Through the interviews of my family members and the additional research about my great grandfather Clinton, I learned about the emotional story of betrayal, deceit, and his subsequent movements including his death and burial by a neighbor in a charity grave.

I wrote a detailed story about my second great grandparents George Seitz and Mary Elizabeth Plant, and there will always be some unanswered questions. And unless they can talk to me today, those will never be answered. How did George and Mary Elizabeth meet? As far as I could tell they only had their Catholic religion and family members who were brick masons in common. Mary Elizabeth was the granddaughter of a Revolutionary Patriot. George was an immigrant from Frankfurt.

I have heard authors talk about characters revealing more to you as you write about them. The concept was foreign to me until I started my own journey in writing the story of George Seitz and Mary Elizabeth Plant. Now I understand, and breathing life into their history has been deeply rewarding.

There is no right or wrong way to tell the story of your ancestors. When you think about your ancestors, what does your heart call you to write about?

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I knew George married in 1839 in Washington City (DC). From census records I was able to narrow down his date of birth to between 1814-1816, making him about 24 years old when he married. The census records also gave a variety of birth locations.

Remember census information is only as good as those providing the information and those recording it. Someone in the household who answered the door may not have complete information regarding everyone in the household. It is best to use a combination of the earliest record you can find, and a correlation of other documents.

Here is what mine looked like:

George’s naturalization record completed in 1852 was affirmed by him directly. This was a primary source with his affidavit of his place of birth in “the free city of Frankfurt.” The next page: “George Seitz, German – aged 32 yrs. old, arrived in US before he was 18 years of age and has continued residence, moved by John W Zekloff.” This was a secondary source but gave me a clue. George may have immigrated to the US no later than 1835.

When I finally decided to search in earnest to find George on a ship list, I thought about how families most often traveled together when they left their home abroad. I started with what I knew about his immediate family. Another distant family member and researcher found a newspaper clipping that mentioned my great grandfather Clinton Seitz. It tied my Seitz family members to the Wills (originally Vill) family.

The marriage record of Margerite and Johann Charles Vill was also tricky to find. She was listed as Margaret Sides and he as Johann Well. John Wills [Vill] married Margerite, George’s sister on 29 November 1834 in Washington City. This told me the family came from Frankfurt prior to that date.

This information led me to change my method of research. Instead of looking for George Seitz, I searched the archives for ship lists of those arriving in the US prior to November of 1834 naming Margerite Seitz, George’s sister. It took only minutes to find her. It wasn’t that Margerite’s name was uncommon but the definitive moment I found the correct record was seeing not only George’s name and his sister Margerite, but the man she was betrothed to, Johann Vill.

There they were listed together, arriving from the port of the sovereign state Bremen on the Brig Paoli. The Seitz family arrived at the port of New York, 29 May 1834, long before Ellis Island and Castle Gardens were established.

What I Learned

I am good at trying different strategies of research, but this was a narrowly defined type of record. I was able to narrow down the timeframe from other records, but a ship list is a ship list. I learned that in this case changing the search to another immediate family member provided another avenue of research for the same record type.

What brick wall have you overcome by changing your research strategy?

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She tried for years to find out. She wrote to the convent she was adopted from many times but without success. The birth records were sealed in the 1940’s. Her adoptive parents had become alcoholics over the years and whenever she went to visit them, they asked for money. Emotionally she longed for a connection she wasn’t receiving in her relationship with them. Would finding her biological parents give her what she desperately wanted?

Six years ago, I was asked to help Helen’s son to find her biological parents.

What did Helen imagine about her biological parents as she kept trying to get her birth information? Imagination leads us to fill in the blanks of what the records don’t tell us. I wish we all were fortunate enough to have the journals of ancestors to fill in the blank spaces of their lives. And if you are fortunate enough to have the journal of your ancestor, it may or may not show the full impact of their life in the world around them.

Often the genealogical records are superficial and don’t explore what brought someone to a particular point in their life. Understanding the historical and cultural history surrounding the time period in which they lived is an important part of the story.

As I researched Helen’s family, I discovered that her adoptive mother, Joan, had been married once before. Joan and her first husband had a daughter together. Her husband went off to war. He landed in Normandy and never returned to Joan. Within a year after losing her husband Joan’s daughter died. She faced unimaginable losses in a short period of time.

Joan did remarry and the couple adopted Helen from an orphanage overseen by Catholic nuns in Ohio. The depression had still crippled the country, and her new husband had difficulty finding work. As a result, Joan and Helen lived with Joan’s parents in Virginia and her husband found work in Ohio.

Did Helen know the full story? Did she know her adoptive parent’s trauma? Would it have made a difference. I have no way of knowing but I quickly became invested emotionally in her adoptive parents’ story.

Choosing Empathy

When beginning a genealogical research project, I choose to stay open rather than judgmental. Our ancestors’ lives were complex, just as ours are today. As researchers, when we encounter complicated relationships, difficult decisions, or behavior that appears troubling, it is important to consider the broader historical times in which those choices were made. Doing so can lead to more compassionate, balanced, and historically accurate interpretations of an ancestor’s life.

I’m sure you have heard the adage that context matters. Individual historical records provide only fragments of a person’s experience. A census record may show where someone lived, who they lived with and their occupation. A marriage record, newspaper article, court document, military record, or death certificate may reveal only one event or aspect of their life. These documents on their own rarely explain a person’s private thoughts, emotional struggles, motivations, or the challenges they faced. For Example, why did an ancestor move frequently? Were they on the run, behaving irresponsibly or was it difficult to find work where they lived? Or were there land opportunities far away from where they were living? Did discrimination force them from the area? Without understanding the cultural background, social expectations, and the political and economic nature of the historical period in which they lived we are missing out on vital information.

Personal trauma affects us all. It affects our decisions and frames our pain points as we move through life. An ancestor may have experienced war, displacement, abuse, the loss of children, epidemics, imprisonment, addiction, or long-term illness. My genealogical and historical research of the time has helped me to recognize the greater complexity of human behavior.

My mother was born just as World War two ended. The same rationing and saving of my grandmother’s time engrained in my mother, is also engrained in me. It feels inherited. Insight into the broader context of family members’ lives encourages a deeper understanding of how hardship, resilience, trauma, and social change can influence families across generations.

The bottom line is that Genealogical documents alone don’t reveal the historical context to complete the story.

Helen’s Story

Ultimately, we found the biological mother of Helen but her father wasn’t named. Her biological mother was a teenager at the time of Helen’s birth. The records were finally unsealed and were revealed to the family. I hope my discoveries about the life of her adoptive parents brought new awareness and empathy to Helen’s descendants.

Empathy allows researchers to see ancestors not as perfect heroes or simple villains, but as complicated individuals shaped by their circumstances, relationships, choices, and limitations. By examining historical conditions, comparing multiple sources, and resisting quick judgments, genealogists can create family histories that are both truthful and humane.

Do you think there are family members you might see in a new light if you dug more into their past?

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I wrote my first full draft over the next year and a half, coached by Colin. That process taught me discipline as much as craft, I wrote almost every day, and I welcomed the coaching and criticism rather than feared it. With each round of feedback, my work improved slowly. Only later did I understand that drafting was in many ways the easy part; learning how to revise was more difficult. I was hoping it’s like child birth in so much as enjoying the journey, forgetting the pain, and being eager to do it again.

In September of 2025 I turned in my first draft to the editor. She spent weeks with the manuscript—preparing a thoughtful critique letter, marking up the pages, and creating a detailed book map. Her letter was kind; her comments were direct. I fixated on the negative and skimmed past the positive comments. I wanted to cry. I felt like a failure, flooded with thoughts about not being good enough. What made me think I could become a writer? I was a genealogist, trained in facts and documentation, attempting to step into creativity. It felt as though I was working against my detailed oriented fact-finding brain. The words that stuck with me were info dumping, too many details that don’t move the story forward, needs development, and conflict, tension, and stakes largely missing.

The last one was poignant. The editor figured me out without knowing me. I am and always have been conflict adverse, ask anyone who knows me. My Seitz family had plenty of conflict and tension, but I didn’t show it in my writing. I let a character off the hook without holding him accountable. How was I going write about real life conflict, and tension, when I avoided conflict, if possible, in my own life?

I didn’t know where to start. I was attached to my story, to my ancestors and the factual historical details of their lives. Colin talked me off the ledge. He said I didn’t have to make all the changes suggested by the editor but if I wanted readers . . . well, you can guess. Being emotionally attached to my manuscript wouldn’t serve me.

Besides being extremely detailed oriented, and conflict adverse I’m a rule follower. I spent several days rereading everything the editor sent me. I wrote detailed questions to ask her. When we spoke, I found she was incredibly kind and supportive. Afterward I thought, just maybe I could do this after all. She sent me detailed notes of our call and I got to work.

I determined I needed to edit, move around and possibly rewrite 2.2 chapters a week to meet the deadline. I printed out a calendar and wrote in chapter numbers and notes for each week to stay on task. The holidays slowed me down a bit, but I managed to stay mostly on track. Life gets in the way, and some days were harder than others. My manuscript expanded, adding a chapter and scenes, and then it contracted by cutting two chapters and merging scenes—over and over again, like a crack in a wall widening and narrowing with the seasons.

When I was halfway through the first revision, I had an aha moment regarding my antagonist. I had delayed revealing who she truly was, making her look angry much of the time. Revisiting four earlier chapters allowed me to develop her character on a deeper level, so her personality was established long before her marriage, pregnancy, and the 1839 expectation that she wear a maternity corset in public—one she resisted as a more modern woman than her much older sister.

There were days when self-doubt crept in, telling me I’m not good enough. In those moments, I would talk to Melissa, a creative and insightful member of the History Through Fiction team. We would talk through where I was stuck. Having someone to exchange ideas with and receive feedback from, along with taking a break made all the difference.

In June I sent Colin my third draft of my manuscript. He had read it chapter by chapter before I turned in my first draft to the editor but not the entire manuscript after all the changes. To say I was nervous was an understatement. I still felt insecure but was excited for him to read it in it’s new form.

I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. I’m supported by the History Through Fiction team, who believe in me and my writing. They are a community of individuals who I have come to care about as friends. I am deeply grateful to each of them. They cheer me on—showing up consistently, reminding me that my writing matters.

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[An example of historical object restoration at the Harpers Ferry Center of the National Parks Service]

In my three-part series on making that call, not only did I guide you in overcoming your fear of contacting repositories, I also gave you a general idea of the historical holdings in a variety of repositories. (Substack https://substack.com/@lisaeoakley/p-206864718)

You may be surprised at what you can find through this resource. As you probably know, research is not always straight line (finding the needle in the haystack). Historical research is based on true and tried steps and forever digging deeper. It is important to use a research log (see my substack article at https://substack.com/@lisaeoakley/p-170551846 ) as you never know where your research will take you and you don’t want to repeat what you have already researched.

Some research is a happy “by chance” find.

I have had two such experiences. Both led me to the National Park Service.

An 1812 Family Farm

finding a family farm from the 1812 and a photo of it happened by accident.

Many years ago, I met a distant cousin researching my same ancestral Plant family going back to our Revolutionary War patriot John Plant of Charles County MD. All but one of John Plant’s children left Charles County for Washington City (Washington DC). We were stumped as to where John’s son, Horatio Plant, had property. And we worked for years to find it. We had one clue. From Horatio’s son’s obituary, we knew the property was somewhere in Silver Spring (DC/MD).

My cousin passed in January of 2018; I missed her and our time together working on finding the property of our common ancestor. I continued the research. In February of 2018 I had reached out to the Kiplinger Library of Washington DC Historical Society for help.

They sent me an article dated 23 Apr 1923, which was about the opening of a new Golf course in Washington DC now called Rock Creek Park Golf Course. Horatio had died in 1840 but there it was! “The house which Col. Sherrill has transformed into a clubhouse was constructed about 100 years ago by Horatio Plant, who at the time was owner of most of the land on which the golf course was built.

You can’t imagine the combination of sadness and elation I felt. It had been less than two months since the passing of my cousin, so I wasn’t able to share this find with her. The research led me down an exciting path.

In that same month of February, I reached out to the Rock Creek Golf Course. Through them I discovered that The National Park Service had just completed a comprehensive Historic Resource Study document on the three golf courses in the city. A staff member sent me the study then referred me to the Cultural Resource Specialist for NPS. She found the photos of my third great grandfather’s farm house.

The farmhouse continued to be in use as the clubhouse until 1963. This particular photo was one of my inspirations in my upcoming book being released in the fall of 2027, Not Ours to Keep.

In March, I found a map of Horatio’s original property ownership through the Library of Congress’ Geography and Map Division. The map is dated in the 1870’s when Horatio’s property had already passed to his son-in-law.

African American Revolutionary War Patriot

The second time I used a National Park Service record was in my research of a Revolutionary Patriot of color. A prospective member for the Daughter’s of the American Revolution had found she was descended from several men who fought in the Civil War. That in itself was a special historical find. In my research I turned to the National Park Service for a possible patriot. In particular, the research done by George Quintal is incredible. Researching African American patriots can be quite difficult. George had put together a listing of 120 previously unrecognized patriots of color who fought at two early battles of the Revolutionary War along with their service description. While the patriot we were looking for was listed with his service it was unclear whether or not he had any children. I had to look for another patriot. I am proud to say that through additional research I found a new patriot who had not yet been identified by DAR. He received a pension for his service in Massachusetts.

George Quintal’s Patriots of Color Study

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Sometimes I use visual cues to evoke layers of memory. Each morning before writing I searched YouTube for video loops with sensory soundscapes—such as the calm relaxation of a beach sunroom getaway or an ominous dark Victorian Harbor. The creak of the timber, the slap of the water against the hull, the distant cry of seagulls, and the rhythmic clop of horse hooves on cobblestones take me to a past I had not experienced.

Drawing on your own memories can also provide emotion for your characters. Recently I spotted a container of dark cherries at the grocery store. It triggered the wonderful memory of my grandmother’s house located on a busy street in San Jose. The house was cream-colored with a long driveway going to the backyard and separate garage. Down the driveway away from the noise of the street was my grandmother’s back porch and the largest cherry tree I had ever seen. (I was about eight years old).

The tree would yield the darkest deep red cherries. I couldn’t get enough of them. The birds ate their share as well. Those that fell on the ground stained the driveway with deep red sticky marks. The cherries were part of summer at my grandmother’s home, sitting on the back porch, feeling the breeze and working on mosaic picture craft kits to inspire creativity (and keep me busy). I was after all, an only child surrounded by grown-ups. I’m sure those mosaic pictures were the start of my love of crafts, sewing, and embroidery.

Memory can be a funny thing as you get older you can remember every detail of certain parts of your life or hardly any at all. It depends on your experiences and what you want to wipe away and what you want to keep. We keep painful memories hidden or remember every detail for the same reason: to protect ourselves. But, intertwined in those memories you want to forget are those you want to hold onto forever like the vivid memories of summer at my grandmother’s house.

I have found that if I think back and remember one memory from my childhood, other memories will come into focus. I remember going to the back door of my grandmother’s house and asking for bread with mayonnaise on it. Just that, bread with mayonnaise. Not sure where that came from, but I loved it.

Additional memories that came to mind:

· Special touch: My grandmother made three ceramic girl statues, and she let me play with them! Again, I was only about six or seven years old and later realized the special gesture.

· A Christmas chocolate that bit back: Watching my grandmother make so many cookies at Christmas time they filled the large counter. I grabbed a round one. It was a rum ball—I didn’t eat those ever again until I was an adult.

· Laughter and fun: I remember the dark wood dining room furniture at my grandmothers’ home. I would purposely sit at the table to the side of my uncle so that my left-handed knife cutting would elbow him.

Now I have a few questions for you.

How do you sit with your character and immerse yourself in what they must have felt during a particular moment?

How do you conjure up those emotions for them and what childhood memory do you hold that will create a feeling you wish to convey?

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Now in part three, we’ll get practical. We will look at how to write an effective inquiry, what information to include, how to follow up kindly, and how to build lasting relationships with the repositories and volunteers.

1. Before Send That Email or Make that Call, Do Your Homework

Preparation shows respect for the recipient’s time, gets you a better, faster answer, and establishes you as a serious researcher.

Researching before contacting a repository will help you to be more efficient. Check the repository website, finding aids, or catalog first. The website may also contain a listing of any fees, turnaround times, or access policies posted publicly.

2. Know what you’re looking for and what you have before you ask

Narrow your question as specifically as possible. Have your names, dates, places, and relationships organized and ready. Use a research log to keep track of the research you have already completed. The researcher on the other end may ask you more questions so keep your log handy.

3. The Effective Inquiry

Be clear, be concise, and courteous. If inquiring by email, make your subject line as concise as possible. Include surnames, location, and the time period in the subject line.

A. The Opening

Give a brief, warm introduction as to who you are and why you’re writing. Two to three sentences are usually enough.

B. The Request

State exactly what you are looking for and make one primary request per inquiry when possible. Provide the essential details: full names, approximate dates, location, and the record type you are requesting.

• Include alternate spellings of surnames.

• Briefly note what you’ve already searched, if needed.

• Be specific about what you need whether it is a record lookup, a photocopy, or a referral if they don’t have the record.

• Ask about fees if it wasn’t clear on the website.

• Inquire about reproduction policies and citation formats. You never know when you might want to turn your new found information into an article.

C. The Closing

Keep your closing warm but profeesional and express genuine gratitude for their help in advance. Include your full contact information including your name, email, and phone number if appropriate.

D. Following Up Graciously

Always acknowledge when someone has helped you, even partially. A kind thank you note sets you apart and opens future doors for help.

E. What to do if you never hear back

You never know what is going on behind the scenes at the repository. Historical societies rely on volunteers who may not be in the day you send an email. Write a followup email asking if they received your inquiry. If you still don’t hear back try a different contact method such as calling instead of sending an email or vice versa, or try an online chat if available. If need be you can try contacting a different staff member or department.

4. Building Lasting Research Relationships

Relationships are your most underrated genealogical resource particularly if there is a repository you will contact repeatedly. Consider supporting the organizations that supported you.

• Inquire about membership especially with the smaller organizations such as historical societies and genealogical societies. It opens doors and supports their work.

• Inquire about digitization projects or online finding aids.

• Mention their help in published work, blog posts, or family histories with their permission.

• Volunteer your own skills in return. It is rewarding.

The Genealogy community is one built on reciprocity. Consider becoming a resource by contributing to Find A Grave, donating copies of family documents to relevant repositories, and sharing what you find with others who are researching the same lines. You are building a network, not just collecting records.

Who will you reach out to first?

Enjoy the journey!

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Town Clerks, Historical Societies and Local Libraries

Town Clerk Offices

To get you started town and county clerks have a plethora of records, sort of…. I say that with tongue in cheek. Historical records may be sent to larger repositories over time. How do you figure that out without spending a lot of time? Call the town clerk, tell them what record you are looking for. In my experience, even when someone cannot directly help me, they almost always point me somewhere else. They know their field. They know who has what. What’s held varies by state and town, but here’s a general idea:

Vital Records – births, death, and marriage records

• The records available often go back to when the town started keeping them, sometimes 1600s–1700s in older New England towns.

Land & Property Records

• Some towns hold land records, deeds, and mortgages (though in many states this is handled at the county level.

• Property tax assessments and valuations.

Town Governance Records

• Town meeting minutes - a key source in New England towns, often dating back centuries

• Selectmen’s/board records Ordinances, bylaws, and local legislation

Military & Historical

• Some older town clerk offices hold military discharge records (especially in states requiring discharge papers to be filed locally).

Cemetery & Burial

• Burial permits and sometimes cemetery records, if the town owns/manages the cemetery

Historical Societies

Historical societies typically hold a wide range of materials documenting local, regional, or thematic history. Of course, each one varies but here’s a general overview of what you’ll often find:

Documents & Paper Records

Some of the documents they may have include vital records, church, property records, Wills, probate and estate files, newspapers, business and organizational files, and perhaps military files. Additionally, they may have photographs, maps, and architectural drawings as well as cemetery records, city directories and phone books.

Vertical Files

These may not yet be digitized - personal papers and family histories donated by local residents regarding their families.

Artifacts & Objects

Published & Reference Materials including local history books and pamphlets, Yearbooks, Oral history recordings and transcripts

Local Libraries

Local libraries, especially ones with a “local history” or “genealogy” room/collections often function as an informal archive for the community, complementing what’s at the town clerk’s office or historical society. Here’s what you’ll typically find:

Local History Collections

These collections can be similar to what is held at Historical Societies, but the collection will be different and worth checking. They can include local history books, yearbooks, city/town directories, maps and atlases, and photographs.

Newspapers

Newspapers are not all online. Sometimes I’m not able to find newspaper articles through my online newspaper subscriptions. I always contact a local or county library as they may have a genealogical room. I have never been disappointed! Librarians are wonderful at getting back to me after they have researched the article I am trying to find. They email me with the actual article and the citation for it.

Genealogical Resources

These include cemetery records/transcriptions, family histories and genealogies donated by local families or researchers, vital record transcriptions or indexes. Access to genealogy databases such as Ancestry Library Edition, Heritage Quest, FamilySearch, etc. These are often free in the library even if they are normally a subscription.

Find A Grave Volunteers and Cemetery Staff

Find A Grave

In my last article I mentioned Find A Grave. It is worth mentioning again. Find A Grave is an all-volunteer platform. You will find incredibly kind people who are willing to share their historical findings or go take photos of grave markers that are hard to read from a previous photographed marker. Maybe other related individuals are buried in the same cemetery but there is no photo of their grave marker. Oftentimes those volunteers are managing their family member’s grave sites and have additional historical documentation which may help you in your search.

Cemetery Office Staff

Cemetery Staff can be quite helpful. At one cemetery, the staff allowed me to photograph all of the material recorded for my family member’s cemetery plot. You can ask a member of the staff to check to see if there is a grave marker for someone buried there and if they mind taking a photo of the marker for you.

There are many family cemeteries that don’t have offices. For those it is best to consult Historical Societies, Town or County Clerks and Libraries. There may be a designated person who handles the surveying of those cemeteries.

State Archives and Libraries

Archivists are trained professionals who have dedicated careers to the preservation and accessibility of historical records. Accessibility. That word is built into their professional mission. The Society of American Archivists’ own code of ethics emphasizes providing the broadest possible access to records. When you contact an archive, you are not an inconvenience, you are the reason the archive exists.

Each state runs its own archives and libraries, so specifics vary, but here’s the general pattern:

State Archives

These typically hold the official, permanent records of state and local government:

• Vital records -Town clerks may send their records to the state archives.

• Land and property records - original land grants, deeds, surveys, homestead records

• Court records - historical court case files, probate records, naturalization records

• Legislative records - bills, session laws, committee files, governors’ papers

• Military records - state militia and National Guard service records, veteran discharge papers

• Census records - sometimes state censuses (separate from federal ones)

• Maps and surveys - historical state and county maps

• Photographs and audiovisual material - official state photo collections, recordings

• Agency records - records from state departments (education, corrections, health, etc.) once they’re no longer needed for daily operations

• Tax and voter records- historical tax rolls, voter registration lists

State Libraries

These tend to focus more on published materials and research collections, though there’s overlap with archives in many states:

• Genealogy collections- published family histories, local histories, genealogical indexes

• Newspapers - historical newspaper collections

• Government documents - federal and state documents depository materials

• Manuscript collections - personal papers, diaries

• Maps - historical and reference maps

• Books and periodicals

• Family Bibles

Things to Keep in Mind Town Clerks and Libraries

• New England towns (especially MA, CT, NH, VT, RI, ME) tend to have the deepest historical town clerk archives, sometimes dating to colonial times.

• In many other parts of the US, vital records get centralized at the county or state level instead, so the town clerk’s role is narrower.

• Older records are sometimes transferred to state archives or historical societies for preservation, so don’t assume everything stays at the clerk’s office forever.

• Access rules vary. Some vital records (especially recent ones) may be restricted to the person themselves, immediate family, or require proof of relationship, due to privacy/identity-theft concerns.

• State and local Librarians often know where records have moved if the library doesn’t have what you need. They can point you to the historical society, town clerk, or county archive.

In my experience in reaching out to these remarkable people, I have never once been made to feel like a nuisance. More often, I’ve been blown away by their generosity. People have spent their own time tracking down records they weren’t sure still existed. They’ve mailed photocopies they didn’t have to make. They’ve connected me to colleagues in other counties, other states, even other countries. They’ve shared stories and context that transformed a bare set of dates into a living, breathing human life.

In Part Three, we’ll get practical. You will learn how to write an effective inquiry, what information to include, how to follow up graciously, and how to build lasting relationships with the repositories and volunteers who can become your greatest research allies.

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And yet, the cursor hovers over “Send.” The phone sits in your hand, silent.

Reaching out to repositories, town clerks, historical societies, libraries, and Find A Grave volunteers can feel surprisingly intimidating. What if you’re bothering them? What if you ask the wrong question, or don’t know the right terminology, or you don’t have many details. What if they simply say no?

I understand that hesitation and I’m here to tell I have never contacted someone who wasn’t willing to share the records and their knowledge or tell me who to contact next if they don’t know the answer.

As a genealogist, a volunteer DAR Registrar, and a first-time historical fiction novelist, I live in the world of research every day. I am constantly digging into my own family lines and those of others I am privileged to help, and that digging almost always leads me to a phone call and a follow up email. A real human being on the other end of the line, a stranger I have never met in a town I may have never visited, holds a piece of a puzzle I have been trying to solve for months or years.

And here is what I have learned, without exception, these people love what they do, paid or as a volunteer. History matters to them. Your history matters to them, even if they’ve never heard your surname before.

A few of my experiences include:

• Speaking to a gentleman who volunteered at the historical society in a town in Iowa. Not only did he find what I needed and sent it to me, but he introduced me to a woman who was related to the same family and resided there in town. He went above and beyond.

• For a particularly difficult DAR application I reached out to a woman who managed multiple Find A Grave memorials in Canada. Her work was detailed so I knew she was a researcher. We emailed back and forth a lot! She sent me documents which helped me to prove the lineage. At one point she asked me if the prospective member was a particular person because she was a DNA match to them. The answer was yes and they were both thrilled to be able to connect with each other.

My mother taught me that there are no stupid questions and I have operated with that in mind all my life. I’m dating myself here, but before Ancestry and online newspapers, when message boards were all we had without traveling, I wrote letters to inquire about records of my ancestors. And even now while there are many records online, the answers are not all found within your keyboard strokes.

Aside from Family Genealogies and records, historical societies often have “vertical files.” These are records given to the society by family members. They may not yet be digitized. And while you might think that all newspapers are online through a newspaper database, that is not the case. Local libraries may have their own database of local newspapers that are not on a subscription paid one like Newspapers.com.

• I have reached out to Find a Grave volunteers and cemetery staff who photographed a grave marker. I was looking to find out if they might have a clearer photo of a name or date. Not only did the volunteer offer to take another photo the following week but chose to go that day!

• I have contacted other DAR members to check out the vertical files in the county where my ancestors lived for decades. They were kind enough to take a trip there and found many records!

• The Library of Congress and their archivists are a treasure trove!! I have found books written in the early 1800’s describing life in Washington DC. Through an archivist at the Library of Congress, I was given the article that confirmed my 3^rd great grandfather owned the property which became the Rock Creek Municipal Golf Course. I tried but could not find these on my own.

• Through my diligence I discovered that the National Parks Service did a thorough survey of golf courses in the District of Columbia. They surveyed the properties, did historical research and wrote a detailed report of the history of the properties. The Rock Creek Municipal Golf course had been my 3^rd great grandfather’s home on over 100 acres. This was the document where I found multiple photos of Horatio Plant’s home built in 1812. The home was used as the clubhouse and not torn down till the early 1960’s. This photo is the backdrop for part of my novel! It has truly been an inspiration of my work.

I made that call!

None of that would have happened if I had let fear keep me quiet.

In this three-part series, I want to help you find your voice, and your confidence, as a researcher who makes that phone call or sends an email. In Part Two, we will explore the types of records that can be found in a variety of repositories including books, images, maps, Wills/Probate records, deeds and more in order to build your confidence for that ask, and how to shift your mindset before you ever pick up the phone or write a new email. In Part Three, we’ll get practical: how to write an effective inquiry, what information to include, how to follow up graciously, and how to build lasting relationships with the repositories and volunteers who can become your greatest research allies.

The people who safeguard history are there to help you. They are waiting for your inquiry. They want you to solve the mystery. They remember what it felt like to discover something that had been lost, or to help someone else make a connection. They are fellow travelers in the same long, journey of trying to understand history, and where we all came from.

You have something worth asking about. They have something worth sharing. All that is needed is for you to reach out.

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I began exploring the geography and social culture which would help transform the historical facts into a living world. A world I could place myself and my characters in. Washington City as it was called in 1834 was referred to as “the city of magnificent Intentions” for a good reason. I had a few books on the subject, but they were textbooks with historical information gathered from a variety sources. It certainly helped but there was just a sprinkling of firsthand knowledge written in them.

I was excited to delve even deeper into the city where my family had lived almost two hundred years ago. I dug to find writings of those who saw of the city for themselves in 1834-1836. Each of the authors I discovered had different reasons for writing about Washington City. I may never understand the differences in viewpoint, but it was fascinating to read each of them.

Frances Trollope

She was a controversial writer of the time and unlike other writers she wrote in her 1832 book that Washington City was “light, cheerful, and airy,” and it reminded her of the fashionable watering-places in England.

“Instead of the busy bustling hustle of men . . . you see very well-dressed personages lounging leisurely up and down Pennsylvania Avenue”; congressmen were paid handsomely to simply sit around and “talk a little.”

However, her son Anthony wrote his impressions in 1862 in his travel book. He wrote, “But Washington is but a ragged, unfinished collection of unbuilt broad streets, as to the completion of which there can now, I imagine, be but little hope. Of all places that I know it is the most ungainly and most unsatisfactory: I fear I must also say the most presumptuous in its pretensions.”

Harriet Martineau

Born in England, Harriet Martineau was journalist and writer of books in a variety of genres. She was a suffragette in later years. She extensively traveled the US in 1835 to examine American politics and the culture behind it. She wrote about the hypocrisy in America, citing the ideals of democracy and yet the acceptance of the slave trade and slavery itself and was against slavery. She inserted herself into American politics by attending Congressional meetings and speaking with men of power in Washington City.

She published “Society in America” in 1838, after spending two years in a variety of cities between 1834-1836. On Washington City Harriet Martineau wrote:

“Washington is no place for persons of domestic tastes. Persons who love dissipation, persons who love to watch the game of politics, and those who make a study of strong minds under strong excitements, like a season at Washington; but it is dreary to those whose pursuits and affections are domestic.” This summarized her 5-week time in Washington.

She wrote details about every aspect of life such as the foods like canvas-back duck, the muddy roads, and the changing of the weather at a moment’s notice. Harriet described the way the city was laid out without a real plan and the difficulty in travel because of the distances between.

She observed the people coming in and out of the city, writing about native American chiefs, southerners, cowboys, and the elite politicians and their wives. Each coming to the city on a temporary basis but there on a political mission. Many boarding houses sprung up to house these temporary residents.

Her level of description along with maps from the time period enabled me to visualize my characters and their life in Washington. Harriet herself makes an appearance in my novel.

James Silk Buckingham

James Buckingham spent almost four years in the United States in the late 1830’s. His intention was to write about society in America for a British audience. He wanted to bridge the gaps between the US and Britian with writing for cultural understanding. His book “America, Historical, Statistic and Descriptive” written in 1841 provided details that aided my descriptions of the historical time in Washington City. His descriptions all lined up with Harriet Martineau’s.

Mrs. Sarah E Vedder

Sarah Prettyman Vedder wrote with a completely different intention. She grew up in Washington DC. Her book “Washington City Seventy-Nine Years Ago; 1830-1909,” was written with the idea of preserving her personal history for her children.

Mrs. Vedder wrote at length about her experiences in school. She made many observations of the houses and who lived in them, but not stating the way the city was laid out until much later in the book. But as I read the detail about the distances between houses it was clear. Such as: “There were no more than twenty houses in the neighborhood, scattered here and there.”

She described the people, their homes and shops that made up the area of the city in which she grew up. Throughout her book there are many little gems of history and gossip including her opinions in the form of cultural anecdotes on the political figures of the time.

Reflection

Deep research of Washington City allowed me to more clearly see the world my family lived in and the society that shaped their daily lives. Through Harriet Martineau’s observations and other historical sources, I was able to view both the beauty and the contradictions of the city during this period. The culture, politics, geography, and social divisions of Washington all influenced the experiences of the people who lived there, including my ancestors. This research not only deepened my knowledge of the time period but also helped me imagine my characters and their lives more vividly as I wrote my novel.

Do you have an area that you love to research? I would love to hear more about it. Leave a comment or click reply to send me an email.

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As my mom poured through the box, she discovered her name was Catherine. She found a photo of Catherine wearing the little dress. There were letters from soldiers during the war. After rescuing the memories of Catherine in the 1980’s, my mom tucked the box away and put the dress on a little girl mannequin.

More recently my mom handed me a leather journal with the date 1912 on the cover. She thought I might enjoy reading and researching the owner of the journal. The inside cover read “Ruth W Helff.” As I went through the journal not only were Ruth’s writings about a trip to British Columbia, but tucked between the pages were photos of two women (named and dated on the back), photos of cottages on a lake and cottages, a pamphlet, a paper luggage tag, and on a page at the end of the journal was a listing of all of the expenses for the trip.

Behind the pamphlet was a wedding invitation for Ruth’s wedding to Albert Mitchelson. They were to marry at her sister’s house in New Jersey. A card in the invitation revealed their address of where they would live in Washington DC after their marriage.

Taking home the journal I started an Ancestry tree for Ruth and Albert. I knew the date but not the year of their marriage and their address in Washington DC. I verified each hint as they were generated by Ancestry. Ruth and Albert married in 1917 and lived in Washington DC until 1920 when they moved to Berkeley California. Albert was an engineer working for the Department of Agriculture. Ruth didn’t work outside of the home.

After creating the family tree, I chatted with my mom on the phone about what I was learning about their life, then another hint came up; Ruth and Albert had one child born in 1921, a daughter named Catherine. It was then that we realized this was a journal that had become separated from the box of Catherine’s belongings.

I continued to research as much as I could about Catherine and her parents.

The home Catherine grew up in and lived in until her death was located on Spruce Avenue in Berkeley CA. It was built in 1929, just 8 years after she was born. Her parents purchased it when it was newly built and lived in until their deaths in 1951 and 1959 respectively. Catherine attended Stanford University from 1939-1943. She continued to live as a single woman in her parent’s home according to the 1950 census.

Then I came across the obituary for Catherine. She died in 1986 at age 65. I was happy to see she married and had a son. The realization as to why her belongings ended up at a flea market was also revealed. Both her son and husband predeceased Catherine. As of late, with research, I have been unable to find out the story behind the loss of her husband and son.

I was sad to know there wasn’t anyone in her family left to love the little dress Catherine must have cherished, nor the photos, letters, and her mother’s journal. My mom did though. She honored Catherine by seeing the value in her memories and exploring her life.

In this vein I have labeled items that have been given to me by my mother, by great aunts and cousins and other family members. I want my children to know that the medallion came from Frankfurt in 1834 with my second great grandfather George Seitz, that the wedding ring dated 1884 belonged to my great grandmother Mary Rosalie Hunter Seitz. Photographs have been labeled with names of those pictured. All of these have been organized.

This is why I am passionate about writing historical fiction, weaving in creativity with the records of my ancestor’s lives, so my children will know about the generations of those who came before them. I want them to continue to recognize our family’s successes, their struggles and their human imperfections.

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Have you ever found a treasure that lead you down a research rabbit trail? I would love to hear about it!

Start with What you Know and Interview If Possible to Learn More

I was excited to meet my great aunt Irene Hunter Seitz (91 yrs old) for the first time as well as her son Augustus Crenshaw III (64 yrs. old) in Chevy Chase, MD. I wanted to get to know them learn more about their life and I hoped to understand what happened to my aunt’s and grandfather’s father. Clinton left the family sometime in 1898.

Gus and my aunt Rena could not tell me much. Aunt Rena was 10 years old and Drew 6 years when their father left. Clinton showed up later back in Washington DC in 1927 when Gus was twelve years old. My great grandmother, Mary Rosalie was living with my aunt Rena by then. Gus described Clinton as a stuffed shirt and knew that he visited from somewhere in Pennsylvania. At least that was one clue.

Organize What you Know

I pulled together what I knew about Clinton. He had primarily worked as a paper hanger. He was born 17 January 1861 in Washington DC. So, that told me his age in 1900. His parents were George Seitz who was born in Frankfurt am main and Mary Elizabeth Plant who was born in Maryland.

Before starting my search in PA, I looked at the 1900 census for his wife, my great grandmother Mary Rosalie in Washington DC. It showed she moved into the household of her father with her two young children and Clinton was living with her there, but that math didn’t work if he left the family in 1898. It was possible that Mary Rosalie may have claimed Clinton was still living with her out of embarrassment because I found him in PA in 1900.

A Good Place to Start - Census Records

I started looking at 1900 census records in PA. I found 3 men named Clinton Seitz with the following information:

1. In Philadelphia: Clinton A Seitz, born in West Virginia in Jan 1868, a paper hanger by trade, he married Mary E Seitz circa 1897, she was just 24 yrs old in 1900 and was born in New Jersey. In the household was a 1 yr. old son named Branson. Clinton stated that his father was born in Virginia and his mother in West Virginia.

2. In Shrewsbury Co. PA, there was Clinton H Seitz, born in PA in Oct of 1872, living in his father Edward’s household. He was single, a schoolteacher and it was stated that both of his parents were born in PA.

3. In Cumberland Co. PA there was Clinton Seitz born in PA in 1892. He was just 18 yrs. old and was living in his brother’s household. He worked for the steam railroad and was single. Both of his parents were born in PA.

Clearly, none of these men were an exact match. But the first one was intriguing. How many men were named Clinton Seitz with a profession as a Paper Hanger? This could be my great grandfather.

I focused on the first Clinton Seitz. I checked the 1910 census in PA which told a similar but also a different story. This census listed a man named Charles A P Seitz and a woman, Mary E, who were living together as boarders. A young son named Branson was shown in the household. Charles claimed he was born in 1868 but in VA and that his parents were also born in VA. The information for the woman living with him, Mary E, stayed consistent from the 1900 census and again this man is listed as a Paper Hanger.

Newspapers

At this point I turned to newspaper articles to help confirm that this 1910 couple were the same as those in the 1900 census. Within a newspaper database I set a search inquiry of Clinton between the years of 1895-1920.

I found a newspaper article dated 16 Dec1906 for the death of I. Branson Seitz who was just eight years old. He was the son of C A P Seitz and Edna H Seitz. There was no cause of death listed. That led me to look for a death certificate for I. Branson Seitz. The newspaper named the mother as Edna H, which didn’t correlate to what I had already gathered. I also didn’t have a maiden name for her yet.

In addition, I found a variety of newspaper advertisements for Clinton’s business as a paper hanger and decorator.

A Washington DC newspaper article dated 1917 listed several individuals with cases against them including, “Clinton A P Seitz for non-support.” Unfortunately, after combing a variety of court case files in Washington DC, I never found one for Clinton.

Death Certificates

Now with the date of death for of Branson, I proceeded to look for the death certificate for him hoping for more detail. The death certificate provided confirmation I needed. Irving Branson Seitz died of chronic endocarditis. His parents were Clinton A Seitz and Mary E Cox. It stated that both Clinton and Mary E were from New Jersey.

In correlating the two census records along with the death certificate of Irving Branson Seitz, I was sure I had the right couple, and more importantly my great grandfather Clinton. I kept digging.

FamilySearch – Full Text Search

In the last year or so I started using Full text search within the FamilySearch website. Full text search allows you to search for records that have not yet been indexed. By putting in a name, dates, and a place you may find records that you had not previously found.

It’s a good idea to start with doing a query of general information and then digging down deeper as needed. My query was “Clinton Andrew Seitz, 1900-1933, Pennsylvania.” Notice I didn’t put in Philadelphia where Clinton was living at the time. Since his partner Mary E Cox was from New Jersey, I wanted to stay more general. You can always go in and change the search criteria.

In my search on full text search, I found it! A 1917 Court records file. There was Clinton with all his alias’. In this document it was revealed that Clinton was being held in jail in Trenton, Mercer Co. NJ to be sent back to Washington DC to face charges. It read:

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, TO THE MARSHAL OF THE DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY, GREETING:

WHEREAS Clinton A. P. Seitz, alias C. A. Preston Seitz, alias Clinton A. Seitz, has been committed to Mercer County upon a commitment made by a United States Commissioner in this district, for the purpose of obtaining a warrant for the removal of the Clinton A. P. Seitz, alias C. A. Preston Seitz, alias Clinton A. Seitz, to the District of Columbia, in which District the offense which aid prisoner has been so committed is to be tried, the copy which commitment returned by the Commissioner, as also all other proceedings returned by him are hereto annexed; he having admitted identity and having expressed his willingness to be removed to the district of Columbia, AND WHEREAS the United States District Attorney for the District of New Jersey has made application to me, under the provisions of the statutes of the United States in that behalf provided, for a warrant for the removal of the said prisoner.

Now it was time to go back to the newspaper database and change my search criteria. This time I searched Clinton’s name, the years between1910 to 1920, and I used New Jersey for the location. Two newspaper articles were revealed dated 1917, they told an interesting story. Clinton claimed that the charge was not based on fact but rather spite from his wife’s family due to his higher social standing.

Each of these documents, census records and newspapers all had a different spin on the facts. Clinton was born in 1861, not 1868. He was born in Washington DC, not West Virginia, VA, or NJ. Even the newspapers were wrong about the timing due to his being interviewed and telling the story he wanted. He left in 1898, not 1916. His immediate family wasn’t wealthy although his uncle on his mother’s side was well off. His own father was an immigrant from Frankfurt am main who took over a business as a baker.

Clinton and his wife Mary Rosalie Hunter Seitz never divorced. Clinton ultimately went back to Philadelphia. I found Clinton’s death certificate. He died indigent, buried in a charity grave paid for by his neighbor in 1933. Mary Rosalie lived out her life living with her daughter and her son nearby. She died in 1931.

I hope sharing one of my processes of research helps someone else.

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One of the scenes in my historical fiction takes place at the F & AH Dodge Warehouse. (Francis & Alexander H Dodge brothers) located at the Georgetown waterfront at K Street (formerly Wapping Street) and Wisconsin Avenue. This stretch on the water in Georgetown was known as the “Quays” which played an early role as a major port in the District of Columbia.

My Ancestor’s Connection

While researching my ancestor’s small business, I discovered he maintained an account with F & AH Dodge. In 1843, he had an account in the amount of $1,200—equivalent to more than $44,000 today, for the purchase of goods used in his business. This discovery made the wharf and warehouse the perfect setting for a scene in my novel.

The Annual Sale

The Dodge brothers held an annual sale at the wharf and warehouse, which was decorated with imported goods and accompanied by elaborate luncheons served on the platform overlooking the ships coming into the wharf. In my story, my character attends the sale and luncheon. Unbeknownst to him, he discovers someone had arrived before him, under suspicious circumstances, which adds to the tension of the scene.

The Business of Francis Dodge

Francis Dodge Jr. was quite successful running the import/export trade business at the wharf with multiple warehouses. Francis Dodge also purchased vessels and invested in others that came into the lively port of Georgetown, carrying on trade along the Atlantic seacoast, England, and the West Indies. The C & O Canal was also used by Francis Dodge for the transportation of goods. He bought interest in a flour and cotton mill which were situated at one end of town. As a result, flour was among the company’s exports. Some of the other imports included sugar, molasses, tea, coffee, candles, salt, almonds, rum and other liquors— staples of the coastal and transatlantic trade.

Francis Dodge Jr’s younger brother Alexander H, by ten years, joined him in the business operations in 1844. Despite their success, after the passing of Francis Dodge in 1851, the business failed by 1857. The properties were sold. One such property was purchased by the Flour inspector George Shoemaker. His wife Elizabeth also plays a role in my story of a real-life event.

The Building Today

The Dodge Warehouse, built in the late 18th century, still stands today. It is one of the few remaining examples of early waterfront architecture in Georgetown and serves as a physical reminder of the city’s trade past.

I would love to hear about any interesting research facts you have come across lately.

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As genealogists, we are trained to focus on exact names to ensure we have identified the correct individual. But historical records rarely cooperate with modern expectations of consistency. One woman may appear in five records under five different names and still be the same person.

To the untrained eye, these look like separate individuals. To a genealogist, they are clues—requiring correlation, not assumptions.

Names Were Fluid

In the 18th and 19th centuries, names were fluid. Spelling was phonetic, census takers wrote what they heard, and middle names were often used interchangeably—especially when children were named after parents or grandparents.

Nicknames often helped distinguish individuals within families where the same names were used repeatedly. As an example “Rosalinda” in a baptism may appear as “Linda” in a census and “Rosa” in a land deed.

Another example is a man named Samuel Blackwell in the 1700s named his children Samuel, John, William, and Elizabeth. Those sons then gave their own children the same names. With multiple cousins born in the same period sharing identical names, differentiation became difficult. My ancestor Elizabeth Blackwell Edmonds was born in 1741, and cousins of her same name were also born in the 1740’s. In such cases, separating individuals requires deeper analysis beyond the name itself.

Phonetic and Cultural Transformations

Immigrant names often shifted within a single generation:

• Roseann → Roxanne

• Catarina → Catherine → Kate

• Johannes → John → Hans

Language, literacy, and local pronunciation shaped identity on paper.

Middle Names as Everyday Names

Middle names were frequently used to distinguish father from son. In my own family, Clinton Andrew Seitz had a son of the same name. The son went by Andrew—or Drew—to differentiate him from his father.

To determine a person’s full legal name, consult:

• Baptismal records

• Marriage records

• Children’s birth records

• Obituaries (keeping in mind nicknames are common)

• Signatures, when available

Often the key to identity is not the name, but the consistency of spouse, children, neighbors, occupation, or land.

Women and Name Variability

Women are particularly vulnerable to name confusion and records were often scarce because:

• They changed surnames at marriage.

• They were often recorded under a husband’s name (“Mrs. Samuel Colley”).

• Their given names were shortened in daily use.

• Clerks sometimes guessed or simplified names.

This becomes critical when proving relationships. A woman recorded as “Rosa Colley” in one deed and “Marinda Colley” in another should not be dismissed without analysis. Instead, examine:

• Husband’s consistent identity

• Land descriptions

• Witness patterns

• Dower releases

How to Approach Name Variations

When encountering a variation:

1. Create a comprehensive variation list.

2. Search using wildcards and flexible spelling.

3. Track associates (the FAN method—Friends, Associates, Neighbors).

4. Compare ages, locations, and family groupings.

5. Look for patterns across multiple documents.

Never rely on the name alone. Identity is established through a cluster of evidence.

Also search by:

• Husband’s name

• Children’s names

• Address (town, county, state)

• Occupation

Often the breakthrough comes when you stop insisting the name remain fixed.

Names are not rigid labels in historical research. They are flexible identifiers shaped by language, culture, literacy, and circumstance. The genealogist’s task is not to demand consistency from the past, but to recognize identity through patterns.

Nicknames Resource Book

Nicknames Past and Present by Christine Rose is a great resource for the variety of nicknames. It is divided by male and female names and cross indexed by given name and nickname.

http://www.christine4rose.com/html/books.htm

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If you can travel to local repositories in person, that’s ideal, you’ll have direct access to original materials, knowledgeable staff, and the opportunity to make unexpected discoveries. However, if distance makes travel difficult, reaching out by phone is the next best approach. Speaking directly with archivists or clerks allows you to explain your research goals, ask about unlisted collections, and clarify record availability. Following up with an email helps document the conversation, provides a written record of your request, and allows staff to send digital copies or guidance when possible. Many local repositories are accustomed to assisting remote researchers, and combining courteous phone contact with clear, specific email communication can yield nearly the same results as being there in person.

Local historical resources are invaluable in genealogical research because they provide direct access to original records and community context often missing from online databases. Courthouses, archives, and historical societies hold deeds, probate files, church registers, and tax lists that document family relationships and property in detail. Local newspapers, town histories, and maps add depth by revealing occupations, neighbors, and events shaping everyday life. Working with these sources also helps verify or correct errors found in transcriptions. Archivists and local historians often know of unpublished or overlooked materials. If you are able to visit the area itself, you can check out cemeteries, landmarks, and geography, which offers insight into how families lived, migrated, and interacted.

I don’t live near the people and locations I’m researching so most of the time I’m making phone calls to connect with a live person. Connecting with someone who has the same love of history as you do is a heartwarming experience. I find those working in the various locations are such incredibly kind people ready to help you find the record that will connect you to your ancestors and tell you about the area you are researching. You never know where the conversation will take you. On one occasion I contacted a historical society and spoke to a sweet gentleman who was happy to share with me. Not only did he find the information I was looking for but he connected me with a woman who was related to the family I was researching.

If you haven’t heard of Find A Grave, it’s a wonderful all volunteer resource.

Here you will find grave markers of individuals from all over the world. Oftentimes there are photos of the grave marker and if you are lucky there are resources listed as to where the information came from and even a bio or obituary for the individual. Individual memorials are often connected to the spouse, children or the parents of the individual.

The information isn’t always correct so you need to verify but through email you will also find incredibly kind people who are willing to share. As I was working on a lineage to help a prospective member join the Daughter’s of the American Revolution, I came upon a Find A Grave for a man in Canada wo died in 1881.

I needed to connect the lineage to his daughter, and I was stuck! The information on the memorial was obviously well researched and contained so much detail. I needed to know this woman who did so much work! Maybe she could help me. I emailed Fran and told her what I was looking for. We emailed back and forth with each other, and she found her DNA was a match to prospective DAR member. She was descended from a sibling of the connection I was trying to make. And while she didn’t have or know of a record that I needed we worked together at a distance, and I gave her some records she didn’t have herself. I was so happy to be able to share with her after she shared so much with me. I also connected the prospective member and Fran. Ultimately, I found enough documentation to write an analysis to prove the relationship of the daughter to her parents. I’m now waiting for the results.

By combining these local materials with broader sources, researchers can construct more accurate, personal, and context-rich family histories that connect ancestors not only to dates and names but to the real places and communities where their lives unfolded.

What’s the kindest thing a librarian has ever done for you?

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When I watched that movie it hit me hard. These are my people! Not in Missouri but in Roxboro North Carolina, my family on my father’s side. My grandparents, great grandparents and their parents before them. The characters Mildred Hays and Mama Dixon, particularly Mama Dixon, embodied the tough women of my family. They told it like they saw it and never held back. However, they weren’t always ready to share their life stories. A waitress, cotton and saw mill workers, farmers, and yes, a maker of white liquor and a moonshine runner; their lives were filled with the challenge of just trying to survive each day.

In my mid-twenties I became interested in my family history. And I’m very grateful that I had the presence of mind to ask family members questions when they were alive. My grandmother didn’t want her voice on a recorder so I would ask her questions in the evening and then record them myself on a cassette recorder. My great aunt Mattie Oakley didn’t mind my recording our conversations. So, in 1986, sitting on the porch on a warm humid summer outside of the town Roxboro my great aunt Mattie shared with my cousin and me what life was like growing up. At age 82, Mattie was sharp as ever. (You can listen to the recording later in this post.)

In 1928 in the rural area of Helena, eight miles outside of town, sat a one-acre Oakley family farmhouse, a barn and a graveyard marking the deaths of grandparents, parents, and six sibling babies of Mattie’s. Pulled out of school to care for her mother after 8th grade, and then for her stepmother, Mattie was now left to care for four of five younger siblings. At 24 years old without any work experience and lack of higher education Mattie had few options.

Her life had been changed by necessity when she was young and now once again by the death of her father who had been a railroad man and a blacksmith.

The family home was under dispute by the heirs of her grandfather, and without income coming in, Mattie, now the head of her family had to make decisions for survival. She and two of the younger siblings needed to find work and couldn’t leave the littlest ones who were five and three years old to drive eight miles to town each day. There was no choice but to move to Roxboro leaving the home they knew and the remains of their loved ones behind to start work at the cotton mill.

They moved to ‘Mill Village” in Roxboro and began working for the only industry in town, the Roxboro Cotton Mill. The village had some conveniences all owned by the mill, but it was also an environment that controlled the workers. There was no need for a car since the mill village provided for a company owned store, church and school, everything was in walking distance. Working twelve-hour days, six days a week, the rent for the company owned cottage was cheap with payment coming out of their paychecks. Each mill cottages was just a bit over 900 square feet. There were two bedrooms for the five of them and no indoor plumbing. They relied on well water and a Johnny house. Many of the homes, which were later sold to individuals, are still there today on mill hill.

Mattie moved the family to town in October 1928. Though the official stock market crash was still a year away, the first ripples of the Depression were already being felt, farmers struggled, and mill wages had fallen. Mattie’s sister Myrtle, seventeen, finished high school and worked in the mill. My grandfather Jimmy stopped attending school when they moved to town at age fourteen to work full time. Five-year-old Maxie attended school, while three-year-old Sadie stayed home with Mattie during the day, until six o’clock in the evening, when Mattie’s twelve-hour shift began and the older children returned from their shifts to care for the younger ones.

Mattie and her siblings worked long, grueling hours, earning less than the men, just seventy-five cents a day, later raised to a dollar for twelve hours of labor. There was little chance for Mattie to move up; women rarely did. Her sister Myrtle, who worked as a spinner, earned a few cents more, working those same six days a week at a relentless pace. Often, their pay came not in cash but in scrip that could only be spent at the company stores for necessities.

Wages and Hours of Labor in Cotton-Goods Manufacturing, 1910-1930

Working conditions were harsh.

Using hand hooks, men endured the back breaking work of unloading ginned and compressed cotton bales from the railroad side located next to the mill. The bales weighed five hundred pounds each. The interior of the mill where Mattie and her siblings worked was hot and humid. There was an ever present snow-white filled air of cotton dust which stuck to Mattie’s hair and eyelashes in the wet air despite pulling her hair into a bun and covering it with a scarf. Breathing in the cotton lint was a source of respiratory illnesses as well.

My cousin remembers walking to the mill at the end of the day to greet my great grandfather. As the doors swung open, a cloud of cotton and dust flew out when workers ended their shifts. Fresh air was theirs again at last but for just twelve hours.

The thunderous equipment was deafening, and workers often lost their hearing. The dozens of spindle machines holding ten thousand spindles whirred loudly while hundreds of looms weaving the thread into cloth made a high-pitched clacking noise. Lack of safety standards meant there was a constant threat of injury when working the equipment. As a woman or girl pulling your hair back in a bun and keeping your sleeves tucked wearing a coverall smock was important to avoid getting caught in the machinery.

Sounds of one spinning and loom machine:

Many members of my family worked at the Roxboro cotton mill over the years, as the first industry in town it was a steadier source of income than farming ever was.

I come from a long line of hardworking, rural women and men who labored each day just to make a living. I didn’t understand their rough exterior until that day on the porch in 1986.

You can listen to Mattie tell her story in her own words here.

Mattie was as tough as they come but she devoted herself to our family from the time she was fourteen years old. She spent her life caring for others, even later taking in a 6-year-old niece. And though she never married and could be quick-tempered at times, she gave selflessly, hoping her role might give the next generation a better life than her own.

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Not to cook but to read. And not the ones written by famous chefs but those written by a collective group of ordinary people. Schools, churches, non-profit organizations, women’s organizations, the list goes on. I never thought about it until I started reading some of them myself.

Cookbooks contain the stories of our history in the foods that were available during a year and season. As a kid my mother made chipped beef on toast. I considered it a salty delight of savory deliciousness when I was young. I never thought about where the recipe came from. But on a visit to spend time with family in Virginia, it struck me as my cousin served up chipped beef on toast for breakfast — of course this would have been a recipe my mom learned to make from her own upbringing. I hadn’t tasted it in many decades.

My mom grew up in the 1940’s. Chipped beef on toast grew in popularity in the early 1900’s through World War II. It was a staple particularly in the military with dried beef being easy to store. Just add flour butter and milk to make a white gravy and pour it over toast!

On the island in my kitchen are recipes and photos of my grandmother and great grandmother. One of those is my great grandmother’s applesauce cake.

I bake this cake for my mom every year on her birthday. I was young when my great grandmother passed away but I religiously follow her recipe using shortening, applesauce, raisins, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, nuts, etc. The recipe calls for it to be baked for two and half hours at 250 degrees. While my great aunt changed it to allow for faster baking at a higher temperature, I bake the cake as my great grandmother did even though I use a modern oven.

I want my mom to be brought back to her childhood and the memory of telling her grandmother that it was perfectly fine to have applesauce cake for breakfast because it had eggs and applesauce in it.

Those family recipes aren’t just about the Applesauce cake, chocolate pound cake and others made by my great grandmother. They hold the secrets to a time when pickles were made from cucumbers in a large crock in a cool place. When summer seasonal foods weren’t available in winter and they had to be preserved in jars during the peak of the season and stored away in a cellar. When chickens on the farm were raised for their meal. When after boiling and cleaning them plucked feathers stuck to my mom’s hands as a child. To this day she doesn’t like the feel of wet hair on the back of her neck.

One of my favorite sandwiches growing up was cream cheese and olive. In researching where this sandwich creation came from, I read that it appeared as early as 1909 in a cookbook written by Eva Greene Fuller called “The Up-to-Date Sandwich Book: 400 Ways to make a Sandwich.” (It’s now available online in the public domain if you would like to check it out.)

Her recipe is as my mom made them but without the paprika. In doing more research it turns out that this sandwich has worldwide roots which had slight variations to it, but the basics of the sandwich remained the same.

Have you watched the six-part series called “No Taste Like Home” on Hulu? I absolutely loved that show. It starts with a visit to the kitchen of a celebrity’s mother or grandmother, making the foods the celebrity grew up with, foods that held a story of their ancestor’s home and life. My favorite was with Awkafina. Having lost her mother at age four, Antoni Porowski gave her an incredible gift as they traveled to South Korea, to where her mother grew up cooking foods of her heritage all along the way. I won’t give it away, but my tears flowed as I watched that episode. It was incredibly heartwarming.

What family foods did you grow up with? What historical hidden stories are there for you?

Suddenly, I have a craving for a cream cheese and olive sandwich. ☺

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I love the colors, the chilly mornings, layering clothes for morning to warm afternoons. When I think of fall, I think of Halloween which leads me to being a teenager and having my cousin pick up myself and a friend one night. The boys took us to a cemetery, hoping to scare us. It did, but I loved it!

A few years back when on a trip back East, I took my other half to seven cemeteries. He wasn’t sure about this at first and thought it was a little creepy. However, after the first two he embraced the idea of visiting them and really enjoyed what he learned from them.

A cemetery can be an extraordinarily rich genealogical source, but as with any evidence it must be evaluated critically. Here are the main categories of information you can learn about an ancestor (or anyone else) from a cemetery:

The Basics:

1. Vital Information

• Names: Often the full name, sometimes with middle initials or maiden names.

• Dates: Birth and death dates, occasionally marriage dates.

• Dates can be off either due to memory errors by survivors or later stone replacements. Always correlate the information with civil/church records if available.

• Ages: Some older stones list age at death in years, months, and days, which can be used to calculate birthdates.

2. Family Relationships

• Spouse or Parent Links: Phrases like “wife of …” or “son of …”.

• Grouping: Family plots often reveal kinship networks, especially when interments are clustered. The cemetery office may have information on family plots and who is buried there even when there is no grave marker.

• Married vs. Maiden Names: Women’s stones sometimes preserve maiden names, crucial for linking generations.

Dive deeper:

3. Cultural, Social, and Religious Clues

• Symbols: Crosses, Masonic emblems, military insignia, or religious motifs point to beliefs, affiliations, or service.

• Epitaphs: May highlight character, cause of death, or community role.

• Language: Inscriptions in German, Italian, Latin, etc., can reveal ethnic identity or immigration background.

Here is a Youtube video by the Wandering Woodsman visiting a cemetery in Pennsylvania. He discusses grave marker symbols

I could write an entire article on symbols used on grave markers. You may very well see a symbol you don’t recognize. Take a photo and then put into google search to find out its meaning.

4. Community & Migration

• Geography: Where someone was buried tells you about residence, migration patterns, or community ties.

• Neighbors: Nearby burials can suggest extended kinship, business partners, or church membership.

5. Economic Status

• Stone Material & Size: Elaborate monuments may reflect wealth; plain markers or unmarked graves may point to hardship.

• Cemetery Choice: Private/family plots vs. churchyards vs. municipal cemeteries often reflected status, faith, or means.

6. Additional Records

Cemeteries themselves often hold more than the stones:

• Burial Registers / Sexton Records: May list place of birth, last residence, next of kin, cause of death.

• Plot Purchase Records: Reveal who bought the plot—often the person handling affairs (executor, spouse, child).

• Maps & Lot Books: Show ownership and burial sequences, clarifying relationships when stones are missing.

In a cemetery outside of Georgetown the cemetery office manager was kind enough to let me take photos of the paperwork of my family member’s plot. It was extremely helpful considering there were family members buried in the plot without a grave marker. That year I had a stone made for my grandfather’s resting place. He died in 1955, and no stone had been placed there. In creating the stone, I had engraved “loving husband of _______ and father to ________ “ in addition to his name and birth and death date. As a genealogist I wanted to ensure that there was family connection information since my mom, uncle and grandmother had later moved out of the area.

7. Historical Context

• Epidemics, wars, or disasters can sometimes be traced through clusters of burials in the same period.

• Military markers may connect to pension files or service records.

My 3^rd great grandfather and grandmother are buried at the back of a family home in Stafford County VA under a cluster of trees. While they died in 1889 and 1895 respectively, their grave markers were created much later. There are other family members with just field stones around them and some hand engravings, but this county took a long time to recover from the civil war and as a result people didn’t have the money to place grave markers that were professionally produced.

Have you checked out some of my previous posts?

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Childhood Memories Leading My Heart

I’ve been blessed with wonderful men in my life. Two fathers and a loving uncle. When I was just eight years old my first father passed away. My uncle Michael was in the Navy, serving two tours of duty in Vietnam. When he returned, he moved in with my mother and me. Those years were filled with many cherished and joyful memories.

My uncle taught me how to make puppets using a light bulb and papier mâché and to make a head and neck. He told me stories of scaring the girls in his neighborhood with his puppets. We built forts out of our couch cushions and sat inside peering between the spaces between the cushions eating junk food, watching tv. He would tickle my feet in the living room till I laughed so much I thought I would pee my pants. For Christmas I really wanted walkie talkies. The present he had wrapped under the tree was too tempting. I thought I was being sneaky, that I carefully peeled back the paper to see what the end of the box looked like. To my surprise when I opened the present, I didn’t find walkie talkies in the box….. he got me back for peaking. Ultimately, he gave me the walkie talkies, but he also taught me a lesson. (I wasn’t as sneaky as I thought). My uncle always told me he thought of me as a little sister not a niece. I treasured our relationship and think of him often.

Searching for a Way to Preserve his Legacy

After my uncle’s passing I wanted to find a way to honor him, but nothing felt quite right. I thought about the Diabetes Association as that was his primary ailment.

When I became a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution I learned about and was drawn to an organization called Wreaths Across America. Their mission is Remember, Honor, Teach. Remember those who have passed and sacrificed their lived for our country, Honor those who continue to serve our nation and teach our children the value of freedom.

Quite frankly it didn’t dawn on me until a few months after I joined Wreaths Across America as a volunteer Location Coordinator that I was honoring not only the Veterans buried in our local Cemetery, but also my uncle Michael, a Navy Vietnam Veteran.

Supporting Veterans Year Round

Across the United States more than 4,200 cemeteries participate in this ceremony on the same day in December. I coordinate the Wreaths Across America ceremony in Saratoga CA. Our town residents come together to lay 1,422 wreaths at the graves of veterans buried in Madronia Cemetery. We say each of their names out loud as a wreath is placed on their grave, so they continue to be remembered every year. A portion of every donation to Wreaths Across America supports veterans and their families through its Group Sponsorship Program.

It is said that you die twice, once when you stop breathing and the second time when someone says your name for the last time. For me, every wreath placed is more than a symbol. It is a promise that history’s forgotten voices—like my uncle’s and my grandfather’s—will never fade into silence.

If you would like to honor a family member or close friend who has sacrificed their lives for our country visit https://wreathsacrossamerica.org/ to find a participating Cemetery. If you have questions on how to make sure a grave specific wreath is placed for your loved one or have questions you can contact https://wreathsacrossamerica.org/About/ContactUs

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The hard facts, the fixed points on a timeline.

Yet, if I stopped there, if I didn’t dive deeper into the world in which my ancestors lived, I would miss something vital.

What was the texture of their days?

What sounds filled their neighborhood streets?

How did the events of their town and county ripple affect their choices?

Writing historical fiction has provided me with an even deeper emotional connection that the story of one life can only be understood as part of a larger whole, a living ripple effect of connections.

Years ago, I learned about the concept of the “holon” a philosophical and systems theory idea describing how something is both a whole in itself and simultaneously part of something greater. This resonated deeply with me in my previous occupation helping families with eldercare needs.

Now as both a genealogist and a historic fiction writer the ripple effect of a holon is what shapes the stories of our characters, our ancestors and ourselves, It reveals the human condition. I see how each ancestor themselves creates a ripple effect; And when I write, I see myself, too, as part of this layered interdependence which came from my ancestors.

Music has often been a companion on my journey through the ups and downs.

Natasha Bedingfield’s Drop Me in the Middle has long spoken to me, especially the line: “Drop me in the middle so I can make a ripple effect upon the ocean, I’ll be the moon that turns the tide.” That lyric captures how I feel about genealogy as an inspiration to our greater history in which our family who came before us lived: the desire to leave behind a ripple, just as these three women before me left an impact on my life and the lives of many other children and grandchildren.

Through stories, reflections, and research, my wish is to make a positive difference in this life just as they did, however small, that might move outward and touch others who find resonance in these words.

How have the stories of your ancestors changed you?

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