One of the most common mistakes beginners make is believing that the family or person you find with the same name is the one you are seeking. I don’t believe it without proof, but I still want to believe it, and I get excited when I find it!
There are ways to avoid wasting too much time on the wrong track. Gather as much information as you can about the person you are researching. You may want to start with a family group sheet, which will give you basic information about your person and his immediate family; conveniently listed on one page. I also list basic information I am missing.
Basic information includes date and place of birth, marriage and death, parents’ and spouse’s name. This is why we collect vital records so avidly. Vital records are “primary” or “secondary” sources, and are the most reliable. A primary source is a record created at the time of the event, by people who have first-hand knowledge of the facts. A secondary record is created at a later date, or by someone who was told (second-hand) about the information. For example, information on birth certificates is generally provided by one of the parents (usually the mother) very near the time of birth. The parents know the date of birth and the name they gave their child, they also know their residence at the time of birth. This is first-hand, at-the-time, knowledge, so it is “primary” information. All the rest of the information, parent’s age, and place of birth, is ‘secondary” information. Why is that?
Many of you will remember the controversy over President Obama’s citizenship. He tried to settle it by saying he was born in Hawaii, and he was there, so he should know. My apologies, Mr. President, but no you don’t! No one can remember their own birth. We only know of it what we are told. So the mother may be correct when she lists her own and her husband’s age, name and place of birth, or she may simply be repeating what she has been told, but never verified. She also may be accidentally, or deliberately, wrong. For instance my great-grandmother Kittie aged only five years in the eight years she bore children. Now I’m not saying she lied about her age, but …
Also, it is quite common for families to say one town, when the actual birthplace was another nearby town. For example I know someone who was born in the car on a hill in Sangerville while they were headed to the hospital in Dover. His birth certificate says he was born in Dover. That’s why all “other” information on a birth certificate is “secondary.” Secondary information is often correct, but at the least, it is useful as a starting point for investigation.
Sometimes, creating a timeline of life events will help eliminate a “wrong” person. Knowing parents and siblings makes it easier to decide if you have the correct family in a census. Your task is to collect and verify information and test its reliability. The more information you can find, the easier your job will be. Editor’s note: Columnist Nina Brawn of Dover-Foxcroft is a longtime genealogy researcher, speaker and teacher. Reader e-mails are welcome at ninabrawn@gmail.com. Her semimonthly column is sponsored by the Aroostook County Genealogical Society which meets the fourth Monday of the month except in July and December at Cary Medical Center’s Chan Education Center at 6:30 p.m. Guests are always welcome. FMI contact Edwin “J” Bullard at 492-5501.
