The Caribbean Genealogy Library hosted its virtual “Finding Family Using Newspapers” event Wednesday, that provided tips on how to access and use newspapers to find information on one’s family roots.
Presenter Dana Palmer used her background in genealogy to provide information to viewers on various websites, buildings, types of records, and key research phrases to use in their hunt to better understand their family’s lineage. In her presentation, genealogist Palmer displayed several newspaper clippings from her family’s records and public records to provide viewers examples of the type of information they should be searching for. Newspaper notices of wedding anniversaries, obituaries, funeral announcements, reunion announcements, golden anniversaries, special birthdays, gossipy news, legal notices, crime notices, and military services were referenced.
According to Palmer, notices of lawsuits or other legal matters such as appointments of administrators or executors, can provide pieces of information that lead into genealogy records.
“Sometimes these can give insights to lead to future records you can look for,” she said.
During her presentation, she displayed a 1928 newspaper notice from Dayton, Ohio that Vernie L. Moore placed in the Dayton Daily News that said he will not be responsible for any debts contracted by his wife Ruth Moore. After showing that article to her students at an earlier date, upon further investigation, one of Palmer’s students said that Moore created the notice after a divorce proceeding.
Palmer also made it clear to viewers that they must stay cognizant on how they dive into their research. She highlighted being aware of key terms when searching for records. She gave an example of searching for records surrounding World War I and told viewers that they won’t find data using the term “World War I” during that time period.
“When you’re looking for these papers, think about the words that are used at the time,” said Palmer. “This is World War I. They’re not going to call it World War I because there wasn’t a World War II. So think about that when you’re looking at your paper, about the phrasing that may have been used at the time.”
She also mentioned sometimes narrowing or broadening the location of records for better search results when applicable.
“Include the names of towns, landmarks, or geographic features, Northwest territory instead of just Ohio,” said Palmer.
Palmer also provided successful keywords to use when searching genealogical records for births, deaths, marriages, and military records. They include: born, new baby boy or girl, infant, died, passed away, ill, lingering illness, funeral, funeral home, cemetery, beloved wife or husband, sudden death, departed this life, killed, interment, grave, marriage license, bride, groom, reception, wed, matrimony, soldier, seaman, airman, crewman, conflict, reserve, veteran, battle, service, and overseas.
Palmer said that newspapers are generally kept by historical societies and libraries at the local or state level. The information might be recorded in print, microfilm or digital, so it is important to be aware of the formats of those records.
“If you don’t find it online, don’t get discouraged. You just might have to look for it in another format,” Palmer said.
One more tip that Palmer mentioned to viewers was to be mindful that research tools can be sensitive to words selected for the search. One website she uses, fultonhistory.com (based in Fulton County,N.Y., that collected and digitized postcards and newspapers) uses Boolean research style where you have to type “AND” between a person’s first and last name in order to generate results.
“It can be really really difficult to use this site,” said Palmer.
Overall, Palmer highlighted that while newspapers can be great resources for public interest, they also serve as great resources for personal news and genealogical insight and understanding the daily happenings during an ancestor’s lifetime. She provided many of her favorite sources that can be used for genealogical records and noted that while there are some free sites, there are many subscription websites which charge a fee.
“Don’t pay for subscriptions if your location and time period are not in the collection,” she said.
A list of sources and key information from Palmer’s presentation can be found here.
Resources from the Caribbean Genealogy Library can also be found here.
The next event from the Genealogy Library is on David H. Jackson and Casper Holstein: “Early Collaboration in Fighting for Political Reform 1921-1927” and will be held Sunday at 2 p.m. For access, visit https://www.tickettailor.com/events/caribbeangenealogylibrary/1219518 . For more information on the Genealogy Library, visit https://cgl.vi .
