Getting Organized (Part 1)

About two weeks ago, I revisited a project to get my 20+ years of research digitized and organized. Last night, DearMyrtle posted aboutthe same concept, outlining her process, which is a bit different than mine.

Simon Sinek’s TED talk, “Start with Why,” is meant to address leadership topics, but I think it can apply to other areas of life. As much as I hate filing and keeping logs, I definitely need to apply his principles to this project.  My motivation for doing this is that I want to apply to for several state pioneer certificates. Having my research results in writing and documented in my Legacy file will make it easier when I start those applications. 

Actually, listening to that talk again, I guess the above is more of the end result of my process. My motivation is to allow other researchers and cousins to have confidence in my  research. (How can I hope to transition to being a trusted professional if my own family files are a mess?)

My process includes one step that DearMyrt’s does not: writing proof statements for each BMD event and relationships to parents for each of my direct line ancestors. This is something I didn’t know was a thing until a few years ago, so I have a lot of catching up to do!

This is my own process:

1. Gather documents
2. Process documents (Scan, create citation, transcribe, document events in Legacy)
3. Create proof statements in Evernote and copy to Legacy
4. Create research plans for questions that come up during steps 1-3

I like DearMyrt’s suggestion of working with couples. It makes a lot more sense than doing individuals, so that is one change I am making to my methodology.

My mom researches her side of the family. Even though we’ve spent countless hours discussing her research over the years, I’m not ready to tackle documenting someone else’s research! So my focus is on my dad’s side of the family, starting on his mother’s side, so I can get my Florida pioneer certificate application in before the end of the year.

So far, I’ve completed my parents and grandparents (this was as far as I got when I started this project several years ago, but I’ve spent some time reviewing and making sure the documents were transcribed). This week my focus is on Russell and Maude (Sikes) Price, my great-grandparents.

AmericaGen Chapter 26: Cemetery and Burial Records

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 26 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Cemetery and Burial Records.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 727-738. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.

It's hard to believe that this is the last week of our study group! I've enjoyed the experience and have learned a lot from my fellow panelists. I'm not sure what I'll do with my Wednesday afternoons now. Maybe get back to research or writing? I'm sure I'll find some kind of trouble to get into! :-)

The last chapter focuses on cemeteries and burial records. Most of my family is from the rural south, where cemetery records are not common. Although sites like Find A Grave are great resources, I prefer to visit the cemetery in person when possible.  Many times the cemetery listings at Find a Grave aren't complete and not all that have been added have photos. There's also nothing quite like looking at the tombstones and surrounding area in person.

When I first started researching, I went to Eliam Cemetery in Melrose, where most of my grandmother's family is buried. The Baldwin section was particularly interesting because I discovered that Leonard and Addie Baldwin had several children who died as infants or toddlers.

Leonard Baldwin and Addie Johnson were married on September 21, 1865 in Putnam County.  Their first child was born in 1866 and died at 13 months of age. A year later they had their second child, who also died just after his first birthday. In all, they had 12 children, but only two survived to adulthood.  All but one child has marked graves near their parents. 

Robert E.L. Baldwin (1873-1874) and Theodocia Baldwin (1872-1873) tombstones, Eliam Cemtery, Melrose, Florida. Photos taken by Marceline Beem on July 29, 2019.

The following chart summarizes the children as they appeared in census records and their memorials on Find a Grave.

Several things jumped out at me after I made this chart:

• Lucius (L. M.) is not on the 1880 census, and Thomas does not appear anywhere after that census listing. Thomas is not listed on Find A Grave. I went to the cemetery today to check for him or other children that are not on Find A Grave, but there is not a tombstone in the Baldwin family section. It seems odd that all of the other children have marked graves, but Thomas does not. Are Thomas and Lucius the same person? This is a conflict I need to resolve.

• Of the 12 (or 11?) children, seven do not appear on any census records at all. Only a visit to the cemetery (pre-internet days) told me about this family's experience with so many children dying so young.

• Two of Leonard's sisters, Martha and Nancy, also had several children who died as infants and toddlers. These children are buried in the same section as Leonard and Addie's children. The magnitude of the number of childhood deaths is overwhelming when you stand in the cemetery and see the grave sites together. 

Overview of the cemetery markers of the Baldwin, Jernigan, and Weeks children in Eliam Cemetery, Melrose, Florida. Photo taken on July 29, 2019 by Marceline Beem.

If cemetery records exist, by all means consult them. They may contain clues that you can't find in other sources. However, even when cemetery records are available or transcriptions and/or images are online, nothing beats visiting the cemetery in person. I've made several research trips over the years, and always include that on the to-do list. Sometimes I don't know where someone is buried, but if I make that discovery while I'm at the location, that cemetery visit gets pushed to the top of the priority list. 

Sources:

"Florida, County Marriage Records, 1823-1982," entry for Leonard Baldwin and Adaline Johnson, Putnam County, 21 Sep 1865; database at Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed July 29, 2019), citing Putnam County Courthouse marriage records.

1870 U.S. Census, Putnam County, Florida, population schedule, Orange Springs, page 46 (handwritten), page 535 (stamped), dwelling 130, family 124, Len Baldwin. Imaged at Ancestry (http://www. Ancestry.com : accessed July 29, 2019), citing National Archives microfilm publication M593, roll 133.

1880 U.S. Census, Putnam County, Florida, population schedule, Precinct 11, ED 134, page 18B (handwritten), dwelling 114, family 114, Leonard Baldwin. Imaged at Ancestry (http://www. Ancestry.com : accessed July 29, 2019), citing National Archives microfilm publication T9, roll 131.

1885 Florida State census, Putnam County, District 11, page 165, family 1079, Leonard Baldwin. Imaged at Ancestry (http://www. Ancestry.com : accessed July 29, 2019), citing National Archives microfilm publication M845.

1900 U.S. Census, Putnam County, Florida, population schedule, Precinct 18, ED 149, page 8B (handwritten), dwelling 122, family 122, Leonard Baldwin. Imaged at Ancestry (http://www. Ancestry.com : accessed July 29, 2019), citing FHL microfilm 1240176.

Find A Grave, (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed July 29, 2019) > Putnam County, Florida > Eliam Cemetery > Baldwin

Find A Grave, (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed July 29, 2019), memorial page for Effie E. Riles (1880 - 30 October 1857), Find A Grave Memorial no. 101815913, citing Oak Hill East Cemtery, Palatka, Putnam County, Florida, USA; Maintained by Mack Wills (contributor 46912082).

AmericaGen: Military Records Colonial Wars and the American Revolution

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 26 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Military Records: Colonial Wars and the American Revolution.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 653-688. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.



I love researching in military pension records and related record groups. Revolutionary War pension files have often provided a great deal of information or provided me with clues that have lead to other sources for research.


Before the filming of pension records, researchers would write the archives and ask for information about a soldier they were researching. The correspondence was maintained in the files and included in the film and/or digitization projects. It's interesting to read the correspondence and see what the clerks deemed important enough to share with researchers. Sometimes requests were denied because the clerks had too may requests. Sometimes they provided just a few snippets of information. Sometimes they omitted information that we would consider important.

One example of this is found in the file for Henry Jolly, who served in 8th Pennsylvania Regiment. One of the pieces of correspondence was written in 1931. The clerk provided the following summary:

The data furnished herein are obtained from the papers on file in pension claim, S.41710, based upon his service in that war.

Henry Jolly enlisted August 9, 1776 in Washington County, Pennsylvania and served as private in Captain Van Swearingen's Company, Colonel [illegible] Mackey's 8th Pennsylvania Regiment until the spring, 1777, from which time he served in Captain Van Swearingen's Company attached to Colonel Daniel Morgan's Virginia Regiment until the spring, 1778, from which time he served in Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Bayard's 8th Pennsylvania Regiment until August, 1779.

He was allowed pension on his application executed April 30, 1818, while a resident of Washington County, Ohio. Hew as then in the sixty-first year of his age.
In 1825, the soldier's wife was seventy-seven years of age, her name now shown; four children were living away from home but their names were not given.

Fortunately, today we can view the entire file on line. There is a lot of information that the clerk did not include in the above summary, including the fact that pension eligibility was questioned after the initial award. In 1825, Henry Jolly provided another  declaration. This time, in addition to his military service history and an inventory of his personal property, he stated that he was an associate judge for Washington County, Ohio, from 1818 to 1824, receiving about $50 per year for that service. For the 18 months prior to the deposition, he had been unable to perform any labor on his farm, which provided about $10 a year income.

Until I read this file, I had no idea that Henry Jolly was a judge in Ohio. That alone was worth the time and effort to locate the original file instead of relying solely on an abstract!

Draper Manuscripts

One source for gaining insight into ancestors who served in the Revolutionary War is the Draper Manuscript Collection. I think this collection should have been included as a resource in this chapter.

Lyman Draper was an historian who interviewed hundreds of Revolutionary War veterans and their descendants during the 1800s. His volumes of notes is now housed at the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison, Wisconsin, but microfilmed copies are available at the Family History Library and other research institutions (e.g. universities) across the country. Josephine Harper's book, Guide to the Draper Manuscripts, is an invaluable index to the collection. If your Revolutionary War ancestor lived in Ohio, Tennessee, Kentucky, and other areas covered by Draper, you definitely need to check this book.

Draper's interview with Henry's son-in-law, Vachel Dickerson, is recorded in Series 9S. His notes include a transcript of Henry Jolly's family Bible record. The notes also give a physical description of Henry, saying he was "six feet in height - raw boned & very hardy."

Draper's notes from his interview with Vachel Dickerson, including a transcript of the family Bible

The following is a transcript of Draper's notes on the Bible entries:

Henry Jolly, son of Peter & Martha Jolly, was born Dec. 28th 1757.
Rachel Grist, daughter of John & Elizabeth Grist, was born February 14th, 1765. Henry Jolly & Rachel Grist were married, March 27th 1781.
James Jolly, son of Henry & Rachel Jolly, was born May 25th, 1790 & died July 27th 1792.
Wm. Henry Jolly, son of Henry & Rachel Jolly, was born Sept. 29th, 1796.
Kenzie Dickerson Jolly, son of Henry & Rachel Jolly, was born April 19th, 1798.
Sidney Jolly, daughter of Henry & Rachel Jolly, was born March 29th, 1800.
Albert Gallatin Jolly, son of Henry & Rachel Jolly, was born March 5th, 1803.
Rachel Jolly, wife of Henry Jolly, departed this life November 8th 1805, in the forty first year of her life.
Vachel Dickerson, son of Thomas and Margaret Dickerson, was born Sept. 29th 1790.
Vachel Dickerson & Sidney Jolly were married April 11th 1816. Have had 12 children, 7 living.

The interview notes go on to give detailed information about the Dickerson family, including stories about their life on the Ohio River frontier after the Revolutionary War.

This isn't the only series in the manuscripts that mentions Henry Jolly or Thomas Dickerson, but this was a gold mine for the family's history. If you have a Revolutionary War ancestor, you absolutely must use Harper's index to search for your relative and his associates.

AmericaGen Chapter 24: Church Records and Family History

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 24 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Church Records and Family History.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 585-624. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.

In this chapter, the author discusses the use of church records in American research. This is an area I have not explored much, as most of my ancestors were members of churches that did not systematically record vital statistics in their records.  Most of the church records I've used in my research have been secondary sources - church histories or biographies of ministers. However, one church record in particular will help me in proving residency to qualify for the Florida Pioneer Descendant Certificate. To qualify at the county level, one must prove descent from someone who lived in a Florida county prior to its creation.

My Baldwin family lived in Duval County, Florida in 1850. The census from that year is the earliest document I've found to date showing them as Florida residents. Knowing that James Baldwin owned land in North Carolina and in Putnam County, Florida, I assumed he owned land in Duval County as well. I did find a listing for him in the deed index, but the deed itself is no longer extant, thanks to a courthouse fire in Jacksonville in 1906. Of course, the index gives only his name and not the precise location of the property, so the index is not helpful for determining residency for the purposes of the Pioneer Certificate.

Beulah Baptist Church was organized in Duval County, Florida in 1850. One of the charter members was Elvy Baldwin, wife of James Baldwin. Clay County was formed from Duval County in 1858 and included the area where Beulah Baptist Church was located. (This census map shows the area of Duval County that later became Clay County). As a charter member, we can be pretty certain that Elvy Baldwin lived close to the church in 1850, providing evidence that she was a resident of Clay County before its creation. 

One other document shows the Baldwins lived in Clay County prior to its formation-- the petition requesting the state allow the creation of Clay County from Duval County. However, that document is signed only by James Baldwin, as Elvy would not have had legal standing to sign that document. The list of charter members is the only document directly naming Elvy as a resident of the section of Duval County that became Clay County, qualifying her for inclusion as a Florida pioneer. 

AmericaGen: Chapter 22 Court Records

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 22 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Court Records and Family History.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 547-574. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.

This chapter discusses the use of court records in genealogy research. I admit to not being well-versed in using court records (outside of land and probate files), and have only dug into court records in the last several years. Two years ago, I traveled to Knoxville, Tennessee to research and had the opportunity to spend some time at the Knox County Archives. The archives are the repository for Hamilton District Superior Court, which tried cases for East Tennessee counties from 1792-1809. The archives has an online index to these cases, making it easy to find and order records.  

In 1798, Robert King wrote a $500 bond to purchase 200 acres of land for Robert Burk. 

Source: 

Transcript:

Source: Burk v King, Docket #908/631,638 (1803), Hamilton District Superior Court of Law and Equity.

Know all men by these presents that I Robert King of Hakins [sic] County 

and State of Tennessee am held and firmly bound unto Robert Burk

Late of Jefferson County and State aforesaid in the penal sum of

five hundred dollars to be paid unto the said Robert Burk his Heirs

Execrs Adminirs or assigns - to the which payment will and Truly to

be made and done I bind myself my heirs Execrs Adminrs and assigns 

jointly and severaly firmly by these presents sealed with my seal

and sealed this 18th 

Day of April 179?

The condition of the above obligation is such that if the above

Bonded Robert King shall make or cause to be made a good

and suficient Title in fee simple to Two hundred acres of

Land of the first quallity of valley Land to be situate

on poplar Creek, powels valley or within fifteen miles of 

Southwest Point - to be well timberd and sufficient spring

said Title to be made within six months after [date?]

then the above obligation to be void and of none effect otherwise

to be and remain in full force and value in Law

Signed Sealed this 18th Day of April 1798.

Test- Robert King (seal)

W. L. [Lovely?]

Alexander Brown

In 1801, Robert Burk filed a lawsuit against Robert King in Knox County for not fulfilling the terms of the bond. Robert King countersued, denying Burk's claim. In 1803, the suit was filed in Hamilton District Court. Robert Burk was awarded $500 in damages, but the case continued until 1815 as attempts were made to recover the money King now owed Burk.

This case provided a migration trail for Robert Burk, who lived in Jefferson County when the bond was signed in 1798. By 1801, he had moved to Knox County, and a few years later, he was living in Roane County. Roane County was formed in 1801 from Knox County. I haven't done the research yet to determine if Robert Burk lived in that section of Knox County in 1801 or if he physically moved. Images of Knox County deeds have recently been added to Family Search, so I can now do that research from home.

Robert Burk is an associate of my direct ancestor, Joseph Horton, whom I've blogged about several times. Joseph Horton also lived in Jefferson, Knox and Roane Counties at the same time as Robert Burk. Although the case file never mentions any of the Horton clan, it can (and will be) used as indirect evidence in establishing that Joseph Horton who died in Roane County in 1813 is the same Joseph Horton who lived in Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1790.

Chapter 21: Abstracting Probate and Land Records

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 21 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Abstracting Probate and Land Records.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 520-546. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.

I'm one of those who disagree with the author's take that some records should be abstracted rather than transcribed. If at all possible, I prefer to get a copy of the original record, transcribe it, and then abstract it if needed. You never know when you might need that original copy, so I'd rather have it then need to go back and find it months or years later.

One of my gigs is a professional transcriber of audio files. The company I contract with uses proprietary software in the cloud for our work. Typing in Word and then using copy/paste is not allowed because Word does weird stuff behind the scenes when you use the paste function in the company software. However, we are allowed to copy/paste from Notepad, and there have been occasions where I've done this for specific projects, just to make life easier.

I likewise get frustrated trying to transcribe old documents in Word. While the auto-correct feature is great for most writing I do, it's not so great when you are trying to preserve the spelling, punctuation, and grammar of the original document. When I transcribed the deed I am sharing today, I decided to try it in Notepad instead of Word. It was so easy! There were a few times that the program auto-corrected a spelling error, but I was able to change it back with just one try, rather than the several tries it takes with Word. There's probably a way to disable the auto-correct feature in Notepad, but I haven't taken the time to customize it yet.

In our last lesson, I shared a deed that I am currently using in my research. I want to know what relationship, if any, exists between Moses Smith who died in Marion County, South Carolina in 1848 and John Smith, Senior who sold land to Richard Grantham in neighboring Bladen County in 1757. (Moses Smith married Richard's daughter, Hannah). You can view the originaldocument if you'd like.

Transcript

Source: Bladen County, North Carolina Deed Book 23, page 488

No 378

John Smith Senr

To

Richard Grantham

This Indenture the 6th Day of January in the year of our Lord one thousand

Seven hundred & Steventy five between John Smith Senr of Bladen County & 

Province of North Carolina Planter of the one part & Richard Grantham of

the same province & County aforesaid Planter of the other part witnesseth

that the aforesaid John Smith Senr for & in consideration of the sum

of Twelve pounds proclamation to him in hand paid by the aforesaid Richard

Grantham the receipt whereof the said John Smith doth hereby acknowledge

& thereof doth acquit release & forever discharge the said Richard Grantham

his heirs Exrs & admrs & every of them by these presents have granted Bargained

sold [atuned?] released & confirmed & by these presents do fully freely clearly &

absolutely grant Bargain Sell [alien?] release & confirm unto the said Richard

Grantham his heirs & assigns one tract of parcel of land lying & being in

the County & Province aforesaid in the Swamp between Drowning Creek 

& Tadpole at a place called Turkey Island Begining at a chestnut white

Oak in the upper end of said Island & runing thence S 10 E 44 chains

& Seventy three links then S 80 W 44 chains & 73 links then N 10 W 44 chains

& 73 links then Direct to the Beginning courses containing Two hundred

acres of land it being a Tract of land granted to John Smith as appears

by the patent bearing Date in May one thousand Seven hundred and

Seventy two To have & to hold the said Two hundred acres of land here

determents & premises hereby granted or Mentioned to be granted with 

their appurtenances & every part & parcel thereof unto the aforesaid

Richard Grantham his heirs & assigns & that free & clear from all

manner of incumbrances whatsoever the one half of all gold & Silver

Mines Together with the Quitrents already due & hereafter accruing on

the Bargained land only excepted & reserved to the use of his Magisty

& Successord forever & the aforesaid John Smith for himself his heirs &

extrs & admsrs doth covenant promise & grant to & with the said Richd

Grantham his heirs & assigns by these presents that he the afordsaid John

Smith & his heirs the hereby granted premises & every part & parcel

thereof with the appurtenance unto the aforesaid Richard Granth

am his heirs & assigns against him the said John Smith & his heirs

& against all & every person & persons whatsoever having or lawfully claim

ing or that shall or may at any time or times hereafter to have or

claim any Right Title Interest of in or to the said prebargained prem

ises or any part thereof by from or under him them or any of them up

on the reasonable request cost & charges in the law of him the aforesd

Richard Grantham his heirs or assigns shall & will Sign Seal & deliver

any such further & other Instrument or Instruments of writing what

soever for the further & better assurance & confirmation of the herby gran

ted premises with the appurtenances unto the aforesaid Richard Grantham

his heirs & assigns forever as by him or them or by his or their counsel

learned in the law shall or may be reasonably advised devised or

required In witness whereof the said John Smith hath hereunto set his hand

and Seal the Day & year above written

Signed Sealed & Delivered John Smith (seal)

Abstract

John Smith Senr of Bladen County, planter, to Richard Grantham of same, planter, indenture 6th day of January 1775. For and in consideration of 12 pounds proclamation, land in the swamp between Drowning Creek and Tadpole at a place called Turkey Island. Beginning at a chestnut white oak in the upper end of said island...200 acres of land granted to John Smith by patent in May 1772.

I used DeedMapper to plat this deed:

Plat of land sold by John Smith Senior to Richard Grantham in 1775

My research on this deed is not complete until I locate the original land patent from May 1772. Fortunately, these are online at Ancestry, so I was able to locate the land patent. To do this, I used the card catalog to locate and search the specific database for John Smith. This was much quicker than doing a general search for John Smith and trying to look through all record types for the specific land grant. 

Search Results for John Smith in the North Carolina Land Grants database at Ancestry.com

John Smith received two patents in May 1772 in Bladen County, but the front jacket gives a brief description of the location, making it easy to know which patent to look at.

Source: Ancestry.com > North Carolina, Land Grant Files, 1693-1960 > Images 538-539 of 1346, entry for John Smith dated 20 May 1772. Accessed March 20, 2019.

Cover sheet:

Entry:

I still need to transcribe the grant for my notes, but the description on the cover page helps me know I've located the correct grant. Since this document is so short, I probably will not create an abstract of it.

AmericaGen Study Group: Chapter 20, Local Land Records

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 20 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Government Land: Colonial and American.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 495-528. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.


Early in my research days, I often overlooked land records, not understanding the value they provide in the research process. I suspect I am not alone in making that mistake. Now land records are one of my favorite record groups and are always included in my research plans.

According to his obituary, Moses Smith, my 5th-great-grandfather, was born in North Carolina about 1771. By 1806, he was living in the Pee Dee area of South Carolina, where he was ordained a deacon in the Methodist church. That's really all I know about his early years at this point. His Find-a-Grave memorial has his birth place as Rockingham County, the son of John Smith who died in Rockingham County in 1798. I am not sure what this information is based on. I haven't been able to make that connection in my own research.

In researching another ancestor, Richard Grantham of Bladen County, I discovered that a John Smith of Bladen County sold land to Richard in 1775. The land was located at a place called Turkey Island between Downing Creek and Tadpole. Moses married Richard's daughter, Hanna, so I immediately speculated that John Smith of Bladen County is related to Moses. What is that relationship, if any? 

I haven't had a chance to research that question yet, but I want to start by studying other deeds for John Smith in Bladen County. Perhaps one of them will give an indication of when John moved to Bladen County and/or where he came from. Fortunately, these records are online, so I can do this part of the research from home. I'm sure there will be more than one John Smith in Bladen County in the 1770's, so I'll create a timeline to help sort out same-named individuals.

Deed from John Smith to Richard Grantham, 1775

AmericaGen: Chapter 19 (Government Land)

AmericaGen Study Group

Chapter 19 Homework 

Marceline Beem

Reference: Greenwood, Val D. “Government Land: Colonial and American.” In The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th ed., 469-494. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 2017.

In Chapters 19 and 20, Val Greenwood discusses land records, focusing on government-issued land distribution and local land records, respectively.  The author delves into how the federal and state governments acquired and distributed land. The metes and bounds system was used in colonial states and continued in those areas after the Revolutionary War. In the early 1800s, the government developed the township system, which was used in Florida.

My first extensive use of land records was in colonial l North Carolina, so I'm used to the metes and bounds system. I can visualize the line going from the black oak thence to the white pine thence to the stake better than I can the southwest quarter section of the northwest blah blah blah.  Hence, one of my favorite resources for government-issued land records is HistoryGeo.com. It is a subscription site but well worth the investment if you have ancestors that lived in states using the township system. 

The site holds two distinct record groups, its Antique Maps Collection and the First Landowners Project. I use the First Landowners Project extensively in my research. As the name implies, the First Landowners Project is a map collection of original landowners. It currently contains records for 21 states and is fully indexed. The maps show boundary lines and neighbors, making it easy to visualize where the land was and establish a FAN club.

When you log into the site, you'll be asked to choose the Antique Maps Collection or the First Landowners Project. After making your choice, If you aren't a current subscriber, you'll receive a prompt to subscribe. You can purchase subscriptions in 3, 6, or 12-month increments. After making payment, you can return to the selection screen and select First Landowners Project.

HistoryGeo.com

The first screen is a map of the United States and instructions on how to use the site. I want to look for Sikes in Putnam County, Florida, so I put those terms into the search form.

Search Form

At first the search function loads the results map showing the entire country, but then automatically zooms in on the specified county. The circled numbers tell me how many records there are in that section. I can zoom in to see more details.

Search results for the Sikes surname in Putnam County, Florida

The green number two is about where where my family lived, so I zoomed in on that to view the map in closer detail. Now I can see the landowner's name and the date he received the land. The maps show all of the township, range and section numbers. The purchase boundaries are overlaid on a map with modern-day features, making it super easy to picture where the land is, especially if you are familiar with the area being studied. The maps also show the neighbors, which should be added to the owner's FAN club.

Zoomed in search results

The two landowners are Crawford Sikes and Thomas Sikes, brothers to my great-great-grandfather, Andrew. Clicking on the little green figure representing Crawford's land, I get a pop-up with information about the land sale. 

Search result with details of land purchase

There's even links to view the record on the BLM website. Click on "View BLM Document" to view the patent and other record details.

Related records at the BLM website

Back at HistoryGeo, I can zoom in even further to see what modern-day street Crawford's land was on. I recently delivered some packages near this area, and even today it's back on long, hard-to-drive-on dirt roads. I'll eventually go down to see the area, but it will have to be during dry season so I don't get my little car stuck in the muck! 

Map of Crawford's land, zoomed in to see modern roads

Thomas' land, however, is right off a main highway that I drive frequently. In fact, looking at the map, the highway runs through the southeast corner of his property, so I've been on it many times without knowing it belonged to a relative in the 1880s. 

Thomas' Sikes land

I love land records but using them to find property locations can be intimidating. Learning how to use readily-available resources, both free and subscription-based, are well worth it to make best use of research time and money. Whether you start your search at HistoryGeo or BLM, using these sites together can provide a lot of information in our research.

52 Ancestors: Week Six - Surprise

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is a year-long series created by Amy Johnson Crow. I'm a little late getting started, but hopefully I can write weekly now!

My grandfather did not have a good relationship with his father, Arthur Middleton Beem. What few stories he told were less than flattering. When I got serious about researching his life, I knew very little about Arthur Middleton Beem:

•  He was born in Wisconsin but grew up in Mattoon, Illinois
•  He was a Spanish-American war vet
•  He worked for the railroad, which eventually took him to Knoxville, Tennessee
•  He married Frances Horton in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1905
•  Arthur and Frances had five children, including my grandfather
• The family moved back and forth between Knoxville and Jacksonville, Florida until they finally settled in Jacksonville in the 1920s (according to family lore. Census records proved otherwise.)
•  Arthur spent the last few years of his life in Mexico, returning annually to Brownsville, Texas for medical exams, a requirement for his VA pension

Arthur and Frances Beem with granddaughter, Frances, mid-1930s

That's the sum total of what I knew about Arthur's life when I decided to delve deeper.  I started by trying, for the third time, to order his pension record. Thanks to a suggestion of requesting it using the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), I actually received a copy of the record. To my great surprise, this is what I received in the mail:

Arthur's pension file as received in the mail, 2016

Yes, that is approximately 1,500 pages of records ranging from 1924, when he first applied for a pension, to 1954, when he died! The cover letter told me to guard this with my life, as the VA would not send this to me a second time!

My mom and I were leaving for a research trip the next day, so of course this went with us. (Fortunately, we were driving and not flying!) We spent the first night in the hotel room skimming through the record. We found several surprises:

• A thorough, although likely not complete, medical history from 1924-1954. Arthur applied for a pension increase almost annually, requiring a new physical each time.
• Arthur was a prolific writer. His requests were mostly denied, prompting him to write the VA pension board, his congressmen, and anyone else he could think of that might help him received the requested increases. He even wrote the congressmen for Mattoon, even though he hadn't lived there for 25 years!
• The family moved - and not just back and forth between Jacksonville and Knoxville. They moved every couple of months and lived in small towns all over North Central Florida. These towns included, but were not limited to, Citra, Montbrook, Green Cove Springs, Ocala, and Reddick.
•  In Green Cove Springs, he was a sharecropper. Eventually he and his landlord had an altercation, and he was shot in the face, losing his vision for several months. Although his vision did eventually return, he never fully recovered it.
•  He lived in several VA homes, including Tampa, Biloxi, and Brownsville (TX).
•  He moved to Mexico for health reasons in the 1940s and remained there until his death. In 1948, he married Modesta Mendoza, a 26-year-old Mexican woman.

These are just some of the surprises contained in the pension record. One of these days, I'll have time to go through the documents thoroughly to create a timeline. I'm sure I'll discover even more surprises when I go through that process and more fully analyze the information in the file.