Sources of Documentation
After we gather basic information about our immediate family and ancestors, how and where do we find "proof" to document our findings?
For about 100 years, most states and counties have required that certain Life events be recorded or registered, such as births, marriages, divorces and deaths. Official records may not exist before there were laws requiring registration.
Birth
Once birth registrations were required by states, birth certificates became excellent sources. Records can provide more than just a name, date and place of birth. Other information may include the father's name, mother's maiden name, birth order (how many prior children), birth locations of parents, occupation of parents, who reported the birth, who attended the birth (doctor or midwife) and other information. Sometimes people have filed "delayed" birth certificates. These give basic information and also show the documentation used to verify the birth, such as people with relationships or official documents. Family Bibles can be a source of birth records, and if recorded by a parent, are likely to be accurate. A birth announcement or a newspaper record of a birth is likely to be accurate . Draft registrations and marriage records often show the date of birth, but these may be off for a year or so if the person wanted to be older or younger to marry or join the military. Court documents often record the age, but not the date of birth. Tombstones are often inaccurate or show only a year of birth. Census reports show a person was alive or died during a census year, but often only an approximate age. Ages are often estimated by those giving the information to the census taker. Other documents may list age or even birth dates. Again, the best sources are those that were prepared when the living person was giving information.
Marriage
Even in colonial times, marriage licenses or bonds were required and certain licensed persons, primarily ministers, could perform legal marriages. Some early court, church and ministerial records still exist, but many have been lost or destroyed. In early days, ministers were required to report the marriages to the county clerks, but often they simply provided a list of the marriages performed and only showing the names of the parties and the date of the marriage. Bonds were required for licenses, and if one of the parties was under age, then permission had to be granted by a parent or guardian. Often it is the bonds that provide the most information about the bride and groom. The bondsmen were usually the groom and a relative of the bride. Family Bibles, obituaries and newspaper reports can be other sources for marriages. Common law marriages have been treated differently in different states over the years. A misconception is that if people live together for a certain length of time that alone constitutes a legal common-law marriage. This is not true anywhere in the United States. Some states will still legalize common law marriages, but each state has specific requirements. Some states, such as West Virginia, have never recognized "common law" marriages as legal while other states, recognize a common law marriage if it was registered before a certain date, and met certain requirements, but no longer honor them as legal if they were not registered by that date.
Death
Most death certificates in the past 100 years or so are very complete, including information such as the exact date and time of death; the location of the death; where the person was residing just before death; parents' names and their places of birth; marital status and name of spouse; cause or causes of death; name of undertaker and location of burial. Military records, particularly if a person was receiving a pension, usually contain at least the date of death and often names of dependents if they became eligible as beneficiaries. Family Bibles can be a source. Tombstones may be helpful. Since many stones were prepared long after death, they may not be as reliable. Clues as to where to look might be found in recent records just before the person died. For example if a person was living in Pittsburgh, PA in the 1920 census and died in 1921, that area would be a starting place to search.
Family Stories and Biographies
These stories rarely have documentation, but there are often clues suggesting names and locations and where to look further. Also, quite often in telling the story of a person's life, the names of spouses, parents, children and siblings are reported, as well as different locations where the families lived.
Land and Tax Records
Although these records will not give vital statistics, they may establish relationships as well as locations where your ancestor might have lived. Some older deeds may be more complete since deeds were not always immediately recorded, and the "trail" of ownership may be outlined in the deed itself. I was able to find proof of relationships when a deed indicated that the son received land which his father had inherited from his father, and they were named. If an ancestor appears in tax records for several years in a particular county, that suggests settlement, although not always since he might be an absentee owner. Sometimes that information is indicated. Tax collectors sometimes recorded the day and month that taxes were collected. The assumption is that those taxes collected on a given day were people who lived in the same area, so the near neighbors might offer clues.
History and Maps
Familiarity with locations and history of an area can give you confidence that the information you gathered is valid. In the early days of the country, settlement was first along the Atlantic coastal areas in the 13 original colonies. Eastern Pennsylvania and eastern Virginia counties were organized in the 1600's while western counties were organized in the early to mid 1700's. As settlement grew, counties continued to split into newer counties. Post Revolutionary War, western settlement in those states and border states increased rapidly. Dates and maps can help you understand that ancestors may have lived in 2 or 3 counties or states while not relocating. Records were supposed to follow the county and state changes, but that did not always happen. There were also "border wars". An example is the southwestern Pennsylvania - Virginia land claims. Virginia claimed the same land in their West Augusta county that was being claimed by Pennsylvania in their Westmoreland county. This controversy was finally settled when the Mason-Dixon survey was completed. West Virginia is unique in that it was part of Virginia until mid Civil War (1863) when a convention was formed to create the new state. Normally this can only be done by the United States Congress. So the same counties that show Virginia before 1863 are showing West Virginia post 1863. Records of marriage, for example, can be showing in both states. Eastern Tennessee was part of North Carolina until the state was formed; Kentucky was part of Virginia. In fact, Virginia Revolutionary War soldiers were granted parts of Kentucky as payment for their service. Ohio and other states were part of the Northwest Territory and only became states after 1800. So, if your ancestor was born in "Kentucky" in 1780, he was actually born in Virginia. So, be aware of those dates and where records might be located.
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