© 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 for NSHS at their request and with their approval by T& C Miller
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 1 - July 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Ancestors Television Series (Part
6)
The ninth and final episode is titled
Leaving a Legacy. The legacies of three different families
are represented. The first family, of Scottish ancestry, has been
having family reunions every five years since 1890. Their reunions
have been preserved on film since 1915. Today the descendants of
this family number more than ten thousand. The second family
received a legacy from the grandmother with the two hundred quilts
she made and a two-hundred-page memoir she wrote at the age of
eighty-one. Finally, an African-American family celebrates with a
tribute of African ritual and dance at the ancestral grave. All
three families represent how to help your children and
grandchildren know who they are.
The hosts of the series concluded with comments
on recording your own personal history in a journal, collecting
and organizing family photos, and holding family reunions.
After this episode (which aired March 9) the
Nebraska ETV Network sponsored a half-hour, call-in special. The
two experts answering questions were Cynthia Monroe, reference
assistant at NSHS, and Kathleen Lucas from the LDS Branch Library
in Lincoln. The following is a brief summary of some of the
questions received and answered:
(1) Researchers with foreign ancestors should first start their
research at home by questioning family members and locating
photographs and other items such as marriage certificates; (2)
Records from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and state records will
help those doing Native American research; (3) An Index to
Naturalization Records Prior to 1906 exists for Nebraska and
western Iowa; (4) U. S. census records from 1790 to 1840 give only
the name of the head of the household. Statistical information is
given about other family members. Starting with the 1850 census
all family members are listed; (5) The LDS Library in Salt Lake
City and its branches have research outlines available for each
state; (6) NSHS has some military information available from the
federal level for soldiers who were stationed at forts in
Nebraska; (7) The LDS Library does have a WEB site. Contact them
for the address; (8) Adoptions in Nebraska are sealed by state
law. Clues may be obtained from birth certificates and other
public records; (9) Statewide death certificates are not available
before 1904. Other sources such as obituaries and church records
may be available; (10) Most early employee records from the Union
Pacific Railroad were destroyed; (11) The Nebraska Daughters of
the American Revolution have a library within the Edith Abbott
Memorial Library in Grand Island; (12) Locate the earliest
document for a person or a marriage license to help document
conflicting birth dates; (13) Researching surnames in telephone
books may be useful if you have an uncommon surname; (14) Over two
thousand LDS libraries are located worldwide. Several are in
Nebraska; and (15) NSHS has land tract records for Nebraska that
contain information to be used to contact the National Archives
for homestead files.
Please contact me if you need further
information regarding any of these statements. I will either
address them in this column or contact you directly.
New Acquisitions of Interest to
Genealogists
Buffum Family: Volume II, compiled by
Owen A. Perkins. (Family in Johnson County).
A Student's Guide to Chinese American
Genealogy, by Colleen She.
My Mother's People: To Colorado They
Came, compiled by Patricia K. Kaufman. (Family in Otoe
County).
Dunbar Pedigree: Descendants of the Thomas
Dunbar Family Who Sailed From Ireland to the New World in
1829, compiled by Dunbar W. Smith. (Family in Otoe
County).
Johannes Dyckman of Fort Orange: and His
Descendants ... , by Marjorie D. Chamberlain. (Family in
Adams, Perkins, and Antelope counties).
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 2 - August 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Nebraska State Gazetteers and Business
Directories
The suggestion for this column was given to
me by Cynthia Monroe and Karrie Cole, reference assistants in our
Library/ Archives.
The first Nebraska Gazetteer and Business
Directory was published for the years 1879-80 by J. M. Wolfe
in Omaha. The contents of this volume are listed on the title
page: "Arranged alphabetically by counties embracing a general
description of Nebraska, its productions, soil, climate, stock
raising, agricultural resources, natural advantages, railroad
facilities, with state, county, and city officials, the Nebraska
Legislature, besides a large amount of other valuable information
together with a complete classified business directory
representing all mercantile houses and every branch of industry
carried on in the state." The 1882-83 and 1884-85 directories
contained the same information as well as a complete county and
township map for Nebraska.
In the 1886-87 edition J. M. Wolfe added another
feature, a list of all farmers in Nebraska giving their post
office addresses. According to the preface there were more than
100,000 Nebraska farmers listed alphabetically within the counties
where they resided. Since the 1885 Nebraska state census is not
indexed, this edition became valuable in determining where a
family lived to help locate them in census records. The
arrangement in the directory by counties limited its usefulness if
the searcher did not know where his ancestor resided. In the 1950s
and 1960s an inhouse card index was compiled from the directory so
the names could be organized in alphabetical order. The original
card index is no longer in existence. It was microfilmed in the
1980s and has since been used in that format.
The directory for 1888-89 followed the format of
directories published before the 1886-87 edition. The 1890-91
edition followed the same format as the 1886-87 edition. Again
this is a valuable source because the 1890 census was destroyed in
a fire. An alphabetical index of the material in this gazetteer
has not been compiled, however, so the researcher must know the
counties of individual farmers to locate them in this source.
J. M. Wolfe continued the 1893 and 1894-95
editions without the list of farmers. In December of 1901 W. G.
McAvoy of Omaha published the 1902-3 directory. McAvoy continued
to use the same format. In 1907 the Polk-McAvoy Directory Company
in Omaha published the directory, intending to issue an edition in
every odd year. They added an index to advertisers, but kept the
same format. Polk-McAvoy continued to publish the directory in
1909, 1911, 1913, and the last known edition in 1916.
Besides the obvious use of the 1886-87 and
1890-91 editions, these gazetteers are the best source in tracing
the history of businesses in Nebraska about 1900. Limited sources
may be available for locating businesses in small communities if
extensive county and community histories or a small town newspaper
do not exist. The listing of a business in the gazetteer might be
its only record of existence, unless incorporation papers were
filed with the secretary of state or city clerk. I found these
gazetteers extremely useful when I compiled the centennial
histories for Avoca and Elmwood in the early 1980s. The original
gazetteers were microfilmed and are no longer used by the public
because of their fragile condition. The microfilm of these
gazetteers and the 1886 gazetteer alphabetical index may be used
on interlibrary loan.
Request for Donation. The Library has
been notified by Anne W. Cassidy that she has compiled a genealogy
book that contains material on a Nebraska family. One Line of the
Solomon Leonard Family includes information on the Charles W.
Leonard family that homesteaded near Burwell. Cassidy is unable to
donate a copy, but we will accept a donation of $31 to purchase
this title from her for our library.
Since space was not available this month for New Acquisitions of Interest to Genealogists, the September column will be entirely devoted to genealogy book titles.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 3 - September 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library
Curator
New Acquisitions of Interest to
Genealogists
Munshaw's From Nebraska, compiled by
Bonita L. Lafferty. (Family in Cheyenne County).
Forster, Foster: Some Descendants of Hugh and Abigail Forster. . . , compiled by John W. Foster. (Family in Johnson and Gage Counties).
A Student's Guide to Irish American Genealogy, by Erin McKenna.
A Student's Guide to Italian American Genealogy, by Terra C. Brockman.
The McCord Saga, compiled by Michael L. McCord. (Family in Jefferson County).
McHenry, compiled by Karen Skiber. (Family in Dodge County).
The Molzen Family: The First One Hundred Years in America 1868- 1968, compiled by Marsha Hoffman Rising. (Family in Lancaster and Douglas Counties).
O'Rourk-Riordan Notebook, compiled by Sarah Jane O'Rourk-Hewett. (Family in Sheridan County).
Schmidt Genealogy, compiled by Duane D. Dorman. (Family in Saline County).
The Story of Four Families: Sweet-Fitts, Gwaltney/ Gallaher, by Mary Lewellwyn G. Sweet. (Family in Gage County).
The Whitney Chronicles, compiled by Dorothy H. Whitney. (Family in Lancaster, Douglas, Otoe, Jefferson, and Fillmore Counties).
The Adams & Nielsen Families: Adams-Nielsen Family History, 1640-1990, compiled by George H. Nielsen. (Family in Cass and Howard Counties).
How to Save Your Stuff From a Disaster: Complete Instructions on How to Protect and Save Your Family History, Heirlooms, and Collectibles, by Scott M. Haskins.
Newspaper Genealogical Column Directory, 6th ed., by Anita Cheek Milner.
Fourteen Plus: Homesteading in Nebraska's Sandhills, 1911-1949, by Don Lineback. (Family in Sheridan County).
Passenger and Immigration Lists Index: 1996 & 1997 Supplements, a Guide to Published Records of More Than 2,540,000 (1996) and 2,668,000 (1997) Immigrants Who Came to the New World Between the Sixteenth and the Mid-Twentieth Centuries, by P. William Filby.
The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy, 1996 ed., by Loretto D. Szucs.
Wanek Genealogy, compiled by Tillie H. Wanek, Carole A. & Duane D. Dorman. (Family in Saline County).
Family of Joseph & Barbara (Citta) Woksa: Their Descendants & Their Ancestors, compiled by Margie Sobotka. (Family in Douglas County).
Nebraska Cemeteries and Known Burial Sites: (In Two Parts), compiled by Georgene Sones and Dennis Norvell.
Descendants of Daniel Curry and Mary (Blue) Curry, 1778-1994 compiled by Howard R. Curry.... (Family in Dixon County).
History of Czechs in America, by Jan Habenick.
History of Highland Cemetery, Adams, Nebraska, compiled by Byrleta H. Pittam.
The Green, Green Grass of Home: A Collection of Stories and Family History of and by the Larson Family, by [W. E. Larson]. (Family in Platte County).
A Research Guide to Genealogical Data in Knox County, Nebraska, prepared by Jacquelyn Romberg and Peggy Ebel....
Fillmore County Marriage Index: A to D, June 28, 1871, to December 31, 1986. . . , compiled by Rose Marie Hulse.
Reyman, Ryman, Reiman; Descendants of Johannas Ludwig Reiman by Dorothy Cottongim and George L. Reyman. (Family in Burt and Cherry Counties).
Excerpts From the York Republican Newspaper, York, Nebraska, 1876-1890: Primarily Pertaining to W. T. Scott, First Mayor of York and to His Family, Relatives, Friends and Colleagues.... compiled by Norvin S. Armstrong. (Family in York County).
The Ancestors and Descendants of Adam Stuhr, compiled by Virginia Ann A. Stuhr. (Family in Douglas, Lancaster, and Hall Counties).
HISTORICAL newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 4 - October 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library
Curator
PERIODICAL SOURCE INDEX (PERSI)
The Library/Archives Reference Room has
recently made available to our patrons the entire set of the
PERiodical Source Index (PERSI), which will be useful to
genealogists and historians.
The staff of the Allen County Public Library
Foundation and the ACPL Genealogy Department began producing the
PERiodical Source Index (PERSI) in 1986. The goal was to produce a
comprehensive place, subject, and surname index to genealogy and
local history periodicals found in the Genealogy Department of the
Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The indexing
of the articles includes the broadest spectrum of English-language
and French-Canadian genealogy and local history publications.
No family journals were indexed. PERSI is an
article index, not an inclusive name index. Eleven annual volumes
have been published between 1986 and the last volume available,
which is 1996. Indexing was completed for all periodicals received
in each calendar year as well as back issues for publications new
to the library going back to 1986. The Allen County Public Library
receives more than seven thousand periodicals. Approximately 5,500
of these titles are indexed in the PERSI annual for 1996.
As part of this project, indexing of periodicals
published between 1847 and 1985 was undertaken at the same time.
This part of the project has resulted in four installments
consisting of four volumes each for a retrospective set of sixteen
volumes. Each installment contains two volumes devoted to "Places"
and two volumes devoted to "Families." To make it easier to use in
our reference room, I have color coded each set and marked the
"Places" volume that includes Nebraska. Future volumes in the
retrospective set will include indexing for periodicals from 1790
to 1985. Volume seventeen will be available from ANCESTRY by the
end of 1997 or early 1998.
The published format for PERSI is the same for
each annual and retrospective set. There are five distinct
sections: (1) U.S. Places (2) Canadian Places (3) Other Foreign
Places (4) Research Methodology and (5) Families. A detailed
description of each section is given in every volume.
Every volume includes a listing of all
periodicals indexed. The entire set of PERSI consists of more than
one million citations. Of interest to Nebraska researchers is that
most genealogical publications (quarterlies and newsletters)
published in this state are indexed in PERSI.
The Allen County Public Library published
Bibliography of Genealogy and Local History Periodicals With Union
List of Major U.S. Collections as a companion volume to PERSI.
This bibliography (published in 1990) lists over 5,400
genealogical and local history periodicals, including foreign and
defunct titles, surname magazines, newsletters, and family
bulletins. The holdings of eleven major libraries are listed.
Titles that were not indexed in PERSI are included.
If you can't use PERSI and the Bibliography in
our reference room, ask your local librarian to find a nearby
library with this set. PERSI is available for a fee on the
internet via the ANCESTRY homepage
http://www.ancestrya.com/home/library/abtpersi. PERSI is now
available for purchase on CD-ROM from ANCESTRY. Plans are underway
for PERSI to be updated regularly online. The annuals will
continue to be published with the 1997 annual available in spring
of 1998 from ANCESTRY. For further information on PERSI contact
the ACPL Foundation, PERSI Project, P.O. Box 2270, Fort Wayne IN
46801-2270.
New Acquisitions of Interest to Genealogists
The Burham Builders, by Duane N.
Burham. (Family in Chase County.)
Chadron Centennial 1885-1985, by the
Chadron Centennial Committee.
Denton: Getting Better With Age! July
27-28,1996, by the Denton Community Historical Society.
[Jayne Family From Springfield,
Illinois], compiled by Charlotte White Sturm. (Family in
Lancaster, Kearney and Phelps counties.)
We Celebrate One Hundred Years 1883-1993.
Laurel, Nebraska, compiled by the Laurel Centennial Book
Committee.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 5 - November 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library
Curator
Nebraska Blue Books
Since 1899 the Nebraska Blue Books have been
a general source of information about Nebraska state government.
They are also useful for biographical information on individuals
who served in state offices, as well as a convenient guide for
locating population statistics.
The first and second Nebraska Blue Books were
published for 1899-1900 and 1901-2 by the State Journal Company.
The next Blue Book was published in 1915 by the Nebraska
Legislative Reference Bureau, directed by Addison E. Sheldon, who
was later director of the Nebraska State Historical Society. This
was the most comprehensive Blue Book ever published because it
contained not only a detailed description of the constitution and
government of the state, but also history, information on
industries, commerce, population, natural resources, social
conditions, institutions, political information, and statistics.
This volume was the first to give brief biographical sketches and
photographs of the individuals serving in the Legislature. In
later editions a historical roster of state legislators and other
elected officials was included in each volume. The Blue Book is
usually the first source staff use for verification of an ancestor
who may have served in the Legislature.
The Blue Book continued on an irregular basis in
1918 and 1920. After 1924 it was published every two years until
1960. Publication resumed in 1964 and has continued to the present
as a biennial volume.
Researchers attempting to locate the population
of Nebraska incorporated cities and villages will find the results
of several previous federal censuses in the following Blue Books:
1915 (1860-1910), 1924 (1860-1920), 1930 (1930), 1942 (1940), 1952
(1950), 1960 (1960), and 1970 (1970). The population of Nebraska
counties is included in these editions: 1915 (1854-1910), 1928
(1854-1920), 1932 (1855-1930), and 1986-87 (1870-1980).
The Nebraska Blue Books for all years listed are
readily available for research in the Library/Archives Reference
Room as well as found on microfilm (for 1899-1972) that may be
interlibrary loaned.
Another source for biographical information on
individuals who served in the Nebraska Legislature is
Biographical Manuals of the Legislature of Nebraska,
published in 1881, 1887, 1895, 1897, 1901, 1903, and 1911.
NOTE: Correction to October column on
the Periodical Source Index (PERSI): The current ANCESTRY homepage
address for locating information on PERSI is
http://www.ancestry.com/HPApersi.htm.
New Acquisitions of Interest to
Genealogists
When Your Ox is in the Ditch: Genealogical
How-To Letters, by Vera McDowell.
1880 Federal Census Index, Lincoln County, Nebraska, abstracted by Charlene Rowley.
Ancestors and Descendants of Daniel Morgan and Polly Frost, by David L. Mordy, Jean W. Perney, and Betty L. Storey. (Family in Buffalo, Phelps, Harlan and Fillmore counties).
An Index to the 1910 Federal Population Census of Douglas County [City of Omaha] ... by the Nebraska State Genealogical Society. (Enumeration District 1-13 only, consisting of Wards 1 and 2).
The Center. A Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Capital Area, by Christina K. Schaefer.
Research Guide to Genealogical Data in Washington County, Nebraska, by the Nebraska State Genealogical Society.
The Oxford Guide to Family History, by David Hey.
Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States (1995), compiled by Robert B. Matchette [et al.].
They Came in Ships: A Guide to Finding
Your Immigrant Ancestor's Arrival Records, by John P.
Colletta.
Within the last two years two members have
provided funds to purchase the following genealogy titles:
Descendants of John Hotchkin of Guilford, Conn. compiled by
Edgar E. Hotchkin, funded by Benjamin C. Neff of McLean, Virginia;
German Church Books by Kenneth L. Smith, International
Vital Records Handbook by Thomas J. Kemp, A Summary Guide
to Local Governmental Records in the Illinois Regional
Archives by the Illinois State Archives, In Search of Your
European Roots by Angus Baxter, and In Search of Your
German Roots ... 3rd ed. by Angus Baxter, all funded by
Richard Vogt of Lincoln.
In August we requested a donation for a
genealogy book titled One Line of the Solomon Leonard Family by
Anne W. Cassidy. Charles W. Leonard and his family homesteaded
near Burwell, Nebraska. As of October 1, we have not received a
donation of $31 to purchase this title for the Library.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 6 - December 1997
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Passenger and Immigration Lists Index
Every week the reference staff receives
questions in person or by mail about immigration records,
particularly the availability of ship's passenger lists. For
beginning genealogical researchers I recommend the following
sources: The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy
(Revised Edition) edited by Loretto Szucs and Sandra Luebking, pp.
463-72; A Guide to Genealogical Research in the National
Archives, pp. 41-57, and They Came in Ships: A Guide to
Finding Your Immigrant Ancestor's Arrival Record (Revised
Edition) by John Colletta. From these sources you will become
immediately aware that there is a limited number of indexed ship's
passenger lists.
Our library/archives collection does not
include any original ship's passenger lists. We do have a few
sources of published passenger lists. As part of our current
policy to supply our patrons with materials to guide them to the
next phase of their research on their Nebraska ancestors, we have
been attempting to continue a series in our collection that was
first published in 1981.
In 1981 P. William Filby edited the
three-volume base set of Passenger and Immigration Lists
Index. This index "brought together in one alphabet citations
to information about immigrants who arrived in the New World
between the sixteenth and mid-twentieth centuries. These names
appear in a broad collection of published passenger lists,
naturalization records, church records, family and local
histories, voter and land registrations, etc." This first set
indexed over 300 published lists covering about 500,000 persons.
The alphabetical index gives the name of the immigrant, age (when
given), place and year of arrival, naturalization or other record
of immigration, code that refers to the source in which the
particular list can be found, page number in the source cited, and
accompanying family members (if any). The codes are given in the
front of each volume in this series with the title of the source
along with bibliographical information. This information may then
be used to see if NSHS has the source. In most cases the source
will not be available in our collection, but the researcher may
contact other libraries to see how they can obtain a copy of the
book or, in most cases, a photocopy of the cited page(s).
This index (usually referred to as "Filby's")
continues with volumes published yearly between 1982 and 1985,
when the publisher (Gale Research) offered a cumulated supplement
for 1982-85. Yearly volumes again were published between 1986 and
1990 and another cumulated supplement was offered for 1986-90.
Yearly supplements continue for 1991-97. As of 1998 there will be
two parts (volumes) published for each year. With the publication
of the 1998 Supplement, the base set and its seventeen supplements
"now cover 2,796,000 persons - still only a small fraction of the
over 35,000,000 immigrants who came to the New World."
In our reference room we have the base set of
this series, yearly supplements 1982-90, 1991-95 cumulated, and
yearly supplements for 1996-97. Continued purchase of this set is
expensive. We purchased the 1998 Supplement, Part 1, from funds
collected in our donation box in the reference room. We are now
requesting donated funds to purchase Part 2. If we order it by
December 31, 1997, the cost will be $213.75, which is a discounted
rate. Members who would like to contribute towards the purchase
may direct funds to my attention at this address with a note
requesting that the donation be used for the purchase of
"Filby's."
Filby has also edited Passenger and
Immigration Lists Bibliography, 1538-1900: Being a Guide to
Published Lists of Arrivals in the United States and Canada.
The second edition of this work, published in 1988, provides full
bibliographic citations for more than 2,550 published lists. Some
of the other titles Filby has edited include Philadelphia
Naturalization Records, Germans to America: Lists of Passengers
Arriving at U. S. Ports, 1850-1893 (ongoing, currently
consists of fifty-six volumes), and Italians to America, Lists
of Passengers Arriving at U. S. Ports, 1880-1899 (ongoing,
currently consists of seven volumes). The first source is in our
library, but we do not have the multivolume sets.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 7 - January 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Nebraska Pioneer Family Recognition
In 1998 the farmstead where I live with my
husband and son will have been in my family for one hundred years.
Our Cass County farm was purchased by my maternal
great-grandparents, Henry and Alvina Kehlbeck, on January 3, 1898.
I plan to submit our application to the Ak-Sar-Ben/ ConAgra
Pioneer Farm Family Award program via our county representative to
receive what will be the second award for my parents. We received
the award in 1988 for the farm - my paternal great-grandparents,
Friedrich and Wilhelmina Buckman, purchased in Cass County in
1888.
Two organizations in Nebraska currently offer
recognition to Nebraska pioneer families. First, Ak-Sar-Ben and
ConAgra honor families who have maintained a farm or ranch in the
family for one hundred years or more with their Ak-Sar-Ben/
ConAgra Nebraska Pioneer Farm Family Award. This program was
started in the mid-1950s by Ak-Sar-Ben. The plaques given to the
families are usually presented at the annual county fair.
Ak-Sar-Ben does not maintain the information in a format readily
available for researchers. They supply the Nebraska State
Historical Society Library/Archives with a list of these families
each year, which gives the name and address of the family that
received the award, as well as the name of the county where the
farm or ranch is located. For information about receiving this
award, contact Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben, 6800 Mercy Road, Suite 206,
Omaha NE 68106.
The Nebraska State Genealogical Society has a
Family Recognition Certificate Program. The applicant must be a
direct descendant from an ancestor who settled in Nebraska, but
need not be a resident of Nebraska. There are three categories of
certificates: First Family - settled in Nebraska by 1867; Pioneer
Family - settled in Nebraska between 1868 and 1879; and Century
Family - settled in Nebraska one hundred years prior to the
current year. Applications must include photocopies of acceptable
sources of proof as listed on the application form and the
application fee of $6. Once an application is received and
processed by the Society, the applicant receives a signed
certificate from the Nebraska Secretary of State. Copies of the
application papers are placed in the Nebraska State Genealogical
Society Library and the Nebraska State Historical Society
Library/Archives. Contact the Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 5608,
Lincoln NE 68505 for application forms.
Two books have been published with information
on some families who received the Ak-Sar-Ben award: Nebraska
Centennial Families and Farms, by Georgene M. Sones and Cindy S.
Drake (Curtis Media Corporation, 1987), and Nebraska Century
Pioneers: Farms/Ranches, by Mark and Victoria Potter (Taylor
Publishing Company, 1987). Although an effort was made to contact
all families who received the award, neither book contains the
family histories of all award recipients. Both titles are in the
NSHS Library/Archives, but they are not available for interlibrary
loan.
Another source available only at the Historical
Society is copies of the applications for the Pioneer Recognition
Program sponsored by the Nebraska Centennial Commission in 1967.
Besides the original applications, photocopies of these forms were
the beginning of the Nebraska Family Notebooks located in the
reference room. These notebooks are in alphabetical order by
family name. Today the library continues to add family sheets to
these notebooks about anyone who has Nebraska ancestry. Family
sheets may be submitted by directing them to me at our
address.
Researchers may use any of the NSGS application
forms, titles, or the Nebraska Family Notebooks in the
Library/Archives Reference Room or contact the Library/Archives
reference staff by mail to check these sources (prepayment fee
required).
New Acquisitions of Interest to
Genealogists
The Genealogist's Address Book (3rd
ed.), compiled by Elizabeth Bentley.
Doyle-Burns Family History: It's the Irish
in Me, compiled by Audrey and Thomas Erber. (Family in York
County)
Fisher Family History, compiled by Ruth
Hammel. (Family in Dixon County)
In Search of Your British and Irish
Roots, by Angus Baxter.
For All Time: A Complete Guide to Writing
Your Family History, by Charley Kempthorne
The Librarian's Guide to Public Records: The
Complete State, County, and Courthouse Locator, edited by Carl
R. Ernst and Michael Sankey.
The William F. & Nany Richards Sincock
Story. . . , compiled by William B. Long. (Family in Franklin
County)
(The February GENEALOGISTS' CORNER will be
devoted to new acquisitions.)
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 8 - February 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
New Acquisitions of Interest to Genealogist
Descendants of Peter Winter, 1748-1814: Waldecker, Mercenary, and Blacksmith, [compiled] by Mildred Hopkins with Dwayne L. Pretzer. (Families in Lancaster County including William Jennings Bryan and his family).
Do Butterflies Have Ears? and Other Family Lore, by Hugh A. Fogarty. (Family in Douglas County).
Genealogical and Local History Books In Print: Family History Volume, compiled and edited by Marian Hoffman.
A Family History of Andrew and Sophia (Huetter) Gless and Their Children, 1853-1996, [compiled] by Elmer E. Gless. (Family in Colfax County).
From Cookstove to Microwave: My Memories 1915-1996, by Phyllis Helzer. (Family in Dawes County).
A Czech Family Heritage, Bohemia U. S. A., 1765-1996, by Jewel B. Lansing. (Family in Cuming County).
"From Bloody Blokes to Damn Yankees":
Descendants of William and Mary Rawes Rudd, Westmoreland County,
England, by Dorothea M. Rudd. (Family in Keith County).
We Veitches, Veatches, Veaches, Veeches: An
Historical Treasury of the Descendants of James Veitch, the
Sheriffe, compiled by Laurence R. Guthrie (Families in Otoe,
Brown, Cass, Nance, and Richardson counties).
Zolesky Genealogy, compiled by Tillie Wanek, et. al. (Family in Saline County).
Descendants of Robert and Susannah Barrett and Jeremiah and Elizabeth Barrett of Sommersetshire, England ... to Saline County (DeWitt, NE) and Gage County, Nebraska, U. S. A., [compiled by Elizabeth Price]. (Families in Saline and Gage counties).
The Cemeteries of Read Township including the Blue Valley and St. Peters Cemeteries with a Map and 437 Obituaries and Lists of 512 Known Burials in both Alphabetic and Location Sequences, edited and assembled by Jerry A. Althouse and Richard C. Ludden.
Nebraska Born Veterans Buried in Colorado, 1862-1949, by Gerald E. Sherard.
Harlan County Nebraska Cemetery Book, by the [Holdrege Area Genealogy Club].
The Education of Edward Cudahy, by W. Kane (Family in Douglas County).
A Selected History of Wilber and Czech Culture in Nebraska, 1873-1997, by E. A. Kral.
A History of District 82, the Wilber-Clatonia Public Schools from 1873 to 1992, and a History of Rural School District 97, Saline County, Nebraska, from 1874 to 1965, by E. A. Kral.
125 Years History of DeWitt, Nebraska: Its Families, Its Community 1872-1997, by Doris Peters and Mary Garrison.
Family Treasures: Videotaping Your Family History, a Guide for Preserving Your Family's Living History as an Heirloom for Future Generations, by Shala M. Bannister.
A Genealogist's Refresher Course, by Judy Jacobson.
Daniel Gregory and His Wife Sarah Lamont: Their Ancestors and Descendants, compiled by Richard B. Walker. (Families in York, Fillmore, Gosper, and Dawson counties).
Hobson: Descendants of George and Elizabeth Hobson, compiled by Earl H. Davis, Marie D. Wiles.
A History of the Houfek Family of Colfax
County, [compiled by] Dennis F. Houfek.
Miscellaneous Obits From Denni Pokrok (Daily
Progress), November 1915, compiled by Margie Sobotka. (Czechs
in Nebraska).
The Pioneer Story of Bill & Ane Petersen and the Evolution of the Vise-grip, by Harriet P. Fort. (Family in Saline County).
Colorado Physicians Born in Nebraska, 1881-1967, by Gerald E. Sherard.
In Search of Confederate Ancestors: The Guide, by J. H. Segars.
The following titles were compiled or edited
by Ernest C. James under his series, Ancestors and Descendants
of the James Family. These families are from Butler, Valley,
and Burt counties.
History and Biography of the Dobson
Family.
The Hollingsworth Family and Collateral
Lines Of Atkinson and Ree.
Biography, Ernest C. James, Jr.,
1920-1942.
Biography of Ernest C. (Jessie) James,
Greenfield, Iowa: Fifty-First Iowa Volunteers, Spanish American
War, and the Philippine Insurrection.
Ernest C. James and Cora Gregory James
Family and Collateral Lines of Their Descendants.
Descendants of Ernest Clare James and Cora
Blanche Gregory: Excerpts From "Notes From the Welcome Farm" by
Edith James Skinner Pertaining to the James Family.
The Lobdell Family and Collateral Families
of Baldwin, Bryan, Burwell, Fenn, Heath, Hyatt, Pierce, Prentice,
Reynold, Scott.
Narrative and Publications Relating to Lucy
Ann Lobdell: The Female Hunter of Delaware & Sullivan
Counties, New York.
The Rivenburg Family and Co-lateral
Families.
Descendants of Cornelius Anthonisse Van
Schlick and AL-Stoch Hartwell.
Thank you to Kevin Brown, who donated the funds
to purchase One Line of the Solomon Leonard Family, by Anne
W. Cassidy. Thank you to Adrian Z. Hodson, who also donated the
amount needed for this title. Her donation will be used instead to
purchase another title. And thanks to Norman L. Case, who donated
the entire amount to purchase Filby's Passenger and Immigration
Lists Index, 1998 Supplement, Part 2.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 9 - March 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Family History and the Younger Generation
My interest in genealogy did not develop
until I started working at the Nebraska State Historical Society
more than twenty years ago. Today my seven-year-old son has been
exposed to family history from a maternal great-grandmother (now
deceased, but he remembers her), as well as from being in videos
with his Grandma Drake at the grave of her grandparents in
Colorado.
Family members and teachers have access to more
types of materials today to interest children and young adults in
family history. They include books, videos, television programs
(such as Ancestors), genealogy software, and Web sites. All
types of stores sell bound books in which family members may write
their family history and information about their lives for their
younger relatives. Unlike a notebook, these books are not
conducive to adding additional material such as photographs,
mementos, etc., but please use them if they will encourage you to
preserve information for your descendants.
In programs I have given for middle and high
school students, I encourage the use of printed interview
questions that students give to older relatives to record
information about their families. I tell the students that if they
do not have any interest in this family material now, they should
keep this item with their keepsakes from school. This way they
have the information for the future when they may decide to pursue
genealogy as a hobby and the older relative is no longer
living.
If you are an educator who would like to
develop a class project on family history, you may contact me for
a handout I prepared last year (and recently updated) entitled
Family History and the K-12 Student. (I will also share this with
others who are not teachers.) Three reasons teachers should be
encouraged to engage students in family research are (1) it can be
fun; (2) it can help young people strengthen family solidarity;
and (3) it can help in learning history.
Preparation is the key in doing family history
with students. Teachers need to be aware that a familiarity with
their own family history helps in pursuing this topic with
students. In cases where students may have a problem doing a
project of this nature (divorce, adoption, etc.), teachers must be
prepared with alternative research projects that follow the same
theme.
Teachers with students who have mainly Nebraska
ancestors should have a copy of our Reference Guide # 1 titled, A
Guide to Genealogical Research at the Nebraska State Historical
Society. Because we interlibrary loan our newspapers, students
could check old newspapers for births, marriages, and obituaries
of their family members. Requests for copies from records in our
library/archives are available by mail. Teachers and students must
be aware that fees are not waived for school projects. The prepaid
fee is $5 to interlibrary loan one roll of microfilm (through your
library), or a letter request with the $5 fee for a search of one
record by our library/archives reference staff.
Teachers or students who want to use our
facilities in person should be aware that with our limited space,
equipment, and staff we cannot accommodate large groups of
students doing family research. Small groups need to make advance
arrangements with the head of reference services. As stated
previously preparation is needed to undertake this type of
project.
If you have any questions about preparing a
unit on family history, you may contact me at the Society for more
information, 402-471-4786.
New Acquisitions of Interest to
Genealogists
The Royal Lineage of the Hamlins,
arranged by H. F. Andrews ... republished by Ernest C. James with
some modifications. (Descendants in Valley County).
Ancestors and Descendants of the James
Family: The Hamlin Family and Co-Lateral Families, written by
Ernest C. James. (Family in Valley County).
Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide to Family
History and Genealogy, by Jim and Terry Willard.
Some Goodwin and Kieffe Families of New
York, Wisconsin and Nebraska, compiled by William R. and Helen
K. Houk. (Family in Adams County).
Our Family, organized and assembled by
Emily Harris. (Helmkamp family in Lancaster and Loup
Counties).
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 10 - April 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
New Acquisitions of Interest to Genealogists
Supplement to the Joy Genealogy, by Helen B. J. Lee. (Family in Gage County).
The Kvam Family and Their Neighbors: Norwegian-American Pioneers in Boone County, Nebraska, 1873, [compiled by Eleanor Kvam MacDowell].
Saline County Roots: Stories and Genealogies From The Crete News, Quasquicentennial Series, 1992- 1993, edited by Sandra J. Breitkreutz.
Our Parish, the First One Hundred Years: St. Bonaventure Parish, Columbus, Nebraska, 1877-1977.
The Ancestors and Descendants of John and Frances Walters Auker of Ohio, Indiana, and Nebraska: Surnames Include Auker, Bailey, Brown, Butcher, Cooper, Elliott, O'Kieffe, Shores, Strate, Walters, and Wasmund, [compiled by Lynnet A. Keihl].
Passenger and Immigration Lists Index: 1998 Supplement, Part 1, A Guide to Published Records of More Than 27,795,000 Immigrants Who Came to the New World Between the Sixteenth and the Mid- Twentieth Centuries, edited by P. William Filby and Frank V. Catronova.
Index for a History of Antelope County, Nebraska: (From its First Settlement in 1868 to the Close of the Year 1883), by A. J. Leach. Index compiled by the Neligh Public library.
The Fullertons, Fullartons, & Fullingtons of North America, [microform]. (Families in Cheyenne, Pawnee, Douglas, and Hitchcock Counties).
Who's Who in Omaha and Douglas County, 1959.
A Williams Family in America. . . , compiled by Alberta D. B. Taylor. (Families in Adams, Nemaha, and Hall Counties).
The Family of Konrad or Conrad Bechtold and His Descendants, compiled by Sally Volz. (Family in Boyd County).
Research Guide to Genealogical Data in Colfax County, Nebraska, compiled by the Nebraska State Genealogical Society.
Virtual Roots: A Guide to Genealogy and Local History on the World Wide Web, by Thomas J. Kemp.
A Guide to County Records on Microfilm, published by the Missouri State Archives.
Along the Way With Benjamin Morris (1757-1808): And his Wife, Sarah of North Carolina, his Forebearers and Descendants from before 1680 to 1996. . . , by Lewis E. Morris. (Families in Dawson, Hall, Jefferson, and Furnas Counties).
Abstract of Wills, Hall County, Nebraska; Book 2, 1 Oct. 1882- 2 Apr. 1898, compiled by Vonna J. Jackson.
Ancestors and Descendants of John Blackburn: A Family Narrative ... Bicentennial Book, Two-Hundred Years of Blackburn Family History, 1795-1995, [compiled by Josephine B. Knight]. (Family in Franklin County).
Columbus, Nebraska Centennial: May 30-31, June 1-2, 1856-1956, Souvenir Program.
Dixon County: A Picture History, [edited by Norvin Hansen].
Heinrich "Family Favorites" [cookbook], compiled by Karne H. Shea. (Family in Lancaster County).
One Line of the Solomon Leonard Family of Monmouthshire, England: Leyden, Holland, and Plymouth, Duxbury, and Bridgewater, MA. . ., [compiled by Anne W. Cassidy]. (Family in Garfield County).
St. Michael's Parish, Hastings, Nebraska: Our Golden Jubilee, 1945-1995.
Thurston County: A Picture History, published by The Pender Times.
The Wenzel Family: From Germany to Nebraska, Cass and Lancaster Counties and Their Frohlich and Griffin Connections, [compiled by Helen W. Peterson, et. al.]. (Families in Cass and Lancaster Counties).
WANTED: Suggestions for topics to be used in this column or guest columnists. Material should relate to Nebraska genealogical research. Contact Cindy S. Drake at this address. Thank you.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 11 - May 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
Homestead Research in Nebraska
The Homestead Act of 1862 became effective
January 1, 1863. This act made land available "free" to those who
would live on and cultivate a tract for a period of time, usually
five years. Government land offices recorded these claims in tract
books.
The Library/Archives has on microfilm the U.S.
General Land Office Tract Books for Nebraska, which describe the
acquisition of land from the federal government, the date, the
legal description, the type of acquisition, and the final
certificate number. In addition to homestead claims, the tract
books also record filings under the Preemption, Timber Culture,
and Kinkaid Acts, as well as land claimed with agricultural
college scrip and military bounty warrants. An index (alphabetical
by name of homesteader) for applications filed in selected
counties in the western part of Nebraska is available, but for
entries in other parts of the state, an approximate legal
description of property is needed. These land records do not show
owners of land after the initial acquisition from the federal
government. This information is available from the registers of
deeds in the individual counties where the land is located. The
Library/Archives has deed records from a few counties, but these
records are generally not indexed by name of owner.
If the researcher does not have the legal
description for the homestead, early census records should help in
locating the township or precinct where the homesteader was
residing. Older maps from Nebraska (such as the 1885 Nebraska
atlas or 1915 Official Railway Map of Nebraska) will show the
named township along with range and township numbers. (Range is
the east/west number and township is the north/south number.) Each
township consists of thirty-six sections (one square mile each).
With this information you refer to the U.S. Land Records Map for
Nebraska in the Library/Archives Reference Room. This map gives
the number of the land tract volume for every township in
Nebraska.
After you know the correct volume, you proceed
to the microfilmed volumes. Sometimes volumes are divided onto two
separate reels of microfilm, but each roll is clearly labeled. The
homestead entries span a two-page set, and each set is numbered.
Once you are in the correct volume you locate the range numbers on
the left page of the two-page set. The range numbers are in
numerical order. Once the correct range number is located you
continue to scan the columns until you locate the correct township
number. Once you have the correct legal description, you will need
to scan all thirty-six sections of the township (unless you know
the section) for your homesteader. The homesteader's name will be
given on the right side of the left page. Record all the
information given in this entry, but the most important item is
the final certificate number.
The Library/Archives does not have the actual
homestead files. The information found in the tract books, such as
the legal description and final certificate number, is required by
the National Archives before they will search for the homestead
files. These files include the land claimant's application and
other documents submitted in making "final proof," which was
necessary to receive a patent from the government. Documents may
include affidavits from witnesses, verification of citizenship or
intention to become a citizen, Bible records, marriage records,
and so on.
There is no form on which to request the
homestead files from the National Archives. Over ten years ago I
requested my husband's great-grandfather's homestead file for land
in Gage County. It took three months to receive a reply from the
National Archives. They will first send you a form with a price
quote to copy the contents of the file.
More information about land records may be
obtained by requesting from the Library/Archives Reference
Information Guide No. 7 titled "U.S. Government Land Laws in
Nebraska, 1854-1904," by James E. Potter.
REMINDER: A prepaid fee of $5 is required to have the Library/Archives reference staff check the land tract records by mail. You must be able to provide the legal description, precinct name, or general vicinity in the county in order for the staff to conduct this search. Any prior research, such as a census record, would require another $5.
Material for this article was contributed by Cynthia E. Monroe, reference assistant, or assembled from NSHS reference guides.
Library/Archives Wish List
By Cindy S. Drake, Library Curator
As noted in the April newsletter, we are
seeking to supplement a limited state budget for purchasing new
library titles. The following are also high priority titles we
wish to purchase for the library with donated funds. Members are
encouraged to donate funds toward the purchase, or they may
purchase the titles and donate them to the Library/Archives.
Please direct monetary donations to me with a note on your check
specifying "L/A Wish List" to alert our accounting staff. Donated
titles may also be directed to me with a note.
Catlin's O-Kee-Pa: Mandan Culture and
Ceremonial The George Catlin O-Kee-pa Manuscript in the British
Museum, by Colin F. Taylor with foreward by Prof. W. Raymond
Wood, Verlay Furn Amerikanistik, 1996, $90
Comparing Cowboys and Frontiers by
Richard W. Slatta, University of Oklahoma Press, 1997, $25.
Ghost Dancing the Law: The Wounded Knee
Trials by John William Sayer, Harvard University Press, 1997,
$30.
HISTORICAL Newsletter
Vol. 50 No. 12 - June 1998
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By Cindy S. Drake, Library
Curator
Passports and Nebraska Ancestors
Many Nebraska researchers have immigrant
ancestors for whom it may be difficult (or impossible) to locate
exact birthplaces in American records. Although my grandfather,
William Kehlbeck, lived to be ninety-eight, he did not know the
German birthplace of his father, Henry, who came to America in
1885. Henry was naturalized on September 17, 1906, and he was not
required to report his exact birthplace in Germany for his
naturalization papers. Federal laws that went into effect on
September 26, 1906, required local courts to submit various
reports to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. These
reports requested more detailed information from immigrants such
as exact birthplace along with the date, ship, and port of arrival
in the United States.
From a local newspaper account I knew that
Henry and two friends returned to Germany for a visit in 1913.
Because he was a naturalized citizen it seemed likely that he
would have needed a passport to return to his native country.
Before my visit to Washington, D.C. last year
for a meeting, I reviewed a book titled The Center: A Guide to
Genealogical Research in the National Capital Area by
Christina K. Schaefer. From this source I learned that passports
were not required of U.S. citizens before World War 1, but they
were frequently obtained for added protection. The National
Archives has passport applications dating from 1791 to 1925. The
applications became more detailed over the years, and it was
possible that the date and place of birth would have been
requested of an applicant.
The applications are arranged chronologically
from 1830 to 1925 in bound volumes. According to The Center, the
indexes are in different formats for various years. When I arrived
at the National Archives, I first requested the three-by-five-inch
index cards for the years 1906 through 1923. 1 was fortunate to
locate Henry in this index and then I requested the actual
application. His exact birthplace was listed, as well as the
month, year, and port of departure from Germany; his birthdate;
the date he was naturalized; and his physical description.
Before visiting or corresponding with the
National Archives about passport records, I recommend that you
review The Center, as well as "U.S. Passport Applications:
Leads to Immigration and Naturalization Records" by John P.
Colletta, which appeared in Heritage Quest, September/October 1997
(Issue Number 71, pp. 9-15).
In the next column I plan to review some of the
presentations I attended at the National Genealogical Society
Meeting in Denver May 5-9.
New Acquisitions of Interest to Genealogists
The Ancestry of the Paul Gengenbach
Family and The Ancestry of the Paul Gengenbach and Sophie
Wilheimine (Koch) Gengenbach Families, [compiled by Diane
G. Brown, et. al.]. (Families in Frontier and Phelps
Counties).
The Kolb Newsletter and Kolb-Frank
Newsletter: Dedicated to Preserving the History of the German
Villages of Frank & Kolb, Russia, edited by Norman and
Pauline Dudek. (Published in Nebraska).
[Jiskra Genealogy, compiled by Helen
L. Dorman, Carole A. Dorman and Duane D. Dorman.] (Family in
Saline County).
Some Charles and James Jordans, Born In
Virginia 1790-1848, and Their Families, compiled by Paul R.
Jordan. (Family in Cass County).
An American Melting Pot Saga, by Carl M.
Schmitthausler. (Schmitthausler family in Lancaster County).
© 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 for NSHS at their request and with their approval by T& C Miller