Courthouse Research: Planning the trip

Announcement – The Library will be closed for Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11.
Computer Classes every Sat. mornings 10-12. "Open House" Whatever you need.
"Geek the Library" November 23rd, at the Library - Bring us all your tech "?'s"
 

 

 

 

Genealogy tip for today: Courthouse Research

 

Planning the trip:

You’ve decided that you have the right court house now you need some information to plan your visit. What days are they open? What are the hours? Are they closed for lunch? What is their location/address? Do they have a website? Do they give you map and/or directions to find them? How big is their staff? This is quite important. If it is a small courthouse and they have only one little old lady working there, her assistance will be limited. How long will it take to get there from where you will be staying? Is there a restaurant close by? Do they have carry out? Will the courthouse allow drinks and/or food? Do you need white gloves? (They may provide them if they wish for you to use them.) Do they have any tips for researchers on their website?

These are a lot of questions and maybe you should copy this post and put them in bullet form to create a worksheet for your trip. This would be a welcomed idea for you to do.

 

Planning the visit:

Besides the usual ‘stuff’ for a trip, there are some things specific to researching in your courthouse.

-White gloves, if you have any. These are fairly easy to purchase and don’t usually cost much.

-Lots of notebook paper, and pencils, eraser. (Usually no ink pens are allowed.)

-Sticky note tabs or similar.

-Lots of change for the copier.

-Magnifying glass

-Yellow transparent sheet (plastic). (You can usually find these in an office supply store.)

-Ruler (optional)

-Camera (if allowed)

-Laptop or other device. Make sure it is well charged, but also take the cord.

-Box of chocolates, even a small one! (This goes a long way to smoothing your visit at the courthouse. I knew one lady that did this and on repeat visits the employees looked forward to seeing her again!)

-Wear comfortable shoes. You may do a lot of walking or be on your feet a long time. You may have to spend time doing a lot of looking for books or there may not be tables or chairs available.

Friday we will look at what you need to do when you are on location.

 

 

 

If any of these posts are helpful drop us a line in the comments section below. We just want to know if the information we provide to you is helpful in anyway.

 

 

Today in History

1665		The London Gazette, the oldest surviving journal, is first published.
1811		Rebellious Indians in a conspiracy organized in defiance of the United States government by Tecumseh, Shawnee chief, are defeated during his absence in the Battle of the Wabash (or Tippecanoe) by William Henry Harrison, governor of Indiana Territory.
1814		Andrew Jackson attacks and captures Pensacola, Florida, defeating the Spanish and driving out a British force.
1846		Zachary Taylor, one of the heroes of the Mexican War, is elected president.
1861		Union General Ulysses S. Grant launches an unsuccessful raid on Belmont, Missouri.
1876		Rutherford B. Hayes is elected 19th president of the United States.
1881		Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, two participants in Tombstone, Arizona's, famous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, are jailed as the hearings on what happened in the fight grow near.
1916		President Woodrow Wilson is re-elected, but the race is so close that all votes must be counted before an outcome can be determined, so the results are not known until November 11.
1916		Jeannette Rankin (R-Montana) is elected the first congresswoman.
1917		British General Sir Edmond Allenby breaks the Turkish defensive line in the Third Battle of Gaza.
1917		The Bolsheviks, led by Lenin, take power in Russia.
1921		Benito Mussolini declares himself to be leader of the National Fascist Party in Italy.
1940		Tacoma Bridge in Washington State collapses.
1943		British troops launch a limited offensive along the coast of Burma.
1944		President Franklin D. Roosevelt is elected to a fourth term by defeating Thomas Dewey.
1956		UN General Assembly calls for France, Israel and the UK to immediately withdraw their troops from Egypt.
1967		In Cleveland, Ohio, Carl B. Stokes becomes the first African American elected mayor of a major American city.
1967		President Lyndon B. Johnson signs a bill establishing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
1972		President Richard Nixon is re-elected.
1973		Congress overrides Pres. Richard M. Nixon's veto of the War Powers Resolution that limited presidential power to wage war without congressional approval.
1975		An  uprising in Bangladesh kills Brig. Gen. Khaled Mosharraf and frees Maj. Gen. Ziaur Rahman, future president of the country, from house arrest.
1983		A bomb explodes in the US Capitol's Senate Chambers area, causing $250,000 damages but no one is harmed; a group calling itself the Armed Resistance Unit claimed the bomb was retaliation for US military involvement in Grenada and Lebanon.
1989		Douglas Wilder wins Virginia's gubernatorial election, becoming the first elected African American governor in the US; during Reconstruction Mississippi had an acting governor and Louisiana had an appointed governor who was black.
1990		Mary Robinson becomes the first woman elected President of the Republic of Ireland.
1994		The world's first internet radio broadcast originates from WXYC, the student radio station of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
2000		Hilary Rodham Clinton becomes the first First Lady (1993–2001) elected to public office in the US when she wins a US Senate seat.
2000		Election Day in the US ends with the winner between presidential candidates George W. Bush and Al Gore still undecided.

 

Madam Curie

 

Birthdays today     

1867		Marie Curie, French chemist who researched radioactivity and discovered radium.
1900		Heinrich Himmler, head of the Nazi SS and organizer of extermination camps in Eastern Europe.
1903		Konrad Lorenz, pioneering zoologist.
1913		Albert Camus, French philosopher, novelist and dramatist.
1918		Billy Graham, evangelist.
1926		Joan Sutherland, opera singer.
1928		Norton David Zinder, biologist.
1929		Benny Andersen, Danish writer, poet and jazz musician.
1943		Joni Mitchell, singer, songwriter.
1950		Alexa Canady, first female African-American neurosurgeon.
1971		Robin Finck, musician; guitarist with bands Guns N' Roses and Nine Inch Nails.

 

 

Word for the Day

pogrom

PRONUNCIATION:

(puh-GROM, POH-gruhm)

 

MEANING:

noun: An organized massacre, officially tolerated or encouraged, against a particular group.

 

ETYMOLOGY:

From Yiddish pogrom, from Russian pogrom (destruction). Earliest documented use: 1891.

 

NOTES:

The word is usually applied to the massacre of Jews in Russia and Eastern Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

 

USAGE:

"Kyrgyz nationalists unleashed a ferocious pogrom against the Uzbekh minority."
Misha Glenny; Life in Putin's Russia; The Irish Times (Dublin); Oct 29, 2011.

Explore "pogrom" in the Visual Thesaurus.

 

Quote for the Day

Humanity also needs dreamers, for whom the disinterested development of an enterprise is so captivating that it becomes impossible for them to devote their care to their own material profit. Without doubt, these dreamers do not deserve wealth, because they do not desire it. Even so, a well-organized society should assure to such workers the efficient means of accomplishing their task, in a life freed from material care and freely consecrated to research. -Marie Curie, scientist, Nobel laureate (1867-1934)

 

 

Today’s Recipe

Holiday Cooking

 

 

 

Grandma’s Green Bean Casserole

 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon white sugar 1/4 cup onion, diced

1 cup sour cream 3 (14.5 ounce) cans French style green beans, drained 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese 1/2 cup crumbled buttery round crackers 1 tablespoon butter, melted

 

 

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.	Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in flour until smooth, and cook for one minute. Stir in the salt, sugar, onion, and sour cream. Add green beans, and stir to coat.
3.	Transfer the mixture to a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish. Spread shredded cheese over the top. In a small bowl, toss together cracker crumbs and remaining butter, and sprinkle over the cheese.
4.	Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the top is golden and cheese is bubbly.

 

ENJOY!

Now You Know!