Courthouse Researching

 

 

 

Genealogy tip for today: Researching in Courthouses

 

Have you ever received one of those undesired summons to court? Maybe it was to be on the jury, maybe to be a witness to some case. Well one kind of summons that beckons you is more appealing. That is the genealogy kind. Sooner or later you will be using courthouses to aid in your research. It may be by mail or it may be in person. 

Let’s say you’ve done all you can do by mail – got all the easy stuff. Now you need for someone to go on sight and do the hard searching. What do you do? Hire someone to do it for you that is local, plan a vacation with the courthouse as your destination? Start searching on the Internet? 

Preliminary Preparation:

Before you decide any of that you need to do a little research on the courthouse and its jurisdiction. When was it established, what geographic area did it cover and has that changed? What records does it hold and what time periods? Did records move at some point? Were records ever lost? Worse case, did the courthouse ever burn down and what was done to replace or replicate the records it once had? Check the USGenWeb for specific information about your courthouse, archive or repository.  

Also note that different offices have different records. Sometimes the offices are in different buildings, may even have different hours. The records may be in microfilm form, others still in books or paper form. It’s helpful to know this ahead of time. Try thinking outside of the box. If they say a certain volume is not available, see if maybe it is available on microfilm at a Family History Center. Check out Everton’s “Handy Book for Genealogists.”* It also gives lots of information you will need to know. (*Available at the Rogers Public Library.) 

Compare this with the ancestor you are researching. During his time and place was ‘this’ courthouse the one that would hold records pertaining to him - or her? This is all important. You don’t want to spend the money and time researching Grampa Jones in one courthouse only to find out after 10 hours of work that this is not the courthouse where he filed that deed you want. Nothing can be more discouraging, not to mention a waste of your time and you money than to discover you are in the wrong courthouse. 

Tomorrow we will look at preparing your records ahead of time.

 

 

 

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

1219		The port of Damietta falls to the Crusaders after a siege.
1556		The Emperor Akbar defeats the Hindus at Panipat and secures control of the Mogul Empire.
1605		Guy Fawkes is betrayed and arrested in an attempt to blow up the British Parliament in the "Gunpowder Plot." Ever since, England has celebrated Guy Fawkes Day.
1653		The Iroquois League signs a peace treaty with the French, vowing not to wage war with other tribes under French protection.
1757		Frederick II of Prussia defeats the French at Rosbach in the Seven Years War.
1768		William Johnson, the northern Indian Commissioner, signs a treaty with the Iroquois Indians to acquire much of the land between the Tennessee and Ohio rivers for future settlement.
1814		Having decided to abandon the Niagara frontier, the American army blows up Fort Erie.
1840		Afghanistan surrenders to the British army.
1854		British and French defeat the Russians at Inkerman, Crimea.
1862		President Abraham Lincoln relieves General George McClellan of command of the Union armies and names Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside commander of the Army of the Potomac.
1872		Susan B. Anthony is arrested for trying to vote.
1911		Calbraith P. Rodgers ends first transcontinental flight–49 days from New York to Pasadena, Calif.
1912		Woodrow Wilson is elected 28th president of the United States.
1914		France and Great Britain declare war on Turkey.
1917		General John Pershing leads U.S. troops into the first American action against German forces.
1930		Sinclair Lewis becomes the first American to win a Nobel Prize in Literature for his novel Babbit.
1935		Parker Brothers company launches "Monopoly," a game of real estate and capitalism.
1940		President Franklin D. Roosevelt is re-elected for third term.
1968		Richard Nixon is elected 37th president of the United States.
1968		Shirley Chisholm of Brooklyn, New York, becomes the first elected African American woman to serve in the House of Representatives.
1995		Andre Dallaire's attempt to assassinate Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien is foiled when the minister's wife locks the door.
2003		Gary Ridgway, known as the Green River Killer, pleads guilty to 48 counts of murder.
2006		Former president of Iraq Saddam Hussein, along with Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, is sentenced to death for the massacre of 148 Shi'a Muslims in 1982.
2007		Chang'e 1, China's first lunar satellite, begins its orbit of the moon.
2009		The deadliest mass shooting at a US military installation occurs at Fort Hood, Texas, when US Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan kills 13 and wounds 29.

 

 

Birthdays today     

1855		Eugene V. Debs, American Socialist leader and first president of the American Railway Union.
1885		Will Durant, historian and author.
1913		Vivien Leigh, British actress famous for her role as Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With the Wind.
1918		George Sheehan, cardiologist well known for his book Running and Being.
1942		Art Garfunkel, American singer, one half of "Simon and Garfunkel."
1943		Sam Shepard, American playwright and actor.
1945		Peter Pace, first USMC general appointed to serve as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
1946		Gram Parsons, influential singer, songwriter, guitarist; member of The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers and International Submarine Band.
1947		Peter Noone, singer, songwriter, musician, best known as Herman of Herman's Hermits.
1948		William Daniel Phillips, shared 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics for his contributions to laser cooling, including his invention of the Zeeman slower technique for slowing the movement of gaseous atoms.
1963		Tatum O'Neal, actress; youngest person ever to win a competitive Academy award, for her performance at age 10 in Paper Moon (1973).
1973		Peter Emmerich, illustrator; in 2001 created the iconic "Mickey Salutes America" image featuring Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse.
1987		Kevin Jonas II, musician, actor; oldest member of the pop rock group Jonas Brothers

 

 

Word for the Day

schnozzle

PRONUNCIATION:

(SHNOZ-ul)

 

MEANING:

noun: A nose, especially a large one.

 

ETYMOLOGY:

From Yiddish shnoytsl, diminutive of shnoyts (snout), from German Schnauze (snout), which also gave us the name of the dog breed schnauzer. Earliest documented use: 1930.

 

USAGE:

"I sneak one long sideways peek at Philip Roth's nose: the sort of schnozzle that put the rhino in rhinoplasty."
Scott Raab; Philip Roth Goes Home Again; Esquire (New York); Oct 7, 2010.

 

Quote for the Day

It came to me that reform should begin at home, and since that day I have not had time to remake the world. -Will Durant, historian (1885-1981)

 

 

Today’s Recipe

Holiday Cooking

 

Brined Turkey

 

 

What You Need

 

2-1/2 gal.  water, divided

1 cup  sugar

1 cup  salt

½ cup  cider vinegar

1 Tbsp.  coarse ground black pepper

1   frozen whole turkey (14 lb.), thawed

 COOK 1 qt. (4 cups) water, sugar, salt, vinegar and pepper in saucepan on medium heat 10 min. or until sugar and salt are dissolved, stirring occasionally. Pour into plastic container large enough to hold brining liquid and turkey. Add remaining water. Cool completely.

REMOVE and discard neck and giblets from turkey cavities. Rinse turkey; drain well.

ADD turkey to brining liquid; cover. Refrigerate at least 10 hours or up to 24 hours. Remove turkey from liquid; rinse well with cold water. Pat dry with paper towels. Cook as desired.

 

ENJOY!

 

Now You Know!