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Old 11-08-2007, 09:51 AM
 
Location: Savannah GA/Lk Hopatcong NJ
13,366 posts, read 28,606,308 times
Reputation: 11997

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Quote:
Originally Posted by aomething View Post
Has anyone hit the brick wall when it comes to the maternal sides? I am actually lucky that my mother knew her grandmother and the maternal side while growing up. That is the family that I wrote about. My brick wall is the paternal side. I can't get past Grandfather in Orkney, Scotland.

We would also have to advertise in Scotland for information. Not sure what else to do. It's harder to research over seas. Much easier with internet but harder all the same.

How about success stories when you have been able to break through a wall??!!

Maternal is a big huge brick moat for me.....my maternal grandmother was orphaned in 1917 or 1918 her parents both dying from the Spanish Flu...she was 5 at the time, they had lived in NYC Greenwich Village..she ended up at a catholic Orpanage in Staen Island...burned down and I'm sure most of the records gone
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Old 11-08-2007, 11:22 AM
 
Location: Texas
690 posts, read 2,623,459 times
Reputation: 473
Similar problem here, njkate - my mother's mother's mother was also orphaned, or abandoned, apparently, at a very young age, and possibly raised by grandparents. I found her on the 1910 Census, living with grandparents, but neither parent as far as I can tell. Also, I'm not sure which person is actually related to her, the grandfather or grandmother listed on the Census with her, because it doesn't appear that the children living with them at the time belonged to both of them, and I think it's a remarriage, which makes things even harder!

It's always nice to find others who are researching some of the same lines you are. One of my lines has an entire group of people dedicated to it and they've gotten very far back.
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Old 11-08-2007, 12:05 PM
 
Location: Savannah GA/Lk Hopatcong NJ
13,366 posts, read 28,606,308 times
Reputation: 11997
Ancestry.com had lots of info for me...my grandfather's draft card....lots of documents
You have to pay..not a lot but when you think you've located what you need and download it to your computer cancel. I've done that several times...usually wait until I have a few things to check out then will rejoin...all the info you saved is always there
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Old 11-08-2007, 12:45 PM
 
5,652 posts, read 19,288,604 times
Reputation: 4105
Tips:

your local library (or a library of the closest big city) may have access within the library to ancestry.com for free. Ours does.

Also - check any possible mispelling that you can think of for names. I have french canadian ancestors in which this has been a big ongoing problem. Spell the name out phonetically then search that spelling. I have come up with 2 lines of relatives that way.

Post for your relatives on the genealogy website - someone may link up to you. I linked to two relatives that way and that had info and pics I did not have.

Check the lds latter day saints website - familysearch.org

And if your family is catholic - many records can be found in the churches.

Good luck all!
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Old 11-08-2007, 12:50 PM
 
261 posts, read 951,859 times
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From posting information on GENFORUM.com, I have added at least 6 branches to my family tree! I recently met a 3rd cousin twice removed and I am glad that I did! My family heritage is a gift that I will be able to pass on to my son and he to his children when the time comes. The approaching holidays are a great time to start inquiring to the older generations about thier lives and maybe for the Christmas holiday or other holiday that you celebrate, make a scrapbook for that person, with pictures of all the family. I would be thrilled to get something like that from a family member, especially one who takes the time to make it from the heart.
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Old 11-08-2007, 01:16 PM
 
Location: Gulfport, MS
469 posts, read 2,730,410 times
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I am a genealogy freak! It's like a big fun detective mystery. Where did so-and-so come from? What was so-and-so's maiden name? It's also taught me a lot about colonial America, how and where people migrated, what religions they joined, etc. American history is so, so much more complicated than the history books make it out to be. My last emigrant ancestor came over from Ireland about 1800, and get this, his name was James Kelly. Good luck tracing him in the Old Country!

I do hit brickwalls, as everyone does. I've found that thinking outside the box and not taking everything your older relatives tell you as gospel can help. Sometimes people cover up things about their ancestry they'd rather not let anyone know, or they get confused, or just do sloppy research. But everytime I think I've gone as far as I can with a line, I find some new evidence that lights the way. For instance, my 5x-grandmother Lydia listed her birthplace as GA, AL, or NC depending on the census. Didn't she know where she was born? For a long time we were looking in the wrong counties for a marriage record. Then I found an entry in an old preacher's diary from Floyd co. GA in which he mentions he performed the wedding of "Pleasant Keener and Lydia Golding." We then checked the 1850 census, found them, AND found what appears to be Lydia's natal family living just a few houses down. I'm still researching this family, but it's looking more and more promising.

Another big issue is that I have four or five SMITH families which appear to be entirely unrelated to one another! Do you know how many William Smiths, John Smiths, and Charles Smiths there were running around back then? Makes research very difficult.
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Old 11-08-2007, 02:07 PM
 
Location: Savannah GA/Lk Hopatcong NJ
13,366 posts, read 28,606,308 times
Reputation: 11997
LOL..at least my maiden name isn't all that common or I would of thrown in the towel by now
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Old 11-08-2007, 02:23 PM
 
261 posts, read 951,859 times
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I'm researching the HALL line right now. Ummm, How many John Halls can be in one family??? (I counted 25 just between father to grandsons)!
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Old 11-08-2007, 02:26 PM
 
Location: southern california
61,290 posts, read 87,104,404 times
Reputation: 55549
Quote:
Originally Posted by aomething View Post
I've been the family genealogist since I was twelve and have since written 2 books for families, manage 2 websites and a genealogy business.

What has been your brick wall to hit and can't get through?

I have found out that I have a half uncle and half aunt from Grandfather's first marriage, but they would be almost 88 years old now and dont' even know if they are still alive. Dont have a clue where to look for them, as they are no where to be found after 1930 census. Can't look up 1940 census for a few more years! Brick wall!!!
i prefere dna tests much better. people lie a lot.
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Old 11-08-2007, 02:30 PM
 
261 posts, read 951,859 times
Reputation: 122
I would love to have dna tests done but you need a male in the family to agree and so far none of the men (on paternal side) will agree. Father is still unsure and forget his brothers, they don't talk about the skeletons in the closet (everyone has them!). I just think we may have a walk in closet full of them! Yes, people do lie. The information that I have that i used to write my books came from records recorded from years ago. If I find in the future that some is misleading then I will write another book to make sure that the information is corrected. But so far, nothing has indicated that.

How would you go about using DNA for the female line? It's a bit harder, isn't it?
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