An ongoing journal of the history of the Bolles Family. From the first settler, Joseph Bolles of Wells, Maine in 1640, all past and present facts, thoughts, events, research and items of interest on this and allied families.
Signatures can be precious mementos of your loved ones—and crucial
clues as you research records. In addition to using handwriting in
research, you can also display your ancestors’ signatures in a way that
shares and celebrates your heritage. These easy signature projects will
help you display your genealogy.
1. Frame a record
Create simple artwork by printing and framing records that include
your ancestor’s signature. Display the frame in your home, or gift it to
a family member.
2. Overlay a signature on a photo.
Use photo-editing software to place an ancestor’s signature over a picture of him. Free websites such as Canva work nicely, as do more sophisticated photo-restoration software like Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop. This creates a meaningful connection between your newfound record and a cherished photograph.
3. Add to a scrapbook or photo album.
Print out a few signatures that you’ve discovered and paste them
alongside photographs, printouts or other memorabilia in a collection.
Like other historical images, signatures make great additions to
online family trees and software programs—particularly in lieu of photos
of your ancestor himself. “I create these lovely signature silhouettes
for ancestors that I do not have photos for,” says Amberly Beck, who
writes about family history on her blog The Genealogy Girl.
“I share them with my nongenealogist family members in a special
private photo album on Facebook, [and] I also add them to FamilySearch
and my Ancestry tree so other family members can find and enjoy them.”
5. Create a signature pedigree chart.
Signature pedigree charts can be a great way to combine your
research with a gift or family history display. This one comes from nolasgoods on Etsy.
Instead of typing or hand-writing your ancestor’s name, place her
signature on a family tree. You can order pedigree surname charts on Etsy.
These can make great gifts for genealogists and nongenealogists
alike. Beck received one from her sister for Christmas. “When I opened
the gift, I was overwhelmed! I know each of those people so well from my
years of work researching every detail of their lives and preserving
their photos, letters, and other treasures,” she says. “Seeing all of
those signatures arranged as a pedigree was emotional and deeply
meaningful.”
Here’s a confession; I love gadgets. If you’ve ever wondered who in
the world needs all of these fancy tools to be productive, it’s me. If
it’s shiny and needs to be charged, I probably want it. When I’m working
on my genealogical research, though, my most useful tool doesn’t have a
cord, an extended warranty or a hefty price tag. The one tool I’d be
lost without is my genealogy research log.
When I was a brand-new genealogist, more seasoned researchers told me I needed a log,
and I scoffed. Then I spent years doing the same work over and over,
because I wasn’t keeping track of my efforts. Now I face far fewer brick
walls because I’m able to move my research forward instead of going
around in circles.
Research logs help you see what you’ve done, what you need to do and
where to go next. If you take a break from your research for a few
months (or years), you’ll be able to pick up where you left off. These
days, I never do any genealogical work without my research log.
In the olden days (1995), my research log was on paper. With today’s
technological advances, I think a research log is more useful if it’s
electronic, but pen and paper are always an option. A computer-based
research log is easy to find, and you can add to it forever. It doesn’t
waste paper or printer ink, and modern automatic backup systems and cloud-based storage can help ensure that it’s available even if disaster strikes.
I encourage you to overcome the idea that a research log is too much
work. Once you’re past the learning curve of a new system, your log saves valuable time better spent breaking down your brick walls and finding new ancestors to add to your family tree.
Make sure your genealogy research log includes these six key details:
1. Date of research
Captain Obvious, you say? A lot of people don’t realize how useful
the date of research can be. New records are being digitized all the
time, so assessing how long ago you looked for something and didn’t find
it can help determine when it’s time to try again.
For example, my research logs from 2014 contained notes indicating
that my ancestors’ church records in Norway weren’t available online.
The date prompted me to try again. When I did, I was rewarded with two
generations’ worth of new discoveries.
Dates can also help you spot patterns in your research cycle. You can
choose when to subscribe to certain websites so you can pay for them
when you’ll actually use them. My research logs tell me I tend to work
on my own family tree more in the summer, when hot weather keeps me
indoors with the air-conditioning. So I can budget for genealogy website subscriptions in the summer months, when I’ll get the most value for my dollars.
2. Full source citations
I know—source citations aren’t that much fun. You feel like they’ll
slow you down, and you promise you’ll go back and do them later, right?
Odds are you won’t. Do your future self a favor and create source citations
right then and there. Doing so will prevent that awful feeling when you
realize at the end of a research trip that you don’t have a page
number, author’s name or other key detail. You’ll also have everything
ready for the day you write up your research conclusions (which increases the odds that you will do those write-ups).
I’ve also found that it’s easier to learn how to do citations quickly
and correctly if you do one every few minutes. The quick repetition
really helps your brain to learn a new skill.
You think you’ll remember that exciting record forever, but odds are
you won’t. When you’ve been working on your family trees for decades,
you’ll be amazed at how quickly today’s research details fade
from memory. Beyond the basic outline of what you find in a particular
document, what else will you record? Does a witness name ring a bell?
Does the document spur new ideas? Put all of it in your research log.
There’s no such thing as too much information here.
If you’ve discovered a resource that might be handy later on, copy
and paste the URL into your research log. By copying and pasting the URL
you avoid introducing typos. That will allow you to come back to it
with a single click.
4. Keywords that relate to the search
Your research log’s data is only useful if you can find it again.
Many family historians struggle to find a digital filing system that
works for them. Your filing system doesn’t have to be perfect, and this
is where adding keywords can really help.
If you’re not yet sure of the spelling of a newly discovered
ancestor’s name, add all of the spellings you can think of to cover your
bases. For example, if you’re working on a woman whose maiden name is
still a mystery, include text with her husband’s name, the town she
lived in or other identifying details. This will save you from having to
wade through every “Mary” on your computer when you’re looking for this
Mary.
In some families, even full names aren’t that helpful. I have German
ancestors who reused the same names over and over. My Norwegian
forebears were worse; they used patronyms, which changed each
generation.
In order to keep them straight, I’ve developed nicknames, and I tag
each research log entry with the nickname. This helps me not confuse Milwaukee Fred with Railroad Fred or Dead Fred.
(Of course, they’re all dead. But “Dead” Fred died very young, and had
his name passed along to the next child—a common practice among
Germans). I also have a string of Nels Nelsons, so Civil War Nels is labeled differently from Norway Nels (who lived in the Old Country) and Minnesota Nels (who was born in—you guessed it—Minnesota).
Some people use ancestor numbers assigned by their desktop genealogy
software as unique keywords for each ancestor. Do whatever helps you
find the right person.
5. Expenses
Your research log is a great place to keep track of costs when you
send a request for a death certificate or pension file. Whether you’re
on a strict budget or not, it’s smart to track your spending and to stay within bounds.
Recording those costs can also provide some accountability, so you
don’t accidentally go on a late night record-ordering spree and blow
your budget for the year in one fell swoop. (I’ve done that, and I don’t
recommend it.) It’s helpful to look back and see how much a particular
record cost the last time you ordered, so you can better prioritize what
to order next.
If you’re researching records in a particular area, you probably have
an ancestor who lived there. And if you have one ancestor in an area,
you’ll probably find that you have more.
Consider what information might be useful to you when you have to
return to this spot. Did you just learn that the county line moved in
1846? Put that in the log. Did the street numbering system change? Is a
database you’ve found picky about having surnames capitalized for
searching? Save your future self grief by making note of it all.
A version of this article appears in the May/June 2019 issue of Family Tree Magazine.
Looking for a totally free database of US death records? The Social
Security Death Index (SSDI) is a valuable record set created from the
Social Security Administration (SSA)’s Death Master File to track tax
withholdings and Social Security survivors’ benefits. Here’s what the
Social Security Death Index is, how genealogists can use it, and where
to find it online.
Who is in the Social Security Death Index?
Though it doesn’t include every person who ever had a Social Security
number, the SSDI generally includes all deaths reported to the SSA
beginning in 1962 (though a few include deaths prior to that year). At
time of writing, the SSDI cuts off at 2014.
What Details are Included?
The SSDI isn’t as detailed as some other Social Security documents, such as the SS-5.
But you should still find the person’s full name, birth date, death
date, state where the number was issued, and last known residence (down
to the ZIP code level of detail). You may also find the person’s Social
Security number.
Where Can I Search the SSDI?
The SSDI is widely available on genealogy websites—you don’t need to
request transcripts from the SSA. Some websites include additional
details in their SSDI databases that can help when you’re trying to
distinguish between similarly named individuals.
You can also search at Ancestry.com, but you’ll need a subscription. To search the SSDI across multiple websites, visit Stephen P. Morse’s webpage.
Tips for Searching the Social Security Death Index
It’s only fair to warn you that SSA indexes (including the SSDI) are
not always complete or accurate. You might see any of the following:
Initials, nicknames or middle names instead of full names
Birth dates appearing only as a year, or not at all
Names or dates that are entered incorrectly, such as 2 November (11/2) instead of 11 February (2/11)
Names that drop internal punctuation: OMalley or Omalley instead of O’Malley
Women’s paperwork filed under an unfamiliar married or maiden name (you may not have found every surname she used)
Unfamiliar
places of issue, residence or last known benefit (people could apply
from anywhere, and you may not know every place they lived)
If needed, run several searches with different combinations of names,
dates and places. Explore all possible results, even partial matches.
It may take a while to accumulate enough bits and pieces of
evidence—from Social Security or other documentation—to identify a
correct entry.
