U.S. Records Collection - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

mbmjlm — 2009-10-26 15:39:59Z

Thanks. Yes, I have those. Missouri birth and death records are online too at

http://sos.mo.gov/archives/resources/birthdeath/

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

JoMac53 — 2009-10-26 15:17:55Z

Michigan death certificates are online at
http://seekingmichigan.org/discover-collection?collection=p1...

Record Search pilot has some and is adding more all the time.
http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch/start.html#p=allC...

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

mbmjlm — 2009-10-25 13:59:30Z

To Rob Williams Re: West Virginia records online-thanks so much for the info. Many of my early Lloyd family were born in Virginia in the counties that became West Virginia. I log every site that contains state records and just found a great marriage record for one of my Lloyds which includes the whole marriage certificate. If anyone knows of other states which contain vital images, please reply to this message board. Whether Ancestry acknowledges that site or has a link to it is immaterial because these records can be downloaded and kept.

Peterson family genealogy

dirp3_1 — 2009-10-24 16:56:02Z

Hi My name is Dianna Peterson. I saw your fam tree today. My husbands father was Raymond O. Peterson, his father Valentine Peterson, son of Olaf Nidos Peterson.

I am trying to find more info on yor grandfather Oscar. I would appreciate all that you can supply.
Thanks in advance, Di Peterson

Re: Marriage Bonds vs Marriage Licenses...help please!

meekernj — 2009-10-16 14:15:02Z

What is the time period and place in question? Do you have information about when and where your ancestor's marriage took place?

Re: Marriage Bonds vs Marriage Licenses...help please!

mbmjlm — 2009-10-16 04:41:20Z

Several states had laws which required that someone pay $1250.00 as a marriage bond before a marriage could take place. Imagine the shock nowadays if marrying couples had to put up $1250.00.

Re: Marriage Bonds vs Marriage Licenses...help please!

frostfreedet — 2009-10-15 22:33:04Z

In the U. S., Marriage Licenses are certifications by the issuing authority (usually the County Clerk of Courts) that the couple are legally authorized to marry. If the parties are under legal age set by law (if any) the Clerk will expect permission from parent or guardian. But they were also largely money-making devices to get a fee from the couple for the license as well as a fee for recording the date of marriage.

Marriage bonds had a totally different purpose: to assure that there was no impediment to the marriage, certified by the groom (or if underage, guardian or other legal representative such as parent, older brother, uncle, etc.) and a representative of the bride (often called the bride's 'surety' or suretor). Each side had to attest to the issuing authority that they had assets to pay the money penalty specified in the Bond in the event either party was in default. Default could be a prior marriage not ended by divorce or spouse's death, one of the parties running off with someone else, and other circumstances you can imagine.

So the Marriage License was related to conforming to existing law, while the Marriage Bond was an agreement between the two parties to the impending marriage.

Maine Marriages, 1743-1891? Previously an Ancestry database, now offline?

lwonline — 2009-10-15 19:32:21Z

While searching for Maine indexes, I came across links to a collection on Ancestry called "Maine Marriages, 1743-1891."

It looks like the database has been removed, but was once available on ancestry. Are there plans to reinstate this database? It would be extremely useful!

Thanks.

It links to:
http://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=7868&cj=1&am...

Source Information:
Maryann Flaherty and Liahona Research, comp. Maine Marriages, 1743-1891 [database online]. Provo, Utah: MyFamily.com, Inc., 2004. Original data: Index compiled from county marriage records on microfilm located at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah by Liahona Research (P.O. Box 740, Orem, Utah 84059) and from records located at the Maine State Archives by Maryann Flaherty. Specific source information listed with each entry.

About Unknown

This database is an index to nearly 230,000 individuals who were married between 1743 and 1891 in select Maine counties. The marriage records indexed in this database have been collected from a variety of sources. A list of which counties are included...

For more information about this database, click here.
This database is an index to nearly 230,000 individuals who were married between 1743 and 1891 in select Maine counties. The marriage records indexed in this database have been collected from a variety of sources. A list of which counties are included in this database is provided below. Information that may be found in this database for each individual includes their name, their gender, spouse's name, marriage date, marriage place, and source information. Occasionally other pieces of information may be included in the index as well. Marriage records are great sources for genealogists because they document an individual in a particular place and time as well as provide details about that person's marriage.

It is important that you use the information found in this database to locate your ancestor in the original records that this index references. Usually more information is available in the records themselves than is found in an index. For example, marriage records sometimes provide the birth dates and places of the bride and groom, their parents' names, their addresses, and witnesses' names, in addition to the information listed in this index.

Maine became the 23rd state in 1820 as part of the Missouri Compromise. Until that time, Maine was part of Massachusetts and followed Massachusetts's customs for recording of vital records. While recording of vital records was sporadic in the seventeenth century (only 5 towns - Biddeford, Kennebunkport, Kittery, Wells, and York - hold records), by the eighteenth century more than 200 towns were maintaining vital records. In 1828, the state legislature mandated that marriages be recorded at the county level. The information found in these local records is often not as detailed as more modern records. After 1864, town clerks were required to forward vital records to the secretary of state and, in 1892, systematic registration of births, deaths, and marriages began on a state-wide basis. These records are available at the Maine State Archives. It should be noted, however, that until registration began on a statewide level in 1892, there was not total compliance with vital records registration requests from the state.

Information was collected from the following Maine counties and time periods:

•Androscoggin (1789-1898)
Cumberland (1709-1901)

•Franklin (1784-1879)

•Hancock (1788-1875)

•Kennebec (1742-1893)

•Knox (1835-1888)

•Lincoln (1756-1829)

•Penobscot (1794-1889)

•Piscataquis (1801-1892)

•Sagadahoc (1688-1917)

•Somerset (1822-1863)
·
•Waldo (1774-1892)

•Washington (1772-1891)

•York (1714-1891)

*Although the date range listed in the title of this data set is 1743-1891, there are several dozen marriages in this date set that took place before 1743 and after 1891. We chose to list 1743 and 1891 in the title because those are the first and last years in which a significant number of marriages took place.

Re: Is there a way to add searchable content?

JoMac53 — 2009-10-05 22:56:24Z

You could email Anne Mitchell who is a product manager for search at Ancestry.com and ask her. Her email is amitchell at tgn.com .

Re: Is there a way to add searchable content?

gratop — 2009-10-05 21:47:27Z

If you post the text of the will on a public tree as a story I think it should show up in a search if someone just searches for the first name Delpha. It is a shame that comments do not become part of the searchable database.

Is there a way to add searchable content?

suzannedallape — 2009-10-02 19:03:14Z

I like the new feature of the census image pages whereby I can leave comments for certain names. On the 1850 slave schedule for Meriwether, GA, I was able to add comments telling the first names of four slaves that were owned by my ancestors (I had found the names in a will). Anyone who happens to come across this particular page will get that information.

I am wondering if it is possible for a member to add to the actual search engine, so that if someone were trying to search for, say, a black female in Georgia named Delpha who was born in 1846, they would have a way to find this slave schedule. It kills me to have a small bit of potentially valuable information and no way of making it available in searches. If I added the slaves' first names, ages, and genders as alternates to the slave owners, would those names show up in searches? Or is there another way?

Re: Census - what has happened?

suzannedallape — 2009-10-02 18:55:06Z

I disliked the new format at first--as you say, TOO MUCH STUFF to deal with on one page. However, I do like the ability to leave comments on certain names. I am able to say how I am related to a given family, and was even able to give the first names of some of the slaves in the 1850 slave schedules.

Re: 1890 census - why is it not online?

mbmjlm — 2009-09-27 04:14:09Z

A friend of mine several years ago went into the library and asked for the 1890 census. When she was told what had happend, she exclaimed "but I need that." Don't we all. The 1890 census was the only one that was done differently than all the other census decades. There was a separate page for each family. For men, the WWI Draft Registrations can help a little bit. I wonder if different states took their own state census around that time. The state of Florida took an 1885 census and I saw one for the state of Iowa as well. If there are other states that did the same, it would be a big help to see that. As it is, we just have to bumble along without that very important census. Some states have early census records destroyed as well. The census records for the state of Georgia are missing until 1820. I am told that those were burned by the British. Not sure if that is correct or not but that is what I was told.

Re: 1890 census - why is it not online?

xandervan — 2009-09-27 02:16:48Z

"Because the 1890 census was destroyed by fire ..."

Well, not entirely. Ancestry has the fragmented remains of the 1890 federal census (including some Ohio records), along with the 1890 Veterans enumeration, as well as Ancestrys own "Census Substitute".

http://www.ancestry.com/search/rectype/default.aspx?rt=35

Re: 1890 census - why is it not online?

CJones0216 — 2009-09-26 02:45:38Z

Thank you, Don for the answer. I had been curious about this!

Re: 1890 census - why is it not online?

ERhodes1135 — 2009-09-26 02:28:07Z

Because the 1890 census was destroyed by fire at the Commerce Dept., in D.C. on 10 Jan 1921. Don

1890 census - why is it not online?

CJones0216 — 2009-09-25 22:22:04Z

What happened to the 1890 census for Ohio? Is there some reason it is not on Ancestry.com like 1880, 1900, 1910 etc?

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

tbengland — 2009-09-18 19:20:34Z

Nobody from ancestry is going to post or care. They know what you said is true. They are in the business of selling information...not the quality of it. LDS is great for actual parish records and films and such, but all those pedigrees are highly suspect and usually wrong. They're good for nothing but hints.

Don't hold your breath for a response from ancestry. You and I are just 2 whining customers and like their terms of conditions state -- if you don't like something your only recourse is to cancel (without a refund of unused time, of course).

Marriage Bonds vs Marriage Licenses...help please!

seele01 — 2009-09-18 19:13:13Z

I could not find a better place on the Ancestry.com forums to ask this question. There is no "Marriage Record" help forum. I know it is a newbie question...but I appreciate the help.

What is the difference between a marriage bond and a marriage license? Money is tight right now, and I am going to order a microfilm through through my local Family History Center. One film is "Marriage Bonds" and the other is "Marriage Licenses". Do both contain the same information? Does one have more info than the other?

Anyway, thank you for the help, everyone!

Rob

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

seele01 — 2009-09-18 19:07:20Z

That is incredibly unfortunate.

I know for a FACT that ALOT of stuff on the LDS family trees is outdated and old, and often quite wrong.

For example, my great great uncle and my great grandmother started their family's genealogical research in the 1940s-1960s. While it was a great start, there were some HUGE factual mistakes they made due to the difficulty in getting primary sources back then. My grandmother tirelessly researched and realized many crucial mistakes, and spent years trying to convince distant relatives that the "old" research was wrong. Even TODAY, some of those wrong pedigree charts are STILL on Ancestry.com, uploaded by the decendants of those people, without ANY proper documentation. The LDS trees suffer from stuff like this...and I cannot believe that Ancestry.com uses them as primary sources.

Well, I still hope someone from Ancestry.com will post here, but my hopes are dropping like a rock...*sigh*

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

tbengland — 2009-09-18 18:23:31Z

I know...that CD from LDS cost them $15.

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

giannini — 2009-09-18 18:07:56Z

Not to mention that some of the "FACTS" they are supplying are nothing more than the cr*p that comes from the family histories entered at the LDS website. Pasting the following from the U.S. and International Marriage Records:

Source Information:

Yates Publishing. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2004. Original data: This unique collection of records was extracted from a variety of sources including family group sheets and electronic databases. Originally, the information was derived from an array of materials including pedigree charts, family history articles, querie.

One of my family trees has an erroneous marriage that has been passed down from generation to generation and now Ancestry is supplying the SAME false information to people.

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

tbengland — 2009-09-17 22:07:58Z

We will never see any answer from ancestry.com on this. It would be too much for them to admit they want to focus their full efforts on getting more customers in other countries, and thus the need for those all-important Latvian records, and untranslated French and German stuff being shoved down our throats.

They have no motivation to change anything if that motivation is not based on money in their pockets. Colonial American data is of no interest to them.

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

seele01 — 2009-09-17 21:49:46Z

I agree with this...using Ancestry.com to search for ANY valuable genealogical data before the first US census (1790) is pointless. It just isn't there.

Unlike old B/M/D records, which can be generally bought by the genealogist from the respective State/County/City website or office...Deeds, Wills, and Probate records are VERY difficult to obtain personally. In some cases, you can get them from the LDS library, but most of the time you have to either Inter-Library-Loan them through your own state/local library (local ones might not even be equipped for microfilm reading), or you have to travel to the specific State Library itself to gain access to it all.

I will admit, though, that Wills and Probate records might be impossible for Ancestry.com to license, due to the sensitive nature of it all. Deeds might be possible, though.

Can anyone from Ancestry.com weigh in on this situation? I feel like there is noone with influence even checking these topics sometimes...

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

pedopete — 2009-09-04 21:02:17Z

It can be a huge challenge to get BMD records. Most states have laws restricting when the records can be released, if at all. Lots of them are around 100 years, about the time when many states were just becoming states. Ancestry has put in a major effort in the past several years to negotiate and get what they can, but working with governments of any kind is not a speedy process. They are coming online slowly but steadily.

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

frostfreedet — 2009-09-02 17:02:20Z

Ancestry.com is not a genealogical-research entity. It is a corporation that markets access to the databases it acquires, with a focus on the genealogical market.

Most vital records were not kept by States until around 100 years ago. They were kept by Counties and by religious entities. This is not frustrating for the genealogist willing to do the work to find the records. They are mostly there, where they were made (with the exception of early church records and cases where records wre destroyed by fire/flood).

Many states have their own legislation governing such things as time frames for release of records for public access.

In a great many states sale of copies of vital records supports the operations that create and maintain the records. It does not make sense to them to shift more of the cost of supporting these entities to their taxpayers so that non-residents can upload the documents from home at very minimal expense.

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

seele01 — 2009-08-30 21:48:15Z

Thanks for the reply. Through your post, and others I have encountered, I am starting to realize the (very) annoying copyright/legal reasons why Ancestry.com has not uploaded certain documents. It is extremely fusterating for genealogists, and I am sure Ancestry.com, too.

I do wish, however, that Ancestry.com would link users to certain types of digitized documents that they know they will never be able to digitize due to stupid copyright/legal/whatever reasons.

For (a possibly bad) example, West Virginia has digitised a large amount of Birth/Marriage/Death records, and have them online at -

http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_select.aspx

If, for whatever the heck reason, Ancestry.com is not allowed to digitise these records, why cannot Ancestry.com create an agreement with these sites to LINK to them. So if someone on Ancestry.com searches for a B/M/D record from West Virginia, they will be linked to an Ancestry.com page that explains the legal/copyright/whatever situation, and that if they want to continue to to search, to goto the West Virginia Vital Records site.

Anyway, I just feel like Ancestry is a HUGE resource, but linking to other sites with good information is good too. Genealogy has always been a community-based thing, and linking to these other great sites would encourage that.

In conclusion, if Ancestry.com cannot aquire certain records due to whatever-the-hell legal reason, they should LINK friend-ily to them. Then let Ancestry.com members know the situation and let them continue if they want.

Thanks for listening.

Rob Williams

Re: Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

mbmjlm — 2009-08-29 00:37:23Z

Not to apologize for Ancestry because you are right, there should be more images-however, some states sell those documents and maybe that is why there are not more of them. Some states are completely lacking. There are some though-(death certificates mostly) that can be found on the various state web sites. Missouri has some, and the Mormon site-family search record labs-has more although some of theirs are only transcripts such as the ones for Florida and Alabama. The transcripts are helpful but are still dependant on someone recognizing and spelling the names correctly which in some cases is quite difficult to do. There are a great many death certificates for the state of Texas-some for South and North Carolina as well and some for Kentucky.

Where are the state by state Birth/Marriage/Death records?

seele01 — 2009-08-28 19:10:20Z

Why are all of Ancestry.com's state-wide Birth/Marriage/Death records (BMD) so spotty and patchy? Searching for BMD records is virtually POINTLESS for any State here on Ancestry.com.

Yes, some states have certain bits and pieces of records (for example, 1860-1910 transcribed marriage records for a random State). But even these lack the IMAGE of the record itself.

It should be a HUGE priority for Ancestry.com to get as many scanned and indexed BMD records from every state in the United States online as fast as possible!! You guys have done a terrific job with all the U.S. Census records...now it is time to start seriously recording the next most important U.S. record type, which is the BMD records.

Anyway, I hope someone on Ancestry.com takes this to heart, though I doubt anyone from the site will even reply. I will just get a bunch of "yes I agrees" from fellow members. Maybe I am just wasting my time trying to give suggestions to Ancestry.com here?

Missing Boston Manifests

BobNY — 2009-08-21 16:03:56Z

If you are searching for arrivals in Boston using ancestry, NARA films or FHL films, you will not find any arrivals between April 1, 1874 and December 31, 1882.

Apparently these records were lost in a Boston fire in May 1894. When searching ancestry, no mention is made in the database description that there are almost 8 years of missing manifests.
=================================
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has records in the Massachusetts archives that replicate many of these missing records. From their on-going volunteer project, at least 76,498 records exist for the missing timeframe.

You can search them at:
http://www.sec.state.ma.us/arc/arcsrch/PassengerManifestSear...

Re: Census - what has happened?

CyrilleDoutherd81 — 2009-08-19 01:56:50Z

I went back and figures it out -- there are little arrows on the bottom and sides to let you expand the page of census. It's just so frustrating to see so many changes happening!
Thanks for your help

Re: Census - what has happened?

ERhodes1135 — 2009-08-19 00:58:58Z

Did you try that and did it work for you? Don

Serious Transcription Problem with Kentucky Death Records 1852-1953

giannini — 2009-08-15 17:41:17Z

I hope someone that works at Ancestry reads this message board. Today I was searching the above records. I came across MANY transcription errors. There were first names left out that were clearly in the image. Men were indexed as females and vice-versa. I think I changed about 10 or more and then I had to stop because I couldn't get anything done.

Re: Census - what has happened?

ERhodes1135 — 2009-08-15 01:27:32Z

Near the top of the page there is a small block, in the green area, with a cross in it and says "Image only" behind it, click on that and the image will come up unobstructed. Don

Re: Charlie Bryant Family

meekernj — 2009-08-14 23:29:15Z

Contact me for a copy of his KY death certificate.

sharonmeeker@bellsouth.net

Sharon Meeker
KY

Re: Census - what has happened?

CyrilleDoutherd81 — 2009-08-14 23:10:05Z

I only want to see the original document. How do I do that?

Re: Census - what has happened?

BobNY — 2009-08-14 23:06:35Z

You can't.

On July 29th they launched two "enhancements." The first is enhanced editing of index data, and the second is an enhanced version of the image page.

Census - what has happened?

CyrilleDoutherd81 — 2009-08-14 22:23:22Z

I wnat to read original image of an 1870 census document in Alabama - Virgil DAUTHIT -- I got there today and there another box in the way, and I can't get the image box to enlarge to be able to see the document. What is going on?

I wish whoever is in charge of Ancestry.com would leave well enough alone. It is not getting better, it is not getting more efficient, it is getting worse. For my money, this has been the worst year ever since inception of ancestry.com.

I want to read only the document, and not all this other green mess! How do I do that??????
CDoutherd

Re: Charlie Bryant Family

nanablue2007 — 2009-08-14 13:28:10Z

Could his name be Charles Bryant? Nancy lived to be 106?
I have found nothing so far putting this couple together
Did they have children
Did they live their lives in KY
Did the Charlie die in KY

Regards,

Connie

Re: 1880 Mortality Schedule

mbmjlm — 2009-07-16 16:23:11Z

Some states are included but not all. For instance, the listings indicate that 1880 Mortality census for the State of Florida is available but actually only the 1885 Mortality census is available.

Re: City Directories updated 6/24/09 & 07/15/09

dauncey1 — 2009-07-15 15:25:19Z

...and now today... updated again without any announcement of what's new. Each one of those directories is a database. There is a name for it. It wouldn't be that hard to publish a list on the More Info section of the newly added directories, replacing it with each update. Newly added content--even amateur website managers understand the importance of itemizing/publishing, much less sites trying to keep their customers.

1880 Mortality Schedule

theanah — 2009-07-14 02:35:34Z

I'm sure it exists, so why isn't it included in ancestry.com's files?

Re: st pauls roman catholic church brooklyn

dunph29 — 2009-07-04 10:30:20Z

Tom-
Have you had any luck? I saw your thread on the Kings board. Glad I came upon it. I didn't know they added baptimals.

Margaret

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

tbengland — 2009-06-30 03:28:54Z

Okay, for a start how about some court records, deeds, wills, probate, guardianship, militia returns, biographies, local histories, etc.

Re: Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

xandervan — 2009-06-29 23:59:20Z

Perhaps it would be helpful for Ancestry to know exactly what type of pre-1776 U.S. records you are expecting to see?

Please give us ANY COLONIAL AMERICA data!!

tbengland — 2009-06-29 20:55:41Z

I'm sick to death of waiting on ancestry to add any new information on US records of any type PRIOR to 1776. Many of us have family lines that were here 150+ years before the US became a country.

Ancestry is wasting my money. Very tempted to not re-up on the next go.

Re: City Directories updated 6/24/09

PKOLM — 2009-06-25 09:15:00Z

I came looking for the same information. It would be great if the most recently updated cities or states were listed.

City Directories updated 6/24/09

dauncey1 — 2009-06-24 16:01:35Z

Can we get some info on what was added to the City Directories in the last few updates? We can't go searching for each person in our files each time an update is posted -- especially since City Directory searching is so weak.

What cities/years have been added recently?

Re: Information shows on the record screen that isn't on the Census report

BobNY — 2009-05-29 15:09:16Z

Did you look at page 2 of the census?

Information shows on the record screen that isn't on the Census report

cp0406 — 2009-05-29 14:43:57Z

I am looking at a hint I found on Anna Nelson. This is an Iowa Census for Jan 1 1925. When I look at the screen that shows all of the info and people in the household it shows the parents names. But, the census page itself doesn't show that. I just don't know where the info is coming from and if it is reliable. Does anyone know?