I agree with the comment below about finding plantations and slave owners. I'm also struggling with the "how" part of connecting everything together. I'm helping a descendent of a slave on our family tree and understanding how to read these DNA results and matching everything is a struggle. This video was very helpful in understanding some of these census records. Thank you so much!
Crista your video's are great. Could you do some videos that focus on UK and Ireland, I think it would be good to have mini series on different countries. Ancestry.com reaches many countries but it is really clear the focus of the company seems to be on America.
Hi Sandra - Have you taken the AncestryDNA test? If so, when you view your AncestryDNA Match list, you will see everything they have agreed to show you.
I am hitting a wall with my Jewish ancestors. I heard that US Naturalization forms can give me vital info to help me go back further generations. When I found my great grandfather's info on ancestry, I only saw what looks like an index card with numbers on the top and bottom. I see his birthdate and signature and date of his naturalization but I am not seeing the paperwork with more info. Where can I find that paperwork? I also would love to know where I can go to physically look for immigration information for my ancestors who arrived in Philadelphia. Any help will be appreciated
That index card has the information you need to order the original naturalization documents (specifically the Declaration of Intent and the Petition to Naturalize) from the National Archives. Once you get that paperwork, it should list the date, ship, and port that your ancestor arrived on into the United States. That paperwork should also list the specific birthplace so you can start researching in Old World records.
That is not the naturalization form. There is like 5 pages for the Naturalization packet. Their's Certificate of Arrival, Certificate stub, Declaration of intent, Petition for Naturalization, Petition Information. Some of those are 2 page documents.
How are census done? Before people went door to door right? But what about now? I dont remember ever having my info recorded, I'm 36 but shouldn't i be recorded in 90, 2000, 2010 census?
Now, households are mailed a form to fill out. If a form is not returned for a household then census enumerators show up at your door. If you are only 36, your parents likely filled out the 1990 and 2000 census forms for you. Were you living with roommates or a spouse in 2010? One of them could have filled it out for the whole household.
Hey Christa, I apologize if my following question has already been answered by one of your videos or by other Ancestry videos but I was asking my Dad if he had found my Mother's birth certificate when he was clearing out her paperwork. She passed many years ago but he recently has been cleaning up and organizing their records. I had looked on Ancestry and Family Search and have not located that record so I asked him if he had it. He wanted to know why I wanted it and, even though he knows I do genealogy, he thinks that that is private information and why should it be needed in a database and/or located in database records. I was kind of thrown by his remark and I tried to explain but I don't think I succeeded. Can you help me with helping someone who doesn't get into genealogy to explain why we need records? Thanks so much!
Family history research - and by extension, the family trees that we create - are one way to preserve these documents for future generations. He may have your mother's birth certificate in a shoebox in his house. But, what happens when he dies and someone throws that box out without realizing what's in it. Or, what happens if, God forbid, his house floods as we have seen this past week in Houston. All of that family history is lost. But, if he will allow you to take a picture of that document and upload it to your tree, it is preserved for future generations so that they can come to know and understand more about their ancestors. It breaks my heart to know that my future children will not know my grandfather. But, because I have documented his life, collected pictures and stories about him and his parents and siblings, they will, in some way get to know him better. I hope that helps! (~Crista)
Start by locating your family in the 1870 U.S. Federal Census. Figure out how old each of them would have been 10 years earlier. Then go to the 1860 U.S. Federal Census for that county and identify all of the slave holders in the Slave Schedules. Do any of them have slaves that are the right ages and genders to be your family members? If so, contact the county to see what plantation records or property records are held for that individual. Those records will, typically, list the enslaved by name. If it turns out that they are not your family, or if there is no one in the 1860 Slave Schedules that fits the profile of your family, expand your search out to the surrounding counties. I hope that helps. Good luck! (~Crista)
Another terrific video with lots of tips to help you find that elusive person in your tree or to help break down the brick walls. Thank you, Crista!
I can ALWAYS find something new in your videos Crista. Thank you so much.
I've struck gold in the Passport applications - PHOTOS!!! Thanks Christa!
I agree with the comment below about finding plantations and slave owners. I'm also struggling with the "how" part of connecting everything together.
I'm helping a descendent of a slave on our family tree and understanding how to read these DNA results and matching everything is a struggle.
This video was very helpful in understanding some of these census records. Thank you so much!
Crista your video's are great. Could you do some videos that focus on UK and Ireland, I think it would be good to have mini series on different countries. Ancestry.com reaches many countries but it is really clear the focus of the company seems to be on America.
I have done Mexico and Germany. I will add England and Ireland to the list for the future. Thanks for the suggestions.
Noticed Mortality Schedules for Tennessee are only completed for counties A-Ca. Will ancestry be updating other counties later?
We have digitized everything that the National Archives provided.
How do you get information about matches dna tests
Such male or female
When testing was done and if it had
Any restriction on matches
Hi Sandra - Have you taken the AncestryDNA test? If so, when you view your AncestryDNA Match list, you will see everything they have agreed to show you.
I am hitting a wall with my Jewish ancestors. I heard that US Naturalization forms can give me vital info to help me go back further generations. When I found my great grandfather's info on ancestry, I only saw what looks like an index card with numbers on the top and bottom. I see his birthdate and signature and date of his naturalization but I am not seeing the paperwork with more info. Where can I find that paperwork? I also would love to know where I can go to physically look for immigration information for my ancestors who arrived in Philadelphia. Any help will be appreciated
That index card has the information you need to order the original naturalization documents (specifically the Declaration of Intent and the Petition to Naturalize) from the National Archives. Once you get that paperwork, it should list the date, ship, and port that your ancestor arrived on into the United States. That paperwork should also list the specific birthplace so you can start researching in Old World records.
Thank you!
That is not the naturalization form. There is like 5 pages for the Naturalization packet. Their's Certificate of Arrival, Certificate stub, Declaration of intent, Petition for Naturalization, Petition Information. Some of those are 2 page documents.
How are census done? Before people went door to door right? But what about now? I dont remember ever having my info recorded, I'm 36 but shouldn't i be recorded in 90, 2000, 2010 census?
Now, households are mailed a form to fill out. If a form is not returned for a household then census enumerators show up at your door. If you are only 36, your parents likely filled out the 1990 and 2000 census forms for you. Were you living with roommates or a spouse in 2010? One of them could have filled it out for the whole household.
Hey Christa, I apologize if my following question has already been answered by one of your videos or by other Ancestry videos but I was asking my Dad if he had found my Mother's birth certificate when he was clearing out her paperwork. She passed many years ago but he recently has been cleaning up and organizing their records. I had looked on Ancestry and Family Search and have not located that record so I asked him if he had it. He wanted to know why I wanted it and, even though he knows I do genealogy, he thinks that that is private information and why should it be needed in a database and/or located in database records. I was kind of thrown by his remark and I tried to explain but I don't think I succeeded. Can you help me with helping someone who doesn't get into genealogy to explain why we need records?
Thanks so much!
Family history research - and by extension, the family trees that we create - are one way to preserve these documents for future generations. He may have your mother's birth certificate in a shoebox in his house. But, what happens when he dies and someone throws that box out without realizing what's in it. Or, what happens if, God forbid, his house floods as we have seen this past week in Houston. All of that family history is lost. But, if he will allow you to take a picture of that document and upload it to your tree, it is preserved for future generations so that they can come to know and understand more about their ancestors.
It breaks my heart to know that my future children will not know my grandfather. But, because I have documented his life, collected pictures and stories about him and his parents and siblings, they will, in some way get to know him better.
I hope that helps! (~Crista)
Thank you, Crista!
Hi Christa! How do you find out What plantation. Your family was on. And who was the slave owner of them.
Start by locating your family in the 1870 U.S. Federal Census. Figure out how old each of them would have been 10 years earlier. Then go to the 1860 U.S. Federal Census for that county and identify all of the slave holders in the Slave Schedules. Do any of them have slaves that are the right ages and genders to be your family members? If so, contact the county to see what plantation records or property records are held for that individual. Those records will, typically, list the enslaved by name. If it turns out that they are not your family, or if there is no one in the 1860 Slave Schedules that fits the profile of your family, expand your search out to the surrounding counties.
I hope that helps. Good luck! (~Crista)