Description
Included in this collection: US Census Genealogy Cheat Sheet (8 pages) gives you key facts, tips and timelines for US census research, including:
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- Seven essential tips for searching census records and locating hard-to-find ancestors
- The official census dates for censuses from 1790 to 1950
- Why the census might have your ancestor’s name spelled wrong or his age off by a few years
- The type of information collected about your ancestors during each census
- Genealogy websites where you can search and view census records online
- What happened to the 1890 census, and how to get over the resulting research brick walls
- Glossary of terms and abbreviations found in census records
- State-by-state listing of censuses with extant records—not just the decennial federal census, but also colonial, territorial, state and local censuses
- Sample census records so you’ll know what to expect as you view your ancestors’ census schedules
- Resource listing of genealogy websites and books to help you locate and understand your ancestors’ census records
- 9 top tips to research immigrant ancestors
- Genealogical records with clues to when your ancestors immigrated and the arrival ports where they entered the country
- Immigration research Q&A covering topics such as finding an immigrant’s original name in the “old country,” colonial and early-American immigrants, records of immigration overland from Canada and Mexico, and more
- Timeline of essential immigration history
- Why “our name was changed at Ellis Island” is a myth
- Quick-guide chart to using major immigration records and resources, including ships’ passenger lists, naturalization papers, departure records, the Passenger & Immigration Lists Index and more
- Example passenger lists
- The best websites, books and organizations to help you trace immigrant ancestors
- What you can expect to find in newspapers, including all the kinds of records that appear in them
- Guides to searching for historical newspapers on popular sites Newspapers.com and GenealogyBank
- Tips for researching historical records across the internet
- Seven of the most useful kinds of historical maps, plus annotations that highlight their research value
- Resources for finding maps online
- Tips for using web tools like Google Earth to compare historical maps with modern ones
- Five steps for finding your ancestors’ old property deeds among court records
- Tips for understanding deeds
- Quick-guide chart of eight important types of land records, including patents, plat maps, Sanborn fire insurance maps, land entry case files and more, and how to find them
- Glossary of key terms in land records research
- Timeline of US land expansion and settlement
- Map of US territorial acquisitions
- Detailed explanation of state lands and public lands, including the public land survey system
- How to cite land records for genealogy
- List of top websites, books and other resources to help you with you land records research
- Tips and strategies for researching in a cemetery, including what to pack for your trip and best practices for preserving stones
- The top records you should be searching for in cemeteries, including tombstones, burial certificates and funeral records
- Step-by-step guides to searching for burial sites on Find A Grave and BillionGraves
- A tombstone symbolism guide to help you interpret headstones