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April 17, 2003
See Rhonda's Previous
Columns
Getting
Started on Your Research
Q:
I am looking for information on my grandfather, Thurlow Weed Dalton. He was
married to Lola Monica (Montie) Adams around 1907. They had 13 children and
moved to Ohio in the late 1920s (I think). My grandfather passed away in 1964.
I cannot find any information on him or his parents or his siblings. -- Ruth
Ann
A:
There are some census records that might help you with your research. You mention
that your grandparents married in 1907. This means they would be enumerated
together in the 1910 census with perhaps one or two children.
You mentioned that the family moved to Ohio in the 1920s, but you did not mention from where they had moved. I believe that I found them in the 1920 census, living in Somerset, Pulaski, Kentucky with six children (Enumeration District 203, Sheet 15A and B). It appears that all of the children were born in Kentucky up to this point. It is likely that they are living in Kentucky in 1910.
The 1910 census is indexed online in the U.S. Census
Collection. While some of the states were indexed on microfilm using the
Soundex system (an index based more on phonics than on exact spelling) it was
only 21 states. The online index, which is a head of household index, is the
only one to completely index all of the states. A head of household index means
that the names of those listed as the head of the household or who have a different
surname than the others in the household are included in the index.
If you haven't done so yet, you will want to get a death certificate on your
grandfather. You mentioned when he passed away but not where. If you don't know
where, you may be able to get an idea by checking the Social Security Death
Index. This may list your grandfather's last residence. While a person's death
location and last residence aren't necessarily the same, it would give you some
place to start in your search.
Verifying
Connection to Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Q:
I have traced my genealogy back to a William Carroll, born around 1801 in Carroll
County, Georgia. My family's story is that he was the grandson of Charles Carroll
of Carrollton. I have researched several sources and cannot find information
regarding Carroll's descendants. Can you help? -- Sarah
A:
Charles Carroll of Carrollton was born in 1737 in Annapolis, Anne Arundel County,
Maryland. He married Mary Darnall 5 Jun 1768 in Annapolis. The couple had seven
children, but only one son. Charles Carroll IV was born 2 Mar 1775 in Carrollton,
Maryland. He married Harriet Chew on 17 Jul 1800 and his first son, Charles
Carroll V was born in 1801 in Frederick, Maryland. Based on this information,
I suspect that the family story of your William Carroll being the grandson of
Charles Carroll of Carrollton is not quite correct. It is still possible, though,
that William and Charles are cousins in some way.
In digging around for something to help you I came across a William Carroll who was born in 1801 in Georgia. He died 24 Jan 1870 in Tallapoosa County, Alabama. If this is your William Carroll, then it is possible that his father is a Leonard Carroll from South Carolina.
Also, in digging around to see what I could learn about records of Carroll
County, I saw that many of them did not begin until 1830 or later. This sent
me off to find out exactly when Carroll County was created. I discovered that
Carroll County, Georgia was not created until 24 Jan 1826. Before this date
the land belonged to the Lower Creeks, one of the Five Civilized tribes. As
such, while it is possible that William was born in Georgia, it does not look
like he was born in Carroll County. While it is possible that his family was
living among the Indians, I suspect you will find that if he was actually born
in Georgia, that he was born in another county.
If you are able to find William in census records, I suggest that you begin
to look at the various other Carroll families living in Carroll County, Georgia.
I would begin to investigate these other families to see if you can find a connection
from one or more to William. Were they living near each other in the census?
Did they buy or sell land among each other? Are they buried together? If William
did go to Alabama were there other Carroll families that also went to Alabama
and settled nearby? It is possible that these are relatives of William.
Death
Information in Social Security Index
Q: I
have tried to find out the answer to this seemingly simple question and keep
running into dead ends. If a person is listed in the Social Security Death Index,
why wouldn't they know "where" they died if they know they're dead?
-- Helen
A:
I'm going to assume that you are actually referring to the Last Residence field
in the Social Security Death Index. While many people assume that this field
is the place of death, this is a misconception. If there is a place listed,
though, it is certainly a place to begin your research when trying to get a
death certificate.
The last residence is, in fact, the last known legal residence for the individual
in question. This may not, however, be the most current address for the individual.
There are any number of reasons why the Social Security Administration may not
have known the most current information. Perhaps mail sent to that address had
been returned or perhaps the information was not entered into the Death Master
File, from which we get the Social Security Death Index.
If your purpose for finding the place of death is to get ahold of the death
certificate, it sounds like you are disappointed. If you were looking for the
death certificate in order to get information about the parents, you can find
this information on the application for a social security number (the SS-5 form).
This would list the individual's date and place of birth along with the names
of the parents, including the maiden name of the mother. If you are instead
trying to find the death certificate so you can completely record the death
event on these individuals, it looks like you still have your work cut out for
you. If you know where the individuals lived, you may want to start there, looking
for an obituary after the date of death you found in the SSDI.
Ports
of Entry Besides Ellis Island
Q: I
always hear of New York City and Ellis Island being the port of entry for arriving
immigrants but don't often hear of any other ports. Were there other cities
that were ports of entry? My grandmother's father came from France in the 1800's
and came in by ship at New Orleans (so I am told). -- Michael
A:
While you hear a lot about Ellis Island and the port of New York City, it was
just one of many ports that welcomed immigrants to America. Ellis Island, in
fact, didn't open until 1892. Before this, immigrants were processed at Castle
Garden off the tip of Manhattan. Before Castle Garden, immigrants were processed
on board the ship they had traveled.
While some immigrants were coming through New York City, there were many other
ports actively accepting immigrants. These include ports at the cities of Boston,
Massachusetts; Baltimore, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In the late
1800s there was a immigrant station opened in St. Alban's, Vermont to handle
some of the immigrants arriving from Canada. Other immigrants traveled as far
as Detroit, Michigan before disembarking. There were also many who traveled
to New Orleans and then would use the Mississippi as their mode of transportation
elsewhere in the United States.
Asians who were immigrating in the 1900s likely came through Angel Island.
Construction began on Angel Island in 1905 but it was not operational until
1910. There was a lot of controversy about this immigrant station. It was nicknamed
the "Ellis Island of the West" in public, but it has been said that
within the Immigration Service it was more often referred to as "The Guardian
of the Western Gate." Perhaps this nickname was purposeful. We need to
remember that in 1882 the Chinese Exclusion Act and subsequent additional acts
were passed in order to stem the flow of Asian immigrants into the United States.
As such, in many ways Angel Island was more a detention center than simply an
immigrant processing center like Ellis Island (though Ellis Island detained
its fair share of individuals and did send people home). Angel Island buildings
fell into total disrepair after use but they are currently being restored. There
is a museum in the detention barracks and in 2000 the citizens of California
set aside money to restore Angel Island Immigration Station.
For a complete list of all of the operating ports for which there are passenger
lists, you will want to check out the National Archives Web site. Specifically,
look at the Immigration
Records page for a look at the many different records that the National
Archives has relating to immigrants. Once you know what exists for ports other
than Ellis Island, you can then visit your local genealogy library to see if
they have any of them. Your local Family History Center, a branch of the Family
History Library, is another option. There, you can request most of the passenger
lists on microfilm.
Rhonda R. McClure is a professional genealogist specializing in celebrity trees
and computerized genealogy. She has been involved in online genealogy for fifteen
years. She is the author of the award-winning The
Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Genealogy, now in its second edition.
She is the author of four how-to guides on Family
Tree Maker. In late 2001, she wrote The
Genealogist's Computer Companion. She is a contributing editor to Biography
Magazine with her "Celebrity Roots" column and a contributing writer
to The History Channel Magazine. Her latest book is Finding
Your Famous and Infamous Ancestors. She may be contacted at rhondagen@thegenealogist.com.
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