Genealogy Books

The blight that struck the Irish potato crop in the winter of 1845-46 brought ruin to tens of thousands of tenant farmers and laborers, reducing almost all of Ireland to poverty. Making matters worse, very few farmers owned their own land or even held title to their humble dwellings, so when the crop failed they had scarcely any resources to call on. As a result, countless people faced the choice of leaving Ireland or perishing. In fact, between 1846 and 1851, more than a million men, women, and children emigrated to the United States and Canada, mostly through the port of New York.

The information on these people exists in an invaluable series of port arrival records, the Customs Passenger Lists. Until recently, however, these passenger lists were unpublished and only partially indexed and lay well out of the reach of the average researcher, the more so since they are not classified by nationality. To bring those records dealing with Irish immigrants within the range of the researcher, The Famine Immigrants series was conceived for the purpose of enumerating all Irish passengers who entered the port of New York between 1846 and 1851. There are seven volumes in this series (see Items Item 2212, Item 2213, Item 2214, Item 2215, Item 2216, and Item 2217).

The passenger lists found in The Famine Immigrants are arranged by ship and date of arrival in New York, and each person is identified with respect to age, sex, occupation, and family relationships where such was indicated in the original manifests. Additionally, every volume boasts of an extensive index containing all of the passenger names in the text.

Volume I in The Famine Immigrants series spans the period from January 1846 to June 1847, touching on 85,000 Irish men, women, and children arriving at the port of New York.

i thought it was very helpfu

FAR NORTHERN CONNECTIONS: RESEARCHING YOUR SAMI AND OTHER ANCESTORS IN NORTHERN NORWAY, SWEDEN, FINLAND, AND RUSSIA is more than just listing of research methods for genealogists and collections catering to them: it includes charts, explanations of foreign terms, and insights into the web sites and places to begin a search. The author's years of research into her own family history lends to a fine expose of the special challenges involved in research far northern archives for genealogical data.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

A Field Guide For Genealogists by experienced and expert genealogist Judy Jacobson is a solid and "user friendly" introductory genealogical research resource for the novice, and has a great deal of value for the more experienced and practiced genealogist as well. From tracing family names; to getting the most out of library resources; to photographs, court records, land records, and legal documents; to research in Washington D.C. or on the Internet; and a great deal more, A Field Guide For Genealogists is a detailed and strongly recommended "how-to" guide that would prove to be a core addition to any personal or professional genealogical reference collection. Also very highly recommended is genealogist Judy Jacobson's Norwegian Connections From Arctic Fjord To American Prairie

In 1893, when the Dawes Commission was established to negotiate with the Cherokees, Choctaws, Chickasaws. Creeks, and Seminoles (the Five Civilized Tribes) to abolish tribal governments and to provide for the allotment of land to tribal members, few could have foreseen that this would lead to the creation of one of the most important record sources in all of Native American genealogy, for the Dawes Commission was empowered to prepare citizenship rolls (membership rolls) for each tribe to determine the proper distribution of land and to hear and "determine the applications of all persons who may apply to them for citizenship and . . . determine the right of such applicant to be admitted and enrolled."

These rolls, known as the "Final Rolls," were to be the only rolls used for allotment purposes, and because of the rigorous application procedures involving proof of blood and tribal affiliation, they are the basis for the official identification of degrees of Indian blood among the Five Civilized Tribes.

Applications for enrollment were received from approximately 250,000 individuals, but the Final Rolls approved by the Commission contained the names of 101,000, of whom approximately one-fourth were full blood. The Commission enrolled individuals as "citizens" of a tribe under the following categories: Citizens by Blood, Citizens by Marriage, New Born Citizens by Blood, Minor Citizens by Blood, Freedmen (former black slaves admitted to tribal citizenship), New Born Freedmen, and Minor Freedmen. Most rolls give name, age, sex, degree of Indian blood, and the number of the census card, generally known as the "enrollment card," on which each citizen was enrolled. (Enrollment cards, as distinct from the Final Rolls themselves, are arranged by tribe, thereunder by category, and thereunder by the census card number shown as part of the individual's entry on the Final Rolls, and they usually contain parents' names and places of residence, the names of related enrollees--husband, wife, children--and references to earlier tribal rolls.)

From the original Final Rolls, which are now housed in National Archives II at College Park, Maryland, the Commission in 1907 published The Final Rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory along with the Index to the Final Rolls of Citizens and Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory, now reprinted here for the first time in nearly a century. The Index volume, divided by tribe and broken down under the various categories noted above, provides the Indian's name and the roll number; while the roll number is the key to the Final Rolls volume, which lists enrollees by tribe and category and thereunder by name, age, sex, degree of blood, and the number of the census card.

Unparalleled in Native American genealogy, the work reprinted here is one of the finest printed sources relating to the genealogy of the Five Civilized Tribes and is the reference of choice for any researcher claiming even a fraction of tribal blood.

"Finding Your Canadian Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide" is a superbly written and organized introduction for novice genealogists on tracing and recording their ancestry using Canadian genealogical resources. The information on Canadian genealogical records is organized by record type and then again according to province. Both government and ecclesiastical records, as well as Aboriginal, Acadian, and Loyalist records, are discussed. Of special note is the information provided about online resources, including the extensive holdings of Library and Archives Canada. Co-authored by genealogical research experts Sherry Irvine and Dave Obee, "Finding Your Canadian Ancestors" is the perfect introduction for aspiring and practicing genealogists wanting to utilize Canadian resources and records for their genealogical researches. Also very highly recommended for personal and genealogical library reference collections are two other specialized genealogical research guidebooks from Ancestry Publishing: David S. Ouimette's "Finding Your Irish Ancestors: A Beginner's Guide" (9781593312930, $14.95) and Kip Sperry's "A Guide To Mormon Family History Sources" (9781593313012, $16.95).

This books offers numerous ideas as to places to look for your information, whether the records are land & property records, social security, vital records, military and many more. Not only does the author states places to look, but also gives fabulous hints for documentation of your facts. The book also includes a reference section to other books that may help your research and also includes blank forms that can be duplicated to keep your records in a detailed order. Author has published 2 other books about cemeteries of the Northeast Ohio making this a very complete setCleveland Cemeteries: Stone, Symbols & Stories (Ohio)[[ASIN:1598510258 Cemeteries of Northeast Ohio: Stones, Symbols & Stories

Rhonda McClure's Finding Your Famous & Infamous Ancestors will appeal to any who want to validate or verify their family stories. From unearthing outlaws and troublemakers to tracking American connections to royalty and drawing connections to celebrities, this is packed with lively coverage on researching and revealing both noble and ignoble roots.

In Finding Your Irish Ancestors: Unique Aspects Of Irish Genealogy, Brian Mitchell draws upon his many years of experience and expertise to provide the novice genealogist with a wealth of information and advice on conducting genealogical research utilizing Irish records and resources. The chapters comprising Finding Your Irish Ancestors include: Tracing Your Irish Ancestors: An Overview; The Importance of Surnames in Family History; The Importance of Place in Family History; Emigration and Irish Passenger Lists; Using Record Sources in the US and Canada to Identify Your Irish Ancestor; How to Make the Best Use of Church Registers; Genealogy Centres in Ireland: How To Make the Best Use of Them; Local History and the Family Historian; and an simple two-page index. Finding Your Irish Ancestors will prove invaluable for the beginning genealogist or family historian seeking to discover and organize their ancestry of Irish descent.

This is a great book. It has many helpful tips. It is very easy to find the information you are looking for.