1. Easier ways to evaluate evidence.
2. Search techniques that yield more proof of relationship.
3. Where to look for data.
4. How to compare and distinguish two people who carry the same names.
5. And on, and on…And I want to share what I have learned with you–

Before I do that, let me define professional genealogy research–

1. Actual research paid for by clients to trace their ancestors
2. Research skills learned through experience tracing ancestors in many different localities, whose lives and families represent different cultures and ethnic backgrounds
3. Specific standards and techniques required by research as a discipline and recommended by professional credentialing organizations
4. Research strategies demonstrated by other genealogists as they trace both their own and others’ pedigrees and publish their results

All of these elements fit into what professional genealogy research is all about.  And I am still learning:  new research facts, new genealogy techniques, new technical skills so I can teach and apply these new learnings to trace hard-to-find ancestors–yours and mine.

There is a 5th consideration to look at:

   5.   There is a correlation between my speaking and my selling of genealogy information that I have compiled–it is impossible to tell, to show, or to write down in a prepared syllabus or handout all I know about the research subject at hand. Or, for that matter, all the information a student needs to know about what will work on specific pedigrees.

If the student is hearing the information for the first time, having a chance to buy additional instructional materials to take home and study, is in my opinion very valuable.  And if the attendee at a conference is an experienced researcher already, who has come to learn more, the ability to purchase additional knowledge is like a gift.

Some years ago, I was invited to attend a Holocaust Conference sponsored by the University of Washington (Seattle WA).  Key speakers presented their topics individually.  A panel of colleagues then posed questions and offered comments.  Speakers, who were also authors, were invited to have their books available for sale in sufficient quantity to meet the demands of the audience.  The attendees were furnished with a list of books written by the speaker and available for purchase as part of the syllabus.  And the speakers circulated among the attendees to answer questions during the day.

It was an incredible conference!

What I learned in the formal sessions was amplified by my interaction with the speakers and by the books and white papers I bought to take home with me for further study.  Research materials I would have had to spend a great deal of time finding on my own.  Instead, I could take some time to determine what aspects of the Holocaust I wanted more data on–what records were generated by individuals and governments.  And which authors I wanted to follow up with.  When I left for home, I left with a box filled almost to the top–autographed books, special white papers, notes taken in formal sessions as well as generated in personal conversations with speakers, authors, publishers.  What a wonderful conference!

Some genealogy conference planners are so afraid that a commercial comment will be made by the speaker; they threaten speakers with black listing–with the result that more information on the subject is denied the attendees. Conference attendees are the losers.

How can we justify denying those we teach the right to learn more?  Especially when we are training a whole new generation of genealogy experts with each workshop, seminar, conference, and expo we stage.  Its time those of us who are professionals, in this genealogy industry, require the right to share what we know works!  In handouts, books (both online and offline), tapes and CD’s, webinars, white papers, and personal conversations.  Your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle       http://arleneeakle.com

PS  This blog includes these learnings of mine–installments of knowledge presented for your use ad sometimes, entertainment.  Enjoy!  And please share.  Your comments.  Your successes.  Your questions.

When Alma and I went to Virginia for the first time, we interviewed relatives still living in the local community where his family came from.  We were told that the Johnson/Johnston grandfather had been buried under the corner of the Laurel Hill Church.  We visited the church and the attached graveyard without finding a stone or any evidence that the tradition was correct, except…

We learned that the side of the church had been expanded and a parking lot had been added, which took up part of the old graveyard.  So the tradition could be true.  John Johnson, father of Mary Jane Johnson, could be buried under the corner of the addition on the church. 

In the Augusta CountyVirginia Heritage Book, was this magical paragraph:

It remained a mystery as to why Margaret “Peggy” was not buried in the Laurel Hill Cemetery.  The land had been given 7 years before the church and the deed was not recorded until 9 July 1854 at a cost of $1.25.  Unless, it was because the Eagles Meeting House and school were a branch of Friedens Church in Rockingham County.  Being a reformed denomination.  The following clears up the mystery.

On doing more research into the Laurel Hill Church the first time a cemetery is mentioned was Aug. 9 1879.  It dates back to 1872 when 1/2 acre was given by Henry K. and Mary Jane Johnson Eakle on 27 Feb 1872 for the purpose of a cemetery.  It was not until 1889 that the lots were laid out.

It had been said that Margaret “Peggy” Leedy had been buried in the corner of a corn field.  This saying would be correct, but there had been the Eagle Church and school here, in years past.  There was a road that went by this church and an old fence that intersected this road which made the church sit in a corner of the field.  This is proven with the plot according to the Barnhart Family History.  Also the Augusta County Court records.  This church and cemetery are no longer and the cattle have just ruined it and no stone could be found.

These lines are found on page 183, in the Leedy Family Sketch, Part 1.

The Eagle Church and Cemetery wereoriginally located on the John Baker Eakle land, which bordered the Laurel Hill Church property.  We were told the Church had been dedicated to the Church of the Brethren.  On page 45 of the Heritage Book, the Eagle Church is described as being owned jointly by the Reformed and Lutherans and that it was associated with Friedens Church.  It was created to shorten the distancemembers had to travel to attend church services.

The cemetery originally held over 45 graves and although the church was called the Eggel Church, it was a community place of worship.  And persons within the community were also buried there.

When Alma and I visited, we found parts of 8 tombstones.  Some were whole, others were broken and had to be pieced together.  For the cattle roamed through the property without restriction. We photographed these stone remnants.

When my son, John was 12 years old, I took him to Virginia to discover his Eakle ancestry.  And we visited that little cemetery again. Only one stone remained intact–that of Catherine Eakle, second wife of John Baker Eakle and mother of Henry Kennedy Eakle.  She died 14 March 1834, age 46 years and three months.  So the births and deaths in the Heritage Book are about all that now survives. 

It was raining.  The soft dirt around the stones where the cattle had churned it up over and over again sucked our boots deep into the mire.  I got a tire iron from the car boot to see if John and I could move the stone out of harm’s way.  Although it was a small stone, it was too heavy for us both.  We had to leave it there for the cattle to trod on.

Henry Kennedy Eakle was Alma’s great grandfather.  He emigrated to Utah with his family in the 1880′s on the overland train.  Several years later, he returned to Virginia to collect his genealogy.  He spent four years gathering names and dates of his relatives.  He also became very ill and died in Virginia.  He was laid to rest in a small graveyard near Grottoes.  And the rest of his family are buried in Utah. 

Until today, we did not know that the land where Laurel Hill graveyard lies was Eakle land.  What a magical thing to learn.  And to be able to document the burial place of Mary Jane Johnson’s father John on the same land.  Very cool!

The Eggel Church (Eakle Church) was also called Round Hill Meeting House.  In the Diary of Lee Johnson, a descendant of John Johnson in Murtaugh Idaho, Lee described the location of the Middle River in relationship to Laurel Hill Church and to the Round Hill Meetinghouse.  When it rained the river rose. They could not attend church at either place–these churches were on the opposite side of the river from the house.           

Your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle    http://arleneeakle.com

PS  I have a new computer and a new phone system.  My email can receive, I just can’t send anything out–yet.   Unknowingly, I wrote over 30 emails before I left for the Family History Expo in Houston TX in early April.  And I won’t be home until tomorrow night.  We’ll repair the problem on Monday and I should be able to send the emails out.  I just can’t access them yet.  Will I ever learn the tech?

L. Roane Hunt and the Gloucester Genealogical Society of Virginia have also provided us with a new edition (2011) of the 1782-1791 tax records–Volume 1 of a series of books that will provide both personal property and land tax rolls through 1870.

Volume 1 includes the first ten years when Gloucester County included Mathews County as Kingston Parish. As each additional segment is completed, the entries will be posted on the Gloucester Society website:

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~vaggsv/index.htm

As well as published in book form.

The original tax records are also available for loan on microfilm through the Library of Virginia, Richmond VA and the Family History Library, Salt Lake City UT. And the original pages are housed in the Archive Room of the Gloucester Museum of History, Gloucester VA available by appointment.   However, the reconstruction  and restoration are only present in the printed edition of Volume 1.

Author Hunt indicates that Gloucester County’s surviving records include just these tax rolls, court minutes, and land surveys. So we can hope that when the tax records project is completed, he and his group will provide indexed transcripts of the land surveys as well. Surveys are among the most significant land records we have for Virginia–they show actual parcels of land with neighbors and proximity to related families as well as geographical features needed to place the holdings on the ground.

The surveys, too, also include substantial gaps with damaged and missing pages. They were microfilmed in 1947 and 1977 by the Family History Library from originals and photostats at the Library of Virginia and at the courthouse in Gloucester. Some records were made by Circuit Court clerks.

Here is the description from the current Family History Library Catalog (“previous” or Classic Catalog):

Using the land tax rolls and the surveys together, genealogists can re-build the property holdings of much of Gloucester County. So we are especially grateful to the Gloucester Genealogical Society and its members for funding these projects. Your favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle   http://arleneeakle.com

Today, at the Family History Expo, Arlene was speaking on documenting your common ancestors in Congressional Records. She talked about Peter Force’s “American Archives”, a Documentary History of the early days of the United States. The set is comprised of 6 volumes in the Fourth Series, and 3 volumes in the Fifth Series for a total of 9 volumes. She has access to one of the volumes in physical format and said that because of the computer problem, she hadn’t yet Googled to see if they had been digitized. So I did that while she was talking and found that all 9 volumes are available at http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=%22Peter%20Force%22 for free, and can be read online or downloaded in a variety of formats (PDF, text, Kindle, etc).

With the computer problem, she won’t be blogging either. I’ll keep you posted if it looks like it will take longer than the end of the month.

Kathryn Bassett, webmaster for our favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle

__like chameleons, they became whatever their surroundings were.  They attended Presbyterian services so they did not bring attention to themselves.  They were buried in Anglican graveyards so people did not know they were French.

__their naming patterns included “marker” names which were given to both male and female children in each generation to preserve knowledge of their origins.  Do you have specific spelling that seems strange?  Like Martain rather than Martin?  Grandfather insisted that his name be written correctly, even going into court to put his right name in the court documents.

__their origins include Switzerland, Italy, German provinces (especially the Palatinate and Hesse), Netherlands, where they fled from French persecution.  So while they are considered French, they are almost always something else too.

__they often spoke English before coming to America–because they lived in Ireland or London before they came here.

__they keep a low legal profile, stay out of the public eye if possible.

__they submerge their identity into other groups, supporting causes they would not otherwise show an interest in to disguise reality.

__traditions of changed names–The Edict of Nantes 16 Oct 1685, stated if their given name was not on the approved list of Roman Catholic Saints, they must select a new christening name that was on that list.  When they arrived in America, they may change back to their original given name!

See Bertrand Van Ruymbeke, and Randy L. Sparks, eds.  Memory and Identity:  The Huguenots in France and the Atlantic Diaspora. (Columbia:  University of South Carolina Press, 2003) and Kenneth C. Davis, America’s Hidden History (New York:  Harper Collins, 2008).

Add these new titles to your Fall reading list.  Your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle   http://arleneeakle.com

PS  I recommend that you profile your hard-to-find ancestors.  What specific characteristics do you know about them that would enable you to recognize them in a crowd?  Write these things down and look for others that match that profile.  The word profile is a good word when applied to ancestors.

Proof of Settlement–Bounties identify earliest date of residence/arrival in Virginia and may supply other places of residence where you can research that will bypass burned or lost records. Names of sponsoring groups and individuals are supplied for new immigrants–adding to your kinship networks and circles of association–what I refer to as the mini-census approach.  Create  contact/connection list as you go through the records.

Most bounties are awarded in specific locations; boundaries of grant areas are often set by law.Early and contemporary histories will include maps of these areas.  Just be careful of those created by modern  genealogists who may only show new reserves, completely overlooking old designations of land-award areas.

Bounties could be  awarded for service to the government:  for building iron forges, for bringing settlers into an unsettled area, for having more than one child, or for payment or wages the government did not have the money to pay.

Bounty Land for Military Service awarded by Virginia–

1. For French and Indian War Service–awarded in Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, and Western Pennsylvania.
2. For Revolutionary War Service–awarded in Kentucky and Ohio. Watch  especially for grants that span a river or a boundary line.

George Washington gave Hessian troops and British Army regulars, willing to lay down their arms and fight no more, lands up to 700 acres in unclaimed areas.  Mostly in Georgia (Greene County) and Pennsylvania (Lycoming County.)  There is also  some document evidence and family traditions of grants in Southwestern Virginia and Eastern Tennessee. Watch also for these.  Your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle   http://arleneeakle.com

PS  Stay tuned for some actual examples!

1. $1,000 travel money
2. 5-hour consultation with Megan Smolenyak
3. Signed copies of two books by Megan:  Who Do You Think You Are? and Trace Your Roots with DNA
4. 1 year subscription to Ancestry.com
5. DNA testing with Ancestry, onetime

Very nice grand prize–worth trying for.  Prizes courtesy Megan Smolenyak and AARP Magazine.    For details see http://www.aarp.org/familyties

Seems Ms Graham, editor of AARP Magazine, entered her father on Ancestry.com to begin building a family tree.  Within minutes, Ancestry informed her that someone had the same family tree.  On this other tree was her father!  So she connected with first cousins she had not seen or heard from since she was 6 years old.

They met.  They planned a reunion.  And had a great time.

AARP, Ancestry, and Megan would like you to have a great time too.  Check in with the details and try for the grand prize–a great summer activity for you and your family.  Your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle http://arleneeakle.com

PS If you win, let me know.

These are the topics (the number is the number on my topic list):

6. Migration Patterns from the British Isles to the Southern United States Before 1850.  Includes People Differences:  English, Irish, Scots, Welsh

1. Appalachian Triangle: Eastern Tennessee, Northwestern North Carolina, Southeastern Kentucky, Southwestern Virginia

7. Naming Patterns: Your Key to Ancestral Origins in the Southern United States

9. Tracing a Southern Pedigree—Research strategies, finding aids, indexes, and under-used sources to by-pass burned courthouses

Let me share with all of you an important thing I have learned about the South–many Scots settled there directly from Scotland.  Not Scots-Irish.  Scots.  Because they are mistakenly identified as coming in from Ireland, these ancestors are not found at all.  Or worse, they are attached to persons in Ireland with the same names.

Is it any wonder you are still looking for those ancestors after 15-20 years?

It’s time to break your losing streak!  Come to the Seminar at the Clayton Library and let me show you the proof…your favorite Virginia genealogist, Arlene Eakle  http://arleneeakle.com

PS  My adult whooping cough does seem a bit better–from a special diet, increased exercise, and a 10-lb weight loss.  In my former life I was a registered nurse and I never studied or heard of adult whooping cough.  Can you believe it?

PPS  And did I mention black licorice?  It helps stop the whoop.  And milk shakes–cold ice cream coats the throat and soothes it.  The cough is all in the throat.  These home-remedies are my own, from the myriad of things I tried to control the cough.

Indian Slavery in Colonial America is such a book. Tucked away on the shelf. All by itself. Not part of a category.

Edited by Alan Gallay and published in 2009 by the University of Nebraska Press in Lincoln. Two chapters are still in my mind–

1. Denise I. Bossy, “Indian Slavery in Southeastern Indian and British Societies, 1670-1730.” p. 208–”The Indian Slave Trade was founded on the European traditions of purchasing bound labor and the Indian traditions of taking war captives.”
2. C. S. Everett, “They Shall be Slaves for Lives.” This chapter is excerpted from his dissertation, An Inhuman Practice Once Prevailed in this Country, Vanderbilt University, 2009. An Act of the Virginia Assembly, Oct 1670, Act XII–any non-Christian servants imported by sea would be slaves.

Discussed in this provocative volume are these persons–

__black Indians

__colored persons of Indian descent

__white Indians

__Negro Indians

__mulatto Indians

__free Indians

__tribal Indians (non-citizens)

__town Indians (non-citizens)

__reservation Indians (non-citizens)

__covenant Indians

__contract Indian servants

__tributary Indians

__”hostile” Indians (those who fled their town)

During the Anglo-Powhatan War, 1622-32, Indian slavery was mandated for those Indians taken prisoner. By the 3rd Anglo-Powhatan War, 1644-46, Indian captives were being sold as slaves within West Indian colonies. And an external market, of considerable size, developed to foreign countries, as well as outsettlements of Virginia along rivers throughout the South.

Indian children were preferred to adults–the children did not try to escape. They never remembered they were Indian or of what tribe they came from. They could be trans-shipped to Caribbean ports from Virginia and sold into other colonies along the eastern seaboard.

These facts are carefully documented in little-known sources not previously used for Southern history. And Bacon’s Rebellion was directly connected to Indian slavery which was becoming quite lucrative!

Some 60 different Indian tribes and groups of tribes are identified and documented in this seminal study. Your favorite genealogist, Arlene Eakle http://arleneeakle.com

PS Add this title to your Spring reading list. You will not be sorry!