Tuesday's Tip: Surname Spellings

One very important thing that I’ve noticed while researching my family histories and other’s as well, is that the surname is not always spelling the way it is now. This could include other family histories, census records, immigration records, etc.

This happens for many reasons but I think one of the main reasons is when a family comes to America. There is such a language barrier, plus accents to deal with.

A few examples from my own tree(s):

Jeckering

My father’s name- Jeckering- this was a very easy name to translate, I suppose, because there was no confusion. The name is spelling the same now as it was in the heritage books in Emsburen, Germany. I have seen the name spelled other ways though, like Jecker and Jackering.

I found a distant cousin on Facebook a couple of years back, who lives in Drievorden, Germany (where my family first originated) and they share the same Gerhard Jeckering (b. 1673) as I do…in fact, he and his wife live on the family farm! One thing that’s interesting, that he doesn’t know why, is that his name is spelled Jackering, not Jeckering. For some reason, the “e” was replaced by an “a”.

Mendenhall

The spelling of Mendenhall is pretty universal in America (for the most part), however, I’ve read many times that this name was difficult to say in England, where it originated- when it was Mildenhall. My 10^th great grandfather came over from England in 1685 and it was then changed to Mendenhall—I can only assume because of the pronunciation. Mendenhall has also been spelled: Meldonhall, Mewdenhall, Mildenhall, Mindenhall, Minden, Milden, Menold, Mildenhale, and many others!

Pierson/Pearson

I have to women in my tree- both from the Mendenhall side-

Susanna Pierson (1687-1765) (my 9^th great grandmother)

          Married John Mendenhall Jr. (1688-1765)

Sarah Pearson (1795-1866) (my 5^th great grandmother)

          Married Richard Mendenhall (1794-1871)

Even though their last names are different, they are similar and I was able to trace it back to their common ancestor!

Abraham Pierson (1590-1650)

Susanna’s great grandfather- Rev. Abraham Jr. (1616-1678), son of Abraham Pierson, took his father’s way of spelling his name- Pierson.

Sarah’s 3x great grandfather- Lawrence (1620-1673), son of Abraham Pierson, went by Pearson instead of Pierson, and he was still living in England where he was born and died. The reason for this name change is unknown.

The name Pierson originates from England (like my family), Ireland, Sweden and Scotland. The spelling variations include: Peyrson, Pairsone, Peirsonde, Peirsone, Peirsound, Pearsone, and Peyrsoune.

Hendricks

My 6^th great grandfather was Johannes Willem Hendricks (1705-1789). The spelling of Hendricks here is how my grandmother spelled her name. However, Johanne’s father- Willem (1671-1711) (who was also born and raised in America) - spelled his name Hendrickson and so did his ancestors before him. Other spelling variations include: Henrick, Henrich, MacKendrick, Hendrie, Hendry, MacHendry, and MacHendrick. I think some of these depend on origin of the name. The name has been originated in Scotland, England and German, but my family name Hendricks, or Hendrickson, came from the Netherlands.

Tuesday's Tip: Organization Part 2

Organization is very important when it comes to researching your family tree. Last week, I wrote about organizing the actual research…now I want to talk about organizing found and collective research in a more presentable manner.

Not like this... :) 

 When I first started doing my research, I kept all my research material in a notebook and then there was the question of –what do I do with everything, now that I’ve done some research?

I’ve researched many tools to this type of organization. I found one person on YouTube who actually used a filing system in an “old-fashioned” filing cabinet.

I like the idea of this- very organized and tidy, but I also like the idea of presentation. I take a lot of pride in my family research and I love to show it off. You can’t just pull out your filing system and show off paper-to-paper…that’s not fun and would take a long time.

I really love books and binders because presentation is beautiful if done right. I did two binders for both of my parents’ family trees:

Picture of One binder--- the other binder, I haven't photographed yet...

Each binder has family group sheets, pedigree charts, documents, census records, etc. At the beginning of each book, I start out explaining the origin of the surname. Then, I start with the earliest ancestor found and move on from there until it ends with me J

With this sort of organization, it’s easy to read, nobody actually touches the documents (because they’re protected with sheet protectors) and it’s easily stored on a bookshelf.

This type of organization is also important to have. If you only have a internet copy or computer copy of all of your family tree information, it could be dangerous- in a way that it might not be there one day. My fear of using only Ancestry.com is- what if ONE DAY the sites suddenly stops working and I never have access to my tree ever again? ALL of that research is LOST. I would be devastated! When you have a hard copy of all of your work- it’ll be there even if you have no electricity.

Tuesday's Tip- Organization- Part 1

Organization is very important when it comes to researching your family tree. It also helps to keep your sanity when you have a million papers, documents, etc everywhere.

Don't let this be you!

When I first started researching my tree, I wrote everything down in a notebook. Many people just print and keep leaves of paper everywhere. I find this clutters up the workspace and there is no organization with paper flying everywhere. I hate clutter. Many people also keep their leaves inside of a 3-ring binder- I think this works great for keeping a hard copy of your family tree, but not for research purposes. I’ve tried this one and I find that it’s clunky and in the way.

I have found that the best resource if you’re going to write a lot by hand, is to use a spiral bound notebook- but only for notes. If you do this, you will most likely fill up a couple of notebooks.

Another great idea, especially if you’re doing internet family research, is to save a piece of paper (and the environment) by using a word document and saving it under “Research”. You can always delete and re-type, delete and re-type once you’ve put your found information where it needs to go permanently.

(Suggestion- if you’re going to throw out (either via paper or word doc) always save your sources.)

I have found that if I have two or more windows open on my computer, and I’m doing research, the best option is to split the screen- put your research word doc on the right side of the screen and the information you’re transcribing on the left so you don’t have to click and go back, click and go back, etc. J This works out great- quick and efficient!

Everyone is different and it depends on how you organize and what works for you- as long as you are organized, it doesn’t matter what you use, as long as it works! J

I hope this helps with your organizational difficulties! If you have any ideas or suggestions for me, please share! 

Tuesday's Tip- Genealogy tip for beginners

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

Welcome to my first post for Tuesday's Tip! Today's tip is more of a "rule," however, I think it is an important one for people who are just starting their genealogical journey. 

OK, so you're eager and ready to start researching your family history...you have your paper, pens, computer, software, genealogy sites, etc. But where do you start FIRST? NONE of that! 

First things first- you always ask your family. Talk to your parents, your grandparents, your great grandparents (if they are still living). Write everything down that they tell you. Ask them as many questions that you think of-

Where were they born?
Where did they grow up?
What high school or college did they attend?
Who were their parents?
Who were their grandparents/great grandparents, etc?
Ask them to tell you stories of their childhood.

Since I've started doing my own family history (6+years), I've learned SO much about my family and some of it- the stuff I've found out through my own relatives- I wouldn't have been able to find out online or in a library! Ask these questions now, before these important people are gone and that opportunity is missed.