Genealogy: Ascertain, confirm and verify the facts

If your mother says she loves you, check it out.

That old saw from my newspaper reporting days seems a bit harsh. But the truth is, really sharp investigators do not jump to conclusions. They relentlessly pursue the facts and use multiple sources to confirm them.

As a genealogist, you must also question what you read and what you're told. Even official documents may contain errors. They may give conflicting information. That's why each significant piece of genealogical data should be supported by at least three different sources.

Take the case of Milton Murray. His death certificate says his mother's first name was Mary and her maiden name was unknown. When completing his Social Security card application, Milton said his mother's name was Addie Mills. Big difference. The family Bible and his mother's obituary prove the latter name is correct.

Sara Leichliter Murray died on Oct. 27, 1891. Or did she? That's the death date Elijah Murray gave for his first wife on the marriage license application for his second. However, other official records show Sara gave birth to three children during the eight years following her purported demise. A neat trick if you can do it. So which documents are wrong? Was someone else really the mother of those kids? Sara's actual death date is a key piece of information. More investigation is needed.

A check of the 1900 federal census report finds her listed. An entry in a courthouse Death Book and a three-line obituary in a newspaper gossip column offers more proof that Sara died in 1901.

These examples illustrate why it's a big mistake to rely on the accuracy of the first document you happen to run across. You could end up spending many fruitless hours chasing the wrong paper trail.

Depending on the time frame, birth and baptismal certificates, marriage license applications, death records, obituaries, funeral home records, wills and probate records, military pension applications, land transactions, Social Security card applications, family Bibles and census reports are among the documents you can use to corroborate your facts. Most may be requested by mail.

Before you stick on that stamp, though, do your homework. Learn what records exist for the era you're researching. Wills, probate records and land transactions were duly noted long before Old Glory flew. Revolutionary War veterans got pensions.

Most states didn't require birth, death and marriage records until the late 1800s, although some records date back to the mid-1800s. The Social Security Act came about in 1935.

Federal census records, which began in 1790, are particularly useful for ascertaining names and ages of family members. The census is conducted every decade.

Due to privacy laws, all personal information remains private for 72 years. The 1930 returns debut in April.

Before 1850, personal information is scarce. The only name listed is that of the person who headed the household. Everyone else fell into such categories as "female, under age 5." Starting with the 1850 census, the name and age of each person living in the household are given.

Except for the 1890 records, which were destroyed, you can access census records at the main branch of most public libraries, any Mormon Family History Center and the library at the University of South Florida's main campus in Tampa. If the ones you need aren't there, the staff can order them through an interlibrary loan program for a nominal fee. (See what's available by logging onto the National Archives and Administration's Web site at www.nara.gov/genealogy.)

A smattering of census records appears online. Genealogy Web sites exist for many counties. Look there first. Put "your county+ genealogy" in the search box of your browser. Use quote marks.

Rootsweb, cyberspace's oldest genealogy site, can link you to other census sites. (www.rootsweb.com/usgenweb/census/.) Type Donna Murray Allen in the search box.

-- Donna Murray Allen welcomes your questions about genealogy and will respond to those of general interest in future columns. Sorry, she can't take phone calls, but you can write to her c/o Floridian, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or e-mail her at rootscolumn@aol.com. You can read her column online at www.sptimes.com.

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