Social Security applications have 2 main uses

John Shelley lived in Scottdale, Pa., when he applied for a Social Security card on June 8, 1937. He worked for the Works Progress Administration. The application form shows he was born in Burlington, N.J., on Feb. 10, 1898, to Harry Shelley and Anna McGeary.

His brother, Henry, who lived in Allegheny County, Pa., when he applied for his card, said his mother's name was Anna M. Gary.

Their sister, Mae Hampshire, waited until 1943 to apply, possibly because she was married and unemployed. By then, space was allotted for women to give their birth name and marital name. She gave her mother's name as Anna Virginia McGarry.

Copies of original application forms -- about half the size of a regular sheet of paper -- once cost researchers $7. Quite a bargain. Now you'll shell out $27 for each one if you know the person's Social Security number, $29 if you don't. Either way, the person must be deceased for you to get a copy of his or her application.

The primary value of this document lies in learning the maiden names of your female ancestors. Accuracy of the mother's maiden name is not guaranteed, as shown by the above example. For others, the document might be the only proof of birth available for an immigrant ancestor. If you have this information, Social Security application forms aren't worth the money.

To get a copy of an application form, write to the Social Security Administration, FOIA Workgroup, P.O. Box 17772, Baltimore, MD 21290. Include as much demographic information as you can. Do not include a SASE. (Log on to www.ssa.gov for details.)

The Social Security Act was enacted in 1935. Anyone who died before then won't have a Social Security number.

A quicker, do-it-yourself alternative is the online Social Security Death Index (SSDI). Some of that data is free. Go on the Web to www.rootsweb.com or www.familysearch.org and plug your ancestor's name into the search box. Both sites feature SSDI records.

No computer? Most large public libraries and Mormon Family History Centers carry the SSDI on CD-ROM.

A cyberspace search yields dozens of possibilities for common names like John Smith. I got 22 hits for Henry Shelley on the Social Security Death Index. His name, Social Security number, birth and death dates, last residence and state where his card was issued appear onscreen.

Knowing Shelley's birth and death dates, I scrolled to the Henry Shelley I wanted. Under "Tools" on the right side of the screen, I clicked on "SS-5 Letter." That linked me to a form letter for downloading. I sent the letter and a check to the Social Security Administration, and within a few weeks I got a copy of his original application.

The death index online database has several drawbacks. Few people who died before 1962 are listed because that's when the agency started computerizing records. Anyone whose death was not reported to the Social Security Administration won't be on it, either.

The state in which the Social Security card was issued is not necessarily where the applicant was born. Shelley's card was issued in Pennsylvania. He was born in New Jersey.

Another word of caution. The death index gives Henry Shelley's last residence as Scottdale in Westmoreland County. The town of Scottdale is in Westmoreland County, but its rural mail routes extend about a mile into neighboring Fayette County, which is where my grandfather lived.

Granted, most places aren't that weird. But boundaries do change. So do ZIP codes. It's also possible that your relative died while on vacation or while living with a relative in another state. It's essential to determine where your ancestor officially resided at the time of death to know which courthouse would yield his will and other documents.

Hint: The staff at the Mormon Church Library in Salt Lake City answers genealogy questions by e-mail (fhl@ldschuch.org) and by phone (toll-free 1-800-453-3860). There's no charge. But be succinct.

-- 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@yahoo.com. You can read her column online at www.sptimes.com. Type "Donna Murray Allen" in the search box.

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