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© St. Petersburg Times, published October 24, 2002
If you're among the fortunate researchers who know exactly where your original immigrant was born, read no further. This column is for those still struggling to figure out where their family tree took root. Identifying the motherland and pinpointing the location of the ancestral home is paramount to a successful search of foreign records.
The only way to be certain you're connecting the right dots is by methodically researching your lineage, going back one generation at a time until you determine which ancestor arrived here first.
Overeager rooters who employ the "jump-back" system -- skipping the American research and heading straight for foreign records -- because they "know" great-great-grandpa Joseph Mayer came from Baden, Germany, may wind up proving only that some guy named Mayer once lived in Baden and later emigrated to America. Without the proper documentation linking the generations, there's no evidence that Mayer is their ancestor.
As you delve into the past, look for clues that will tell you precisely where the ancestral hometown was because you'll eventually need that information. Citizenship papers, especially after 1906, marriage license applications, church records, notes from the family Bible, military service and pension records and obituaries are possible resources. I once found a death certificate that named the county in Ireland where the man was born, but that is a rarity.
Baptismal records can be the linchpins to success. A packet of information sent to me by a relative whose interest in genealogy had waned contained a copy of my great-grandmother's baptismal certificate. I sent a copy to the Czechoslovakian Embassy -- it was one country then -- asking for help to trace my roots. I included basic information about my great-grandfather, figuring they were from the same place.
The embassy forwarded my request to the proper authorities. Ultimately, they helped me trace the lines of both great-grandparents back to about 1800, complete with certified pedigree charts for each family and copies of many birth, baptismal and death certificates.
Check out census returns. The 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930 rolls give the country of birth for each person and his or her parents and, if foreign born, the year they emigrated and whether they became a citizen. On the 1910 and 1920 censuses, everyone is also asked whether they speak English and, if not, their mother tongue. The 1920 census asks for the year of naturalization.
Boundaries changed and countries were renamed, so polish up your history and geography. Census records say my great-grandfather was born in Hungary. His citizenship certificate says it was Austria. He was actually born in what is now the Slovak Republic.
Don't stop with the first document you uncover. It may be misleading. In 1940, Anna Karnock filed a Declaration of Intention in her quest to become a citizen. She stated she was born in Poland, that her race was Russian and that she emigrated from Fiume, Italy. She married a man from Czechoslovakia.
Most of all don't jump to conclusions. Before I got a copy of my great-grandmother's baptismal certificate, I tried to pursue my Slovak roots by using a photo of my great-grandfather standing by a directional sign in the "old country." I was certain that the photo, taken during his only visit back to (what was then) Czechoslovakia, would confirm exactly where in that country he came from, providing of course, I could get someone to supply a translation.
I mailed copies of the picture to anyone I thought might help, along with this poignant appeal: "This is where my great-grandfather was born. Do you know where this place is located?" Not one person answered. I understood why when I showed the picture to a language professor who spoke fluent Slovak. The sign read "post office."
Steve Morse's helper sites are up and running. If you need help navigating the Ellis Island site, log on to www.jewishgen.org/databases/EIDB or http://home.pacbell.net/spmorse.
-- rootscolumn@yahoo.com 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 rootscolumn@yahoo.com in the search box.
rootscolumn@yahoo.com will present a Beginning Genealogy seminar from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the St. Petersburg History Museum, 335 Second Ave. NE. The seminar is free for museum members. Nonmembers pay $10. Call Amy Nolan at (727) 894-1052, ext. 204 to reserve a spot.