Friday, March 29, 2019

Researching the Women in Your Family Tree

Abigail Adams, wife of one President and
mother of another.

"Remember the Ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors"  - Abigail Adams

In her 1776 letter to her husband, John Adams,
who was attending the Continental Congress, Abigail
urged her husband to give more rights to women
than they had up to that point. Later in her letter she  says,

 
"Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.”

John tried placating her with the words that men "are masters in name only".  History tells us he ignored her advise.

Why is searching for women any different than any other genealogical research?

For much of history in many cultures, men served as the "public face" of the family. They were the ones who most often went out in public and their names were the ones published in documents. Here are some of factors involved in making women harder to research;
  • Women change their surname every time they marry. Ex.: Margaret Evaline MASON married: Arthur Burkhart, Walter Fouse, Glen Marshall, and Ben Christian and had children by each of them. Her marriage records appear under her maiden name as well as her previous married names. 
  • Prior to even 1950, women were less often listed under their own names in any records. So it becomes necessary to look for a woman under her husband's name. 
  • Further back in time, women become "invisible" in the records. This was because the were not allowed to:
    • Vote
    • Own real estate in their own name.
    • Sign legal documents
    • Men wrote the histories, paid the taxes, participated in the military, left wills, and gave their surnames to their children.
Women advocating their right to vote.
Photo courtesy WikiCommons.
This has slowly changed over time. But when working to flesh out the lives of the female half of your ancestors you will need to sharpen up your research skills.

First, follow traditional research methods thoroughly. Don't skip someone or something just because it is difficult to locate.

Then take a closer look at these records:

  • Marriage records - are the best place to find a woman's maiden name. However, if a woman had previously been married, she might be listed under her previous married name. Witnesses to the wedding often were relatives of either the bride or the groom. The person performing the marriage can give you a clue as to what religion the family belonged to. If a surety or bond was put it, often the father or brother provided the money. And sometimes, a marriage record just does not exist.
  • Cemetery listings -While a woman is most often buried under her married name, you will want to check nearby tombstones to see if she is buried near her family members. Tombstones sometimes provides the spouse's full name.
  • Census records - women are listed under their husband's surname in the census records. But check to see who is listed with the family. Brothers and aged parents of the wife have shown up in the census records of my great grandmothers. Also, check to see what middle names are given to the children. Often, the mother's maiden name is preserved as a first or middle name of  her children.
  • Church Records - witnesses on church records are most often relatives.
  • Land Records - women would release their "dower" rights when communal land is sold. Land she inherited from a previous husband required an agreement as to how it would be handled.
  • Guardianship records - even when one parent survived, a guardian would be appointed to protect the financial interests of the child. 
  • Probate records and wills - sometimes reveal the married names of daughters, or if she is deceased, the names of her surviving children. She could be named in the will of her husband or her children. Prior to 1900, people generally married people in their direct neighborhood. So check the wills of neighbors to see of your ancestress is listed among the married daughters. 
  • Public welfare records - applications for aid for minor children. 
  • Naturalization Records - prior to 1922, a woman's citizenship status followed that of her husband. After 1922, women applied for citizenship in their own names. Check this blog for more information on women and naturalization records. 
  • Children - Research all the known children to see you can find any mention of the married sister or deceased mother. She might be listed in the obituary, or the will, etc. 
  • Newspapers - after 1900 newspaper articles carried articles on social happenings and followed club activities. Many women's groups featured heavily in these society pages. 
  • Military Records - while few women officially served in the military prior to WWI, they could apply for pensions if a husband or unmarried son had died.
Think about the activities that women were doing and look for those records:
  • Ephemera - such as letters and diaries or journals.
  • Volunteer organizations - did your grandmother roll bandages for the Red Cross during WWII?
  • Women's clubs - After the mid-1800's women's clubs became a popular way for women to expand their horizons beyond their household. Did your ancestress belong to one?
  • Church groups - women often are the backbone of charitable groups within the church.
The Friday Afternoon Club is a women's club that is still active in the Medina Ohio area.
Medina Gazette 2 May 1969, page 5
Happy hunting!


SOURCES:
  • Alzo, Lisa, "Best Records for Finding Female Ancestors", Family Tree University, 2008.
  • Haddad, Diane, "Best Records for Finding Female Ancestors", Family Tree Magazine, 25 March 2019, https://bit.ly/2OrZVnx?fbclid=IwAR03Yk4KF5eRtWjFTQYk2MJSbuqNoBYIuAwI8AxS_8m46B4GUp81nQfFqlA 
  • Moneymaker, Will, "How to Overcome the Difficulties of Finding Female Ancestors" Ancestral Findings.com https://ancestralfindings.com/how-to-overcome-the-difficulties-of-finding-female-ancestors/
  • Powell, Kimberly "How to Research the Women in Your Family Tree" ThoughtCo https://www.thoughtco.com/invisible-women-ancestors-1422869
  • Schaefer, Christina Kassabian, Hidden Half of the Family, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, 1999.
  • Wilcox, Jane E., "Unusual Sources for Finding Female Ancestors" Generations Cafe Episode #24, https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/female-ancestors/, 28 March 2019.

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Hiatus

Many of you are already aware of the big changes coming to the second floor of the Medina Library.

The changes were highlighted in the Spring Library Live Newsletter:

Front page of the March, April, May 2019 Library Live






Thanks to a bequest from Virginia Wheeler Martin, the new Family History & Learning Center will incorporate the collection in the Franklin Sylvester room with a Digitization Center and a Maker's Space.

The eastern half of the second floor will be getting a total renovation.

Overview of the changes coming to the second floor of the Medina Library,
page 3 of the Spring of the Library Live
The Franklin Sylvester Room collection will be moving into the 1907 Meeting Room during the renovation.

Lauren, Lisa and I have already started packing up materials
to go into storage during the renovation.
1907 Room where the Collection will move during the Renovation.
Some of you may remember that this is where the Collection was
prior to the 2008 expansion of the Medina Library.
 We anticipate that for the next month we will be packing, moving and unpacking.

During this time of upheaval, we will be suspending two of the services we regularly offer to genealogical and historical researchers:

Every Tuesday from 1-4 Lisa or I help genealogist work on their family
history. We won't be able to offer this during the move of the collection.
For those people who cannot make it to the library on
Tuesday afternoons, we have offered One-on-One sessions.
Once the Franklin Sylvester Room Collection has been moved into the 1907 Room, we will evaluate whether we can offer either of these services during the renovation.

We will notify you when the move is complete and the Collection is available again.

Wednesday, March 20, 2019

Diane Ganyard 1949-2008

First female police officer in the city of Medina.


Diane Lynn Ganyard was a tiny dynamo!





She was born to Calvin and Arleen Ganyard and lived most of her life here in Medina County.

She was very active in school and graduated Medina High School in 1967








 And here is the list of activities she participated in:

1967 Medina High School Yearbook
CAA stands for Contemporary Affairs Association and was a current events club. She was also a member of the National Honor Society.

After high school Diane attended Eastern Kentucky University as a music major but after a semester, realizing it wasn't for her, quit and went to work as a cold-type setter for a printing company.

She knew she wanted to get into law enforcement and decided to join the United State Army as an MP (Military Police). However, the Army didn't have any slots open for MPs and wouldn't for a couple of years. She took an aptitude test and scored well enough in the languages area to be offered a position in the Army Security Agency.

Medina Gazette- 22 Mar 1973_p. 8
She enlisted for four years in the  Women's Army Corp (WAC) During her enlistment, the WACs were disbanded and women were incorporated into the regular United States Army. She trained as a German translator in Monterrey California. After completing her training, she was assigned to Teufelsberg near Berlin. Her unit listened to and transcribed tapes in German. She quickly moved into the Quality Control section.

Medina County Women
of the Military, Vol. II



Diane was stationed in Germany for 2 1/2 years and treasured her memories of being there. Because the Cold War was still on and Germany was still divided, East vs. West, soldier's movements were restricted and monitored to make sure they weren't intercepted. She rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant. Her time in Germany made her appreciate the freedoms we take for granted in the U.S. Diane was discharged from the Army in February 1977.


In December of 1979, Diane realized her ambition and became the first female police officer on the Medina Police Department.


Diane made "headlines" in the Medina Gazette. The article was buried on page 12

She was joined a few months later by Nancy Labadie.

Nancy Labadie, Chief Davis and Diane Ganyard.
Photo courtesy MedinaSquare.org

In 1984, Diane became a police sergeant.

In 1997, when Julia Hach was forming the Medina County Women of the Military, Diane was one of the first members and she would march with them in the Medina Memorial Day Parade whenever her duties on the police force allowed.

From the Waite & Son online obituary

Diane served on the police force for 30 years before her death in 2008.

An incredible woman who was a  pioneer at the Medina Police Force.


SOURCES:
  • 1967 Medina High School Yearbook
  • Medina County Women of the Military Volume 11, pp.67-74, Sharon Nicholson, Editor, 2005. 
  • "Medina Police Hire First Woman Officer", Medina Gazette, 5 Dec 1979, page 12.
  • Photo from the Waite & Son Funeral Home online obituary https://www.waitefuneralhome.com/obituary/284810 
  • Photo of Diane Ganyard, Chief Davis and Nancy Labadie from Robert  Hyde's Beyond the Storefront web site.

Thursday, March 14, 2019

Gerrie Mock - Remarkable Aviatrix

First Woman to Fly Solo Around the World 

Quick, what is the name of the first woman to fly solo around the world??

Amelia Earhart???

Amelia Earhart - 1928
Photo courtesy Library of Congress

Nope! She died in her attempt in 1937.


Jacqueline Cochran???

Jacqueline Cochran in a P-40
Photo courtesy WikiCommons

 Nope!
Jackie was the first woman to break the sound barrier, and at the time of her death, held more speed, distance, and altitude records than any other pilot in aviation history. But she didn't fly around the world.

Jerrie Mock???

Who???!!??

Jerrie Mock
UPI photo





The diminutive self described "Flying Housewife" was, on the surface, an unlikely candidate for breaking world aviation records. She was barely 5 feet tall, was a housewife and mother of three children and 38 years old when she decided to become the first woman to fly solo around the world.







What made her think she could do it?

The answer to that question lies in the story of her life leading up to that moment.

Geraldine "Jerrie" Fredritz was born in Newark, Ohio in 1925. At a young age she had her first flight and she enjoyed it so much that she declared that she was going to be a pilot when she grew up!  She read voraciously about foreign lands and exotic locales, dreaming that she would fly there herself. Amelia Earhart was her idol and she listened raptly to the evening radio reports of Earhart's progress on her attempt to fly around the world.

Never a conformist, Jerrie was among the first women admitted to the aeronautical engineering program at Ohio State University. However, she left the program in 1945 when she married  her husband, Russell Mock, a licensed pilot.

But her dream did not die there.

Jerrie earned her pilot's license at age 32, in 1958. She and her husband would fly their single engine Cessna during family vacations.

In 1962, bored as a suburban housewife, Jerrie decided she needed a challenge. Jokingly, Russ suggested,  "Why not fly around the world?" And a dream was kindled.

All the planning and paperwork took patience and dedication, Mock said, "...the flying was easy."

Jerrie preferred wearing slacks, but donned skirts for her flight to be more culturally acceptable in the more conservative countries she would be visiting.

Jerrie needed additional training, getting her instrument rating and learning to use an oxygen mask. Her plane needed extensive modifications and additional equipment to be ready for a trip around the world.

Her Cessna was named "The Spirit of Columbus",  for her hometown, but she nicknamed it "Three-Eight Charlie" for its tail numbers.

Shortly before her scheduled departure, Mock found out that another woman, named Joan Merriman Smith, was also going to attempt an around the world flight. Mock moved up her departure date, leaving 2 days after Smith. Jerrie's flight had just become a race.

She left Columbus on March 19, heading southeast towards the Bahamas.

Her flight was not without incidents:
  • On starting the plane up on the day before Jerrie's take off, oil poured out of the cowling. The brand new oil filter that had just been installed had been replaced with an old, filthy one. Jerrie suspected sabotage but refused to be intimidated.  
  • Her antenna wire caught fire over the Libyan desert and she had to turn the switch off.
  • The plane's brakes had to be replaced.
  • Her long range, HF radio wasn't working and it was discovered that a lead was disconnected and taped off. Jerrie againsuspected sabotage.
  • Her plane picked up ice from a mist on the cross Atlantic leg of her journey and she had to increase altitude to rise above it.
  • She mistakenly landed at a military airport in Egypt and had to be redirected to the International Airport at Cairo.
During her stops, Jerrie consdered herself as an ambassador and example of a strong independent woman. In Saudi Arabia, her plane was searched looking for the man they were sure was the pilot!

On April 17 Governor of Ohio, and five thousand of people awaited her touch down at the Columbus Airport. She had done it!

She was awarded the Federal Aviation Agency's gold Medal for Exceptional Service by President L.B. Johnson on 4 May 1964.

"President Johnson awards Mock
 the Federal Aviation Agency Gold Medal on May 4, 1964"
Jerrie surpassed her hero Amelia Earhart's attempt to fly around the world. Not only did Mock succeed, she did under tougher conditions.

When Earhart made her attempt in 1937, she flew a brand new twin engine plane and had an experienced navigator with her. Mock's plane was an 11 year old single engine Cessna 180 whose fresh paint hid the cracks. And she flew solo.

Records that Mock broke:
  • First woman to fly solo around the world
  • First woman to fly across the pacific and Atlantic Oceans
  • First woman to do so in a single engine plane
  • First woman to fly the Atlantic from the United States to Africa
  • First woman to fly the Pacific west to east.
  • Set the female speed record for around-the-world, and did in a Type C1-c aircraft
Jerrie never sought fame for her accomplishment, claiming she mostly did it "to have fun." And her feat when unnoticed in the turbulent times of the sixties. The war in Vietnam was heating up, the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, and President Kennedy had been assassinated  less than 5 months before.

After her around the world flight in 1964, she went on to set more speed records in a Cessna P106. And in 1966 she set the record for the longest nonstop flighty by a woman when she flew from Honolulu to Columbus.

She never flew The Spirit of Columbus again. It is now on display at the National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.

The Spirit of Columbus
Photo courtesy of National Air and Space Museum

It was close to the end of her life when Jerrie achieved some fame for her daring. Two bronze statues stand in tribute to "The Flying Housewife"; one in her hometown of Newark and one at the Columbus International Airport.

Mock's statue at Columbus Airport

So what made Jerrie think she could do it? 


It never occurred to her that she couldn't!


SOURCES:
  • Unknown (Associated Press) "President Johnson awards Mock the Federal Aviation Agency Gold Medal on May 4, 1964" Public Domain, accessed on Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia , accessed 5 March 2019. 
  • Unknown (UPI) [Public domain] https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jerrie_Mock_1964c.jpg accessed on WikiCommons, 5 March 2019

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

VITAL RECORDS

The third in a series of instructional genealogy research blogs.


From Wikipedia:

Vital records are records of life events kept under governmental authority, including birth certificates, marriage licenses, and death certificates. In some jurisdictions, vital records may also include records of civil unions or domestic partnerships. In the United States, vital records are typically maintained at both the county and state levels.





Vital records are the framework, or the bones, that our family history is built on. The dates and locations for the deaths, marriages and births of our ancestors is the bare minimum we try to collect on each individual. Vital records can help direct your research in the right direction.Pursuing these records starts early in the research process and NEVER stops!

Primary vs. Secondary Sources:

The documents which are created at the time of the event by people who should have personal knowledge of the event, are primary source material for the event being recorded. The best example of this is the death certificate. The person who provides the information on the death was present at the death or in the days leading up the the death. It is a primary source for that person's death information.
 Besides recording information on the death, a death record usually also contains a spouse's name and the individual's birth date and parents' names, but it is considered a secondary source for the information on the individual's marriage and birth information. Secondary sources are created long after the event or by someone who would not have direct knowledge of the event. The person providing information on the death would not have been present at the time of the birth or marriage.

Primary source materials are always the preferred source.

Keep in mind:
  • When acquiring vital records for an individual, work from the most recent, death, to the earliest, birth. 
  • In the United States, these records are maintained by a clerk in the city, town, county or state where the event took place. 
  • Since around 1900 (varies by states) most states keep the records of these events. 
  • You may not have access to some records, such as recent birth records, due to privacy concerns.

Map showing dates that each state went to statewide registration of births, marriages and deaths.
Registration might be at the county or town level prior to these dates.

DEATH RECORDS

  • Originally deaths were registered to compile medical statistics on epidemics. 
  • Even after registrations were required, compliance with the law was haphazard and incomplete. 
  • The information about the death will probably be accurate, but other events reported on the records, such as birth date, parents and spouse may contain errors, depending on who provided the information. 
  • Death records only exist in the United States for approximately the last 150 years. 
  • Prior to around 1900, look for death records at the county or city level. 
  • After 1900, check the state level for death records. The farther back in time you go, the less information you will find on a death record. 
  • Good sources for finding dates that death records were required are the Redbook and VitalRec.com
This Certificate of Death is from 1959 in Ohio. It is a wealth of information.
But as we will see in other documents, it does not tell the whole story.

Alternatives to official Death Records

  • Sometimes, an official death record is not available or doesn't exist. When this happens, you need to turn to other sources. Ideally, you would use multiple sources to verify the death information. 
  • Obituaries, while not official records of death, can contain valuable family information. 
    • Check all obituaries for errors, due to incorrect information being given by the informant and typographical errors. Obituaries can be the one place where all the pertinent facts of a person’s life are revealed. 
    • Earliest newspapers tended to only report the deaths of the most prominent citizens. Late in the 1800’s, obituaries became more common for everyone. 
    • Obtain obituaries not only for your direct ancestor, but for their siblings, wives and children. 
    • Obituaries are best obtained from the local library that holds microfilmed copies of the local papers. 
    • Many indexes for obituaries are online. 
    • There are online databases for obituaries that cover the last 20-25 years.
      This obituary from the Gallipolis (Ohio) Journal,
      dated 26 June 1959 reveals that Lunas Johnson,
      from the above death certificate, died alone at
      home and his body was not discovered for
      "a considerable time." So his date of death is
      estimated.
  • Probate Records – Closing out the estate of someone happens only after they have died. Can also reveal wives and children. 
  • Cemetery Records – besides the tombstones, various other records exist in relation to burial of an individual, such as plot deeds, plat records, sexton’s records, and grave opening orders. While a tombstone should be accurate as to the date of death, it may not be as accurate for date of birth. 
    • Catholic Cemetery Association (Cleveland Area)
      • http://www.clecem.org/
      • Relatively new site 
      • Registration is free 
      • Registration is necessary for searching 
      • Can search where someone is buried 
      • Sometimes can view section map that will precisely locate grave site
  • Social Security Death Index - while this is not a true substitute for a death record, it can help you determine in what location to find a death record. http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=3693 or at https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1202535 
  • Funeral Cards 
  • Mortality Schedules – for the 1850-1880 Census enumerations, there are also lists of people who had died in the 12 months prior to the census being taken. Available on Ancestry Library Edition and FamilySearch.org

MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE RECORDS  

  • Marriages were required to be registered much earlier than births and deaths, as a rule. Marriage records come in various forms, such as marriage licenses and marriage certificates. These documents will provide the maiden name of the woman. They are most often filed at the county courthouse. 
  • In New England, town clerks began registering marriages in the 1600s and in the South, in the 1700s. Only much later are the parents names included on a marriage record. Information on a marriage record can be inaccurate, due to the couple falsifying their ages, etc. Consent affidavits would have to be filed if either of the parties were under aged at the time of the marriage. 
Besides learning the names of the parties involved, the date and place of the event and the parents names, we
learn so much more from this 1918 marriage record from Gallia County, Ohio.
 Both William Tecumseh Sherman Johnson and Stella Belle Berry used their middle names.
Lunus' first name is misspelled and his signature is illegible. Could he have been illiterate?

  • Marriage banns were required by some church denominations. They were usually read aloud on three consecutive Sundays in church. They might also be posted in a public place. It was an opportunity for any objections to be raised. 
  • Bonds would be posted prior to the marriage. It was money set aside to defray expenses in case in the event the marriage didn’t take place. The money was posted by the groom or his father. Marriage bonds are NOT positive proof that a marriage took place. 
  • Church records 
  • Bible Records 
  • Newspaper announcements
  • Unofficial unions usually have no official documentation. 
    • Should be noted for a complete view of a person’s life. 
    • MOST important if the union results in any children. 
    • Documenting and displaying this information is a matter of personal preference.


DIVORCE
  • In a divorce, the date of the marriage is usually given. 
  • Divorce legislation has always varied greatly from region to region and state to state. 
    • New England states granted divorces from an early time period. 
    • Southern states had more restrictive divorce laws. South Carolina did not grant divorces until 1949
  • Earliest divorce records were handled by state governments
  • As divorces became more common, the legislatures passed the work load onto the county court systems. 
  • Divorce records could be handled by; Superior Court, Equity Court, Probate Court or Family/Domestic Court 
  • Certain areas became divorce “meccas” because of easy access and the laws were less restrictive 

BIRTH RECORDS

  • Only exist in the United States for approximately the last 150 years. The farther back in time you go, the less information you will find on a birth record. 
  • Prior to around 1900, look for birth records at the county level. Except for New England states, where the birth records are found at the town level. 
  • After 1900, check the state level for birth records. 
  • Delayed birth certificates were issued many years after the birth in cases where the person: 
    • Was born prior to the keeping of birth records 
    • Was not registered due to non-compliance. 
    • Needed proof of birth to register for Social Security benefits.

Alternatives to Official Birth Records

Baptism records can stand in for birth records
where a birth record doesn't exist.

  • Baptism or christening ceremonies have to be carefully checked. Often they only record the date of the ceremony, not the date of the birth. 
  • Birth announcements in newspapers. 
  • Bibles often have births, deaths and marriages. Check to see if the handwriting is the same throughout. If it is different, the events were likely recorded as they occurred. Check with family members, local and regional historical societies. http:///www.learnwebskills.com/patriot/biblerecords.htm
  • Military pensions or muster rolls - often the approximate birth date had to be given. 
  • Census records – The later census records state the age of each individual, but the earlier ones only state the age range of people. But the information can be unreliable.

WHERE TO LOCATE VITAL RECORDS

BOOKS:

WEBSITES:
STATE VITAL RECORDS; Examples:
  • Once your have your record, document the source of the information. Where did you get the records, when did you get it, etc. 
  • Do not fold it. Place it in an acid free sleeve. 
  • Store the original document in a safe place. 
  • Scan it or make a copy to use when sharing or researching.