Long-time readers have heard me lament my fate of having too many common surnames in my research. Most of us have at least one family in their lines that makes you just groan when you discover the name. It's that one that we keep putting off. When we look for the name in an index or database, instead of hoping for a hit, we hope for a manageable number of hits.
I recently received several e-mails from readers discussing the problems they were having in researching ancestors with all-too-common names, so I thought that today and in some upcoming columns, we'd revisit the subject and talk about some ways to get around the "curse of the common name."
SEE IF IT'S BEEN DONE
One thing that can save a lot of head banging is to see if someone has already done the work. Many genealogies have been documented and published and you may find your John Smith in published genealogies, biographies, periodicals, or any number of historical sources, which can be found in libraries with genealogical collections. There are now a number of indexes to these published resources, which include the Biography & Genealogy Master Index (BGMI), American Genealogical-Biographical Index (AGBI), and the Periodical Source Index (PERSI), all of which are available to Ancestry.com subscribers and on CD-ROM.
PERSI articles can easily be requested from the organization that published the periodical, or through the Allen County Public Library, which retains a copy of the periodicals included in the index for a nominal fee.
The obvious advantage is that you may find your ancestor documented, but even if you don't, you may be able to eliminate a similar family and thus narrow your search. In addition, in many periodicals, the author will share the techniques used to tackle similar problems, and you may learn of a new approach that can help with your problem. It's a win-win-win situation!
PROFILES
Since you are working with a name that is going to belong to many individuals (most of which will undoubtedly have the same first name too if your luck is anything like mine!), we need to find a way to identify them in the crowd. Despite the common name, there are characteristics that can help you determine which John Smith is
yours. Let's look at some common identifiers. Some are no-brainers, but there are a few that I tend to forget sometimes, and when they come together, they can put forth some compelling evidence.
FINDING OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS
One of the toughest lines that I have had to work on has been that of my 3rd great-grandmother, Catherine Kelly. In March 2000, I wrote about her in "Searching for Catherine Kelly in a Sea of Kellys." In a printed reference mentioning one of Catherine's daughters who was a Sister of Charity, we found the name of an aunt, Elizabeth Kelly, who made a donation to this religious order. Since she is listed as single in the 1880 census, this would probably make Elizabeth a sister to Catherine.
Further down the line with her great-grandson, there are some guardianship papers that reference family-owned rental properties at 155 Huntington in Brooklyn. James Kelly, whom family correspondence tells us is an uncle to Catherine's children, is living at that address in the 1880 U.S. Federal Census, and again in later city directories for Brooklyn. His age in the census makes him a candidate for brother of Catherine. So with Catherine, Elizabeth, and James, we have a possible family group beginning to form. It's a start, albeit with very common first names. (I told you my ancestors weren't creative with given names!)
As we trace Elizabeth and James, we hope to find information that will lead to Catherine's parents because Catherine died at age twenty-six and didn't have a chance to create many records. (I am really hoping for this to pan out--I'm getting out of shape from a lack of genealogy happy dances!)
IS IT REALLY SO COMMON?
When you first learn you are descended from Smiths (or Jones, Johnsons, Adams, --insert your cursed name here), you may find yourself looking for an easier pastime--like drawing a map of the world on a pinhead. But don't throw in the towel just yet. Have you actually looked? I have been postponing research on James Kelly because there are just too many Kellys in the New York City area where Catherine was reportedly born, and I didn't feel like wading through all of them, but when I finally did a focused search for him in the AIS Census indexes, I was pleasantly surprised to find that in Kings Co., there were only 2 in 1840, and 17 in New York County. Of course by 1860, there are 34 James Kellys listed in Brooklyn and a whopping 117 in New York County. Ouch! But if I can locate him in 1840 and 1850 when he should first be appearing in the censuses, I may be able to follow his movements and can start looking for other records created in more specific areas. Plus maybe, just maybe (dare I hope?), his parents will be living with him, or near him.
TIME AND PLACE
By now you've probably all become familiar with my love for timelines. This is my favorite way to gather all the concrete information that I have for an individual. I include the events and records I have found for an ancestor, listed in chronological order. In addition, I recently began adding a header of sorts, with facts and stats that may not necessarily be chronological in nature, but are helpful nonetheless, such as religion, occupation, and surnames that may or may not be relevant (witnesses, neighbors, sponsors, guardians, etc.). This makes it easy to locate the important data at a glance.
The timelines make it easy to follow my ancestors' lives and in creating them, I often find things I had previously overlooked, any red flags, and ideas for new avenues to pursue.
SORTING IT OUT
When you are looking for people with common surnames, as daunting a task as it may seem, when you have zeroed in on an area, you will need to collect as much information on the people who share that surname as you can. Once you have collected all the information you can find on the possible suspects, your first instinct may be to run and hide (especially if the piles are leaning towards you!). Not necessary--there are a number of ways to make sense of the mass of seemingly unrelated data you have accumulated.
When it comes to sorting out a hundred or so entries that match your surname, technology can definitely lend a helping hand. Records located, and long lists of hits from databases can be hand entered or copy/pasted into spreadsheets where you can sort them any number of ways. Genealogical programs like Clooz can also help you sort out all the information you have collected and create reports that can help you analyze your findings easily. In her article, "Separating Men of the Same Name," Pat Hatcher discusses a system for sorting out people with the same name using index cards and highlighters.
Whatever method you choose, just take it a step at a time. With a little perseverance, you just may break the curse of the common name.
DATABASES
(Note: Ancestry.com subscriber databases.)
Biography & Genealogy Master Index (BGMI) (ON SALE - see product specials at the end of the newsletter)
Periodical Source Index (PERSI) (ON SALE - see product specials at the end of the newsletter)
Library of Congress 50,000 Bibliographic Sources
Other Biographical & History Resources at Ancestry.com
Reference & Finding Aids at Ancestry.com
RELATED ARTICLES
"Searching for Catherine Kelly in a Sea of Kellys," by Juliana Smith
"Using Dates to Improve Your Research," by Patricia Law Hatcher, CG, FASG Part 1 and Part 2
"Dates: When You Don't Have a Record," by Patricia Law Hatcher, CG, FASG Part 1 and Part 2
"Separating Men of the Same Name,"
by Patricia Law Hatcher, CG, FASG
Juliana Smith is the editor of the "Ancestry Daily News" and author of "The Ancestry Family Historian's Address Book." She has written for "Ancestry" Magazine and "Genealogical Computing." Juliana can be reached by e-mail, but regrets that she is unable to assist with personal research.
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