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Using Land Records for Genealogical Research

October 25, 2024

Land records are often underutilized by genealogists. We tend to think of them as dry legal documents that don’t contain much useful genealogical information. I used to feel that way myself, but some major brick wall breakthroughs based on land records have changed my mind.

 

Land was a major reason that emigrants came to America. In Europe, aristocratic families owned most of the land. Tenant farming was the norm. People of lesser means had little opportunity to own their own houses and farms. America was the land of opportunity simply because nearly everyone could eventually own land. In the 1800s nearly 90% of free men owned land.

 

Because so many people owned land in America, deeds and other land-associated documents are plentiful. These land records were also often the first records kept in a new area as it was settled. In most parts of the United States, land records were kept at the county level. The records are readily available either online or at the county courthouse of the applicable county.

 

If you enjoy traveling, visiting county courthouses and perusing the county deed books is a great way to find out about your family.  Alternatively, I have found that the Family Search website offers deeds from most counties throughout the U.S. Family Search is free and easily searched from home. Use a place search to find out what records are available for various locations.

 

Many deeds are viewable on the Family Search website. However, some deeds will not be available from home but will be accessible at a local FamilySearch Center. You can find nearby Centers by searching the Family Search website. Hours and locations are indicated, and there is no charge to use any of the FamilySearch Centers.

 

Deeds can provide many clues about your family. At a minimum they will locate an ancestor at a specific location and time. Family relationships may be implied or even specified. Sometimes prior places of residence are given. Before 1850 deeds are also one of the only records which list the first name of a wife.

 

Sometimes land records can even break longstanding brick walls. One of my husband’s lines hit a dead end at his second great grandfather, Enos Stetser. None of the records I found gave any indication of Enos’ parents’ names. Enos spent his life in Gloucester County, New Jersey. Even though land records are sometimes complex, I eventually checked on deeds for Enos.

 

I immediately found a deed for land that Enos was selling. The deed stated that Enos was selling the piece of land and that he was entitled to make the transaction because he was the rightful owner. Enos had inherited the land from his father who’d inherited it from his wife. She had inherited it from her father. The list continued through Enos’ family line for four generations. Each former owner’s full name was given. The women’s maiden names were even included. My husband’s line suddenly was extended to the early 1700s.

 

I’ve since found other deeds with similar listings of the prior owners of plots of land. These kinds of deeds seem to be more common in colonial and early American eras. They are also more common for areas where the metes and bounds system of land surveying was used. Metes and bounds were used primarily in the first thirteen states and states derived from them such as Maine and Vermont.

 

If you’re not using land records, you’re missing a great genealogical resource. Although land records can be complicated, they’re worth the extra effort. They can sometimes open up lineages for which records are found nowhere else.

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society

 

 

Civil Registration Substitutes

October 18, 2024

As I discussed last week, governmental vital records such as birth, marriage and death are important to building a family tree. Unfortunately, they’re often unavailable. In the United States these records have only been kept for the last century or so. Fortunately, for earlier ancestors, there are other records that can substitute for civil registration vital records.

 

Church records are an important source of birth, marriage and death information. They were often kept hundreds of years before civil registration began. Many countries had a state church which everyone was required to join. Most state churches kept records of the church rites performed surrounding birth, marriage and death. Be aware that the records sometimes include baptism and burial dates but not the actual date of birth or death.

 

For many countries, including most of Europe, church records are the primary source of genealogical information. The United States has never had a state church, and religious tolerance has been a feature of our culture. Because of this, finding an ancestor’s church records can be hit or miss. Some churches kept good vital records for members; others did not. Quakers, for example, kept comprehensive records. Most of their records are available online now.

 

Even if churches kept vital records, their records are not always easily accessible. Unlike European church records, there is no centralized source for their American counterparts. It is often necessary to contact an individual church or a church’s archives to obtain records. Some religions prohibit access to their records.

 

Newspapers are another source of vital records. In earlier eras, birth announcements, wedding announcements and obituaries were common. Small town newspapers printed these kinds of articles for almost everyone. Larger cities may have confined their coverage to more prominent people.

 

Many newspapers are now digitized. Subscription websites such as Newspapers.com, Newspaper Archives and Genealogy Bank have widespread newspaper coverage throughout the United States as well as some from other countries. Free sites such as the Library of Congress’ Chronicling America and states’ digital newspaper projects also contain a wealth of newspaper titles.

 

Finally, cemetery records can be another substitute for civil registration records. Headstones often contain both birth and death dates. Further information can sometimes be found in cemetery files.

 

In addition, online cemetery databases such as Billion Graves and Find a Grave are a good source of vital information. Their ability to link generations together can help flesh out a family tree.

 

Birth, death and marriage certificates are important genealogical records. They should be sought for any ancestor wherever available. When they are not available, other records can help fill in the blanks.

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society

 

 

Vital Records – Trickier to Obtain than you Thought

October 11, 2024

Vital records – birth, marriage and death information – are the roots of any family tree. Beginning genealogists often assume that finding these records will be as simple as ordering certificates from a state or county health department.

 

For some ancestors, ordering those kinds of records can be that simple. For many
other ancestors, it won’t be.

 

In most places in the United States, governmental vital records have only been kept since the beginning of the twentieth century. For example, birth and death certificates have only been required since 1908 in Colorado. Early compliance was spotty, and many parts of the state did not require these certificates until about 1920.

 

Many other states have similar time frames for birth and death certificates, although some eastern and midwestern states did require them as early as the last decades of the nineteenth century. Most of our ancestors will have lived before these records were kept.

 

In some states it’s possible to order records for almost anyone during the relevant years. However, some states, including Colorado, do not consider these records public. They are only available to those who are deemed eligible, which usually means only records for direct ancestors such as parents and grandparents. Records for other relatives are private.

 

Marriage records are kept at the county level in most states. They were also kept earlier than birth and death records because the government considered marriage a public covenant whereby land or other property was exchanged. Many marriage records are public, but some states consider them private. Colorado marriage records are not public and can only be accessed by eligible people such as direct descendants and named participants in the ceremony.

 

Vital records in countries outside the U.S. are sometimes easier to obtain. European countries often started keeping these records earlier than the U.S. England, for example, began requiring birth, death and marriage records in 1837. These records are indexed, and anyone can order a copy. Other countries in Europe such as Scandinavia had state churches which were tasked with keeping vital records. These records are easily accessed online and can go back as far as the 1600s.

 

Another reason that vital record certificates can be difficult to obtain is cost. Copies of birth and death certificates cost $20 each from the State of Colorado. Prices vary throughout the states, but $25 or more is standard. Expedited service will add a premium to that price. Overseas records are priced similarly.

 

Governmental vital records are an important source of genealogical information, but they won’t be available for every ancestor. In general, they will be most available for those ancestors who lived and died in the later nineteenth and earlier twentieth century. To find out what records might be available for a specific state or country, a visit to the Family Search Wiki at https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Main_Page is usually a good first step. The website is free and gives practical information about ordering these valuable records.

 

Other records can fill in for vital records certificates. Next week I’ll discuss some of these other sources of birth, marriage, and death information.

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society