Madison
County Genealogical Society
Minutes of the Meeting - January 8, 2015
The January 2015 meeting of the Madison
County Genealogical Society was held at the Edwardsville Public Library on
Thursday, January 8, at 7:00 pm.
President, Robert Ridenour, called the
meeting to order.
GIFT
MEMBERSHIPS AVAILABLE
Do you have a family member that is
interested in (or even obsessed with) genealogy? A membership in the Madison
County Genealogical Society would be a very thoughtful gift. A gift card will
be sent to the recipient of any gift membership.
The following memberships are available:
Individual/Family Annual Membership $20.00
Patron Annual Membership $30.00
Life Membership $250.00
Contact our Secretary, Petie Hunter, at petie8135@att.net,
about a gift membership.
January
Meeting
On January 8, 2015, local historian and
author, Cindy Reinhardt, presented a program titled Hometown News: Local Newspapers and How They Can Assist
in Your Search for Family. Cindy's recent publications include 150 Years of
Hometown News celebrating the sesquicentennial of the Edwardsville
[Illinois] Intelligencer. She used examples of stories found while editing her
book for the Intelligencer to show how newspapers could provide tips for
genealogists.
Cindy started looking at newspapers for genealogical information 40 years ago.
She was hooked when she found the story of her great grandfather who was shot
in the back on his way home from a night of playing poker. The newspaper called
it "the most dastardly deed ever perpetuated in Jo Davies County."
There is a lot of information to be found in newspapers. For example: news of
members of the military or the flu epidemic of 1918. Data about the flu
epidemic in Madison County [Illinois] was incredible in the amount of
information available: they closed schools, churches, and other public
gathering places. They printed lists of people who were ill and lists of people
who died. Over 500 people died in Madison County in a three-month period.
Perhaps one of them was your ancestor.
Cindy says she always checks newspapers first for Hatches, Matches, and
Dispatches (Births or Baptisms; Engagements, Weddings, and Anniversaries;
Obituaries). These are very important for genealogists.
Obituaries consist of more than a name and dates of birth and death. Other
items you might find are: nicknames; date and place of marriage; names of
spouse, parents, children, in-laws, siblings, and other relatives; occupation, education,
social groups, military experience; religious denomination; name of cemetery;
family history details and clues.
Early obituaries were brief, but circa 1890 became longer with the awareness
that these articles sold newspapers. Circa 1930 obituaries became more uniform
in size and style. Today most newspapers charge to run obituaries. Families are
allowed to write them in their preferred style.
Birth or baptism announcements may provide more information than a birth
certificate. You may find: the child's name, gender, birth date and location;
full names of both parents; mother's maiden name; names of grandparents and
where they are from (sometimes great-grandparents also); and names of siblings.
Announcements of engagements, weddings, and anniversaries contain valuable
information: full names of the bride and groom, date and place of marriage,
full names and hometowns of the couple's parents, extended family members of
the bride and groom, biographical information of the bride and groom, photographs
of the bride or the couple. Anniversary announcements would also contain names
of children, family history, and more.
Other types of information that can be found in newspapers include: business
and religious information, church news, legal notices and real estate
transactions, details of social life, insight into the time period, and
surprises.
Names are used in describing businesses in advertisements and articles. This is
both a blessing and accurse for researchers. A search for an ancestor's name can
return a large number of hits. You must sift through this data carefully.
Articles about church activities often
contain the names of participants: prayer groups, fundraising committees,
church councils, confirmation classes, and more.
Legal notices can provide valuable
information: recent real estate transactions, property assessment lists,
articles about individual real estate transactions, notices of divorces,
"Not Responsible for Debts" notices, court activities including lists
of jurors, lists of registered voters (especially early newspapers), probate
court records, and change of name notices.
Local briefs and gossip columns give details of peoples' social life. Early
newspapers told who was visiting who and often gave addresses and identified
family relationships. Social events tell us what a person was like. Did they
play cards, visit the theatre, travel, visit relatives, hold parties? What were
their political affiliations?
Insights into the time period can help
flesh out the lives of your ancestors. Examples include: news of wars, draft
notices, casualty lists, news from the front, military reunions; news of
epidemics; surviving the Great Depression; recreational pursuits; religious and
patriotic fever; economic factors, hardships, and celebration.
Some of the information found about your ancestors in newspapers may surprise
you. For example: house histories when built, by whom, for whom, and at what
cost; orphan train children; family reunion notices; accidents and tragedies;
scandals and crimes; heroic deeds; photographs; and sketches.
Where should you look for local newspapers in the Madison County, Illinois,
area? Some of the local newspapers are digitized: Alton, Edwardsville, Troy,
and East St. Louis newspapers are available free at libraries or through
on-line subscriptions. The St. Louis Post Dispatch is available at SIUE Lovejoy
Library. The St. Louis Globe Democrat index and clippings are available at
Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri in St. Louis.
Non-digitized local newspapers are available on microfilm from the local
libraries in Collinsville, Granite City, and Highland. The WPA file of indexed
local newspapers are available in Alton at Hayner Genealogical Library, the
Edwardsville Intelligencer at Madison County Historical Society Archival
Library, and Belleville newspapers at the Belleville Public Library.
The Ancestor Hunt website <www.theancestorhunt.com> has lists of resource
available free or through paid subscription in almost every state and in many
foreign countries.
Tips for
Searching
* Search under correct spelling as well as likely misspellings and nicknames
* Search under common abbreviations such as "Wm" for
"William" or "Hy" for "Henry"
* For women, search under their husband's name too.
* Use key words, dates, and locations to narrow your search
* Check the days preceding and following obituaries and wedding notices. There
are often additional articles.
* Remember that there are gaps in the dates available, and not all newspapers
are digitized.
* Look for notices outside the area where your relatives live. Announcements
were often published in the hometown of other relatives or in areas where the
family lived previously.
Organizing Digital
Articles
One method would be to create a newspaper folder on your computer, with
sub-files for various newspapers and each article labeled with date, newspaper
name, and a brief description.
Example: News 1906 Jul 30 EI Obituary Thomas McCune
Many libraries have microfilm scanners that allow viewers to save digital
copies of the articles they need as PDF or as JPEG files depending on future
use. JPEGs are more flexible for publications.
Organizing
Non-Digital Articles
This procedure depends on individual needs. Articles can be organized by date
in binders with the articles indexed in a separate document so they can located
when needed.
Articles can also be organized in files by person, but one should remember that
an obituary will contain information about many people in addition to the
deceased.
Ms. Reinhardt closed by requesting that, as genealogists, we support
newspapers. "Newspapers cover many important aspects of the community:
city council meetings, school board activities, milestones, achievements,
sports, and personal stories. They also serve as a community watchdog and they
tell the story of our lives in a way no other medium can.
As a historian, I want to encourage you to all subscribe to a newspaper, either
paper or a PAID on-line subscription. If we do not support newspapers, then
someday they will be gone. Besides getting a good product, you will be saving
the history of your town for future generations."
This presentation was well attended,
very well received, and produced several questions and comments from the
audience.