cph 3a36056 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a36056 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.prin

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student

The United States has a long history of religious immigration.  As a country known for its religious tolerance and the ability for people to practice freely appeals to many.  Talking to other researchers many tell me the religions they think of with immigration tend to be those associated with Eastern European immigrants such as Judaism and Eastern-Rite religions.  However, there were other non-Christian religions that also immigrated.  These are all touched on in the U.S. Religious Records Part 2 course .

After the Civil War through to about 1910 over 20 million people immigrated to the US.  That is a significant number of people when you realize that the US population at the close of the war was a bit over 30 million.  Immigrants had an extreme impact on the US in all aspects, it would have been impossible not to.

Jewish immigrants were one of the largest communities that came over.  Module 5 of this course  covers Judaism.  The instructor not only covers the different forms but gives an extensive timeline and resources list for those who are researching Jewish ancestors.  In college I took a course titled “The 3 Abrahamic Religions” which covered Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.  Let’s say that was a long time ago and while I still have a basic understanding I was happy to put some pieces together in my head for genealogy research.

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By Shannon Bennett, Student

US Religious Records Part 1 was a bit mind-blowing for me.  Let me explain why, because it might not seem like it should have been.  Let’s start with the fact that my parents are not religious and my grandparents were not either.  In fact, only a couple of my great-grandparents even attended church regularly.  It’s just not a thing in my family.  While some people find that odd, it was a decision made a long time ago that I never really thought about.

National Cathedral. Official standard prayer book of America, 1892. Library of Congress LC-H814-T-C04-249

I know that basic tenants of major religions.  My parents felt it was important for me to experience and learn as much as I wanted or could. They didn’t want to force religion on me but thought something that important was my decision.

It’s not like I have never gone to church, I have, but it was always as an intrigued outsider looking in.  When I was in elementary school my best friend was Jewish and the two of us would spend hours talking about Christianity vs Judaism much to the displeasure of her mom.

Just because religion isn’t a part of my life doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a part of my ancestors’ lives.  Which is why I was excited to take this course.  The three courses I took in religious studies at University helped lay a lot of historical basis for me, but of course they didn’t prepare me for what I need to know as a genealogist.

Records, documents, memoirs and so much more are waiting for us in these religious records.  Since a majority are not digitized this is a great example of how there could be information just waiting for us out there.  Waiting for us in a room and the only way we can break down our wall is to go there.  Sounds like a lot of fun to me!

Don’t be misled that this was easy.  There was a lot of information and I know this is only part 1 of 2 so there is more coming.  It makes me anxious to start the next section.  Wonder what I will learn in those pages?

See you online!

By Shannon Bennett, Student

Ah, Presbyterians, finally the module in US Religious Records Part 1 near and dear to my husband’s family .  I shouldn’t  leave out the Methodists though because that was one whole branch of my grandmother’s family.  Unfortunately, even though I found Module 6 fascinating, so far I don’t have any connections to the Amish or Mennonite sects.  From a historical perspective though (and culturally since I grew up in an area full of Amish and Mennonites) it was a great section to read.

Half-tone reproduction of drawing by G.W. Peters in “Among the Dunkers,” Scribner’s Nov. 1901. Library of Congress. LC-USZ62-54917

Since I knew almost nothing about what the instructor called the “minority sects in colonial America” I was very excited to read Module 6.  Of course I know who the Mennonites and the Amish are.  I mean, anyone growing up in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and a few other adjacent states know who these people are.  Those communities always fascinated me growing up in a rural Indiana.

At this point I could go on and on about the horse drawn buggies on Main Street, watching the families work their farms as we drove by, or the Mennonite children I went to grade school with.  Even though I knew who they were and the basic premise behind why they looked different than myself, I didn’t really know why they were different.

Reading about those two sects as well as who the Moravians, Huguenots and Brethren were was enlightening.  The Huguenots were familiar to me from history classes and my Virginia research.  There was a colony of Huguenots at Manakin in Henrico County.

I couldn’t help but be moved by the way they overcame the forms of persecution inflicted on them.  It makes perfect sense that they would flee to the American colonies, particularly ones that tolerated other religious beliefs. While they may have started small here these communities grew and in some cases prospered into the 20^th century.

An interesting fact I did not know was that the Moravian Church encouraged members to write memoirs about their life and church service.  If you have an ancestor who was a member you may have a wonderful document waiting for you!  According to the instructor these memoirs are similar to eulogies, and  were either written by the person or by the minister after the person had died.  Makes me want to have an ancestor in the Moravian Church!

Off to take my exam. See you online!

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student

Well color me surprised but there was more than one religion in the next two modules of US Religious Records – Part 1 that my family could have been. My Virginia lines were most likely Anglican and Episcopal. Plus, since I had ancestors in New Netherland I paid particular attention to the sections on the Dutch Reformed Churches. Now, that is not to say I didn’t learn a lot about the Lutherans, Unitarians, and the Quakers because I did. Plus I bet one of these days I will find those religions in my tree too.

Trinity Church, New York, New York. Photo taken by Shannon Combs-Bennett. Used with permission

Since I do quite a bit of Virginia research because I, well, live in Virginia I really tried to internalize the information presented in the course.  I learned that the Anglican Church, whose roots are with the Church of England, was the colony’s official church written into the incorporation papers. It was also fascinating to read how the Methodist Church formed out of the Anglican and Episcopal Churches. I knew there was a connection but did not know how it began.

Thankfully for me, a lot of the Virginia church records are just down the road in Richmond at the Library of Virginia. In my future, I see another recordset that I will need to investigate for my distant relations. Genealogy road trips are always so much fun.

Then there were the Reformed Churches. Ever since I learned that I had ancestors in the New Netherland’s colony I have read and studied as much as I can about it. It became a near obsession. Most likely because they were different from the colonial English, German, and Irish ancestors that are the bulk of my family tree.

According to our course the Dutch Reformed Church was the official church of the colony. It was interesting that even though they had an official church they welcomed all religions into their colony.  Even after the English took control the church still has a presence which makes me hopefully I may find records.  Oh, and I learned I need to check out the Holland Society of New York since they seem to have the largest collection of records on this topic.

Needless to say, these two modules were very enlightening and I enjoyed every minute of it. Sometimes courses like this make me sad that I never finished that Religious Studies minor in college. It sure would have come in handy with my new chosen field!

See you online!!