Courses

Homestead Records

Homestead Records

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student Well we finally got the subject I really wanted to learn more about.  Yep, homestead records!  They are one of those little known record sets that make people want to *face palm* after they realize they should have looked there years ago. Thankfully for those of us who don’t know a lot about these records, our instructor spends a few pages on the history of homesteading.  I did not know that the pre-cursor to the Homestead Act of 1862 was the 1841 Preemption Act.  This act allowed people who were squatting on land prior to it being surveyed by the federal government  to purchase it from the government before it went up for public sale.  The act gave settlers the peace of mind that if they were on a piece of land before surveying was done they could eventually own the title to it. Alternatively, the Homestead Act allowed people to receive a piece of public land for free as long as they met certain criteria.  They had to: Be over 21 years of age, the head of the household, or a widow / deserted wife Own less than 160 acres of land Either a citizen of the U.S or have an official declaration filed to become a citizen Never fought again the U.S. or aided their enemies To keep the land they had to cultivate and improve it for 5 years

Why US Land Records ?

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student Why should you use land records?  It’s a great question.  Do you have an answer?  In my intro post to the US Land Records course, I talked about why I like land records, but those are not the only reasons.  So, what makes them so special? I was very excited when our instructor, Kyle J. Betit, covered this topic in the first module.  His points were valid and if you are still not sure that you want to take a course about boring old land records hang on.  Simply, once you determine if your ancestor could have owned land your research will take off.  As with all government agencies there is a paper trail that follows land records. Let me share a few things you could uncover in those papers: Discover unknown family relationships Information on immigration and naturalization Social status in the community Migration pattern across the US Occupations That is an abbreviated list but I am sure you can see how this information can aid your research.  Particularly in places where vital records are non-existent and any information you discover is amazing.  However, you need to understand the process, the documents which were created, as well as what is still extant today.

New Course: Italian: Civil Registration-Part 1

Have Italian roots? Then you’ll want to check out our newest course, Italian: Civil Registration-Part 1. Written by professional genealogist and Italian research expert Melanie D. Holtz, CG this course looks at civil registration, one of the largest and most important record sets in Italian genealogical research. In this course, you will delve deeper into three main types of records: birth records [both regular and supplemental], marriage records [including marriage banns and marriage supplements], and death records [both regular and supplemental]. Each type of record has different challenges as well as differences in format depending on the time period and/or location of its creation within Italy. You will also delve more deeply into translating and abstracting these documents so that you can understand more fully how to find every piece of genealogically useful information they contain. You will learn how to spot discrepancies and information contained that is over and above what is generally given. Understanding the documents is the heart of the course and there will be much study required of the example documents. For those interested in registering for this course, you should have previously completed the courses, Italian: Introduction to Research Outside of Italy and Italian: Language and Location, or have a good understanding of the content of those courses, before commencing this course. Italian: Civil Registration-Part 1 begins in March. Register for it today!

Irish: Testamentary Source Records

By Debbie Dale, Student The Irish: Testamentary Source Records course is short; only four modules are included. In fact, it is the shortest course I have ever taken through the National Institute for Genealogical Studies, yet each module is packed with information. But first, a couple of sad but helpful facts about testamentary records: The majority of testamentary records (wills, administrations, probates) were destroyed in the Public Record Office fire of 1922, but not all of them and indices and abstracts created before 1922, such as Betham’s abstracts can be found. The “Index of Irish Wills 1484-1858,” for example, can now be accessed through the subscription website Findmypast and the National Archives of Ireland offers a digitized collection called “Calendars of Wills and Administrations 1858 – 1920.” One should also check the PRONI (the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland). Although the majority of wills were left by men who owned property, the wills of spinsters and widows make up a significant minority. These may be surprisingly rich in genealogy, listing numerous family members, including nephews and nieces.  After the Married Women’s Property Act 1882, married women could legally create wills. Now for a quick rundown of course material and assignments: Module 1 of the Irish: Testamentary Source Records course defines wills and last testaments, their types, purpose and importance. It offers common terms used with wills and administrations as well as common elements that exist in every will. Module 2 talks about the advantages and disadvantages of using civil court records.…

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Introduction: US Land Records

You have heard me say this about all sort of things, but bear with me. Land records are awesome and full of hidden information! There, now that I have said that let’s talk about why I am excited to take the course US Land Records. Yes, if you couldn’t tell, I have looked at and poked through land records in the past. I admit that I don’t know everything about them which is why I am looking forward to this course. Hopefully it will fill in any holes in my knowledge base and then I will wring more information out of them in the future. As usual the syllabus is very extensive. I like that the first week looks like it will be all history, definitions, strategies for searching, and essentially a base to build  from. From there the course takes us through colonial land records, grants, homesteading, deeds, and it ends with a state-by-state resources section. A lot of information, but information a good researcher needs to know. For me land records come in handy because  my ancestors hail from various burned counties. When a researcher deals with courthouses that had a disaster occur (natural or man-made) you become a pro at locating alternative record sets to investigate. Land records for me have been a go-to record set when I try to reconstruct a family or area.