52 Weeks To Better Genealogy - Challenge #4 Inter-Library Loan

My local library is shown at the left and you can read about it in  Challenge #1. In Challenge #4 our assignment is to, "Learn about your local public library’s inter-library loan (ILL) policy. Pick a genealogy-related book that you want to read that is not in your library’s collection. Ask the librarian how to request the book from another library. Find the different library systems from which you can request books through your own library, as this can dramatically increase the number of genealogy books to which you have access. If you have a genealogy blog, write about your experience with requesting items through your library’s ILL service."

I don't want to be fired because I didn't follow Amy's instructions exactly.  However, there just isn't time or the need for me to get a genealogy book, just for the sake of this challenge.  It is mid-winter which means snow, ice and cold in Massachusetts.  In addition, I have been told processing inter-library loans (ILL) is a very expensive process to deal with; a lot of wrapping, packing and mailing is involved.  Fortunately, they haven't begun to charge patrons, but it may be a reality someday, I heard $5 per request.

Our library belongs to the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium. along with quite a few other libraries (my guess is 30 towns).  That means, if I want a book that isn't in my library but is in one of the other libraries, I can get it rather quickly if it isn't checked out, otherwise, I am on a waiting list.  First, before I even think about ordering a book through ILL, I always check www.worldcat.org to see what libraries have it. Sometimes, you may determine it might not even be available to your library or it just isn't worth the time and effort, if the book is across the country.

In June of 2009, I did a guest blog for Cheryl Palmer Cutting Back on Spending, in which I discuss inter-library loans and Worldcat.

At my library, the inter-library loan requests are processed differently. The order request is sent to another library, where all the requests from the entire consortium are processed. In the past, I have ordered and received two books using this method. One book had to be used at the library under our librarian's eyes. The other I was able to check out.

The books I got were:
1. The Van den Berghs in America by Stockman, R. Grunwell and B. Grunwell, (Lynchburg, VA: Pub. Robert L. Grunwell, 1994) from the Jones Library, Lynchburg, VA and,
2.  Molson, The Birth of a Business Empire by Hunter, Douglas, (Canada: Penguin Books, 2001) it came from Univ. of Maine.

Cemeteries And More #2

Part two of my cemetery series covers more ideas about contacting a cemetery or Historical Society, and then a section about maps. If you live a distance from the cemetery, you want to be armed with the most information available prior to the trek. I like to know some of the history and the exact entrance to the grounds as well as the hours.

Not all cemeteries are privately run, some are abandoned, some are run by the town, some by the government.  Each has their own set of rules and what they share with the public.  Many will freely provide all their records on your ancestor, others charge a steep fee (like Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, DC).  Often you can find a volunteer to do some of the leg work for you.  In the past, if I received something from them, I always wrote a thank-you and enclosed a small token of $10. Always pay them in some way, either dollars or stamps, because you never know if you will need their service again, and they will remember you.  If their work is exceptional and they are employed, write a thank you letter, so it can go in the employee's human resources file (I did that once and even brought the administrative assistant a box of chocolates.)

The next time I need information; I will either call or email a request.  Personally, I like calling best.  Do it mid day, never just before closing.  I'll explain exactly what I am looking for, get right to the point.  Sometimes I'll have a check-list, so I don't forget to ask something.  Often on the phone, I get a little nervous or side tracked, then the call isn't completed in full. I would still do that, especially if it is a Historical Society (those people can be so nice)

A great source for locating historical societies is the book, The Genealogist's Address Book by Elizabeth P. Bentley.  The new 6th edition was published in 2009 and has 809 pages.  I used to own a copy, and referred to it frequently, mine didn't even have email addresses, it was that old.  A page snippet from the new book is below.

I was very lucky when I wrote to the Colchester Historical Society in Connecticut, because a volunteer drew up a perfect map showing where my ancestors were buried. This map is something I have been wanting to share for a long time.  What I received was 14" x 17" in size!

Sometimes a larger cemetery will have a pamphlet with a map inside. What a blessing, when I discovered my ancestor listed on the map! Locating him could not have been easier.

My ancestor is # 59

Example of a pamphlet.

Cemeteries And More #1

Several months ago I posted my Cemetery List in a Google Spreadsheet and explained I was going to enter all the names and photos into the Find-A-Grave database.  As I began going through the huge pile of 10 year old photos (none digital), I realized there were some tidbits I could share regarding cemetery research.  The photo at the left was taken last month in the main reading room of the Boston Public Library.  I went there to get the correct title of a cemetery book, listed below.

Before going to any cemetery, especially if it involves some travel, you should do your homework first.  There are several ways.  The most important thing is, you need to is there a cemetery in the area you are interested in.  Of course if you have the name and phone number, call the cemetery to determine what records they have, if there is a flyer or leaflet of their cemetery and if there is a map. (Part 2 will cover this.)  Ok, how does somebody find out their address, phone number and what cemeteries may be in the ancestor's town?  Here are my methods; use the internet and use books.

One of the quickest and least expensive way to get a listing of burials is by using the internet.  A simple google search using key words such as Cemetery + name of town.  You do not even need to know the name of the cemetery.  An example is using the words "cemetery" + "Enosburgh Falls"  A great listing of all those buried there appears in the Main Street Cemetery.  I have used this list many times since 2004.

Those using the internet, you can locate cemeteries, and photos from the last three sources:
Cyndi's List  Cyndislist
The popular FindAGrave (begun in 1995)  41 million records now online.
I also like A Very Grave Matter (since before 2003)
For Quebec, Canada and the United States I like Interment.net  (begun in 1998)

There are some excellent books that list cemeteries. The ones I especially like are:
1.  Cemeteries of the U.S. : a guide to contact information for U.S. cemeteries and their records is a wonderful resource, as it lists more than 22,600 currently operating or inactive cemeteries in the United States and its territories, and major military cemeteries in foreign countries. Provides the cemetery's address, contact information, former names, years of operation, affiliation, records location, historical notes, and references to publications concerning that cemetery.  There are more than 1,000 pages and it is quite heavy.  When I first found out about it, it was only available in my area at the Boston Public Library.  I made many copies of various cemetery locations (copy below gives you an idea of what is on a page).  It has been a good eight years since I last used the book.  So, on December 29th when I went to the Library to get the correct title, and other information, there it was, right where it had been 10 years before, like it was waiting for me.  It was sharing a low shelf with three other over-sized books.  Glad some things never change.

If you want to locate the above book through www.worldcat.org you have two options, when the title appears, you can select either the editor Deborah M. Burek or the publisher, Gale Research.  Check out both to see where the nearest library is to you.  This appears to be a case in which the librarians didn't know how to categorize it.

Example page for Vermont

2.  A Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries by David Allen Lambert, published 2002 by the New England Historic Genealogical Society.  Since I have many Massachusetts ancestors, I use this book a lot.  David signed my copy, and I have #98 from his first printing, so it is already nine years old.  There is a nice index included in the 272 pages.  There is now a revised edition.

3.  A Guide to Cemeteries in Essex County Massachusetts by the Essex Society of Genealogists.  The book has 136 pages, a map for each town with cemetery markers and information about the cemetery.  This is a must for those with ancestors in Essex County.  This guide can be ordered from the Society Form for Cemetery Book.

In closing, try to do as much homework before you go to a cemetery, especially if you are going to travel a distance.  What a nice feeling to easily locate the cemetery and then walk directly to the grave.  Tomorrow I will continue with Part 2.

Leaving the Boston Public Library.

Tombstone Tuesday - Stephen Daniels. Salem, Massachusetts

Stephen Daniels

Born:  Abt. 1798, (bp. Oct. 17, 1798), Salem, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Died: August 06, 1872, Salem, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Stephen and his wife, Abigail Floyd were my 3rd great-grandparents.

Abigail Floyd

Born: June 16, 1798, Danvers, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Died: July 03, 1854, Salem, Essex Co., Massachusetts

They are buried at Harmony Grove Cemetery in Salem, Massachusetts.

Note:  The top photo was entered into Find-A-Grave .

See my Six Lines of Stephen Daniels in Massachusetts blog.

Monday Madness - Blogging and Google Alerts - A Great Combination?

Can't have it both ways.  That is what I am finding out.  I love blogging and Google Alerts, but on some days I just don't.

I use Google Alerts for several surnames, with the word obituary, as well as certain town names.  In addition, I use my name + blog.  As a result, just about every day there is a listing of alerts with my name.  Often it is for my blog, but sometimes for another blog owned by another Barbara Poole.  So far, I have determined there are three other Barbara Pooles with blogs.  I decided to list them below, and maybe some day down the road, I will write each of them to see if they are interested in the Poole genealogy, as in my genealogy.  Quite possibly they are using their husband's surname, but maybe they are like me, in that I don't use my husband's name.  Barbara Poole blogs I've discovered are:

http://employaidblog.com/

http://barbarapoole.blogspot.com/ (Boston artist who lives in my area.)

http://www.bfelt.com/ Lots about felt...it is her business.

Readers have also contacted me, perhaps because of Google Alerts. In my Can't Get to a Conference? blog, I received a very nice comment from a well-known Certified Genealogist, actually the one mentioned in the article (I am not mentioning her name again, because I don't want this to show up in Google Alerts on her computer).  If you go to the link, you will see her comment.  Another instance, my blog showed up because of their Google Alert when I posted 52 Weeks to Better Genealogy Challenge #1 a blog about my local library, the reference librarian wrote me.

Now the madness.  It isn't that I don't like Google Alerts, I do, as a matter of fact I love them.  What I don't like are the fact that often my comments show up.  I am still a little naive in that I think a comment to so and so, is pretty much private, except other bloggers can view them.  But the whole world, that I don't want.  I've been pretty careful about what I write recently.  When I first discovered this happens was about four years ago, when I was commenting a lot on Steve Danko's site.  I had him remove my last name.  Later I changed my mind, now I am rethinking that again.

An example is what I replied to Earline Hines Bradt of Ancestral Notes on November 16, 2009, my comment to her showed up in a Google search with my name + blog.  "Earline, Congratulations, I read your blog every time you write, and you deserve the award. Also, .............."

Nope, I don't like that, that the world can see my comments.

Six Lines of Stephen Daniels in Massachusetts

Stephen Daniels seems to be everywhere in my family...for six (6) straight generations.  The name applies to all my direct lines and they are from the same area in Massachusetts.  Fortunately, for me, Essex County has excellent records, plus I have visited two cemeteries where they are buried.  There is a Stephen Daniels House, now a bed and breakfast located at 1 Daniels Street in Salem. A reviewer wrote, "This lovely 300-year-old captain's house is one of the few three-story homes of this vintage still intact. Two large walk-in fireplaces grace the common rooms, and each guest room includes antique furnishings, a canopy bed and a wood-burning fireplace." I have been by it, but not in it.

My six-generation genealogy for Stephen will open to a Google doc in pdf format.

The vital records from which I obtained my birth, marriage and death records are in the six volume set for Salem, Massachusetts, sometimes known as the tan books.  Although if you look at the picture at the left, taken at my local library, you can see that many are now being rebound in orange.


Last week, I posted a cemetery stone photo of my first Steven Daniel, who died February 14, 1686/87.  This coming Tuesday there will be another cemetery stone photo for my 6th Steven Daniels.  I know where three others are buried, because of records, but haven't been able to locate their stones.  And for one, I have no idea where he is buried.


From Google books, I'm displaying a page from one of the Vital Record books for Salem, showing several  Stephen Daniel names spelled various ways, such as Steephen, and Daniell and Daniels.
Another great online source, The History of Salem, Massachusetts by Sidney Perley has a nice genealogy. Images below.

Cemeteries - Check for Footstones

Sometimes, a footstone is far easier to read than a headstone. It usually contains just the first and last names. These small stones are in addition to the headstones. Most times, when I roam a cemetery, I tend to run all around looking at the large stones. Two of the photos show perfectly engraved footstones. Not that the headstones were damaged, they were just in the shade, so my camera shot didn't capture what was written. I do know that their headstones could be read, because a quick peak at Find-A-Grave showed great pictures taken by somebody else.  That being said, many times old headstones are in very bad shape, either broken, inscription worn due to weather or completely missing.

Often if you just take a photo head on, to get the inscription, you might not even be aware that there is a footstone. Always look behind the headstone, about 5' or so to see if there is a footstone.

Early New England cemeteries have a lot of footstones, so we are quite lucky.  These footstone illustrations are located at Cambridge, MA, across the street from Harvard University.

The photo below give you an idea of what a headstone and footstone look like taken together.  It was posted on Tuesday, for my Steven Daniel.  There is a separate photo of the footstone, but I was wondering if everybody knew what it was.  (The headstone is in the front middle, and the small footstone is behind.)  And a perfect example of a headstone that was damaged.

Tombstone Tuesday - Steven Daniel, Charter Street Cemetery, Salem, Essex Co., MA

Steven Daniel buried at Charter Street Cemetery, Salem, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Born:  Abt. 1632

Died:  February 14, 1686/87 at Salem, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Steven Daniel and his wife, Mary Prince were my 8th great-grandparents

Footstone for Steven Daniel

The lower middle part of this photo shows the tombstone and footstone.

See my Six Lines of Stephen Daniels in Massachusetts blog

"Cemeteries in Crisis"

It is hard to believe that this family cemetery of mine (on the left), The Ten Eyck Cemetery, couldn't be located until recently.  I took this photo in 1999, and it is located in an apple orchard, on private land (once belonged to my ancestors of over 200 years ago).


The cemetery is located in an area called The Eastern Townships in Quebec, just over the Vermont border.  My ancestors all spoke English and now, both English and French is spoken.


There has been quite a bit of correspondence the past few days between me and both the archivist and curator of  the The Missisquoi Musuem and Historical Society.  Last week, I posted an article about my ancestor's Revolutionary War Redcoat and then about the new Canadian stamp.  In an email, Heather, the curator wrote me stating, "There has been some good news on the Ten Eyck site as we have actually found it again. The fact still remains however that it is an abandoned site and at the moment as far as I know, it has no caretaker or funds to maintain it. Judy (the archivist) and I plan to go into it this summer and photograph each stone and update the information we have that was recorded in the 1970s. The Ten Eyck site is just a classic example of what is happening all over the Townships. At least it has be re-discovered and will be marked on our maps."


Since I took individual photos, and had them enlarged to the 8" x 10" size, I wrote back stating that I would be sending them to her.  I have to wonder, if I am the only one to have ever taken photos there.


Heather wrote an article on January 18, 2009, how appropriate, a year ago today Missisquoi: Cemeteries in Crisis.  I am so fortunate to have seen her article the other day.  All of us who love cemeteries know about these problems.  Since the article is rather long, I've decided to select several paragraphs to share.


For a number of years, the Missisquoi Historical Society in Stanbridge East has been looking after a number of “orphaned cemeteries” in what was once known as Missisquoi County. The society has provided basic maintenance – essentially regular grass mowing -- at no fewer than seventeen pioneer burial grounds. Most of these sites date back to the early 1800s when the first settlers were arriving in this part of Quebec. A number of these sites suffered neglect over the years before being taken under our wing. Some of them are on private property; title to others is sketchy at best.


Quite a few sites were located on private land. Here again, some landowners were willing to give us permission to visit the site, while others could not be reached. Of course, the fact that a cemetery is located on private land does not mean that it is looked after. The Wing burial ground, which is found in an apple orchard, is ignored by the landowner. The Ten Eyck site, in another orchard, has likely been destroyed."

Sentimental Sunday - A Very Belated Tribute

My mother told me about 20 years ago, that Margaret, my 1st cousin once removed, was very involved in our family genealogy.  The letter shown, was from Margaret to me at the time I was beginning to do research on my Canadian line. What a sweet letter and I received a nice packet of information.  But..I never wrote back!  (I believe her writing is quite readable, so I am not transcribing it.)


It wasn't until the early winter of 1998 that I contacted her by phone, only to hear her tell me that she was moving into a retirement home soon, and had donated all her genealogy material and old family possessions to the Missisquoi Historical Society (Quebec, Canada).  I was pretty upset with myself for not keeping up with the correspondence and also for not visiting her.  Winter came and went, then in the summer, a friend from my genealogy club went to Brome, Sutton, Canada to visit her, on my behalf.  Several months later, my husband and I made the trip and by then, it wasn't the time to discuss genealogy!  She passed a way 1 1/2 yrs. after my visit.  This was a valuable lesson to learn.  Don't wait, don't put off and any of those other don'ts when it comes to people.  I can't wait to chat with her when I get to heaven; I think we will be best buddies.


From The Loyalist Gazette, "At this meeting a memorial tribute was paid to the late Margaret Doherty Ellis, a founding member of our Branch, who passed away on 11 March 2001. She was a descendant of Loyalist Andrew Ten Eyck, one of the original land grantees in the Township of Dunham, the first township to be granted in the Eastern Townships of Quebec in 1796. She will be greatly missed and always remembered by our Branch."