Month: November 2012

Dating Old Family Photographs with Civil War Revenue Stamps

By Mary Harrell-Sesniak on November 14, 2012

Introduction: In this article, Mary Harrell-Sesniak shows how to determine the date of undated, Civil War-era family photographs using revenue stamps affixed to the back of the picture. Mary is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. Do you have Civil War-era photographs of your ancestors that are undated? As this... (Read More)

How to Search Probate Records in GenealogyBank’s Newspaper Archives

By Thomas Jay Kemp on November 13, 2012

State laws required that a legal notice of a probate action be posted in local newspapers. This was the state’s method to get the word out to all interested parties that an estate was going to be disbursed to the heirs and creditors. These legal requirements varied across the country, but we can reasonably... (Read More)

Deadwood Dick: Chasing a Cornish-American Legend

By Scott Phillips on November 12, 2012

In this article, Scott Phillips digs into old newspapers to see if the Wild West’s legendary character “Deadwood Dick” was a real person or just a myth... (Read More)

Use the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) to Document Your Relatives

By Thomas Jay Kemp on November 9, 2012

Keep your research simple. Knowing the first step to take when doing your family history searches can save you time and effort. Here’s one good genealogy search tip to keep in mind: target your relatives using GenealogyBank’s online Social Security Death Index. What if you know that your family has lived in a certain... (Read More)

GenealogyBank Search Tip: Search U.S. Newspapers by City or State

By Thomas Jay Kemp on November 6, 2012

Want to search the local newspapers from only one state, city or town? It is easy to do that in GenealogyBank. In the middle of GenealogyBank’s homepage is a list of all 50 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia. Simply pick the state you want to focus your genealogy research on. In this... (Read More)

The 1876 Centennial Exhibition Celebrated 100 Years of American Freedom

By Gena Philibert-Ortega on November 5, 2012

In this article, Gena Philibert-Ortega writes about the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition that celebrated 100 years of American independence... (Read More)

You Want to Be Prepared as Thanksgiving Approaches

By Thomas Jay Kemp on November 2, 2012

Now that it is November, the holidays will be here before you know it. You want to prepare now. That’s what Rose Briggs did. Her hard work set the tone for how Thanksgiving has been celebrated since 1921. Rose’s Thanksgiving preparation is just one of the many great stories in GenealogyBank’s online newspaper archives.... (Read More)