Genealogy Puzzle: What Do These 3 Obituaries Have in Common?

What do the obituaries of Daniel Coit Gilman (1831-1908) of Norwich, Connecticut; Richard Y. Cook (1845-1917) of Lansdowne, Pennsylvania; and James J. Lovitt (1838-1892) have in common? Answer: they all described their immigrant ancestors. It is common for an obituary to name the spouse, children, parents and siblings of the deceased – but to... (Read More)

Is That My Dad? Newspapers Solve an Old Photo Mystery

Like many of you, I am actively on Facebook. I particularly like a group that posts items from the history of Springdale, Connecticut. Springdale is a section of Stamford, Connecticut; I lived and worked there for many years. Last month a reader posted this old school photo from a play. Hmm…according to the posting,... (Read More)

Illustration: Civil War Battle of Chickamauga. Credit: Kurz & Allison; U.S. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

Civil War Genealogy: Old Letters in Newspapers & Research Resources

Introduction: In this article, Mary Harrell-Sesniak expands on her earlier article about Civil War letters published in newspapers by sharing some additional Civil War research resources and tips. Mary is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. A recent GenealogyBank Blog article of mine discussed personal communications of the Civil War... (Read More)

Mayflower Genealogy: Finding Your Cousins Using Newspapers

Searching through GenealogyBank’s Historical Newspaper Archives recently, I found this old newspaper announcement for Margaret (Rogers) Smith’s 81st birthday. Margaret Anne (Rogers) Smith (1857-1943) didn’t come to America on the Mayflower ship – but according to this newspaper article her ancestor Thomas Rogers (c. 1572-Winter 1620/21) did. Ding! Hey – I am also descended... (Read More)