Introduction: In this article, Gena Philibert-Ortega gives genealogy tips based on research she’s done recently on her own family tree. Gena is a genealogist and author of the book “From the Family Kitchen.”
Oftentimes when we find a newspaper article about our ancestor we save it, add the information to our family tree, and move on to the next research task. But it’s important to take some time to analyze that article and ask questions that may lead to other relevant newspaper articles.
In this blog article, I’m going to describe some research I did on my own family tree, a mistake I made, how I changed my searches, and the family history I uncovered.
James Peterson
One of my ancestor’s siblings was James Peterson. The family lived in Arizona and James died as a young man. Recently while conducting a search on his father, Lars Peterson, I came across newspaper articles about James’ death.
The first notice of his death appears in the Snowflake Herald on 19 October 1917.
From reading this newspaper article, we learn that:
- Word was received on October 18th that James Peterson had died at Camp Funston
- He is the son of Lars Peterson of Pinedale
- Question as to the disposition of the body
- Presumption is that the body will be shipped home for burial
- Cause of death is tuberculosis
- Peterson was at Camp Funston only a short time
- He was there with the “Navajo contingent
What questions could we ask now that we have this information? Questions could include:
- What is Camp Funston?
- Was James a WWI soldier?
- Did he die from influenza as well as tuberculosis?
After doing additional searching online, I did find a photo of him in his military uniform, and I know that Camp Funston was one of the places soldiers were stationed during that time period. I know that Pinedale is in Navajo County, Arizona, so that accounts for the “Navajo contingent” reference. He is not Native American, so “Navajo” refers to the county. Of course, 1917 was during World War I and right before the Great Influenza pandemic of 1918 broke out, so that might account for a few of the facts – but we still need to research that. Having tuberculosis as a cause of death does not necessarily mean he did or did not also have influenza.
Additional Newspaper Articles
I never did find an official “obituary” but what I did find are additional newspaper articles about James’ death. A week after the first article, I found two more newspaper articles. Some of the information repeats what we know, but we learn a few new details.
This article was published by the Holbrook News on 26 October 1917.
From reading this newspaper article, we learn that:
- James Paterson died two weeks before 26 October 1917 at Camp Funston
- His body was sent to Holbrook, Arizona, and then taken to Pinedale, Arizona, for burial
- His home (or perhaps his family home) was in Pinedale, Arizona
- James was in poor health when he went to Camp Funston
- He was in the hospital for some time before his death
- Tuberculosis is the cause of death
We learn from this newspaper article that James had been sick for some time and that he died about two weeks before this article was published – which is one week before the previous article was published. Additional research into his cause of death would require his death certificate.
A newspaper column called “Holbrook’s Busy Life Paragraphed,” published on the same day in neighboring Snowflake, Arizona, provides a few more pieces of information. This article was published by the Snowflake Herald on 26 October 1917.
From reading this newspaper article, we learn that:
- Lars Peterson and sons were in Holbrook on Monday to meet James Peterson’s remains
- James died at Camp Funston, Kansas, “a few days ago”
- The remains were taken to the family home in Pinedale for burial
Why do we have three newspaper articles all with some variations of the information about James’ death? The problem with these articles is we don’t know who the informant is or who the reporter was, which means we don’t know how accurate the information is. That’s where additional records can help.
As you read a newspaper article of interest, keep an eye out for other articles in the same newspaper. In this case, the question as to why Lars and his sons went to retrieve James’ body in Holbrook is answered: the train stopped there, and the schedule is posted immediately to the right of the “Holbrook’s Busy Life Paragraphed” column.
I know quite a bit just from these three newspaper articles. Now, a common tendency once you have some clues from a few newspaper articles it to stop there and start pursuing other types of records to learn more, such as military records, a Kansas death certificate, and cemetery records.
Be sure to check out tomorrow’s follow-up blog article, when I’ll explain a mistake I initially made, how I corrected it, and went on to discover more of my ancestors’ stories.
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