Mind the Actual Census Date
You present a very interesting problem that I have faced myself. Often the discrepancy is more than one year of possible birth year. But if it is one or two years, I have narrowed the discrepancy by noting on what day each census record was supposed to have been taken. There is a statutory date and this varies, as you probably know, from one census to another. Some are as of 1 January, some a date in June, etc. If a one year discrepancy seems to be the problem, checking the statutory date could reveal the source of the discrepancy and provide an ante-quam and a post-quam birthday date.
John F. Battick, Ph.D.
Assoc. Prof. of History Emeritus
University of Maine
Search for Police and Fire Department Photos
If your ancestor was a policeman or fireman, try a search for the city or town name and “police†or “fire.†There are a lot of historical photographs on the Internet. I have found that a Google Image search will turn up some interesting images.
Violet Bell
California
Save Your CalendarsÂ
Our family keeps a calendar in the kitchen with appointments, events, illnesses, birthdays, anniversaries, get-togethers, and whatnot. Several years ago, I began saving these calendars with our family history. They provide a chronological framework that I can use to create an annual narrative of the events that shaped that year.
Inga Robertson
Baltimore, Maryland
Click here for a printer friendly version of this article.
If you have a suggestion you would like to share with other researchers, send it to: mailto:[email protected]. Thanks to all of this week’s contributors!
Quick Tips may be reprinted, with credit to the submitter, in other Ancestry publications, so if you do not want your tip included in a publication other than the “Ancestry Weekly Journal,†please state so clearly in your message.
Very interesting topic :
I was born in Chicago and lived on the near west side from 1941
to 1961 .
The occupation of the people in this area was as follows.
Crooks , gangsters, gamblers , prostitutes con men , Mafia , I think you get the picture ?
This included , policman , barbers, politicans ,priests, and all the rest of the men , whos main job was to stand on corners all day and eat sandwiches .
How do you use this in your research ?
Pertaining to saving calendars. I have been keeping a journal of everything on my calendars since 1974 and I have saved everyone of them which I refer to quite often for pertinent information I need.