Indiana Genealogical Society - Annual Conference!

The Indiana Genealogical Society (IGS) is holding its annual conference on April 28, 2012 at the Allen County Public Library (ACPL) in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Debra S. Mieszala is the featured speaker. Her talks include:
•         Lessons from a Snoop: Collaterals and Associates
•         Bringing Our Soldiers Home
•         Digging Through Documents Word By Word
•         Patently Unique: Locating Patent Records, Online and Off

A second track of sessions features:
•         What’s New with FamilySearch with Michael Hall from FamilySearch
•         Finding Indiana Records and Research in FamilySearch with Michael Hall
•         Becoming an Expert on Using Ancestry with ACPL librarian, Melissa Shimkus
•         Writing a Book Using Family Tree Maker and Microsoft Word with Curtis Sylvester, President of the Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana

Registration is $30 for IGS members, $40 for nonmembers and $45 at the door. Registration forms and online registration are available at http://www.indgensoc.org/conference.php.

Spend the day learning from experts, researching in the country’s second largest genealogical library and collaborating with other genealogists.

Come a day early to join the IGS pre-conference and gain research time in the library. Topics on April 27, 2012 include:

•         Indiana County Genealogists Show N’ Tell
•         Social Media for Our Societies
•         Ask the Experts Panel

Registration for the pre-conference is only $5 or $7 at the door. Find out more at www.indgensoc.org/seminar.php.

About the Indiana Genealogical Society
Formed in 1989, the Indiana Genealogical Society strives to help preserve and publish materials relating to the people who settled the state. IGS has been at the forefront of efforts to make Indiana’s historical records more accessible to the public by indexing and digitizing records. IGS has more than 500,000 records on its website, representing all 92 of Indiana’s counties. Learn more about IGS at http://www.indgensoc.org.

Thank you to Tina Lyons, Vice President of the Indiana Genealogical Society,  for this information!

Tombstone Tuesday - John SCOTT

Center Grove Cemetery

Lincolnville, Wabash, Indiana

John SCOTT was born 26 Jan 1816 in Fayette County, Indiana.  On the 21 April 1833, in Fayette County, he married Abigail Harrell.  They were the parents of nine children:

Moses SCOTT (1834-1865) Died in the Civil War

Phebe Jane SCOTT (1836-1878)

Mehala SCOTT (1839-1881)

Jesse D. SCOTT (1841-1862) Died in the Civil War

Charles SCOTT (1842-1905)

Jacob SCOTT (1845-1864) Died in the Civil War

Matilda SCOTT (1846-1886)

John SCOTT (1848-)

Abigail SCOTT (1850-)

John died on 3 December 1886.  His Find A Grave memorial can be found here.

Military Monday - Private John A. SCOTT

(Photo courtesy of VF-Find a Grave Volunteer)

John Andrew SCOTT, is the son of CR SCOTT and Mary Ann Chumney SCOTT.  

He was born 22 Dec 1843 in Wabash County, Indiana.  He enlisted 21 Aug 1861 into I Company 8th Indiana Infantry.  He mustered out on 4 Sep 1864.

On the 2nd of  March 1865 in Wabash County, he married Susan Jane Frazier.  On the 5th of October 1872, at the age of 28, he died in Wabash County.  He is buried in Old La Fontaine Cemetery, La Fontaine, Indiana.  Sadly, just three years later at the age of 31 Susan also passed away.

John's Find A Grave memorial can be found here.

Happy Blogiversary To Me!

I'm in shock that two years has passed so quickly.  I remember when I first began blogging thinking that I had nothing to write about!  Two years later the joke is on me!

In honor of this milestone I'm rerunning that first post from back in 2010....

Mark’s Great Grandfather and Lizzie Borden (or Why I Love Family Research)

I have been around genealogy my whole life. I was raised the daughter of a family researcher and, despite what my 10 year old self thought, I have become one myself. Therefore I have no excuse for ignoring one of genealogy’s cardinal rules: Always research the time and place of the city your ancestors lived in.

I suppose I’m always too eager to find the next ancestor or they next piece of information to take the time to bother learning more about the areas where they lived. But last night I was reminded of why this is an important part of our research.

I was reading the book assignment for my March book club: Devil in The White City. It’s a book about, of all things, a serial murderer at the time of the World’s Fair in Chicago. However, the real interest for me is all the history it is giving of how the World’s Fair came to be in Chicago and the tremendous undertaking it was to make it all happen. Mixed in with the story is a history of what was happening in this county in 1891-1893 and how it affected the Fair.

On page 153 it stated that in 1891 there was an increase in murders in the country including a Mr. and Mrs. Borden (Lizzie Borden’s parents) in Fall River, Massachusetts. That one line, that one solitary line made me sit straight up in bed and gasp. I knew of another person in Fall River, MA is 1891…..Mark’s great-grandfather, Frank Boulanger. Certainly, the Borden murders would have been a huge story in Fall River as it was in the rest of the country. The question was….did Frank know the Borden family?

I first did a google search to determine the population of Fall River in 1891. The number I found was approximately 1400 people. Not too large. Next I went looking for the 1891 Fall River City Directory online at Ancestry. There I found the Borden family living at 92 2nd Street. The Boulanger’s resided at 73 Norfolk St.
I pulled up Google Maps and put in the two addresses and found they were just 2 miles apart.

In 1891, Frank was 14 years old. So the question remains….did Frank know the Borden family? It’s entirely possible.

Tombstone Tuesday - Jonathan SCOTT

Born:  26 Jan 1816, Fayette County, Indiana

Died:  3 Feb 1903, Wabash County, Indiana

Emery Cemetery, La Fontaine, Indiana

Jonathan Scott was born January 26, 1816 in Fayette County, Indiana. On the 4th of January, 1845, he came to the than new and undeveloped wilds of Wabash County, and settled in Liberty Township, where he has since resided.

On the first of November 1840, he was married to Mary Pearson, who was born in Granger County, Tennessee, August 18, 1824. Her father, Mahlon Pearson, is still living in the township, and has already reached advanced years, having been born January 10, 1797.

His father moved to Jefferson County, Tennessee, when he was nine years of age. He himself moved to Wabash County November 9, 1834. He entered the first forty acres of land in Liberty Township, and served on the first grand jury ever impanelled in Wabash County. He was the father of eleven children. 

Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Scott raised a family of three children, two sons, and one daughter. Both sons served in the war of the Rebellion, and the older one died in the service of his country at Otterville, Missouri, December 16, 1861.

Mr. Scott has already passed the prime of life, but is still in the vigorous enjoyment of his faculties, both bodily and mental. He is one of the leading citizens of the township, and is distinguished for his many acts of public spirit.

Source: 1875 Atlas of Wabash County, Indiana page 56

Jonathan's Find A Grave memorial can be found here.

Military Monday - Private William R. SCOTT

(photo courtesy of Sixdogteam)

William R. SCOTT

12 Feb 1842 - 16 Dec 1861

Harper Cemetery, La Fontaine, Indiana

Son of Jonathan and Mary Pearson SCOTT

I COMPANY, 8TH INDIANA VOLUNTEER INFANTRY REGIMENT

WILLIAM R. SCOTT--Jonathan Scott was born January 26, 1816 in Fayette County, Indiana. On the 4th of January, 1845, he came to the then new and undeveloped wilds of Wabash County, and settled in Liberty Township. On the first of November 1840, he was married to Mary Pearson, daughter of Mahlon Pearson who was born in Granger County, Tennessee, August 18, 1824. Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Scott raised a family of three children, two sons, and one daughter. Both sons served in the war of the Rebellion, and the older one, William, died in the service of his country at Otterville, Missouri, December 16, 1861.

(From the History of Wabash County, Indiana)

William was 19 years old when he died.  His Find a Grave memorial can be found here.

52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy - Week - Family Heirlooms

Week 6 – Family Heirlooms:  For which family heirloom are you most thankful? How did you acquire this treasure and what does it mean to you and your family?

One of my most treasured possessions is the bible kept by my Great-Great Grandparents, John Thomas Brane and Marilla Scott Brane. 


Inside the front cover they glued and taped obituaries for family members from the local newspaper dating back to 1872.  My great-great grandmother also listed all the family marriages, births and deaths.  


Sadly it is very old and in bad condition.

Right after Christmas there was an article in our local newspaper about a church in town who had old books restored regarding their church history.  I contacted the company they used and found that they were located in the same small town my boys go to college in!


I took the bible to them for an estimate and left it in their capable hands.  It will take 6 months and several hundred dollars to restore. 


But to me......it's priceless.

Find a Grave - The Extra Things You Can Do at Find A Grave

Once you have entered a memorial, asked for changes and additions, received a memorial transfer or set up your virtual cemetery, what is left to do? Plenty!

Request a photo - Once you enter a memorial on Find A Grave or locate one of your ancestors memorials without a headstone photo,  you may request a photo be taken.  Just go to the memorial and click on the "Request A Photo" button.  This will take you to a new screen where you can add additional information for the photo volunteer such as location in cemetery.  Then click the "Submit Photo Request" button.  The email will go out to all the volunteers in the area.  It is always to good idea to contact the cemetery office ahead of time to determine the grave's location.  Many cemeteries will only provide that information to a relative and not a photo volunteer.


Virtual Flowers - When you enter a memorial or find one of your ancestors you may leave a virtual flower for them along with a brief note.  Go to the memorial to which you wish to add flowers.  There is a box on the right side that says "Leave Flowers and a Note for this Person".  Click on that box and follow the instructions to leave your flower.  You must be a Find A Grave member in order to leave flowers and notes.
I always state my relationship in the notes section.  Taking this step has helped me connect with living relatives who visit the same memorial.

Sponsor a Memorial - Sponsoring a memorial page costs only $5.00 and will remove those annoying ads.  It also allows you to add more than 5 photos to the memorial.  To sponsor any non-famous memorial just click on the sponsorship link at the top of the memorial page.  Fill out the secure form and you are done!  If you are not the memorial manager, they will receive an email that you have sponsored their memorial.  This does not mean that you are now the memorial manager although most memorial managers, when they receive this email, do transfer to you.

Volunteering for Find A Grave - Because Find A Grave members have been so helpful to me by posting memorials of my ancestors, I feel moved to give back.  You can become a Find A Grave photo volunteer in your area.  Just log in to your account, go to your Contributor Profile page and click on the "Edit My Profile" link in the top right corner.  From here you can enter your zip code and choose to be a photo volunteer in your area. Remember that there may be many volunteers in your zip code and all of you will receive the same email request when it comes through.  If you are willing to take the photo you need to "claim it".  You then have 14 days to upload the photo before it goes back into the system as "unclaimed".  Note:  Find A Grave does not allow volunteers to charge money for their service.

There are so many facets of Find A Grave that I still haven't covered.  My #1 suggestion to anyone new to the site is to read through the FAQ's.  They are quite extensive but will cover any question you may have!  Just follow this link to access the page.

Tombstone Tuesday - CR SCOTT

This is the stone for my G-G-G grandfather, Charles Leonard Lewis Dewise SCOTT, better known as CR Scott or Right Scott.

He was born 16 Jun 1813 in Fayette County, Indiana and died on 11 Feb 1888.  On 26 Jan 1833 in Fayette County he married Mary Ann Chumney and together they had 12 children.

CR is buried in the Old La Fontaine Cemetery in La Fontaine, Wabash, Indiana.  The cemetery is in horrible condition.  The town of La Fontaine should be ashamed.....

Sunday's Obituary - Rosanna Kelly HANLEY

Hamilton Spectator
June 10, 1912, Page 10

The grim reaper came with startling suddeness to Mrs. Rosanna Routh, 19 Mulberry Street, yesterday morning.   Deceased was in her 70th year.  The funeral will take place on Tuesday morning from Dwyers undertaking establishment to St. Mary's Cathedral, and thence to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.  Four sons and one daughter survive.  Heart failure is given as the cause of death.


Hamilton Herald
June 10, 1912, Page 12

Mrs. Rosanna Routh, for many years a resident of Hamilton, died quite suddenly at an early hour this morning at her home, Mulberry street, at the age of 70 years.  Heart trouble is given as the cause of death.  Deceased was well known and highly esteemed.  Her husband predeceased her several years ago.  Five sons and one daughter survive.  The funeral will be held on Tuesday morning from Dwyer's undertaking parlors to St. Mary's Cathedral, thence to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.

(same day newspaper, different page)

In this city, at her late residence, 30 Mulberry Street, Rosanna Hanley, wife of James Routh.  Funeral will take place from Dwyer's undertaking parlors Tuesday morning at 8:30 to St. Mary's Catherdral, thence to Holy Sepulchre cemetery.

Find a Grave - What's up with Virtual Cemeteries?

One of my favorite things about Find A Grave is the ability to create Virtual Cemeteries and I have created plenty!  It's a great way to organize the memorials the way I want.

I have Virtual Cemeteries by surname, by cemetery, and even by Civil War Regiment.  Whatever serves your purpose.....you are in control!

You may be wondering.....why have a virtual cemetery at all?  Remember last week when we talked about how to ask for a memorial transfer?  What happens when that transfer is denied?  This is important to remember about virtual cemeteries....you can put ANY memorial in a virtual cemetery.  You don't have to manage the memorial.

Take my BOTKIN surname for example.  I created a Virtual Cemetery for Botkin Family members and as I come across their memorials on Find A Grave I place them in the virtual cemetery.  As of today this VC holds  440 Botkin family members.  The overwhelming majority of those I do not manage.  (The ones you manage will be in bold type).  I can keep them all together in this way.  My Virtual Cemetery contains memorials from many different real cemeteries!

Let's take a look at another of my VC's this one for Center Grove Cemetery.  I have 70 ancestors buried in Center Grove from more than one of my family surnames.  By creating a virtual cemetery and placing my family members in here I can manipulate the information in a couple of ways.

Say I am planning a research trip to Wabash County and will be making a stop by Center Grove Cemetery.  By going to my Contributor Tools page I can download my data from my Center Grove VC into a tab-delimited Excel sheet.  In this way I can manipulate the data any way I would like.  For example, I can choose to sort by memorials with no photo.

So how do you go about creating a Virtual Cemetery?  That part is easy!  Go to your Contributor Tools page then click on the Edit button across from "my virtual cemeteries".  From here you can add any VC you would like or edit one that you have already created.  Now go to a memorial that you want to add to the VC.   As you scroll down the memorial you will see a link to "edit virtual cemetery info".  Click on that link and a list of your VC's will come up.  Click the box in front of the VC you want to add the memorial to.  Now click save changes.  That's it!

The last way I use my VC is as a cross check with my FTM program.  If you click on the Places tab in FTM you will get a list of all the locations you have entered in the program.  I enter all cemeteries as: Cemetery - Center Grove.  When I click on this it will tell me who from my database is buried here.  If it lists 73 people and I only have 70 in my VC then I know I am missing 3 people in my VC.  I can use the list in FTM to determine who is missing.

See how handy those VC's can be?  See why my love affair with Find A Grave continues?!

So far I've covered How to Suggest a Correction, How to Ask For a Memorial Transfer and How to Set Up a Virtual Cemetery.  But what else can you do with Find A Grave?  Next week I'll cover some of the other neat features Find A Grave offers!