Monday, January 26, 2015

Kathy's Gates to the Past : 1888 Census for Peoria Township, Illinois

Kathy's Gates to the Past : 1888 Census for Peoria Township, Illinois: Recently I came across the Peoria County Genealogy Society website, and found an unusual but amazing find.  While many of us are familiar wi...

1888 Census for Peoria Township, Illinois

Recently I came across the Peoria County Genealogy Society website, and found an unusual but amazing find.  While many of us are familiar with the US Federal Census decennial records that occur every ten years since 1790. And we may be familiar with several state censuses that have occurred, mostly throughout the 19th century. But did you know that Peoria did one of their own, just for the township, in 1888? Yes, folks, the society actually has an 1888 Census for the Peoria township! What a great alternate to the missing 1890 Census. Because of this unique census, I now have two more branches of my Wombacher and Strassburger family trees.
The 1888 census is in book form, but it is no longer in print. But, for those of you who get into Peoria, the Peoria Public Library and the Allen County Library (in Fort Wayne) each have a copy. But if you know the names of people who lived in Peoria at the time, go to the Peoria County Genealogy society's website and you can do a quick lookup. Alice Brophy and Laraine Wessels can help provide additional information. Their website: http://www.usgennet.org/usa/il/county/peoria1/1888Explanation.htm


For a complete list of those state census records (and keep in mind that many of these are no longer available), go to
https://www.census.gov/history/www/genealogy/other_resources/state_censuses.html.
And, you can access the available state census records at Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.com.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Kathy's Gates to the Past : Conferences, Conferences, and more Conferences!

Kathy's Gates to the Past : Conferences, Conferences, and more Conferences!: Happy New Year! I'm attending the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) this week practicing on my analytical skills in Angela McGhie...

Conferences, Conferences, and more Conferences!

Happy New Year!
I'm attending the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) this week practicing on my analytical skills in Angela McGhie's Advanced Evidence Analytical Practicum. The first case was a challenge--I had to 5 female relatives of an unnamed woman. My only clue was her married name and a location. I found three of the women, then I ran short on time to find the others. Not an easy assignment to do in just a few hours.
Before I start the next assignment, I wanted to mention that there are a few other conferences coming up this spring.
RootsTech and FGS are side-by-side in February in Salt Lake City. Former First Lady Laura Bush will be a keynote speaker. Here's the blog: https://rootstech.org/?lang=eng
Jamboree (hosted by the So. California Genealogy Society) will take place the first weekend in June in Burbank, CA. Here's the blog: http://genealogyjamboree.blogspot.com/
NGS will be in St. Louis, Missouri the 2nd weekend of May. Here's the blog: http://conference.ngsgenealogy.org/
I'll definitely be at Jamboree in June, but I won't make it to the others. And if you can't either, here's the good news--these conferences will air several sessions online so we can watch them in the comfort of our homes with our computers. So, check their websites for details.