By
By
Webinar Library
Historical Records Migration Records

Direct Your Letters to San Jose: Following Ancestors’ Migration Trails

David W. Jackson
Aug 31, 2022
424 views
CC
Want to watch the full webinar?
Join now to access all 2,436 webinars and unlock all features.
Join now
Syllabus
Chat Log
Join now

Content

Play. Playing.
Welcome
1m 45s
Play. Playing.
Speaker's Introduction
1m 07s
Play. Playing.
Going West
36m 27s
Play. Playing.
Arrival in California
8m 53s
Play. Playing.
Going Back East
5m 34s
Play. Playing.
Announcements / prizes
5m 14s
Play. Playing.
Questions / answers
12m 46s

About this webinar

U.S. Migration patterns trended from the east to west coasts as Manifest Destiny played out in our American ancestors’ lives. Did they write letters? Yes, they did. Did they keep a diary? Likely. But, have those documents survived, and if so where might they be located? Follow through historical documents the 100+year Westward Migration of one family who created, saved, and handed down pertinent historical documents pinpointing their migration from Kentucky to Illinois in the early 1830s, chronicled an overland journey to the California Gold Rush 20 years later in 1850, then later emigrated from Illinois to Kansas in the early days of the Civil War. Discover what brought one descendant to Kansas City, Missouri, after World War II. Where’s their next stop? This case study is studded with potential research avenues for any genealogist, anthropologist, archivist, cartographer, or automobile enthusiast.

About the speaker

About the speaker

David W. Jackson
David W. Jackson began genealogy in 1980 at age 11. He graduated magna cum laude with a BS in Historic Preservation from Southeast Missouri State University. He enjoyed a 20+year career as a local historian and archivist for nonprofit historical o
Learn more...

Comments (32)

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1000 characters remaining
Cancel Submit

Sort by Newest
Sort by Close.
  • Newest
  • Oldest
  • Likes
  1. DR
    Dawn Rossi
    3 years ago

    It was so great to hear your voice! This was very informative and interesting!

    Reply
  2. FU
    Fran Ussery
    3 years ago

    Learned so much!

    Reply
  3. CB
    Crystal Barth
    3 years ago

    Excellent…. very informative

    Reply
  4. WB
    Wanda Bower
    3 years ago

    I had thought about not watching this webinar because when my ancestors reached Pennsylvania, they just plopped down and stayed there until more modern generations. But this webinar was interesting all the way through. I appreciate and enjoyed the historical corrections about how those who traveled west actually traveled.

    Reply
  5. ED
    Elsie Deatherage
    3 years ago

    I am very interested in visiting the research library at the trails center in Independence. I’ve been there but was not aware that there was a research library.

    Reply
  6. PD
    Patricia Diane Godinez
    3 years ago

    I thought the whole presentation was very interesting. I liked the visuals. I enjoy history and especially stories about real people. The Campbell brothers seemed to be excellent role models for future generations. I liked hearing about Jack and seeing the math worked out, to know if the Campbells indeed got money from their time in the gold fields.

    Reply
  7. CB
    Cyndy Bray
    3 years ago

    Outstanding!

    Reply
  8. GG
    Ginger Goodell
    3 years ago

    I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated Mr. Jackson’s presentation. I’ll be recommending it to my fellow genealogists who missed it.

    Reply
Show all comments

Related Webinars

1:10:13
BCGMethodology and SkillsHistorical Records
The Influence of Free and Cheap Land on Migration
Annette Burke Lyttle, CG
850 views
CC
The Influence of Free and Cheap Land on Migration
From the beginning of European settlement in North America, free and inexpensive land has been a tool for enticing settlers to migrate to new areas. The English and Spanish granted large tracts to individuals in return for bringing new people into areas with sparse European populations. Bounty land was granted to soldiers in America’s early wars. The end of the American Revolution led to a number of Federal plans to sell or grant vast acreages of public domain land. Homesteading opportunities attracted Americans and immigrants to the west after the Civil War. The availability of affordable land was a catalyst for the migration of many of our ancestors.
BCGMethodology and SkillsHistorical Records
The Influence of Free and Cheap Land on Migration
CC
Annette Burke Lyttle, CG
850 views
From the beginning of European settlement in North America, free and inexpensive land has been a tool for enticing settlers to migrate to new areas. The English and Spanish granted large tracts to individuals in return for bringing new people into areas with sparse European populations. Bounty land was granted to soldiers in America’s early wars. The end of the American Revolution led to a number of Federal plans to sell or grant vast acreages of public domain land. Homesteading opportunities attracted Americans and immigrants to the west after the Civil War. The availability of affordable land was a catalyst for the migration of many of our ancestors.
Wed, March 19 2025: 0:00 UTC
Register for free
1:25:47
Historical RecordsPlaces and Ethnicities
Researching Oregon Trail Ancestors
Dawn Carlile
541 views
CC
Researching Oregon Trail Ancestors
The Oregon Trail extended approximately 2,000 miles from Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon from 1840 to 1869. More than 50,000 people traveled to Oregon and a great number died on the journey. This talk will cover resources for conducting research on the people and their lives along the trail.
Historical RecordsPlaces and Ethnicities
Researching Oregon Trail Ancestors
CC
Dawn Carlile
541 views
The Oregon Trail extended approximately 2,000 miles from Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon from 1840 to 1869. More than 50,000 people traveled to Oregon and a great number died on the journey. This talk will cover resources for conducting research on the people and their lives along the trail.
Wed, July 24 2024: 18:00 UTC
Register for free
1:11:55
Historical Records
The Erie Canal and the Opening of the Midwest
Annette Burke Lyttle, CG
1.1K views
CC
The Erie Canal and the Opening of the Midwest
The Erie Canal revolutionized 19th-century travel and offered our ancestors a high-speed route from the eastern United States to the Midwest. It made settlement of the Old Northwest Territories economically possible by providing an efficient means of exporting agricultural products to the markets and ports of the east. But it was also one of the most challenging and fascinating projects ever undertaken in America.
Historical Records
The Erie Canal and the Opening of the Midwest
CC
Annette Burke Lyttle, CG
1.1K views
The Erie Canal revolutionized 19th-century travel and offered our ancestors a high-speed route from the eastern United States to the Midwest. It made settlement of the Old Northwest Territories economically possible by providing an efficient means of exporting agricultural products to the markets and ports of the east. But it was also one of the most challenging and fascinating projects ever undertaken in America.
Wed, November 29 2023: 19:00 UTC
Register for free
1:19:49
Places and EthnicitiesHistorical Records
Colonial Migrations to 1770
Ann G. Lawthers, Sc.D.
1.7K views
CC
Colonial Migrations to 1770
Before the Revolutionary War, geography, topography and a strong indigenous people presence shaped migration patterns. This webinar covers the dominant push-pull forces and challenges for colonial migration. Using maps and other graphics, the major migration routes by region will be described: New England, mid-Atlantic and southward from Virginia. Famous paths such as the Kings Highway, the Great Valley Road, and the Fall Line Road as well as less well-known paths such as the Greenwood Path and the Forbidden Path will be covered. Using a set of case studies, the process of locating clues in local histories, land records, and vital records is unfolded.
Ann Lawthers
Places and EthnicitiesHistorical Records
Colonial Migrations to 1770
CC
Ann G. Lawthers, Sc.D.
1.7K views
Before the Revolutionary War, geography, topography and a strong indigenous people presence shaped migration patterns. This webinar covers the dominant push-pull forces and challenges for colonial migration. Using maps and other graphics, the major migration routes by region will be described: New England, mid-Atlantic and southward from Virginia. Famous paths such as the Kings Highway, the Great Valley Road, and the Fall Line Road as well as less well-known paths such as the Greenwood Path and the Forbidden Path will be covered. Using a set of case studies, the process of locating clues in local histories, land records, and vital records is unfolded.
Wed, October 19 2022: 18:00 UTC
Register for free
59:42
Historical RecordsMethodology and SkillsWebtember
Tracing migrating ancestors: Who, what, where, when, why and how
Myko Clelland
3.2K views
CC
Free
Tracing migrating ancestors: Who, what, where, when, why and how
We're all descended from migrants - it's a fact of history. But who left Europe when? Where did our earliest known ancestors come from? How can we use what we know about family to understand where to look for records? What if we have almost nothing at all? Join MyHeritage's Director of Content in Europe, Myko Clelland, as we delve into centuries of travel from the old world to the new, getting to grips with the historical rules and patterns that give us the context to better tell our ancestors stories and lead us to new discoveries.
Historical RecordsMethodology and SkillsWebtember
Tracing migrating ancestors: Who, what, where, when, why and how
CC
Free
Myko Clelland
3.2K views
We're all descended from migrants - it's a fact of history. But who left Europe when? Where did our earliest known ancestors come from? How can we use what we know about family to understand where to look for records? What if we have almost nothing at all? Join MyHeritage's Director of Content in Europe, Myko Clelland, as we delve into centuries of travel from the old world to the new, getting to grips with the historical rules and patterns that give us the context to better tell our ancestors stories and lead us to new discoveries.
Fri, September 2 2022: 16:45 UTC
Register for free
1:22:28
Places and EthnicitiesAfrican DiasporaHistorical Records
African Americans Heading West
Janice Lovelace, PhD
390 views
CC
African Americans Heading West
After the end of the Civil War in 1865, African Americans began leaving the areas where they had been enslaved. Many went to North to larger towns where work was more plentiful. But less discussed is that a number went West to farm, using the Homestead Act of 1862 to claim land of their own. Other settled in and helped develop some all-Black towns in Kansas and Oklahoma. Still others headed to the Pacific Coast for work. What can we find out about these settlers’ lives? Where can we find records?
Places and EthnicitiesAfrican DiasporaHistorical Records
African Americans Heading West
CC
Janice Lovelace, PhD
390 views
After the end of the Civil War in 1865, African Americans began leaving the areas where they had been enslaved. Many went to North to larger towns where work was more plentiful. But less discussed is that a number went West to farm, using the Homestead Act of 1862 to claim land of their own. Other settled in and helped develop some all-Black towns in Kansas and Oklahoma. Still others headed to the Pacific Coast for work. What can we find out about these settlers’ lives? Where can we find records?
Fri, August 5 2022: 18:00 UTC
Register for free
1:09:06
Places and EthnicitiesHistorical Records
The Voyages of Our German Immigrants
Teresa Steinkamp McMillin, CG
612 views
CC
The Voyages of Our German Immigrants
Germans began immigrating to the United States in 1683, according to documented history. This talk will highlight significant aspects of the first four major waves of migration, through 1910. The areas from which they came and motivations that typified each wave will be detailed. Available immigration and emigration records help tell the immigrant’s story. Laws changed over time and impacted various aspects of the immigration experience.
Places and EthnicitiesHistorical Records
The Voyages of Our German Immigrants
CC
Teresa Steinkamp McMillin, CG
612 views
Germans began immigrating to the United States in 1683, according to documented history. This talk will highlight significant aspects of the first four major waves of migration, through 1910. The areas from which they came and motivations that typified each wave will be detailed. Available immigration and emigration records help tell the immigrant’s story. Laws changed over time and impacted various aspects of the immigration experience.
Fri, May 27 2022: 22:57 UTC
Register for free
1:16:07
BCGMethodology and SkillsHistorical Records
Federal Records Relating to Rivers and Canals
Pamela Boyer Sayre, CG, CGL
627 views
CC
Federal Records Relating to Rivers and Canals
Many federal records pertain to the development and use of waterways in the United States. This lecture shows examples and explains the relevance of some of the applicable records found at the National Archives in Washington, DC, in its online holdings, and at its regional facilities like Chicago, Atlanta, Kansas…
BCGMethodology and SkillsHistorical Records
Federal Records Relating to Rivers and Canals
CC
Pamela Boyer Sayre, CG, CGL
627 views
Many federal records pertain to the development and use of waterways in the United States. This lecture shows examples and explains the relevance of some of the applicable records found at the National Archives in Washington, DC, in its online holdings, and at its regional facilities like Chicago, Atlanta, Kansas…
Wed, September 22 2021: 0:00 UTC
Register for free
1:07:36
Bonus webinarsHistorical Records
Social Reasons for Migration
Mary Hill, AG
984 views
CC
Social Reasons for Migration
What pressures and enticements motivated people to migrate from one location to another? Learn about the social forces that stimulated migration to new areas: from the East coast westward, from farms to big cities, north into Canada, and into the Midwest.
Bonus webinarsHistorical Records
Social Reasons for Migration
CC
Mary Hill, AG
984 views
What pressures and enticements motivated people to migrate from one location to another? Learn about the social forces that stimulated migration to new areas: from the East coast westward, from farms to big cities, north into Canada, and into the Midwest.
Fri, September 7 2018: 0:00 UTC
Login to register (for webinar members)
Login to register (for webinar members)