Land Records Solve Research Problems

Use USGS topographic maps, tract maps, plat maps, surveys, deeds, census records, and tax lists to reconstruct the neighborhood where your ancestor lived. Plat your ancestor’s land records and discover what unexpected clues might be discovered in the process.

People recorded evidence of their property, paid taxes on property, gave away property, bought and sold property, fought over property, and willed property to heirs in the 20 state lands states. When understood and used properly, metes and bounds land records comprise one of the most important sources for research…

Tracking migration in the United States involves using census, vital, land, and probate records, the bread and butter of American research. Get an overview of each of these types of records; learn where to find them, and how to use them effectively to track migration.

Research in the United States depends upon census, vital, land, and probate records, the bread and butter of American research. Get an overview of each type of record. Learn where to find them and how to use them effectively in your research.

Legalese. Boilerplate. Obsolete laws. Ancestral idiosyncrasies. The documents our ancestors created are full of such traps. This session uses two typical documents from different regions to illustrate, line by line, how to sort chaff from wheat, interpret deceptive language, and develop clues.

Land Plats of an ancestor’s land will likely include his surrounding neighbors. With a closer examination, we might gain an understanding of their lives and place them with their community and local events.

This session provides a brief overview of metes and bounds land descriptions seen in deeds, mortgages, patents, grants, and other land documents. The land descriptions are an essential part of land research. This presentation discusses metes and bounds land descriptions and how the metes and bounds can solve genealogical problems.

This case study traces a piece of property for two hundred years, from the Native Americans to the Dutch, to the English, and through fourteen members of the Hicks family over five generations. Transfer of title occurs through various instruments, including patents, unrecorded deeds, inheritance, escheatment, private laws, entails, deeds of lease and release, life estates, and coverture. Tracing the lineage of the property elucidates family relationships that were otherwise forgotten. This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.

Genealogical research involves identifying ancestors, linking them to family members, and then connecting them to the previous generation: sons and daughters to fathers and mothers. As our research moves back in time, particularly once we’ve gotten to the 19th century, connecting one generation to the previous generation becomes more difficult. Vital records expressly stating a parent-child relationship are rare. Consequently, to establish kinship we must broaden our research approach. Using case studies, Teri will demonstrate how to use probate and property records to identify family members and connect them to their ancestors.