Looking After the Poor: Finding Your Ancestors in New England Poverty Records

We'll talk about original sources such as town records books as well as the many printed and database options. Learn how to use the "tan books," vital records from 1841, and all the other lesser known resources available.

Did you know that all the members of a family may be named in an old deed? Have you ever tried to get a close-up view of what your ancestors wore and the tools they used from an estate inventory? Learn how to use the records in New England Registry…

From the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620, Massachusetts has maintained some of the best-kept records for genealogists. This abundance has made it easier to research in the state. Even so, it's helpful to have a roadmap to cover almost 400 years of history. Join Marian Pierre-Louis as she provides…

Learn how to research your Connecticut ancestors. Discover what records are available, where they are located and how to put them to the best use. Marian, a native of Connecticut, grew up in a picturesque colonial town surrounded by historic houses and an ancient burial ground. During her childhood she…

While many 17th-century Connecticut colonists have been researched and written about, there remain research challenges: distinguishing people with the same name, deciphering hard-to-read handwriting, understanding unique record sets, and more. This class examines the beginnings of Connecticut, New Haven, and Saybrook Colonies and the people who inhabited the lands prior to colonization. The class reviews published genealogical resources and record transcriptions and then presents strategies to locate and utilize primary sources. The webinar concludes with tips on overcoming common research challenges.

What are the secrets to finding New England vital records today? If you understand how they were made, and all the things that have happened to them since, you will bring new skills and insight to your vital records research. Also, let's develop some strategies for those times when the record cannot be found.

New England town records represent a unique resource for Family historians. Early settlers from England brought their traditions of town governance to the new world, including their ideas of legal matters and record keeping. The result is a treasure trove of documents that capture aspects of our ancestors’ lives as they went about their day-to-day business. These records are especially valuable for the 17th and 18th centuries as many other records may not have survived. This webinar covers not only vital record sources but also records from the Town Treasurer, Overseers of the Poor, and the Selectmen.

Looking for Rhode Islanders in the Revolutionary War era, or 1865-1935? The Rhode Island colonial and state census collections offer amazing details, but each enumeration is quite different. Looking for all men 16 and over in 1777? Exact dates of birth? Civil War service? Name of school attended? Learn how to navigate the arrangements online and match family members to their records.

Just as some New Englanders left their declining farms and headed west, industrialization arrived in New England and our ancestors' lives and records changed forever. The days when deeds and probate would solve genealogical problems gave way to a dizzying array of new census collections, state mandated vital records, poorhouse, prison and asylum records, sturdier cemetery markers, and military pensions. Let's re-teach ourselves as we trace 1800's ancestors.