Use Almshouse Records to Find Immigration Information

Olive Tree Genealogy has another article on Legacy Family Tree.

House of Refuge, Randall's Island, New York 1853

 

Find Ancestors' Immigration in New York Almshouse Records

In the early 1800s port cities in the United States bore the burdens of immigration. By the time immigrants arrived from their native country, many were tired, hungry, and poor. Many newly arrived immigrants ended up in the City Almshouse or Poorhouse. This meant the citizens of their new country had to take care of them.


These Almshouse records are a genealogist’s treasure and often contain immigration details. Some contain basic information on each person admitted, such as the name of ship, the date of arrival in USA and the port of arrival. Others contain much more information.

Almshouse records for New York City exist from 1758 to 1953. Olive Tree Genealogy has an ongoing project to transcribe and publish all New York Almshouse Records that contain immigration information.

Project Number One
The first set of New York Almshouse admittance records is for the years 1782 to 1813.
New York Almshouse Records 1782-1813.

Project Number Two
This set of New York Almshouse Admissions covers the years 1819-1840
 

Project Number Three

The third set of Almshouse admission records for New York city is for 1855-1858

More details at Find Ancestors' Immigration in New York Almshouse Records 

Image Credits:
Art and Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. "House Of Refuge, Randall'S Island." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1853. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-d364-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

But I KNOW My Great Grandma's Name! So Why Am I Stuck?

Many of us know our great grandparents' names. One of my great grandmothers was a Vollick. I knew that, and I had proof (baptism, marriage, census records)which I had found over 30 years ago.

As I traced her lineage back, I found the trail stopped cold at *her* great grandfather, Isaac Vollick the Loyalist. I could not find him in New York before he arrived in the Niagara area of Ontario with Butler's Rangers. I hunted in every resource I knew of, to no avail. There simply were NO Vollicks running around south of the border in pre-Revolutionary times!

And then I stumbled on a very generous lady who steered me in the right direction with a casual remark "Did you know that your Loyalist ancestor Isaac Vollick used to be called Isaac Van Valkenburg?"

Huh? How the heck did one go from being a Van Valkenburg to a Vollick??!!! But she was absolutely correct in her statement. The reason I could not find any Vollicks running around south of the border was because it was not a "real" surname! My Loyalist ancestor simply adopted it. I think he adopted it as a nickname "Valk" (Dutch for falcon) from Van Valkenburg (meaning town of the falcon in Dutch) which may be what his comrades in arms called him. And it stuck. It became an established surname and there are thousands and thousands of Vollick descendants running around in America and Canada today.

There are also Follick descendants - because some of Isaac's sons and grandsons became known as Follick and that surname also stuck. I believe this alteration was due to the German/Dutch sounding "f" for "v". So instead of hearing Vollick, an English speaking/writing clerk no doubt heard Follick. And thus another surname was born!

That experience taught me to open my eyes to the possibility that a surname as we know may have changed greatly over the centuries. It may have been changed deliberately as in the case of my Isaac Vollick, or it may have been changed through mis-communication or mis-hearing.

As a side-note, since my discovery 30 years ago that my Vollick ancestor was really a Van Valkenburg I have researched the family in detail and have now published three books on Isaac Van Valkenburg aka Vollick, the Loyaist, and his two sons Cornelius and Storm.  

• From Van Valkenburg to Vollick: V1 The Loyalist Isaac Van Valkenburg aka Vollick and his Vollick & Follick Children
• From Van Valkenburg to Vollick V2 Cornelius Vollick and his Follick and Vollick Descendants to 3 Generations 
• From Van Valkenburg to Vollick V3 Storm Follick and his Follick and Vollick Descendants to 3 Generations

The above books are available at New Netherland Books

Another example is my French LeRoy ancestor (prounced sort of like Le Wah in French - it's difficult to render it in text) settled in what is now Quebec in the mid 1600s. When he moved to New York, his name started being recorded as Larua, then Larraway. No doubt English speaking clerks mis-heard his name when he pronounced it! And so it began to be recorded as Larroway.

You must have an open mind when researching ancestors. You don't know if they changed their names. It may have changed due to mis-recording based on language differences. Did they change it to escape a bad situation? Did they change it simply due to having an established nickname that took hold? Whatever the reasons, if you are truly stuck on an ancestor, think about possible name changes. You may need to develop an entirely new area of thinking and researching!

Nursing Sister Philips WW1 Photo Album - 57 - Group of Sisters

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One. 

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain.

Sisters Philip, Lynch, Johnstone, Wilson, Howe

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission.

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page.

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos"

Canada Day Special on Ancestry!

Ancestry.ca is offering free access to their Canadian records for Canada Day! Offer ends July 3, 2016

Register (free registration) then start your search for your Canadian ancestors on Ancestry.ca or Ancestry.com

3 New Canadian Databases on Ancestry

Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, Honeymoon and Visitor Registries, 1949-2011

·         Commonly known as the “Honeymoon Capital of the World”, Niagara Falls is visited by approximately 50,000 newlywed couples each year.

o   Fun fact: Niagara Falls received its reputation as the “Honeymoon Capital of the World” in 1801 when Theodosia Burr Alston (daughter of the 3rd Vice President of the United States, Aaron Burr), chose to honeymoon at the Falls. Napoleon Bonaparte’s brother, Jerome Bonaparte did the same in 1804, starting the popular tradition that continues today.

·         Many of the newlyweds who visit choose to sign their names in register books kept by the Niagara Falls Tourism Office, and now, these records have been digitized and indexed and are available online for Ancestry users.

·         The collection contains 680,114 records and 17,593 images from 1949 to 2011.

·         Exploring this collection, you’ll discover visitors who travelled near and far to the Falls, and how soon after their wedding they arrived.

·         The Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, Honeymoon and Visitor Registries, 1949-2011 are now available online on Ancestry.com and Ancestry.ca

Canada Photographic Albums of Settlement, 1892-1917

·         Just in time for Canada Day, Ancestry users can now access photos that paint a picture of what everyday life was like for Canadians during the early days of our nation.

·         Compiled by the Department of Interior, the collection contains 3,358 images, the majority of which were captured by John Woodruff and Horatio N. Topley. These photographers were hired by the Canadian government to capture the spirit of Canada during this period.

·         From the original logging process implemented to harvest one of Canada’s greatest resources, to the expansive ranches and wide open spaces of the true north in its original state, this collection details the life and times of some of Canada’s earliest settlers.

·         The Canada Photographic Albums of Settlement, 1892-1917 Collection is now available on Ancestry.com and Ancestry.ca

Canada Homestead Grant Registers, 1892-1930

·         To continue to shed light into life in Canada during its first few decades as a nation, Ancestry has launched a collection of registers of applications for land grants for the Western Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

·         Under the Dominion Land Acts in 1872, individuals could apply to homestead a quarter section of land (160 acres) and then apply for a patent (title) to the land after occupying and improving the land for three years. The average cost of land during this time was $10.

·         With 668,623 records and 78,794 images, Ancestry users can learn about some of Canada’s earliest settlers such as applicants’ names, region, date of application and homestead fee paid.

·         The Canada Homestead Grant Registers 1892-1930 Collection is now available on  Ancestry.com and Ancestry.ca

Credit: Images from Ancestry.com and Ancestry.ca 

Announcement: Family Search Upgrading

FamilySearch.org will undergo a technical upgrade on Monday, June 27, starting at 12:00 a.m. MDT (6:00 a.m. UTC). The site may be unavailable for up to 24 hours as they test the system improvements.

 It will be interesting to see what, if any, changes they make to the site! Meantime there are lots of other great sites genealogists can explore.

Nursing Sister Philips WW1 Photo Album L6

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One. 

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain.

Postcard. Group of soldiers and nurses

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission.

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page.

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos"

Naturalization Records, the often overlooked way to find a Ships Passenger List

We all want to know where our ancestors came from. We want to know when they arrived in North America and when they became citizens. Naturalization and immigration records are the answer.

Sometimes naturalization records for an ancestor are the only way to discover the family origins and that all-important ships passenger list.

Naturalization records can help you find the date of immigration, ship's passenger list, port of arrival, and the place of birth for your ancestor. Some naturalization records include occupations, names and ages of minor children, names and birth dates and places of spouses --- and more!

There is a wealth of genealogical information just waiting for you in your search for an ancestor. 

 NaturalizationRecords.com has links to online Naturalization records - many are projects published on the site and are free to view. Some links lead to various other websites and may be free or pay-to-view, depending on the site.
 

The following examples of various American Naturalization Documents shows you what type of information you might find. You can view these American Naturalization Record Documents on the NaturalizationRecords.com website

* 1795 Petition for Naturalization for Patrick Ryan in Pennsylvania
* 1906 Petition for Naturalization for Christopher Alt in Baltimore Maryland. Gives occupation, date and place of birth, date of immigration, port of departure and port of arrival, names of children plus dates and locations of births
* 1912 Petition for Naturalization for Jacob Imfang of Pittsburg Pennsylvania. Gives occupation, date and place of birth, date of immigration, port of departure and port of arrival, name of spouse, names of children plus dates and locations of births
* 1880 Naturalization Certificate includes name, age, country of origin
* 1891 Naturalization Certificate with name, date, country of origin
* 1922 Naturalization Certificate with name, age, physical description, wife's name, children's names and ages, country of origin
* 1925 Naturalization Certificate with name, age, physical description, wife's name, children's names and ages, current address, country of origin
* 1941 Naturalization Certificate with photo, name, age, physical description, marital status, country of origin, current address
* 1832 Declaration of Intent includes name, birthplace, age, settlement location
* 1846 Declaration of Intent for Daniel Stinger. Provides name of ancestor, current residence, age, country of origin,
* 1895 Declaration of Intent for Thomas Jones. Gives name, age, occupation, place and date of birth, physical description, current residence, name of ship sailed on, date of immigration, port of departure, port of arrival, last residence, marital status,
* 1937 Declaration of Intent for Pinchos aka Phillip Goldstein. Includes ancestor name, residence, occupation, physical description, race, nationality, place of birth, date of birth, name of spouse, place and date of marriage, Date and place of spouse's birth, year and port of immigration of spouse, current residence of spouse, number and names of children, location and dates of birth of children, year of immigration of ancestor, name of ship sailed on, port of departure, port of arrival, previous residence, actual name at immigration, and photograph

Burials, St. Paul's Church, Chester, Delaware Pennsylvania

Burials, St. Paul's Church, Chester, Delaware Pennsylvania

A recent bout of housecleaning, mainly purging and sorting my overstuffed filing cabinets brought these two images to light. Unfortunately I don't recall where I originally spotted them, so cannot give a source for the information. But I hope they will help you with an ancestor.  

 1822
Sept. 20. Maria Bond
Sept. 27. Isaac Bond
1823
Jan. 13 Charles McGee
May 8 Elizabeth Crosby
June 3 Elizabeth Fuller
Aug 3 John Noble
1825
Aug 30 Margaret Kerlin
Dec. 4 Edward Minshall, Sr.

1826
April 12. Matthias Richards Sayres
May 28. Henry G. Kerlin, service by Rev. J. M. Douglas
Sept. 23 Edward Hinshall
Sept. 12 Eliza Smith
1827
Feb. 28 Ann Eliza Crosby
Dec. 11. Joseph Piper
Dec. 25. Peter Deshong
1828
Feb. 12 John P. Crosby
July 6. Pierce Crosby Jr
July 14. John Liddons/Siddons
July 28. John Downes/Lownes
Sept. 21. Thomas Lyons
Sept. 28. David Veidy?
1829
Mar 4. John Hart of -- -- Graveyard
April 10 Elizabeth Davis
Dec. 17 Capt. William Anderson
1830
May 17. John Pierce, Snr, at the grounds of St. John Concord
July 19 Rebeccah Lownes

Updated! Almshouse (Poorhouse) Admission Records New York

One of the projects I have been working on over at Olive Tree Genealogy is records of Almshouses (poorhouses) and Orphan Homes, in particular for New York. Yesterday I updated the Almshouse Records for New York City.

These New York City Almshouse records are my favorite to work with as they contain details of admitted individuals' immigration to the City. Following are links for admission books from 1782 to 1858 (with gaps from 1840 to 1855). Please note that this is an ongoing project and not all records have been transcribed. These records are free for all to search, as are all record sets on Olive Tree Genealogy.

New York Almshouse 1782-1813 Surnames "A" | Surnames B | Surnames C. Records contain name of ancestor, date admitted, age, where from or born, complaint [illness], discharged, died, remarks.

Almshouse Records New York 1819-1840. These records contain Date of Admission; Foreigner (Surname); Foreigner (First Name); Age; Place of Birth; Vessel Name; Where From

Almshouse Records New York City 1855-1858. These records contain Date of Admission, Name, Age, Nativity, Time of Arrival, Port Sailed From, Port Arrived At, Ship, Captain, Married or Single, Who Can Identify Them, How Many Times on The Island, Remarks

Photo: Randall's Island House of Refuge, New York

Father's Day is Not a Happy Day for Me

 
Father's Day is a tough one for me. My father died one month after my 14th birthday. He was 47 years old. I think about him and miss him every day.

I wish he could have seen me grow up, marry and have children. I wish he could have met my children and my grandchildren.

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful, and deeply missed, father.

Immigrants proceeding to Upper Canada via New York 1817-1819

I've been working on a project called Immigrants proceeding to Upper Canada via New York 1817-1819

Pass #17236 George Underhill, Shropshire, butcher

I have extracted the names and basic information for each of the 199 people who applied for passes to leave New York and enter Upper Canada (present day Ontario)  The actual passes contain more information including age, place of origin, occupation, how many in family and sometimes detailed notes about the immigrant.

The passes begin at Image 33 with number 17228. To find an ancestor pass, just find the name in the list at Immigrants proceeding to Upper Canada via New York 1817-1819 , copy the pass number then go to  Canadiana.org and paste the pass number into the search engine that says "Search within this reel"


For example one name on the list is

17236 George Underhill, Shropshire, butcher, wife + 4 ch

If this were your ancestor you would use the Canadiana.org link above and enter 17266 into the search engine on that site. You can see his pass above.
 
[Source: Upper Canada Sundries, Reference: RG 5 A1, Volume 37, passes numbered 17228-17578, microfilm: C-4601. Civil Secretary's Correspondence - Passes signed by British Consul, New York, for Emigrants from Great Britain, 1817-1819. Microfilm available at Canadiana.org but it is not indexed] 

Challenges We Face With Family or Pet Nicknames

This is Olive Tree Genealogy's latest article on Legacy Family Tree

Names are important in genealogy research. But names can be confusing and can add challenges for the genealogist.

I've written previously about about surnames that were changed, either deliberately or accidentally, over generations in 5 Tips to Help You Navigate the Confusing Maze of Surname Variations.

There are other surname variations that genealogists can find confusing and challenging. See Oh Those Dit Names!  and  Dutch Patronymics: Confusing or Helpful?

These surname variations can make research into those families challenging! But genealogical research can also be confusing when our ancestors used nicknames, or alternated between using their first and middle names.

Besides the standard nicknames that we discover as we research our ancestors, what other variant names might we encounter along the path of filling out our family tree?

Continue reading  What’s In a Name? Challenges We Face With Family or Pet Nicknames

Canadians and Our Funny Ways, Eh

We Canadians are often teased for saying "oot and aboot" instead of "out and about". I've never thought that's how it sounds. I recognize that we do have a rather distinct Canadian accent but I hear us saying it as "owt and abowt", kind of  drawing out that vowel sound.

Finally I'm proven sort of right!! This is a fascinating article about the ancient origins of the Canadian pronunciation of certain words. And no, I'm not talking about our habit of putting "eh" at the end of sentences. And the end of questions. And... well just about anything.

"Eh" at the end of a sentence can be a question such as "Cold enough for ya, eh?". It can be a  note of emphasis such as "That's some good beer eh" (does not require an answer as beer is always good to a Canadian). It can be a statement "I don't know how that moose got here in my yard, eh."

That's just the tip of the "eh" iceberg but for now I really want my readers to read  What's Going On with the Way Canadians Say ‘About'?

While you're at it, if you haven't seen this video yet, you really should.  It's called Canadian Please

Update on Digitization of WW1 Files of Canadian Soldiers

Received from Library and Archives Canada (LAC) today:

As of today, 297,013 of 640,000 files are available online via our Soldiers of the First World War: 1914–1918 database. Please visit the Digitization of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Service Files page for more details on the digitization project. Library and Archives Canada is digitizing the service files systematically, from box 1 to box 10686

So far, we have digitized the following files:

• Latest box digitized: Box 5003 and Karpuk.

2000 Year Old Bog Butter Anyone?

Two thousand year old bog butter - that's right. A peat cutter in Ireland recently dug up a 22 lb of butter made 2000 years ago.

The Emlagh Bog turned up this unique gift from the past when Jack Conway, of Meath Ireland, was out cutting peat.

If you have Meath ancestors, perhaps one of them helped make this butter, or milked the cow for the milk that was used in it.

Read the whole story at "For peat’s sake! 2,000-years-old butter found in Irish bog"

Number 1 in Top 100 Genealogy Books

Imagine my surprise (and delight) when I spotted this last night on Amazon.

My book "Organize Your Genealogy in Evernote in 10 Easy Steps" is #1 in the Top 100 Genealogy books on Amazon!

Thank you to everyone who spent $1.34-$1.50 (It changes at Amazon's discretion) to read it and those who kindly left reviews. If you don't have your copy, here's the link

Organize Your Genealogy in Evernote in 10 Easy Steps available as an Ebook

Nursing Sister Philips WW1 Photo Album 65R

This Photo Archive consists of a small autograph album (6.5" by 5.25") kept by Constance (Connie) Philips as a memento of her time serving as a nurse during World War One. 

The majority of the photos and items are from 1915, when she served as a nurse in France and Britain.

Fancy dress dance. Netheravon Manor

The album and all photographs, postcards, and other ephemera contained in the album belong to Karin Armstrong and may not be copied or republished without her written permission. The images will be published on Olive Tree Genealogy with permission.

Each image has been designated an "R" for Recto or a "V" for Verso plus an album page number. Recto is the right-hand side page of a bound book while Verso is the left-hand side page.

I will be posting the entire album and my additional research on the individuals identified in Connie's album over the coming months so please check back frequently to view these historic photos. The easiest way to see what has been published is to click on the topic "Nursing Sister WW1 Photos"

TLC RENEWS WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? AND LONG LOST FAMILY FOR ADDITIONAL SEASONS

The following announcement was sent to Olive Tree Genealogy: 

TLC announced today that the network has ordered additional seasons of the fan favorite series WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? and freshman series LONG LOST FAMILY. The most recent seasons of both series averaged over 1.8M P2+ viewers.

Executive Produced by Lisa Kudrow and Dan Bucatinsky, the two time Emmy-nominated WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? follows some of today's most beloved and iconic celebrities as they embark on personal journeys of self-discovery to trace their family trees. The most recent seasons have featured Bryan Cranston, who uncovered an ancestor’s heroic dedication during the Civil War, and Molly Ringwald, who learned about the dangerous conditions her coal-mining ancestors endured.

LONG LOST FAMILY features the highly emotional and touching stories of people who have suffered a lifetime of separation from their family members. The series reunites those separated by adoption, uncovers secrets behind unsolved mysteries, and helps individuals answer lifelong questions. This past season reunited several family members in emotional meetings, including a mother and a daughter who actually worked together and did not realize they were related. The series is hosted by Chris Jacobs and Lisa Joyner, who uniquely share their own stories of adoption while leading others in their own family discoveries.

Ancestry.com,  the leading provider of online family history data and personal DNA testing, is teaming up with TLC again as a sponsor of the upcoming seasons for both series. As part of the sponsorship, Ancestry provides exhaustive family history research to help make discoveries possible on both series.

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? is produced for TLC by Shed Media and Is or Isn’t Entertainment, and is based on an original format created by Wall to Wall Media and Alex Graham. LONG LOST FAMILY is produced for TLC by Shed Media, and is based on the format entitled Find My Family/Spoorloos devised by KRO-NCRV, distributed by Lineup Industries.

Announcement re 100 Million Dutch Records on Ancestry

The following announcement was sent to Olive Tree Genealogy yesterday:

More than 100 million birth, marriage and death records from the Netherlands are available online for the first time thanks to an agreement between Ancestry.com, the leader in family history and consumer genomics and CBG, the Netherlands Centre for Family History.

The collection is made up of indexes of civil registration records, population registers, church registers and family announcements from a comprehensive network of archive organisations within the Netherlands. Most of the records cover events from the 19th and 20th Century.

To date this collection has only been available in its entirety via the dedicated WieWasWie database, as operated by the Netherlands Centre for Family History. Now these records can be accessed and shared by Ancestry’s 2.5 million family history enthusiasts around the world.

Nikolai Donitzky, Ancestry’s Managing Director of Content for Europe, comments: “The Centre for Family History and regional archives have done a remarkable job in gathering and digitizing these records across the country. We are delighted to help share this extensive collection of Dutch records with a worldwide audience.” Leo Voogt (Executive Director of CBG) adds: We have worked with the archive community in the Netherlands to provide a unified window on all our joint genealogical records. Working with Ancestry.com will generate an enormous additional audience for these holdings and will drive new traffic to the sites of the participating institutions in the Netherlands.

The collection is available on Ancestry.com from 6th June, 2016.