Featured image: Portrait of Charles Gottlieb Kolb, who immigrated to America in 1854. My wife is a direct descendant of Charles Gottlieb Kolb. Charles immigrated from Germany to the United States in 1854 and settled in Ida County, Iowa. This man has many descendants in Iowa. Two certified Century Farms are still owned by hisContinue reading “German Immigration: Charles Kolb of Württemberg”
Author Archives: David Moberly
British Newspaper Research: A Family Scandal
Findmypast continues to scan, transcribe, and upload to its searchable databases the newspaper collection of the British Library, an incredible project. Already, this database is invaluable to those researching ancestors who lived on the island of Great Britain during the 18th and 19th centuries. My own ancestor, William Clark, immigrated from England as recently as 1873.Continue reading “British Newspaper Research: A Family Scandal”
August 2018 DNA Sales
The following DNA-testing companies are currently offering sales on genealogical autosomal DNA tests this August: Ancestry: $59 until Aug 20 ($40 off) MyHeritage: $69 ($10 off) FamilyTreeDNA: $59 until Aug 31 ($20 off) Take advantage of these sales if you have a genealogical puzzle that DNA may be able to solve.
Finding Nana’s Mother: A DNA Story
The following is shared by a client whom we helped with finding biological family using DNA: Learning Nana’s Story I only have the faintest of memories of what it was like for my Nana to live close by before she moved out of state. My memories of her stem from our trips to see herContinue reading “Finding Nana’s Mother: A DNA Story”
Mental Illness Genealogy: Steadman Gray
Awareness of mental illness has increased dramatically over the years, but how did our ancestors deal with it? This post outlines the kinds of records available for researching mental illness in your family history through telling the mental illness genealogy story of my ancestor, Steadman Gray. Steadman was committed on the testimony of his wifeContinue reading “Mental Illness Genealogy: Steadman Gray”
Search American Ancestors for Free from July 10-17
Big news! American Ancestors, a large family history record database run by the New England Historic Genealogical Society, is free to search from July 10-17. This site has many resources helpful to those who may have New England ancestors. Among the resources available are the contents of the Mayflower “Silver Books,” a research project undertakenContinue reading “Search American Ancestors for Free from July 10-17”
Census Weirdness: The Case of Sarah E Peck
In genealogy, every once in awhile you run into something strange. Sarah E Peck of Lincoln, Nebraska’s entry in the 1910 US Census (above) is one of those things. It’s not unusual to see blanks in census forms, especially in the age column of an entry (though it can be frustrating!) It is, however, oddContinue reading “Census Weirdness: The Case of Sarah E Peck”
My Ancestor was Wounded at Gettysburg
My great-great grandfather, Newell Elijah Gile, was wounded at Gettysburg. I had heard rumors for some time about this wound. Only after doing some research into my own Battle of Gettysburg genealogy, however, was I able to verify it. It seems fitting to honor his sacrifice and service on this the anniversary of the battle,Continue reading “My Ancestor was Wounded at Gettysburg”
Free Revolutionary War Records on Fold3, July 1-15!
Fold3 is offering free access to its American Revolutionary War collection from July 1-15. Take advantage of this offer to access millions of pension files, military service records and war rolls that can help you verify the details of your ancestor’s service.
Finding Ancestors Overseas: Cynthia Borgman’s Death in China
As someone who began her simple life in a large, bilingual family–the child of Dutch immigrants to Iowa–Cynthia Clara Borgman’s adulthood might seem an easily predictable vision of a typical, early-nineteenth-century Midwestern life. It wasn’t. Cynthia traveled far and died young (in her 20s) in Amoy, China while serving as a missionary for the DutchContinue reading “Finding Ancestors Overseas: Cynthia Borgman’s Death in China”