Cemetary Sleuthing

One of the best things to do when looking for ancestors is to do what our family does and go cemetery sleuthing. What is cemetery sleuthing you ask? It is going to a cemetery your ancestors are suppose to be buried at and start walking, looking at the headstones, and noting all the names of people buried near your ancestors. If the cemetery is small then you can make note of all the headstones and take pictures of them also, so that you can make sure you don't miss any related families.
This is a lesson I learned the hard way. When I first started doing genealogy we would go to the cemetery and look for that ancestor that we knew was there. We never looked at the other headstones just for the one we were after, we went through the cemetery with blinders on bent on finding that ancestor. We would get home and I would do more research and then find out that other related families were there in that cemetery also, so back to my to do list on places to go. Luckily two of the cemeteries I did this at were with in 100 miles of my home so I could go back to them easily, so off we went again. This time I noted all the names and low and behold most of the people were related in one way or the other in these cemeteries. Look at all I could of gotten done on that first visit if I had done some sleuthing the first time around. Lesson learned, never go through a cemetery with blinders on but instead with your Sherlock Holmes hat and magnifying glass ready to sleuth out all the clues and ancestors you can.

A good place to start to find a cemetery if you aren't sure where it is located is at the websites
findagrave.com and billiongraves.com
These  places are great for finding cemeteries and for getting pictures of headstones that are too far away for you to travel to and get yourself.
Check out these sites!

Reynolds Family

Recently I have met a 5th cousin I don't know how many times removed in my Reynolds family line. Because of him I have been able to share findings and meet others in this line also. Never forgo sending messages or letters or make phone calls to others that are researching the same line because you just never know what or who you might find.

Here is my Reynolds line:
Margaret Ann Reynolds
b abt 1824 in MO
m abt Feb 1842 in MO to William Capp son of John Capp and Chelsea Hyatt
d 20 Feb 1896 in Leesburg, Monroe County, MO
dau of George Reynolds and Sarah Francis Catharine Skidmore

George Reynolds
b 1791 Essex County, VA
m 14 Oct 1813 Lincoln County, KY to Sarah Francis Catharine Skidmore dau of Joseph Skidmore and Hannah McKinney
d 2 Jul 1851 Shelby County, MO
son of Robert Reynolds and Dolly Robinson

Robert Reynolds
b 1760 Essex County, VA
m 3 Nov 1786 Carolina County, VA to Dolly Robinson
d 17 Dec 1814 Clarksburg, Harrison County, WVA

now this is where it gets tricky. My new found cousin has Robert Reynolds father as a John and I have Robert Reynolds and Ann Miller

Robert Reynolds
b 1737 Essex County, VA
m
d 05 Dec 1780 Essex County, VA
married to Ann Miller dau of Simon Miller
son of James Rennolds and Sarah Carber

More research is needed to solve this discribancey and so back to work on this line.

Places to check would be:
ancestry.com
familysearch.org
vagenweb.org
wvgenweb.org
write to courthouses to get wills, marriage records and deeds.
go to Midwest Genealogy Center in Independence MO
check their website out:
http://www.mymcpl.org/genealogy

Motto is don't leave in stone unturned
Happy Sleuthing

Update on Missouri Death Certificates

I haven't been blogging for some time now, but that is changing starting with this post I will try to post at least once a week. That being said I thought it was a good time to remind you that you can see and print copies of Missouri death certificates at the Mo. State Archives website at sos.mo.gov They now have the death records to look at and print from 1910-1960. You just have to remember that to check more than one spelling of your name in the index. I know that some of mine have been really mispelled in the index but then when you look at the certificate it is spelled right so whomever indexed it just read it wrong. Going all the way to 1960 has helped in my research of parents and spouses names for some that I didn't have before. Some of the other records online there that you should check are:

Civil War Provost Marshal Index Database
Coroner's Inquest Database( just a few counties)
Land Patents Database
Naturalization Records Database ( only for a few counties)
Soldiers' Records: War of 1812 - World War I

If your ancestors are from Missouri this is a great place to start, at the archives, but don't forget that you can find marriage records at ancestry.com

More about each county in Missouri later.
Good Hunting! I will be hunting my Capp, Bilyeu, Anderson, Vincent, Hyatt, Jones, and Slawson families from Missouri today.

Researching at Midwest Genealogy Center

If you are in the Kansas City area a must is to go and research at the
Midwest Genealogy Center
3440 S. Lee's Summit Road
Independence, MO 64055-1923
Phone: 816-252-7228
Hours: Mon - Thurs 9-9; Fri 9-6; Sat 9-5; Sun 1-5
This is a fantastic place to do family research. The libraries holdings make it well worth the trip. If you are looking for family in Missouri or other states they have the resources to help. They have All available U.S. federal population census schedules 1790 - 1930, including Soundex/Miracode indexes. They have reference books for the states. You don't need to have ancestors from Missouri to benefit from this library, it is well worth the trip for the census of every state alone. They also have classes to help you start or learn more on how to do genealogy. The next class being offered according to their website is June 24, 2010, Thursday at 7:00 PM
Finding Your Pioneer Ancestor along the Oregon-California Trails you can register for this class as well as the others by going to their website. They have the Kansas City Star and Times Newspaper and the Independence Examiner newspaper. You really must come to this library when in the area. Their website is
http://www.mcpl.lib.mo.us/genlh/mgc.htm I hope you check it out.
I have used this facility for many years to do research. The books of the different county histories from all over the US as well as the cemetery books from MO have been a great help for me in my research. I highly recommend you use this resource.

Memorial Day Trip to Cemetery

Memorial Day we went to put flowers on the graves at the cemetery again. As we went to the different graves Mike and I discussed how many graves go undecorated or attended. We can no longer go to one cemetery here in town that has my great grandparents and other ancestors in it because of the area it is in and also the disrepair. The last time we were there headstones had been taken or moved or broken and the graves themselves, in some cases, had sunken in. When I first started doing genealogy many years ago and could get to this cemetery I never thought about taking a picture of the headstones or rubbings because we went every year. Now that I can no longer get there and the records are not good, or in most cases, non existent I wish I had thought to do the pictures back then. I guess what I want to convey is always go prepared to take pictures or rubbings of the headstones when you go to a cemetery. Don't be left wishing you had like I am now. This year we took pictures of the headstones we go to every year and I will share them here. Most bigger Cemeteries will give you a map showing where your graves you are looking for are located and it is always a good idea to get one if possible to include in your cemetery book of your ancestors. If it is a smaller cemetery or one that doesn't offer this then walk the cemetery find your ancestors graves and make your own map. It will help when you return to that cemetery or want to share with someone else where the ancestors are buried.

Pictures of headstones for Bilyeu Family at Chapel Hill Cemetery in Kansas City,KS Wyandotte County located in the Old Rugged Cross Section
Memorial Day 2010:

George and Sophia Jones Bilyeu


Cline and Marie Outlaw Bilyeu with son Terry





Clarence and Helen Bilyeu and James and Opha Bilyeu Smith

Jesse and Gusta Bilyeu Jester

Wm Clay and Josephine Bilyeu


Robert and Barbara Bilyeu

I took some pictures of the full headstone followed like in Wm Clay and Josephine's with a close up of names and dates where both can be seen. I a cemetery book for each family try to get both pictures so that you have it for later reference. This is just one area in one cemetery that had most of my Bilyeu side of the family that I am using as an example.
Most important is to make sure you visit the cemeteries and record all the info you can.

Old family recipes

One thing that we should remember to record is old family recipes. I think everyone probably remembers that food that Grandma or Mom has made that as a kid we loved. In our family we have certain things that we always ate and learned to make from our relatives. I have several
and will share them once in awhile and this is the first. My mom use to bake this cake for my birthday all the time and I love it. It is one that is being passed down.

 Mom's Eggless Cake Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup shortening
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 cups buttermilk
3 cups flour
2 tsps soda
3-4 tsps cinammon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla

In mixer mix all the above ingredients together alternating the milk and flour 
Pour into a greased and floured 13"x9" cake pan
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 min or until done in the middle. Test by inserting knife in middle and if comes out clean done

Icing
Combine 1 cup brown sugar
2 tbls milk
2 tbls coconut (add more to your taste)
Mix and sprinkle on top of cake while cake is still hot
Put under broiler till bubbles

All in the Family Tree

It has been a really long time since I posted anything due to illness. I am much better now and out of my wheelchair so I can get back at the courthouse and cemetery sleuthing again on a regular basis. I wanted to give just a short tree of my direct ancestors and where they are from to start of this new year and to also remind you to never get rid of hard copies of anything. I was rereading a article sent to me out of a book and noticed that I had not followed through on looking for my ancestors marriage record in Pike County IL. When I looked it up at the IL State Archives sure enough there they were. Always review what you think you know and see what you missed.

Here goes with my tree:

Debra Kay Jester (me)

Parents: Jack Norman Jester and Zeilla May Snodgrass

Jack Norman Jester Parents:
Jesse Theodore Jester and Gusta Fern Bilyeu

Zeilla May Snodgrass Parents:
Emmett Elzer Snodgrass and Mattie Rae Capp

Jesse Theodore Jester Parents:
Charles August Jester and Hattie Jane Anderson

Gusta Fern Bilyeu Parents:
George Clinton Bilyeu and Sophia Jones

Emmett Elzer Snodgrass Parents:
Walter C Snodgrass and Sallie Ann Cobb

Mattie Rae Capp Parents
Zelman Capp and Elizabeth Vincent

That is the immediate grandparents and I am going to look indepth each week at one of the sets. This week is Jesse Theodore Jester and Gusta Fern Bilyeu

Now here is the web address for the IL State Archives :

http://www.sos.state.il.us/departments/archives/databases.html

the online searchable records are:

Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, 1763–1900

Illinois Statewide Death Index, Pre–1916

Illinois Statewide Death Index (1916–1950)

Databases of Illinois Veterans