What Is A Document?

What Is A Document? Dorothee Hughes Carousso, F.G.S.P., C.G. I N GENEALOGY, the only conclusive proof of a blood line is contained in a document. However, there seems to be a great deal of confusion about exactly what constitutes a document. One very succinct definition of a genealogical document is: "A piece of written evidence, written by a person who, or in an era which, could not have foreseen this eventual use of it." When a genealogist publishes a book, privately or otherwise, which is not "documented" as to the descendant of a specific ancestor, the book is suspect, useless for reference, and gets very bad reviews. The most frequent demand for documentation is for applications to hereditary or patriotic societies. The acceptance or rejection of a prospective member is, in perhaps 99% of the cases, based on whether or not the applicant has proven descent from the ancestor claimed. This proof is based entirely upon the supporting documents which are submitted with the application. Nearly every hereditary society demands documentary proof of the blood line descent of the applicant from the ancestor. To backtrack in history a bit, most American hereditary patriotic societies, with the exception of The Society of the Cincinnati which was formed just after the Revolutionary War in 1783, were started within twenty years or so of one another, 1876-1896. The late Dr. Wallace E. Davies of the University of Pennsylvania theorized that one impetus toward this rather sudden formation of these societies was an attempt between the Northern and Southern states to mend fences to some degree by looking back beyond the war that had divided them, to the wars where they fought shoulder to shoulder against a common enemy—the English, the French or the Indians. There was the recognition of their mutual ancestors who had braved the rigors of the voyages of the Mayflower, the Winthrop Fleet and William Penn's Welcome ships. At the time these hereditary patriotic societies were being formed, some of the widows, children and grandchildren of the soldiers of the American Revolution and the War of 1812, were still 210 What Is A Document? 21 1 alive. Many of these remembered, within their lifetimes, having been told firsthand of the old soldiers' experiences. Therefore, it often happened that "my grandfather said . 3! or "my grandmother will tell you ." was all that was needed to qualify an applicant for membership in a society. Since those early days however, the societies have found that in too many cases Grandfather's memory had slipped along the way and Grandmother told stories inaccurately. I t has been a source of endless embarrassment to these societies that in later years they discovered many members who were not qualified to belong. They are still finding themselves in the awkward position of having to reject an applicant whose grandparent had been a member not qualified to belong. Many tears have been shed and many angry words exchanged on this sad score. Now, an applicant must prove, beyond any doubt, that he or she has a straight blood line descendancy (in some cases, legitimate descendancy through all generations) from the ancestor he claims. The reason many of these societies have grown so strict is that they are trying to improve upon the validity of the lines of descent. Today, when a person submits an application to a hereditary society, patriotic or otherwise, he or she is expected to submit with the application, a sheaf of documents which prove every claim made on the lineage papers . . every birth date and place, every marriage and death date and place, and every blood relationship. A birth or baptismal certificate of the applicant is usually Document #1. This proves the parents claimed. This is most easily obtained by the applicant, rather than by a genealogist. In the case of a birth certificate, many town and county clerks are reluctant to issue a document concerning a living individual, except to the individual himself upon proof of identity. Their reasons are sound. Many forgers and con-men use other people's birth records to assume a false identity. It should be understood that blood lines, as used in lineage papers, work from the present and near-present toward the past. A good genealogist never assumes an ancestor, or works forward from an ancestor to the applicant. The applicant may claim only one ancestor for membership although there may be several who qualify. After acceptance as a member, other qualified ancestors may be used as 'C supplemental lines." 212 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine After the applicant's birth certificate has been obtained, it must be decided whether the trip backward in time will go through the father's or the mother's line. That decided, Document #2 should be proof that the applicant's parents were legally married. This can be a church or civil record, a newspaper notice or a family Bible record. A church or civil record would, of course, be dated. If it is a Xerox copy of a newspaper record, the name and date of the paper must be included. With the family Bible record, a Xerox copy of the Bible's title page showing the date of publication must be included with the copy of the written record page. This is to assure that the record was made within a reasonable time of the Bible's publication, not one hundred and fifty V ears later, or earlier. The marriage proven and the parental line chosen, for instance, the father's records are needed. The next step is to work back, if he has died, from his death to his birth and the marriage of his parents. His birth certificate will probably show the date and place of death, date and place of his birth, the name of his father, and the maiden name of his mother, and sometimes their ages and place of birth. (Be sure to request a "full" copy of the document.) If the father is still alive, his birth certificate should provide the same information. If the search goes through his mother's line, then proof must be obtained for her dates of death, marriage, birth and the names of her parents. Sources for such documents may be obtained by writing to the Superintendent of Documents, United States Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, and requesting copies of their publications: Where to Write for Birth and Death Records, and Where to Write for Marriage Records. The Government Printing Office also issues a similar publication, Where to Write for Divorce Records. The small price of these publications changes frequently, but the Government Printing Office will advise of current prices. These publications cover the "United States and Outlying Areas", such as American Samoa, Canal Zone, Guam, Puerto Rico, U. S. Virgin Islands, etc. Birth, death and marriage records do not go back very far in most of the United States, except for the New England States where the town clerks kept good records back to the seventeenth century. When vital records peter out, around the turn of the century, the researcher must turn to other sources; such as: wills and other probate or surrogate records (letters of administration, inventories, final accountings of administrations, etc.); marriage records in newspapers, or the United States Census records which show husband and wife in the What Is A Document? 213 same household for several successive decades after 1850. Family Bible records will provide birth, marriage and death records. Census records can provide proof of age and generalized place of birth. Church records can be found to give dates of baptism (very often giving birth date), marriage, burial records and tombstone inscriptions. It should be noted that in small towns, the newspapers carried birth announcements, as well as marriage and death notices. Local libraries may have copies of old newspapers. Deeds and mortgages are also sources of documented proof of blood lines. They may contain transfers property between parents and children, between children of the same family, or in many cases, the sale of a property to settle an estate among heirs named in the deed. This is a technique best handled by an expert genealogist. However, the researcher who wants to learn to handle this area himself, will find instruction in a fine study on the subject, The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy, by Val D. Greenwood, published by Genealogical Publishing Company in 1975, Baltimore. Diaries, journals and letters may also be considered documents, "by a person depending upon the dates when they were written who could not foresee this eventual use of it." They quite often provide the "clues" needed to carry the line back one more important step. If they predated the founding years of hereditary societies, it is to be assumed that the authors had no ulterior motives. As an instance, when my great-grandmother in Michigan in 1840 wrote back to her parents in Maine, she could not foresee that the information in her letters would qualify me for membership in an hereditary society in 1960. That letter, therefore, is a document. Various court records provide information to genealogical searchers. However, if the searcher is unfamiliar with the local laws governing such court cases, he is liable to misunderstand the records. In this case, it is wiser to obtain the services of a local genealogist who can properly interpret the records. Many people are surprised to learn that the United States has been keeping census records since 1790. It was not until 1850 that each member of each household was listed by name. The census was recorded every ten years. In varying degrees, much helpful information can be found in this source. With leads from City Directories of the period, an ever-increasing publication of index volumes to each census, the searcher may find it comparatively easy to locate a family. Census records are to be found at the National Archives in Wash- 214 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine ington, D.C.; and in Federal Records Centers in many large cities (one of these at 5000 Wissahickon Avenue in Philadelphia); in many large libraries at universities and in capitol cities and in most historical and genealogical libraries. Some census records have been lost, but most are complete and indexed. Published books are seldom considered "documents", with a few exceptions. Published archives of a state are an exception. However, very few genealogies or county histories can be considered acceptable, because they have been found to contain too many errors. Genealogies which are themselves "documented" or annotated, are generally acceptable as documentation. Unfortunately, at the time when most county histories were being compiled, teams of interviewers were sent out to canvass the residents for their family history. Some misinformation was given in good faith, in other instances, extravagant claims to the family's prominence or descent from royalty were fabricated out of imagination, but published as gospel. The publishers of "pull" biographies who have flourished in the recent past, have muddied the waters of genealogical research. Most county histories are considered suspect in their genealogical sections, however, the history sections with lists of taxpayers and muster rolls, for example, are generally assumed to have been copied correctly. It is always best to get a certified or Xerox copy of the original record, if possible. Published church histories, with lists of baptisms, marriages and burials, are less suspect than county histories, since it is assumed that the records were copied correctly. But, here again, if the church is still in existence, it is best to request a copy of the original record from the church office. It must be kept in mind that the eyewitnesses of four or five generations ago are all gone now. That is why a genealogical document is "a piece of written evidence . ." It is as valuable as a rare gem. This is the reason why old writings must be preserved. Records must be retrieved, rescued and guarded by libraries, historical and genealogical societies, town, state and federal archives. Even a family heirloom tray is more valuable if it bears a time-worn inscription, such as: "Joshua and Eleanor Haywood, married 12 June 1836." The writing is more valuable than the tray. It is a document.