Happy New Year

Hope everyone is having a great holiday. Back with obituaries in Fulton Co., OH on Wednesday. Have a great day.

Fulton County Death Records

Death records for Fulton Co., OH can be found in two places. The county courthouse in Wauseon and the archives in Bowling Green.

The records at the court house run from 1867- present. Remember with the fire at the courthouse all the records prior to 1867 were destroyed. Be patient with the courthouse employees when sending for information. Certified documents can be obtained here.

The archives in Bowling Green has the death records on microfilm that run from 1867-1951.

Death records are important documents for tracing the past. They will include parents names, maiden names and location of burial. It is always important to keep copies of the death certificates in your genealogical files. All very important clues to tracing your genealogy.

Upcoming Year

As we begin to focus on the upcoming year one needs to consider two of the major events for genealogy in the upcoming year. They are the National Genealogical Society and Federation of Genealogical Societies Conferences. They both offer wonderful learning opportunities to expand your genealogical knowledge and to meet other genealogist.

The National Genealogical Society meeting this year will be held in Kansas City, MO on May 14-17, 2008. These days are filled with a variety of programs covering a variety of aspects of genealogy. They cover programs that would interest the beginner to the advanced. The topics vary from vital records, military records to computer program updates. The vendor area will bring you in touch with the latest software updates. Here is the link to the site- http://www.eshow2000.com/ngs/2008/

The second show of interest is the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in Philadelphia, PA on September 3-6-2008. This conference covers many of the items as the National meeting, but also covers a lot of issues that effect genealogical societies. This is another conference well worth the trip. Here is the link to the site- http://www.fgsconference.org/index.php

Have a wonderful Sunday.

Happy Holidays

Have been traveling during this time period. Just got back at my office and will continue covering Fulton Co. research.

I hope you all have had a wonderful holiday.

Archbold Community Library

Another valuable resource when researching in Fulton County is the community library in Archbold. The genealogical collection at the library is located in the Mc Claughlin room. The collection includes a variety of books and microfilm collections.

The books included in the collection are the three major histories of Fulton Co. OH. The years of publication are 1888, 1920 and 1976. When checking local histories be sure to not only check the biography sections, but the township history sections as well. I have had wonderful success with this area and finding clues to individuals in my searches. Also included in the books is histories on Painesville and Swanton.

The collection also includes many family histories with origins in Fulton Co., OH. Be sure that when using family histories to be sure to check for sources for the information published. Family histories with out sources is fiction and not fact.

In the newspaper collection three local papers are in the collection. They are the Archbold Herald (1893-1898), Archbold Advocate (1900-1907) and the Archbold Buckey (1905-present). Be sure to check the marriage and birth announcements.

The library also has a complete collection of census records for the county.

Fulton County- Military Records.

Some very interesting records exist for the county that would prove helpful in your genealogical research. These records are located at the archives in Bowling Green.

The militia Rolls from 1864 would prove interesting for those people registered during this time period. Militia rolls typically list the name of the person serving, residence and age. Ironically this is during the time period of the Civil War. My thought is that this would primarily be a list of people that were unable to serve in regular service for one reason or another.

Records of Relief Disbursements (1886-1964) was generated at the local county level to help supports those military personal that received a disability as a result of their service. This funding was to offset funding that may not be available on federal level. Included in this information would be persons name, service information, location in county, time served and spouse. This would be a unique source on a local level. Also be sure to check the Solders Relief commission case files that run from 1904-1954. Another treasure trove of genealogical information.

Soldier's discharge records were recorded 1865-1910, 1918, 1922, 1928, 1934, 1938 and 1952. This information was specific to the war the individual the person served. This again would include individuals name, war served, time served, spouse, location in county. Another very unique and valuable resource in the county.

These records are unique and should be consulted for the genealogical information they would provide.

Fulton County- Naturilization Records and Intentions

The search for Naturalization and Intention records is important for any immigration ancestor. These documents provide valuable clues to the origins of family members. These records are located at two separate locations for Fulton Co. Ohio.

The records in the county are located at the court house in Wauseon under the Probate Court. The second location is at the archives in Bowling Green. These records run from 1879-1906 and are on microfilm.

Please look at the blog post for Putnam Co. Naturalization and Intention records for more information on these type of documents.

Fulton County- Land Records.

The Land Records in Fulton Co can be found in several places depending on the time period that the search is being completed. The key is knowing the jurisdiction to best look for the records.

Prior to the counties creation in 1850 you have four places to look for the records. They are Henry, Lucas and Williams counties along with the counties bordering current day Fulton Co. in Michigan. The border line issue played a major part in where the land records may be located prior to 1837. After this date most of the records are located in the Ohio counties.

After the 1850 time period the land records for the county can be found in two locations. The first is at the court house in Wauseon. This has the most complete list of records for the county, but does have some gaps due to the fire. The second place is at the archives in Bowling Green. The records here on microfilm and run from 1932-1969.

The primary location for your search for these documents is at the courthouse. Good luck with your search.

Fulton County- Marraige Records

The looming issue when always doing research in Fulton County is the fire in the courthouse in 1864 and the distribution of early records. These two factors also come into play when researching marriage records in this county.

Marriage records tend to be some of the better kept records in any county. Fulton County is no exception and the records can be located in several different locations. The primary source for certified copies would of course be at the County court house in Wauseon. Two other locations have microfilmed copies of the records as well. They are the community library in Archbold and the archives in Bowling Green. The records at the library run from 1864-1925 and June 10, 1927 - July 21, 1944. At the archives the records run from 1864-1956. Prior to 1864 the records were destroyed in the fire. Prior to 1850 when the county was formed be sure to check Henry, Lucas and Williams counties in Ohio. The records also may be found in Michigan to the north.

I will be covering Land Records in the county.

Free Searchs

I said in previous posts I am willing to do family searches for free that can be talked about in the blog. This should be a wonderful way to show the resources available in Northwest Ohio and help in tracing some of your families back.

Please contact me via the email on the blog and I will post the results as they become available. Have a wonderful Sunday.

Spread the Genealogical Bug

This past week I was interviewed for a article that appeared in the Putnam County Sentinel on the subject of genealogy. It reminded me of the events in ones life that cause them to move in different directions.

My initial interest came in genealogy from a family tree that my parents always had hanging on a wall in my parents home. As a child I was always amazed that I was related to so many people that I did not know. My great aunt would also play a important part in my genealogical development. She was my link to the history of my mothers family. There was many a day that she would share the many family stories and I would listen to her for hours. She also had all the newspaper clippings, pictures and family bibles. This was a treasure trove of information on my family that helped with bringing these people alive for me. From his point on I have been hooked.

A second person that I came in contact with a had a influence on my interest was a distant relative on my mothers side. At the time of meeting him he was in his upper eighties. He again was able to share many stories on my family that I would never of heard from anyone else otherwise. Even at his advanced age we spent many hours exploring the the area where my family had lived and was buried. He also shared many stories about traveling down the river with things to trade in a wooden boat, his searches along the river for Indian artifacts and his service in France during the First World War.

We all have a story to tell and they must be shared. During this holiday season it is a good time to spread the stories of our past to the younger people in our families. In this day of computers and video games it is still important for the our youth to understand where we came from . So while you are sharing with your families be sure to share the memories of Christmas and history past.

Happy Holidays!!

Wauseon Public Library

One of the first parts to start when doing research in Fulton Co., OH is at the Wauseon Public Library in Wauseon. The library has several resources that are of interest to the genealogist interested in researching this area. The libraries holding are in five areas that include Newspapers, Census Records, Family histories, yearbooks and County histories.

The libraries collection of newspapers is the

Fulton County Expositor- January 1, 1875- Nov 4, 2003

Republican- January 16, 1868- July 30, 1981

Fulton County Tribune- May 19, 1883- Nov 21, 1924

The primary source here is obituaries, but don't forget to look for marriage, anniversary and birth announcements. All of these resources are available on microfilm.

As mentioned in the history of Fulton County you need to look in the adjacent counties for census records prior to 1850. Don't forget the Michigan counties as well. The Fulton Co. census records run from 1850-1920.

The library also includes many family and county histories related to Fulton Co. Be sure when using family histories that you check the sources for the information. A genealogy without sources is Fiction not Fact. Unfortunately this is all to common with family histories. They make a good guide until proven. The plat maps will also in understanding some of the geographic changes that have happened in the county and will help in pinpointing where a families records may be located.

Yearbooks prove to be valuable resources when trying to pinpoint a particular area that a family may be located.

The library is located at

117 East Elm Street
Wauseon, OH 43567
Phone- 419- 335-6626

Please be sure to call ahead during this holiday season to confirm hours.

Fulton County Ohio- Births

Due to the nature of the creation of Fulton County research for vital records can be a challenge. The county was created out of three counties Henry, Lucas and Williams. The county also shares it's northern border with Michigan and prior to the county creation in 1850 the border records may be cloudy.

When researching families that were located in this county prior to 1850 checking the three other counties and the adjoining counties in Michigan may be necessary when looking for records. Fulton counties records started in 1867. The records can be found in three seperate locations. The first is at the county court house in Wauseon. Many records prior to 1864 were destroyed when the county courthouse was destroyed. The second place to look for records is at the Health Department where records were kept from 1908 to present. The court house and the Health department are where the certified copies of birth can be obtained. The third and final place to locate birth records is at the Archives in Bowling Green that has the index and the actual birth records which run from 1867-1951.

The next topic will be on marriages.

Fulton County Ohio- History

The General Assembly of Ohio passed a law making Fulton a county on Feb 28, 1850. The county was organized out of the counties of Henry, Lucas and Williams counties in April of 1850. The county seat is located in Wauseon, OH. The county was named after Robert Fulton the inventor of the first commercial steam ship. This area like Lucas Co. would be part of the dispute that would become the Toledo War.

Prior to 1850 records have to be searched in the other three counties that laid claim to this area. Especially early land deed would fall into this time period and take some unique searching during the early time period. The northern border of the county is with Michigan where yo can find some overlap of vital records. This area is know for it's outstanding farm land that has provided food supplies for decades.

Putnam Co.- Naturalization Records

Locating Naturalization records is a important step in identifying origins for a individual new to the United States. The primary location for these records for Putnam County is at the archives in Bowling Green, OH.

There are three different forms of documentation for the genealogist to look for which are the Declaration of Intent, the Petition and Certificate of Naturalization. The Declaration of Intent was normally filled out shortly after the person would arrive at a final destination. These documents would be filed at the county seat in Ottawa. Information in this document can vary greatly based on the time period that they were filed. From 1862 to 1906 these records lacked any real detail in most cases. Foreign citizens that participated in the Civil War were waved from having to fill out this portion of the application. After 1906 the information in this document became more detailed. The information provided would include name, address, occupation, birthplace, nationality, country from which emigrated, age or birth date, physical description, date of intention, marital status, last foreign residence, port of entry, name of ship, date of entry, and date of document. Some times this document would be filed with the Petition.

The petition would include the same information as the Intent. The information would reflect the same issues as the Intent.

The Certificate of Naturalization was completed once the person had completed the citizenship requirements. Prior to 1906 this information was often only the name of the person and name of court. After that the period would be the same as the other forms.

The Naturalization Records in Bowling Green run from 1861-1907. They have copies of the intentions and certificates on microfilm. These are very good sources of origin, because they are given by the immigrants themselves.

This completes Putnam County. Now I will begin covering Fulton County, OH.

Putnam County Ohio- Will Records

The location of a Will is one of the most important documents when doing genealogical research on a specific individual. Wills offer important verification of relationships and location of a individual. Unfortunately all to often this is the only document where these items can be verified.

In Putnam Co. OH there are three areas that this document can be located. The first is the library in Ft. Jennings, OH, the Probate Court at the county seat in Ottawa and finally the Bowling Green Archives in BG. The records in the library are all done on microfilm and run from 1837-1941. The records at the Probate Court run from 1837 to present. Here again access can be limited if the records are in the last 100 years. The Bowling Green Archives has two important items on Wills which is the Index to Will records (1837-1897) and the Will Records (1837-1941). These documents are all on microfilm.

The Will is the document that brings all your other facts together on a individual. The Will is normally dated several days after the individuals death. The information in the will explains the distribution of the persons worldly assets and where they would like things to go upon death. This is a important document for verifying wives, husbands and children's names. This document also becomes a good way to document the married names of daughters. A often overlooked portion of the will is the names of the executors. These names are often people that can offer clues to the lineage of the deceased individual. Many times it can be members of the wife or husbands family. It's important to figure out this person's relationship to the deceased. Relative or friend.

Tomorrow I will be wrapping up the records on Putnam Co. OH with the discussion of Naturalization records. I will then be moving on to a new county. My hope is that this information has been helpful on Putnam Co.

Northwest Ohio Genealogical Post- Joyner Family

The purpose of these segments will be outline actual searches and the methods used to find the information needed. The task asked for in this search was to find some obituaries.

The two people that I was to search for were Ben Joyner who died in Toledo, Lucas Co., OH on Dec 31, 1991. Second person was Amanda Joyner who died 5 May 1929. The reader was looking for copies of two obituaries. Several sources can be consulted to find the information that was requested. The first is to locate the obits in a newspaper in the area. The local newspaper is the Toledo Blade which is microfilmed and located at the Toledo Public Library in their Genealogy and Local History room. Obituaries are indexed up until the 1960's which makes it very easy to find and locate the date a obituary was printed. After that period of time you have to do some searching. Second source would be the City Directories that are also located at the library.

The first person I began my search for was Ben Joyner. Typically the person is not listed in the paper for the day that they died. So I started on the day after. The obituaries appear in the local section of the paper and have been there for decades. I finally ended up finding the obituary I was looking for on January 3, 1992. It indicated that he had lived 90 years. He worked in construction for many years and had many survivors. Project completed.

The second person to search for was Amanda Joyner. First thing to check for this time period in Toledo is the index of obituaries. After doing a search in the days following the death I was unable to locate the obituary. I was not told prior to the search that the family was of African American descent. It is my belief that, because of the times in which she died it was not unusual to have her obit omitted from the mainstream paper. Luckily I consulted with a second source that gave me some indication of the time in which she died. That was the city directory. The break in dates and continuation of a Henry Joyner indicated that she was survived by her husband. This was later confirmed by the 1930 census for Toledo, Lucas Co., OH and the obit of Henry Joyner.

Well this is the first in I hope many that I get to do. Thanks again for the contribution.

On a side note I wanted you folks to know I was recently interviewed for the Putnam Co. Sentinel in Ottawa, OH on the subject of genealogy and this blog. The article will appear on the nineteenth of December for you folks in that area. Thanks again for your support.

Tiffin Seneca Public Library

When searching in a particular locality for me the first place to start your genealogical research is at the main library in the county. The place to start in Seneca Co., OH is at the public library in Tiffin. I was surprised to learn about all the records that they had available and the amount that was located here.

The genealogy and local history area has a variety or records. One of the most extensive parts of the collection is the records related to churches and cemeteries. The records of 29 different churches are microfilmed in their collection. A lot of these records were compiled by the WPA back in the 1930's. The cemetery records consist of a name index that primarily tells where a person is buried in the county with out any real dates. Currently they have only five cemeteries on microfilm that includes all the information. (Fountain, Liberty and Pleasant Twp., Greenlawn, St. Mary's and St Josephs.

The military records are unique and have coverage of several wars. Rosters are kept in the collection from the Civil War, WWI, and WWII. The Civil War rosters they have are complete for the county and are all on microfilm. A unique item is the picture collection that includes many of the people from the area that served during WWI and WWII. This includes events put on and many individual pictures. A microfilm copy also exists of the discharge papers for soldiers from the county.

The newspaper collection includes those in the city of Tiffin and the county as a whole. The obituary index is indexed in a card file. Another interesting item is microfilm of two German Newspapers that were published in the county. Many of the obituary records are in the process of being included in the Hayes collection in Fremont that I have mentioned on several occasions.

If your ancestor came to Seneca Co. early his name may be found in the original land entries of the county. The collection also has two key map books that were published in 1874 and 1896 that show the location where people lived in the county.

The vital records collection is all on microfilm. The records include birth records 1867 -1908, marriage records 1841-1899, 1899-1930 and 1957-1977, death records 1867-1908 and wills 1851-1900. The census collection includes all the years from 1830 to 1930. They also have a fine collection of rural directories.

The library is located at the following.

77 Jefferson Street
Tiffin, OH 44883
419-447-3045

This is a outstanding collection of records related to Seneca Co., OH. It is well worth the trip.

Sick Day

Just wanted to let you know there will not be a normal post today. I am not feeling well. Will cover the Tiffin Seneca Library tomorrow.

Putnam County- Obituaries

Obituaries offer interesting insight and clues into our relatives lives. The quality of the obituaries though varies. We all hope to find that wonderfully detailed obit, but are disappointed when we find it and it is just two lines long. Putnam County has many newspapers to consult to find the obit for your relative.

The primary location for the newspapers in the area are at the library in Ft Jennings. Please check out my posting from a week ago this past Friday when I did the overview on the resources at the library and you will find a list of newspaper. Include is the time period of publication. Remember again the accuracy of the obit is only as good as the person giving the information and the writer.

Another excellent resource for obit search is at the Hayes Library in Fremont. Here is the link to their site.

RB Hayes Obituary Index

This will help in narrowing down your ancestors obit publication date and the newspaper.