Friday, October 3, 2014
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Citation Mania
I have been trying to clean up my source list for some time now so I can provide decent citations for my research. The internet is full of guides explaining how to cite census records, death certificates, etc., and there are different approaches for electronic media and physical copies.
Trying to find two approaches that are consistent with each other, however, is something akin to finding two politicians that agree on something. Everyone has their opinion, but it seems there are little differences that exist between each method. Google is a powerful weapon, but searching for citation examples that I can use with my sources can lead to more confusion than one person can handle.
I was just starting to get comfortable with an approach that represents my best effort at synthesizing several different methods, when I started seeing the name Elizabeth Shown Mills over and over. Suddenly her name was popping up everywhere, and everyone was comparing this method or that method to how she does things.
Finally some consistency amongst confusion? Here is an approach that is clearly laid out and adapted to almost any situation that you can think of. Maybe now I can stop spending so much time trying to figure out how to cite each source type, and start spending more time researching again.
It makes me happy. But now I have to go back and update all my existing citations to reflect Ms. Mills' approach. Oh well, research can wait a little longer.
Trying to find two approaches that are consistent with each other, however, is something akin to finding two politicians that agree on something. Everyone has their opinion, but it seems there are little differences that exist between each method. Google is a powerful weapon, but searching for citation examples that I can use with my sources can lead to more confusion than one person can handle.
I was just starting to get comfortable with an approach that represents my best effort at synthesizing several different methods, when I started seeing the name Elizabeth Shown Mills over and over. Suddenly her name was popping up everywhere, and everyone was comparing this method or that method to how she does things.
Finally some consistency amongst confusion? Here is an approach that is clearly laid out and adapted to almost any situation that you can think of. Maybe now I can stop spending so much time trying to figure out how to cite each source type, and start spending more time researching again.
It makes me happy. But now I have to go back and update all my existing citations to reflect Ms. Mills' approach. Oh well, research can wait a little longer.
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
More on James Niece
John Niece's death certificate states that his father was James Niece.1 This agrees with the 1850 census record for James Niece in
Shelby County, IL.2
James was a farmer who was born in Kentucky in about 1803. He
moved to Madison County, IL sometime in the 1820's or early 1830's. This
is based on
the fact that the 1850 census lists Kentucky as the birthplace of his
eldest children, and Madison County is listed as the birthplace of both
John and William on their Illinois Civil War muster rolls.3
(There
is some disagreement between James's 1850 census record and later
records for John, who always listed his birthplace as Illinois (for example, his death certificate), and sometimes more precisely as Madison County,
IL (for example, his Civil War documents).
By contrast,
James Niece, Jr listed his birthplace as Okonee, Sangamon County, IL on his
Civil War papers.4 This was an error; Oconee (the correct spelling) has always been in Shelby County.
No
further information has been found to date on James's other children,
although James Sr. and his children Philip and Mary are also listed in the 1850 census for
Madison County, IL, where they appear to have been hired hands.5)
 |
 |
I also found a census record for James Niece in Madison County in 1840.6
 |
| 1840 Census Record for James Niece, Madison Co., IL |
It is certainly possible that this is my great-great-grandfather's record, as the location makes sense and the ages of everyone in the household agree with the 1850 census. So this claim seems supportable, but I have nothing substantial to prove this. However, I have seen threads on Rootsweb that claim records exist documenting land sales in the same area between James Niece and other parties that I believe are related to my ancestor, so I think it is likely that this census record does indeed belong to my ancestor.
My
search for information about James Niece would be at an end if I had
not recently stumbled across a Find-a-Grave entry for James Niece in
Shedd Cemetery in Ramsey Township, Fayette County, IL.7 Recall James's
1850 census says he lived in Beck's Creek District of Shelby County, IL.
This was located just across the county line from Shedd Cemetery. The
tombstone says that James was 55 years old when he died in 1856, all of
which make it very likely that this is indeed the grave of my ancestor. I
am deeply grateful to this kind contributor. And herein lies a lesson, which I have often read but failed to apply in this case: when your ancestor lives near a county line, it is good practice to look across that county line for additional information. I didn't do that, and so I almost missed this valuable gem.
1. John Long Niece, death certificate no. 3554 (1917), Christian County Clerk’s Office, Taylorville, Illinois.
2. James Niece household, 1850 U.S. census, Shelby County, Illinois, population schedule, Becks Creek District, p. 151b, lines 3-12, dwelling 850, family 850; National Archives micropublication M432, roll 128, tiff image (Online: ProQuest LLC, 1999-2007) [Digital scan of original records in the National Archive, Washington, DC], subscription database, <http://www.heritagequestonline.com>, accessed 30 July 2004.
3. John Neice. 143rd Illinois Infantry, Company C. Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls (transcribed by Fred Delap), State Archives, Springfield, Illinois.
-- John Neice. 14th Illinois Infantry Reorganized, Company I. Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls (transcribed by Fred Delap), State Archives, Springfield, Illinois.
-- William Niece. 35th Illinois Infantry Reorganized, Company B. Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls (transcribed by Fred Delap), State Archives, Springfield, Illinois.
4. James Niece. 9th Illinois Infantry, Company F. Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls (transcribed by Fred Delap), State Archives, Springfield, Illinois.
5. Daniel Meeker household, 1850 U.S. census, Madison County, Illinois, population schedule, T5N R6W, p. 432a, line 42, and p. 432b, lines 1-10, dwelling 39, family 39; National Archives micropublication M432, roll 119, tiff image (Online: ProQuest LLC, 1999-2007) [Digital scan of original records in the National Archive, Washington, DC], subscription database, <http://www.heritagequestonline.com>, accessed 23 January 2007.
6. James Niece household, 1840 U.S. census, Madison County, Illinois, Ridge Prairie Township, p. 91a, line 27; National Archives micropublication M704, roll 64, tiff image (Online: ProQuest LLC, 1999-2007) [Digital scan of original records in the National Archive, Washington, DC], subscription database, <http://www.heritagequestonline.com>, accessed 22 August 2005.
7. James Niece memorial, Shedd Cemetery, Ramsey Township, Fayette County, Illinois, Find-A-Grave (Online: FindAGrave.com, 1995), <http://www.findagrave.com>, accessed 26 September 2012.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
In Search Of ... John Niece
John Niece was my great-grandfather. I have seen several variants of his name, including Neice and Neace. Neece eventually became the predominant spelling in the family, but I continue to use either Niece or Neice in my family tree for John because that's how it is spelled in the oldest records I have found for him.
This is one of the reasons I jumped into genealogy at such a young age:
Per his tombstone, John served in Company C of the 143rd Illinois Infantry during the Civil War. Finding out that my father's grandfather served in the Civil War captured my young imagination and spurred a lifelong interest.
The problem is that my family had little information about John Niece, aside from a few dates and places. To reconstruct who he was, I had to do my own research.
The earliest record I have found for John Niece is the 1850 census record of his family. The James Niece household was living in the Beck's Creek District of Shelby County, IL at that time:
This is in agreement with John's death certificate (which lists him as John Long Neice):
From these two records, we can determine that John's mother was Rebeckah Brown. The birth dates, however, are inconsistent, the census suggesting birth around 1835 while the death certificate states 1829. While I have been unable to locate John's census records for 1860 and 1870, his 1880 census record also suggests around 1835.
The information contained in the 1880 census has been corroborated by multiple family sources and other documents, so I am satisfied that this is indeed my great-grandfather's family.
Another valuable source of information has been the Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls for Illinois. They list 3 entries for Neice from Oconee: John, James, and William. These agree in name and age with the sons of James Niece shown on the 1850 census.
This lays the groundwork for further research into who my great-grandfather was.
This is one of the reasons I jumped into genealogy at such a young age:
 |
| Tombstone of John Neice |
 |
| William Price Cemetery, looking southeast |
The problem is that my family had little information about John Niece, aside from a few dates and places. To reconstruct who he was, I had to do my own research.
The earliest record I have found for John Niece is the 1850 census record of his family. The James Niece household was living in the Beck's Creek District of Shelby County, IL at that time:
 |
| 1850 Census Record of James Niece |
 |
| Death Certificate of John Niece |
 |
| 1880 Census Record of John Niece |
Another valuable source of information has been the Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls for Illinois. They list 3 entries for Neice from Oconee: John, James, and William. These agree in name and age with the sons of James Niece shown on the 1850 census.
This lays the groundwork for further research into who my great-grandfather was.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Plassibo Calhoun 1
It could be the opening for a John Wayne western: the Illinois Central Railroad Company, desperate to stop a band of thieves who were cutting down timber on railroad land, turned to a local man who was "fully as savage a character as any of those" he was meant to stop. He "fulfilled the same so faithfully that it became a matter of necessity for the desperadoes to rid themselves forever of his obnoxious presence." Accordingly, the thieves set his blacksmith shop on fire one morning and hid in ambush for him to come out of his house. When he appeared, they shot him several times, killing him. Eventually, those responsible were caught and tried in what has been called "the most thrilling court case" that ever happened in Shelby County, Illinois.
But this was no Hollywood production. This was April the 12th, in 1868, and that savage character -- I am proud to say -- was my great-great-grandfather Plassibo Calhoun. (You go, Grampa.) I came across this account by way of a Google search almost 2 years ago. It was published, of all places, in the New York Times in 1870 (referencing an article in the Chicago Times):
Growing up, he was just a name on my great-grandmother's death certificate (obtained in 1983):
No one knew anything about that branch of the family, and no stories had been handed down about how her father had been gunned down by criminals. I would wait another 28 years before I stumbled across any significant information about Plassibo, and then I was treated to a full account of how he had died. Granted, over time I unearthed various records, such as his probate inventory, records of court cases (where he was sued for debt or assault), a marriage record, and a couple of census records, but this article really brought his memory to life for me.
But this was no Hollywood production. This was April the 12th, in 1868, and that savage character -- I am proud to say -- was my great-great-grandfather Plassibo Calhoun. (You go, Grampa.) I came across this account by way of a Google search almost 2 years ago. It was published, of all places, in the New York Times in 1870 (referencing an article in the Chicago Times):
 |
| Excerpts from New York Times Aug. 1, 1870 article |
 |
| Death certificate of Mary Ellen Niece, Nov. 25, 1939 in Pana, IL |
No one knew anything about that branch of the family, and no stories had been handed down about how her father had been gunned down by criminals. I would wait another 28 years before I stumbled across any significant information about Plassibo, and then I was treated to a full account of how he had died. Granted, over time I unearthed various records, such as his probate inventory, records of court cases (where he was sued for debt or assault), a marriage record, and a couple of census records, but this article really brought his memory to life for me.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
The Fervent Genealogist
I LOVE GENEALOGY. Fervent is defined as "intensely passionate; ardent" and that describes how I feel about it. I am a Fervent Genealogist.
When I was little, my family made regular visits to the cemetery to place flowers on the graves of close relatives. I drove my parents crazy, asking about how each person was related to us and pushing for more details than they were able to provide. I felt a burning need to know everything about these ancestors whose tombstones I was wandering between. I had heard the echoes of their footsteps, and I had to follow them.
I still can't drive past a graveyard without having wistful thoughts of wandering among the tombstones with my digital camera clicking away. Maybe I would find a hidden treasure, a long-forgotten relative finally discovered, or maybe I could help someone else in their search. But mostly I find it peaceful: a quiet spot in the midst of today's busy schedules, a chance to slow down and take some deep relaxing breaths in a silent, tranquil place.
My field trips are few and far between nowadays, lost in the shuffle between work and children, but I still hear the echoes and try to research when possible. Today I like to keep everything at my fingertips on an external hard-drive, and on-line research provides a convenient (if arguably poor) substitute for dimly lit courthouses and distant cemeteries.
I try to keep in touch with distant relatives that I've discovered, and continue to track down new ones. The internet has made so much more possible, and it has allowed me to become a part of larger discussions. Now if I can just find the time.
When I was little, my family made regular visits to the cemetery to place flowers on the graves of close relatives. I drove my parents crazy, asking about how each person was related to us and pushing for more details than they were able to provide. I felt a burning need to know everything about these ancestors whose tombstones I was wandering between. I had heard the echoes of their footsteps, and I had to follow them.
I still can't drive past a graveyard without having wistful thoughts of wandering among the tombstones with my digital camera clicking away. Maybe I would find a hidden treasure, a long-forgotten relative finally discovered, or maybe I could help someone else in their search. But mostly I find it peaceful: a quiet spot in the midst of today's busy schedules, a chance to slow down and take some deep relaxing breaths in a silent, tranquil place.
My field trips are few and far between nowadays, lost in the shuffle between work and children, but I still hear the echoes and try to research when possible. Today I like to keep everything at my fingertips on an external hard-drive, and on-line research provides a convenient (if arguably poor) substitute for dimly lit courthouses and distant cemeteries.
I try to keep in touch with distant relatives that I've discovered, and continue to track down new ones. The internet has made so much more possible, and it has allowed me to become a part of larger discussions. Now if I can just find the time.
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