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1500 questions
20
votes
7 answers
Contacting living distant relatives?
During my research, I have identified some people currently living who I believe are distant relatives. They are a brother and sister, who are my wife's third cousins. Neither has a family tree on Ancestry.com, so the obvious approach isn't…
Gene Golovchinsky
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20
votes
5 answers
How can I establish (and describe) my confidence that the child and adult are the same person?
My two general questions are:
At what point can one say that, yes, the adult you have identified as your ancestor is the same person as the child you think might be your ancestor, and that you have therefore identified that person’s parents?
What…
Verbeia
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19
votes
2 answers
Finding information on German soldiers from World War I and World War II?
Where can I find information on German soldiers from World War I and World War II?
I am curious to find out about my ancestors' role in the wars, i.e. what rank they had, where they where fighting, with whom and anything else.
user1051
19
votes
1 answer
What constitutes Employment in Labour of a Child in England & Wales?
In 1883, a Requisition for a certified copy of birth for the purposes of the Elementary Education Act, 1876 was made for a youth born in 1872. Given he was 11, would the request have been for Elementary Education or Employment of Labour of a Child?…
Amy
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19
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2 answers
Why haven't more programs adopted Gramps XML free format?
What short comings if any does Gramps XML free format have; that has stopped other major genealogy programs adopted it as a transfer format?
Why don't more programs accept it for import seeing it is idempotent?
I am aware of GEDCOM (this is about…
Sam
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19
votes
6 answers
Dealing with family secrets?
How should I deal with a family secret that directly affects a full branch on the family tree?
For example, there are two brothers, both married and both have kids. Brother A is the father of his kids with his wife. Brother A is also the father of…
Justin808
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18
votes
6 answers
Software options to display whole tree from imported GEDCOM?
I am not content with the limited options that I have been able to find for viewing a tree. Many of the software packages I have located limit the tree to direct descendants and ancestors of one person, rather than displaying the whole tree - all…
Risiki
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18
votes
1 answer
Facilitators for Adoption
I have just tried to help with a question elsewhere on adoption and it has fuelled me with a fresh question. Someone wanted to find a connection between a family who "adopted" an illegitimate child, and the family of the birth mother.
Unfortunately,…
ACProctor
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18
votes
6 answers
Did son-in-law have a different meaning in mid-19th century England?
Most modern dictionaries define family relationships in a narrow sense. So that "son in law" refers to the husband of your daughter. However, I have encountered a very different use in the UK census of 1851.
The 17 year-old son-in-law of Richard…
Fortiter
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18
votes
3 answers
What is the advantage of submitting my research to a GENDEX site?
Does submitting my research to a GENDEX site increase the likelihood of others requesting information from me?
Cecil
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18
votes
2 answers
How should I record my sources correctly?
I have not understood the need for recording where I obtained my information. Reading answers here has made me rethink. I would like to start my family tree again, this time recording the source for my research. What details and format should I…
Garry
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18
votes
4 answers
What are Marriage Banns and how can I use them in my research?
There are three dates listed on my third great grandfather's 1825 Church of England Parish Register of marriages:
Oct 23, Oct 30, and Nov 6
All Saints, Tower Hamlets, London, England
Source Citation: London Metropolitan Archives, All Saints,…
Lorraine W
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18
votes
4 answers
What is the earliest age a boy in England could get married in the 1800s?
My wife has an ancestor named Charles Davies. The 1841 and 1851 Wales censuses as well as his marriage record state that he was born in Flintshire, Wales between 1813 and 1816. A search for his baptismal record (electornic, published indexes, and…
user47
18
votes
3 answers
What is the difference between "primary information" and "secondary information?"
In genealogical research, what is the difference between primary information and secondary information. Why do genealogists bother with making such distinctions?
GeneJ
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18
votes
5 answers
What is the Russian town in this census listing?
I'm trying to determine my (step-)grandparents' birth place from the 1916 Canadian Census. The relevant portion is this:
For context, here is the entire record. The people in question are listed as Louis Keslar (line 3) and Sara Keslar (line…
lkessler
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