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Category: New York City Research

Enumerators’ Hall of Fame

Enumerators’ Hall of Fame

Hats off to Mr. George McKechnie. (Did I read his last name right? I want to make sure his plaque is engraved correctly.) He went the extra mile and recorded birth days as well as months and years in the 1900 Brooklyn census. I hereby nominate him for acceptance into the Enumerators’ Hall of Fame. Thank you, Mr. McKechnie! See 1880 U. S. census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, enumeration district 207, sheet 20D (penned); digital image, FamilySearch …

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I Still Love the Name “Janethe”

I Still Love the Name “Janethe”

I was transcribing a New York City deed from 1816 yesterday when I came across the name “Janethe.” It struck me that it might be pronounced “ja-nee-tha” which I thought was quite beautiful. ” … Gabriel Hatfield and Barnes Hatfield of the City of New York and Janethe wife of the said Gabriel Hatfield and Mary the wife of said Barnes Hatfield …” Wait a minute. Why does the deed say “Janethe wife of” in the first instance and “Mary…

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Startling Find: My Husband’s GG-Grandfather’s Sword And Other Personal Artifacts

Startling Find: My Husband’s GG-Grandfather’s Sword And Other Personal Artifacts

You know how notice of one intriguing thing on a social media site can lead to another something which leads to another something? Many times that path is a great time-waster, but this morning it led me to a startling find: my husband’s ancestor had a presentation sword that was recently auctioned along with some very personal artifacts including his razor, a bit of his hair (with extractable DNA, I’m thinking) and — oh, my goodness — family letters. So…

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Protecting Property from a Husband’s Control

Protecting Property from a Husband’s Control

I’m at the local Family History Center today, working on gathering New York City deeds for an on-going project on my husband side. In 1796, Margaret Hairs, daughter of Leonard Sanders, transferred “all the real Estate belonging to … [her] … in fee, situate in the said City of New York” to her sister Mary Garrick who would serve as a trustee during Margaret’s lifetime and then distribute it as outlined in the deed. [1] And why was this done?…

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