Sunday, March 26, 2023

Looking for Her Maiden Name?

Women and Surnames
We know that in 1866 there was an article on Keeping Their Maiden Names in Addition to the Husbands Surname. 

Wow! Our ancestors were progressive.  You did it, didn't you? You just googled what actresses in 1866?  Then you realized, oh....stage!  

If you haven't yet listened to EP:06 of Hittin' the Bricks with Kathleen, you will want to, especially if you are
  1.  researching for a female maiden name ANYWHERE 
  2. conducting research in the Indian Territory y
  3.  need more on the following ten tips
Our goal here was to identify documents and record groups that often provide a mother’s maiden name or family name.
Obituaries should be scoured

10 Steps to Success
1. Organize. Separate family units (i.e. children from first and second husbands, and grandchildren, etc.)
2. Local Records. School census and enrollment documents will provide birthdates and parentage hints, and possible extended families. Review school records for all  children.
3. Church Records. Marriage records often name parents, and family members as witnesses. Local preachers may have kept records. You may uncover your female ancestor through her family connections.
4. Vital Records.
Muskogee Times Democrat, 28 Apr 1906, pg2

Birth certificates, delayed birth certificates, and death certificates may name mother’s maiden name. These may also assist with #1: separating family units.
5. Social Security Application ($$). This may not be fruitful as the children may not have known their mother’s maiden name. But, be sure to re-evaluate the cost/risk benefit.
6. Marriage Records. Marriage applications often name mother’s maiden name. Review the marriage records for all children.
7. Midwife Records / Family Bibles.
Muskogee Times-Democrat, 28 Apr 1906, Pg2

Midwives typically know the community families and may have recorded a maiden name. Don’t forget to research the area midwife(s). And remember, the family's midwife may have been a relative.
8. Newspapers (Local and Online). Obituaries and even the court recorder's published announcements may proffer names and relationships. 
9. Land Records.

Did they own land. How did they acquire it? Land deeds may provide hints to the female's family, parents, or names of a  first husband, if applicable.
10. Native American Records / Applications (NARA). Don’t forget the rejected Native American applications also.

Interested in participating in an future episode? Submit this Hittin' the Bricks with Kathleen Form.

Kathleen Brandt
Be Historically Correct
a3genealogy.com
Accurate Accessible Answers
a3genealogy@gmail.com











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