The Yocum Library Closed for Spring Break II

RACC's campus, including The Yocum Library, will be closed during Spring Break II from Friday, March 30 to Sunday, April 1. We will re-open on Monday morning, April 2 at 7:30 p.m.

If you need to work on your class essays or projects, you can still access our online databases 24/7. The most recent password sheet for the databases can be found in Canvas under Student Resources.

ACORN TV Available Via hoopla

With Acorn TV on hoopla, you now have streaming access to episodes of Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Marple, Doc Martin, The Commander, and many more British series.

While hoopla might carry more than one full season of these series, Patricia Nouhra, public services/distance education librarian, tells us that Yocum's DVD collection includes all available seasons for all of these same series and more. 

So if you feel like binging on one of these series or can't find a specific season, we probably have what you need.

A Guide to Latina/Latino Resources: New Library Web Page

The Yocum Library has added a new webpage, "A Guide to Latina / Latino Resources," created by Patricia Nouhra, Public Services/Distance Education Librarian. The web page is based on her work on the Conexions Grant team.

Let us know what you think!

Family History Tips-Part 29

Finding Information in the Other Census Records

by Brenna Corbit, Technical Services Librarian

Currently, I am working on a confusing family line of the name Freligh that bounced back and forth between New York City, Brooklyn, Connecticut, and northern New Jersey during the late 1800s. I say confusing because, father like son, they are in and out of marriages, saying they are widowed when in fact divorced, and then sometimes kissing and making up. Yes, the Frelighs are a challenge when trying to figure out this mess in the census records.

In these Family History Tips articles, I often refer to the U.S. Decennial Census records as a main building-block for family histories because they present an every-ten-year snapshot of a family. However, family has short-lived marriages that sometime appear only between censuses. However, since this is primarily a New York/New Jersey family, I am in luck. 

Besides the national census records, many states had other censuses taken between the decennial years, usually at the halfway point, such as 1905, 1915, and 1925. They are not always as detailed as the decennial records, but they do help when trying to determine what happened between 1900 and 1910, for example.

They are also extremely valuable as a substitute for the U.S. Decennial Census of 1890 which was mostly destroyed in a fire. That 20-year gap between 1880 and 1900 is brutal to family researchers. If your ancestor was born in 1881, that person may be married and not living with their family of origin by 1900, which makes it difficult to make connections in family structures. 

Many states had censuses taken around 1885 and 1895, which helps fill that gap. I wish this were true for Pennsylvania. My great-grandmother Ida Mae born 1889 in Dauphin County, Pa. was adopted by a Riffert family. Her birth name was Thompson, according to child custody court records. If there were no fire or a mid-decade state census taken, I may not be hitting a brick wall with my head trying to figure out whose daughter she was. These records are valuable, too, in case a family was missed in a decennial census.

The U.S. government census website has a complete listing of these state censuses. Ancestry and FamilySearch have some of these records available. Unfortunately, there are no known or surviving state census records for Connecticut, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and West Virginia. Most are in indexed digital format, but a few are crummy transcribed indexes, only. Transcribed sources can often contain errors. It is always best to have access to the original whether digital or actual. 

If so, such as Ancestry not having the images, try finding them in Familysearch—remember, the site is free with a registration. Also, avoid a federated search for these records from the main search function on the homepages. My experience with federated searches shows that they often miss some valuable resources. Instead, refer to the following instructions.

For Ancestry, click on “search,” click on “catalog,” and then keyword a state and the word “census”; e.g. New York census. For FamilySearch, click on “search,” click on “records,” click the United States map, and then choose a state from the list. Scroll down through the available records to search for individual census records.

In two weeks, we will take a look at some other valuable and overlooked census records.

Love Maple Syrup?

Did you know that March is Maple Sugaring Month for most of the northern tier of states in the U.S. and southern and southeast regions of Canada.

For almost everything you want to know about maple syrup, check out “Tapping into Spring. The Library of Congress highlights "Tapping Into Spring" as its "Featured Resource" on its Science Reference Guide, Selected Seasonal Resources: Maple Sugaring.

Mary Ellen Heckman, assistant dean of library services and learning resources, likes this link because of her own personal experience with maple syrup. " My French-Canadian cousins in Quebec make their own maple syrup. I grew up with a grandfather who put maple syrup on almost anything and maple is my favorite flavor too."

Here are just some of the ways she and her family enjoy maple syrup. "I just made an apple pie that I take out after about 20 minutes baking and baste the top crust with maple syrup. After about another 30 minutes of baking it’s crunchy and so tasty," she said. "Also my cousin in Montreal would combine vanilla ice cream, banana slices and maple syrup – yum!"

What about you? Any original ways you use maple syrup?

For more about maple syrup and all kinds of food, go to our online database "A to Z World Foods" and search for maple syrup or any food item of interest. The Yocum Library also has quite a collection of cookbooks. There are also a number of books specifically about maple syrup at Reading's Main Library. You can put them on hold and have them sent to The Yocum Library for pick-up.

Yocum Display Honors Irish American Heritage Month

While you're in the library, take a look at our display of books and DVDs celebrating Irish American Heritage Month. It's across from the reference desk.

You can also look at other Yocum holdings related to Irish American culture and heritage in our online carousel which is located near the bottom of the Yocum Library's home page and right here at the top of our blog.

Several Library Computers Now on Floor 3, the Quiet Zone

We have relocated 4 student computers to the Floor 3 Quiet Zone to provide an area for students to work with fewer distractions.

Only current students may use these computers. Anyone who needs a white pass and staff to log them in must use the Floor 2 computers. There is also a printer near the computers on Floor 3.

March is Irish American Heritage Month

A lot happens in March and that includes Irish American Heritage Month. According to irishamericanheritagemonth.com, "Since 1991, presidents of both political parties have designated March as Irish American Heritage Month to recognize the contribution that Irish immigrants and their descendants have played in the formation of our Nation."

Check out their web site for stories about Irish Americans, like astronaut Colonel Eileen Collins, film director John Ford, and American Revolution hero, Commodore John Barry.

You can also read their article, "Once Again, No Irish [Heritage Month] Need Apply," questioning why the Smithsonian Institute recognizes other national heritage months, but not the Irish American.

The Yocum Library Celebrates Women's History Month

In honor of National Women's History Month, The Yocum Library has several displays of books and DVDs about women's history. Next time you're in the library, take a look. You might find something you want to check out.

Not all of our books and DVDs on women's history are on display. So if you don't see what you want, talk to someone at the Service Desk. They can find out if we have it and if it's checked in.

Family History Tips Honors Women's History Month

Part 28 —The Mother Branches: Tracing Family Histories through the Matrilineal Line 
by Brenna Corbit, Technical Services Librarian

I have read a few times that some family historians follow only the patrilineal line. Although I have not noticed anyone following this practice, I can see why some female lines would not be followed. Many women lose their surnames when marrying, making it difficult to find the name, especially in earlier records. I remember as a kid seeing my mom sign her name as Mrs. Charles F. Corbit and asking her why she didn’t use her own name. It is as if her name didn’t matter. 

Some women maintain their maiden names by hyphenating it in front of their married names, or simply retain their names altogether and do not take on their spouses’ surnames. This could be due to culture or personal preference.

By no means should you ignore the mother’s line. In fact, in some periods in history and cultures, lineage was traced through the mother. Regardless of culture and history, there is a saying I learned in my early days as a genealogist: “Mother’s baby, father’s maybe.” Certainly, when it comes to parentage, there is never a doubt about the mother. 

There are many easy places to find a woman’s maiden name. I've listed some of them in this article.

• Baptismal church records of many periods often give the mother’s maiden name. 
• State birth certificates started in the early 1900s often will give the mother’s maiden name. 
• New arrivals/daily docket in newspapers starting in the early to mid-1900s often give maiden names of the mothers. 
• County civil marriage certificates and applications starting in the late 1800s—be careful if the woman was previously married. She may be carrying the surname of her departed husband, or she may have been divorced and still have the name of her ex. Applications often requested if either party was previously married and how that marriage ended. Therefore, you may have to look for the first marriage record. 
• Religious marriage records will present the woman’s maiden name. 
• Marriage announcements in newspapers—besides maiden names, the names of the mothers for both parties may also be listed.
• State death certificates starting in the early 1900s will often give a woman’s maiden name; also, both parents’ names are often given, so you may find two maiden names in one record.
• Obituaries—although you may find obituaries of women titled as Mrs. Franklin M. Hamlin, for example, the contents of the obituary will often give the full name of the deceased. If the obituary does not give a maiden name, see if any brothers are listed as survivors. The mother’s maiden name of the departed may also be listed. 
• Cemetery head stones sometimes give maiden names. This will often be identified as “née” or “born. (See tombstone photo above right.) 

And then there are the tougher sources and possible clues:

• Sponsors of a baptism—if the sponsors are a couple and the relationship to the child is not mentioned, the last name of the man may be a clue, such as a brother of the mother. In this case, investigate this couple as if they were your own ancestral line. Likewise, if the sponsor is listed as a single woman, she may be a sister or a cousin. 

• Middle names often are indicators of a mother’s maiden name, especially among protestants; e.g. Andrew Laird Britton. Andrew’s mother was Mary Laird. 
• Middle initials, especially if several siblings share the same: e.g. Daniel Borkert and his wife Catharine had several children bearing the middle initial G. Research indicated the mother’s maiden name was Gans. Look for others close to the family such as sponsors, witnesses, poll bearers who may have a surname starting with the said letter. 
• A married woman’s middle initial may be a clue to her maiden name. As in the above, look for others close to the family for clues.
• Wills and probate records—carefully read all the papers in an estate/probate folder and look for any mention of names related to the deceased woman or the widow of the deceased. Look for any mention of a brother or brother-in-law. 
• U.S. Census records from 1880 to 1940 list relationships to the head of a household. Look at all those living at an address. A woman may be listed as a mother-in-law, a single woman may be listed as a sister-in-law, or a man may be listed as a brother in-law. Be aware, that the status of a woman may be confusing in regards to her last name. She may be listed as divorced and still carry her ex’s name as I mentioned in marriage license applications. Also, she may be listed as single and living at home with her parents and have a different last name, an indication there may have been a previous marriage. 
• Ships’ manifests—passenger lists of the early 1900s supply tons of information. Look at all the names mentioned related to the passenger: contact in the country they are leaving, who they are meeting at their destination, and who paid for their passage. 

As you can see, there are many ways to trace a woman's lineage. Hopefully, one or more will give you success in tracing your mother's lineage.

Famiy History Tips: Part 27-Tracing Family Histories with the Hamburg Passenger Lists

by Brenna Corbit, Instructional Services Librarian

If your ancestors are like mine, they can be quite hard to find on board the ships that brought them to America, but like any family history roadblock, there are often other ways to run that elusive ancestor down. I always say if you can’t find them coming into America, then try finding them leaving the Old Country. In this article, we will look at one of those sets of departures. 

The Hamburg Passenger Lists dating from 1850 to 1934 contain about five million records of individuals from many Europeans countries most of which came to the U.S. Like many genealogical records, the earlier lists are less detailed than those from the later period. Besides the usual information such as names, ages, birthplaces, and departure dates, the lists mention the names of the ships upon which they journeyed to America.

When viewing an arrival list such as one from Ellis Island, see if they arrived via Hamburg. This will be noted across the top of the list or a previous main page of the manifest. If so, the arrival list can be coupled with the Hamburg list. This will add verification to what you may already know, or if a village name is obscure on one, the other may be more legible, for example. They are most useful, though, when you can’t find a passenger on a U.S. manifest due to poor indexing of illegible names.

In the case of poor indexing, see if your ancestor appears on the Hamburg list. If so, take note of the ship name and date of departure. Next, go to Ancestry and click on “U.S. Immigration Collection,” and then, under “Narrow by Category,” click on “Passenger Lists.” Search for the ship name with a date that would be approximate to the time of arrival. Do not narrow down by too many search filters, and do not search by name. Try filtering by age and gender. You will get a list of several hundred indexed passengers that you can quickly browse. And lo and behold, you may most likely find your ancestor in a terribly indexed form of his name. As for digital images of torn, folded or dog-eared manifests, they may not have been indexed at all, but may still be there.

In one odd case, I was searching for a Galician Polish man from the Austro-Hungarian Empire by the name of Jan Gil, a very short name not like the typical long names from that region. I had a copy of his naturalization record wherein he stated he arrived at Ellis Island on 20 May 1907 aboard the Amerika, and that he departed from Hamburg on 9 May 1907. I couldn’t locate him through indexing, and neither could I locate him on the ship by browsing 502 pages of digital images, so I turned to a newly discovered source, the Hamburg Lists. Sure enough, I found Jan Gil departing via Hamburg on 9 May 1907 aboard the Amerika. Perplexed, I went back to the digital images of the Ellis Island manifests, and there he was, or I could say there he wasn’t.

Remember, Jan had a very short surname, Gil. He was located at the bottom of a page on image number 156. The page was both torn and partly folded over in the photographed image. If his name was a typically long Polish name, part of it would have been seen, but because of its shortness, it appears that the second-to-last space for a name was left blank. I was able to read all the other information on that manifest line that matched with the Hamburg list.



You can find two versions of the Hamburg lists at Ancestry. Search the card catalog for the indexed Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934 or the unindexed lists under Hamburg Passenger Lists, Handwritten Indexes, 1855-1934. I prefer the indexed version. The lists are in German, so use this simple translation aide.

My genealogical moto is “never give up,” never leave a stone unturned, and like a bloodhound on the trail of its quarry, keep barking wildly and keep sniffing.