Women's History Month 2024: The Red Book Revisited

Here's a book that is easily overlooked because of its age but is a must-have for American genealogical research. Even if you don't own it, bookmark where it is found online (see below).

Title: Ancestry's Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources

Author:  Alice Eichholz, Ph.D., CG

Available online at the RootsWeb Wiki

Synopsis: 

"Red Book is designed to help family historians learn where to find information about their ancestors by taking an approach focused on localities. It is an expansive guide to the most useful resources in each of the fifty United States and the District of Columbia. Organized by state, the content easily directs the user to information-rich resources in areas including:

• Vital Records
• Census Records
• Internet Resources
• County Resources
• Background Sources
• Land Records
• Probate Records
• Court Records
• Tax Records
• Cemetery Records
• Church Records
• Military Records
• Periodicals, Newspapers, and Manuscript Collections
• Archives, Libraries, and Societies

Major highlights of the content are the county resources published in table format for each state. Information in these tables often includes county name, when the county was formed, which counties the new county was created from, and dates for when each county started recording information such as birth, marriage, and death records or land, probate, and court records. Each state also has a county, town, or parish map."

Why You Need This Book: First, published in 1989 it is easy to ignore this valuable book. I highly recommend you bookmark the RootsWeb wiki page where you can find this work. Click on your state of interest. Now check out the various pages associated with that state including "county resources." This provides a chart of each county and when different types of records started in that county (if applicable). Yes, some must-have genealogy books are older. But the information they provide can be timeless. Don't use this book to find the address for the county seat, instead use it for the information it provides about when records began.

Original Source:

Women's History Month 2022: Red Book

Women's History Month 2024: FamilySearch

 For today, let's discuss the resource you need for your research.  

FamilySearch should be one of the first websites you exhaust. Start with the FamilySearch Research Wiki. You can either search by the state name and the type of record, or you can search by the state name and then click on the link in the Record Types box.

You can also look in the FamilySearch Catalog. Conduct a Place search and then scroll down the available Subjects for potential records.

Finally, remember to search the FamilySearch Digital Library, which includes digitized books from both the FamilySearch Library and partnering institutions. 

Is FamilySearch the only place to find records? No, make sure to check other online resources, including genealogy websites (free and fee-based), state libraries, archives, and digitized book websites.

Women's History Month 2020: Resources-FamilySearch

Women's History Month 2024: WWI Groups and Organizations

War means that everyone needs to pitch in. This is especially true when we look at World Wars I and II. Women were asked to help, and they answered the call. We find records of their involvement in the organizations they belonged to in archives and published histories. 

Look in the histories and directories of your ancestor's hometown and see if these groups were part of her community. Maybe she was a member?

• Society of Colonial Dames
• Navy Comforts Committee
• Young Women's Christian Association
• Centennial Club
• Housewives League
• Federation of Women's Clubs
• Army Comfort League
• American Red Cross
• National League for Women's Service
• Girls' Patriotic League (National League for Women's Service)
• Women's Committee, Council of National Defense
• Kiwanis Club
• Fatherless Children of France Society
• Liberty Loan Campaign
• Daughters of the American Revolution
• United Daughters of the Confederacy
• Council of Jewish Women
• The Ladies' Heritage Association
• Salvation Army
• Equal Suffrage Association
• Council of Catholic Women
• Circle of King's Daughters
• Independent Daughters of  Confederacy
• Women's Christian Temperance Union
• American Legion Auxiliary

What groups were your female ancestors a member of?

Consider that multiple generations of women may have belonged to the same group.

What home sources (photos, correspondence, ephemera, memorabilia, jewelry) suggest membership in a group or organization?

Original Source:

Women's History Month 2017: Groups and Organizations

Women's History Month 2024: Fates and Traitors Revisited

Women's History Month 2024: Directories

Back in 2019, my theme for Women's History Month was "I'm in the Book." I used that month to illustrate the different types of directories that include women's names. Directories and personal telephone books are typically a home source you might come across after someone has passed. It might seem like the type of ephemera that should be thrown away. However, directories can provide some insight into her life.

Take, for instance, this example of a National Roster of the Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic (1933-1934). This directory lists names, affiliations, and addresses of women who held leadership positions in the LGAR. It also includes national groups like the Grand Army of the Republic and the Women's Relief Corps. What this directory is not is an every-person member list.

This is a directory that the owner may not be named in, so what good is it? Just having it suggests she was a member of the LGAR. That suggests that she had a family member (a blood relation) who was a Union soldier, sailor, marine, or nurse. Their website states membership in LGAR is for:

"All female blood relatives, ten (10) years of age or over, of honorably discharged Union Soldiers, Sailors and Marines of the Civil War, 1861 to 1865, also ex-army nurses of that War, are eligible for membership" (http://www.lgarnational.org/Membership.html)

Owning this directory (and if she lived during those dates) suggests she (or a family member) was a member. I would take that and determine what records exist for her membership and look into a soldier, sailor, marine, or ex-army nurse who was related to her.

We must go beyond what they include when we find directories and ask questions. These questions can include:

• Who is included in this directory?
• Who is absent?
• What can I learn about this group?
• Could my ancestor have been a member?
• Do I have any other home sources that include this group?

Original Source:Women's History Month 2023: Directories