As professional genealogists we have the knowledge and expertise to create an ancestor’s profile whose information is not found through conventional genealogical research records.
We recently completed a phase of genealogy research for an individual who was born in 1869 and disappeared in 1912. He was not to be found in:
- census
- marriage
- death
- tax
- land
- probate records
We took a different approach to genealogy research by searching for and discovering evidence through indirect methods and determining his associations at cities we knew he lived in at certain times and researching the areas historical context. This profile defined what he did for a living, how lived and why he was difficult to find.
Our client was convinced he was a secretive and wayward individual who was unmotivated and drifted with the wind. What we discovered was that he was:
- an attorney for the railroads working in mergers and acquisitions
- taught school children when work was slow
In those days attorneys traveled with the railroads to get approvals from the appropriate local jurisdictions for the land assemblages and right-of-ways to make constructing the railroad possible. Therefore, he frequently boarded and left no probate record trail.
Understanding the historical context of where was living and how he fit into it was a critical element in our success. It is a powerful method of research when all else fails!
