The Forget-Me-Not Hour janeewilcox

Professional genealogist and private investigator Alvie Davidson joins Jane today to talk about freemasonry and masonic records. Alvie, a Master Mason and 32nd Degree Mason (also known as Scottish Rite), will explain what freemasonry is and its history abroad and in the U.S. Alvie will discuss what types of records were created by masonic lodges and where they can be found.

Jim Folts, head of researcher services at the NY State Archives in Albany, joins Jane today to talk about the NY Supreme Court of Judicature and the NY Court of Chancery and their records. Find out the history of the courts, what types of court records the state archives holds, what we can find in the records that are important for genealogists and how to use the records. Jim will also tell us about the recent transfer of Supreme Court and Chancery Court records from NY City to Albany -- a massive and exciting project!

"Duely & Constantly Kept: A History of the NY Supreme Court, 1691-1847 and An Inventory of Its Records (Albany, Utica, and Geneva Offices), 1797-1847"   http://www.courts.state.ny.us/history/legal-history-new-york/documents/History_Supreme-Court-Duely-Constantly-Kept.pdf

 

The Legal Genealogist Judy Russell and the Ulster County, NY, Commissioner of Jurors Paul O'Neill join Jane to talk about jurors in relation to our ancestors and to ourselves. We'll find out the history of jurors and how the system was brought to North America. Judy and Paul will also talk about what the role of jurors was historically, what court systems worked with jurors, and what the qualifications for jurors were for our ancestors and are for us today. Paul will give the inside scoop on what it's like to be juror today, how jurors are selected and what to expect -- as well as give the pep talk that he gives to each batch of jurors going through the Ulster County court system. It's inspiring!

Photos:

Lizzie Borden jury, 1893, via Wikimedia Commons

Grand Jurors, US Circuit Court, Georgia, 1816, NARA microfilm

Burke County NC Grand Jury list, 1798, from Court of Pleas Minute Book, NC State Archives (Judy Russell)

Ulster County Courthouse and John Jay, courtesy Ulster County

Sojourner Truth, via Wikimedia Commons

 

Today Jackie Graziano, archivist at the Westchester County Archives, and Patrick Raftery, librarian for the Westchester County Historical Society, join Jane to talk about the unique collections that each repository holds. With both located in the same building in Elmsford, NY, the archives holds county government records and the historical society holds manuscript and other non-governmental records. Find out how the archives and the historical society work together to preserve the history of Westchester County.

Research room hours: Tuesday and Wednesday 9:00am to 4:00pm

Westchester County Archives: http://archives.westchestergov.com/

Westchester County Historical Society: http://www.westchesterhistory.com/

Author William Dollarhide joins Jane today to talk about his latest books -- a three-volume set titled Census Substitutes & State Census Records by Family Roots Publishing Co. Bill will talk about the history of state censuses and what information we might find in them. He'll also tell what types of records he included in the books as substitutes and why substitutes are needed. Find out what these books have for researchers. You will be amazed!

To order the books: https://www.familyrootspublishing.com/search_results.php

 

 

Thom Reed, Senior Marketing Manager at FamilySearch International, joins Jane today to talk about the Freedmen's Bureau records and the recently launched database and digital images for the records on FamilySearch. Thom will discuss the history of the Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands a.k.a. Freedmen's Bureau which was established in March 1865: explain why the Bureau was established, tell what types of records were created, what types of information can be found in the records, and who used the services of the Bureau. He'll explain how to use the database to find both blacks and whites who were recorded in these records from 1865 to 1868. He'll also share some stories of finding ancestors in the database.

The Freedmen's Bureau database: http://www.discoverfreedmen.org/

Photos from www.discoverfreedmen.org

School students

Widow's pension

Colored census

Freed familiy on a plantation

Ration application