 03 December 1998 In this issue:
DATABASE OF THE DAY (Free for 10 Days!) Steinfeld, Germany, Deaths, 1683-1793 The small town of Steinfeld lies not far from the Rhine River in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, near the city of Landau in der Pfalz. This centuries old town has been home to hundreds of thousands of people throughout its storied history. This database is a collection of death records, compiled mostly from church sources, for the town between 1683 and 1793. In addition to providing the name of the deceased and the date of their passing, burial information is provided for many and residence if from a neighboring town. Bibliography: Banet, Charles, Rev. "Steinfeld Death Records, 1683-1793." Orem, UT: Ancestry, Inc., 1998. Detroit News, Obituaries, 1998 Metropolitan Detroit is home to over 2.1 million people. Among the most important newspapers of the area is the "Detroit News." This database is a collection of obituaries from the newspaper in the 1998. Information provided often includes birth date and location, occupation, military service, surviving family members, and other biographical facts. Compiled by the UMI Company in connection with the newspaper, it contains nearly 500 records and thousands of names. For questions regarding a particular obituary, inquiries can be directed to the newspaper, 615 W Lafayette Blvd, Detroit, MI, 48226, (313) 222-6500. Bibliography: UMI Company. "Obituaries from the Detroit News, 1998." Orem, UT: Ancestry, Inc., 1998.
TODAY'S NEW MAP
"GO WEST YOUNG MAN" "Go west young man" said John Babstone Lane Soule in the "Terre Haute Express" (an Indiana newspaper). And so they did, along the trails, by ships, and after the coming of the railroads, by rail. Information about life on the long journey west and early settlement can provide a fascinating background for your family history and wonderful clues for further tracing your ancestors. Where do you go for this information if you aren't lucky enough to have diaries, letters, or other biographical information outlining your ancestors' travels? Sources are becoming more and more abundant. Printed sources can provide valuable details and many of these publications are appearing online. Here is an excerpt from Nebraska: the Land and the People: Volume 1, available online to Ancestry.com subscribers at: http://www.ancestry.com/ancestry/search/3266.htm "The hardships endured by the pioneer settlers of the Territory were at no time more severe than in the winter of 1856-57, during which there was an almost constant succession of heavy snow storms, accompanied by bitter cold. This weather set in December 1 and lasted until spring. Many wild and domestic animals perished and many settlers also lost their lives. In Richardson County, in the first December storm, twenty head of cattle were walled in a valley by the snow and most of them perished. Their owner, in February, found a few survivors that had maintained existence by feeding on the branches of trees. In Dodge County the sun was not seen for two months, and ravines thirty feet deep were filled with snow. A man was lost in the storm and his body not recovered until April, when the snow had melted. In Burt County snow fell for six days and nights without stopping, and the settlers would have starved had it not been for the game that they caught in the snow drifts. In Cuming County the creeks and rivers were buried by the snow. Settlers travelled on foot to the Missouri River to obtain supplies and hauled them home on hand sleds. The deer, elk and antelope sought shelter in the timber along the streams, and one settler killed over seventy with an axe. In such weather man had a certain advantage over hoofed animals, as the crust of snow would bear a man, but the animals, with their greater weight and small feet, broke through and were helpless. In Otoe County the deer ran through the streets of Nebraska City, pursued by hungry wolves. On the Oregon Trail, between Fort Kearny and Fort Laramie, the snow lay two feet deep from October to May, and the drifts filled the valleys. In no winter since has the snow been so deep, so badly drifted, or remained so long on the ground." A great place to locate other sources like this is NUCMC (National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections) available online at the Library of Congress' website at: http://lcweb.loc.gov/coll/nucmc/nucmc.html A search with "oregon trail" as the subject, turned up 87 hits with several diaries, letters, and other first hand accounts of the trip west on the Oregon Trail. "Colorado" and "pioneers" turned up 24 hits, also diaries, memoirs, and more. The web is also a great source of background information. Trail sites with maps, diaries, pictures, and biographies are becoming very popular. Here are a few to start. If you don't find what you are looking for here, try using your favorite search engine. You'll be amazed at the wealth of information that it will turn up! TRAIL & MIGRATION SITES
The Overland Trail
American Migrations Web Site
National Historic Trails Interpretive Center
The Northern Great Plains, 1880-1920
Pioneering in the Upper Midwest, 1820-1910
Juliana's Links OREGON/CALIFORNIA TRAIL
Oregon-California Trails Association
End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
Oregon Trail
Emigrant Summit Trail (to California)
Opening of the California Trail MORMON TRAIL
MormonTrail.com: The Pioneer Experience
MormonTrail.net
History of the Mormon Trail
Iowa Mormon Trails SANTA FE TRAIL
The Interactive Santa Fe Trail (SFT) Homepage
Fort Union and the Santa Fe Trail CHISHOLM TRAIL
Chisholm Trail Anniversary Site
Chisholm Trail SPANISH TRAIL
Old Spanish Trail Association RAILROAD "The reality of a transcontinental railroad resulted in several changes in Mormon emigration policy. In the late '60's, missionaries often recommended to their converts that they remain in their homes until the completion of the railroad, thus avoiding much of the hardship, sickness and death that had marked the trail of the covered wagon. By so doing they would also be able to accumulate more money to bring with them to the new community, or to assure the passage of the entire family. And in Utah, men who would otherwise be called to leave their homes to guide the incoming Saints to Zion, could stay at home to carry on their own work. With this in mind, the missionaries were frequently given the responsibility of placing families in mid-west or eastern communities where they could find homes and employment." The above excerpt is from "Our Pioneer Heritage, Volume 8," (available online to Ancestry.com subscribers at: http://www.ancestry.com/ancestry/search/3239.htm)
RRHistorical
Railroad Maps from the Library of Congress
Golden Spike National Historic Site
Railroads in Kansas
MAPS
Westward Migration in U.S. 1775-1860
Exploration and Settlement Before 1675
Exploration and Settlement 1675-1800
Exploration and Settlement 1800-1820
Exploration and Settlement 1820-1835
Exploration and Settlement 1835-1850
Exploration and Settlement 1850-1890
SOURCES IN PRINT
Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey by Lillian Schlissel
U.S. Migration Patterns by Wendy L. Elliott The Transportation Frontier: Trans-Mississippi West, 1865-1890 by Oscar Osburn Winther (Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1964)
Blazing a Wagon Trail to Oregon : A Weekly Chronicle of the Great
Migration of 1843
The Orphan Trains: Placing Out in America by Marilyn Irvin
Holt
ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF ARCHIVES AND HISTORY CLOSURE The Alabama Department of Archives and History will be closed for inventory 4-8 January 1999.
For the holiday schedule and details visit: CONFERENCE ON JEWISH GENEALOGY 8-13 August 1999, the Jewish Genealogical Society, Inc. will sponsor their 19th Annual Conference on Jewish Genealogy, "New York...Gateway to America "
Program highlights, details and registration is available at:
or by email:
THOUGHT FOR TODAY
PRODUCT OF THE DAY AT THE ONLINE STORE The Mayflower Legacy, CD-ROM contains 43 volumes (over 513 meg) of original pilgrim records literally transcribed and edited by George Ernest Bowman (1862-1941) who founded the Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants in 1896. Mr. Bowman was inducted into the National Genealogical Hall of Fame in 1966 in recognition of his unique and outstanding contributions to early American research. CD contents include 8000 images of original pages, vital records, cemetery records, diaries, notes, wills, inventories and other important records. System Requirements:
This product normally retails for $27.00, but today you can buy it $22.95.
These prices will be effective until December 4, 5 PM Mountain Time.
For your holiday shopping needs, visit the Ancestry.com Online Store at: http://shop.ancestry.com/ Stay tuned for more savings!
Best Regards,
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