Sometimes the information you want about a specific relative can't be found in the usual sources—birth, marriage, and death registrations, church registers, censuses, military and pension files, and courthouse, land, and probate records that often describe relationships. So where do you turn? How about to that old adage, “A man is known by the company he keeps.” It applies just as well to family history as it does to assessing character.

In the Neighborhood
Neighbors may lead you directly or indirectly to tangible information about a relative, including addresses, ages, business dealings, contracts, or political and social affiliations. The company kept may also lead you to something more—a glimpse at the hobbies, interests, lifestyle, or personality of someone you never had a chance to meet.

Start by perusing census forms for names in the neighborhood and for patterns and connections between families, origins, occupations, and economic circumstances. Once you learn a few details about the neighbors, more information can be found in censuses, tax assessments, deeds, and other land records including partitions, city and town directories, and maps that show land ownership.

Cronies, Comrades, and Co-workers
When studies of the neighborhood fail, solutions may come from learning more about the people with whom a relative associated, including business partners; fellow employees; members of fraternal, social, civic, and political organizations; or sports teams. Sources for identifying these individuals—diaries, local newspapers, business directories, archival records of businesses and organizations—may be publicly available on microfilm or in library collections.

Other sources to search are local and county histories from the late 1800s and early 1900s, which may offer published genealogies of their paid subscribers, and are often called “mug books” for the portraits included at an additional charge. A number of these are now available online with full-text search capabilities through sites like Ancestry.com or via local libraries. Check the same sources for local newspapers and city directories.

Hurdles that once stood in the way of getting to know a departed relative are now easier to clear as more efficient search techniques become available. And learning more about the company he (or she) kept is turning into less of an adage and more of a reality all the time.

Donn Devine, CG, CGI is a regular contributor to Ancestry Magazine.