As we process these snippets and details, it is natural to record the data and/or file it away in some location. On a good day, we will take a piece of information and compare it with other items and evaluate the relevance, accuracy, authenticity, etc., with other facts in evidence. Unfortunately, I suspect that most of us become overwhelmed with the influx of new material, especially in these days of explosive growth of electronic resources and materials. We may therefore do our best to input the data into the genealogy database, slap the copies in a cardboard box, a file folder or a binder, and rush on to the next great discovery.

It is important, however, to stop—yes, STOP—and invest some quality time in evaluating what we already have in hand. Looking at these materials the second time around may provide some startling new insights for your research. In "Along Those Lines . . ." this week, I want to discuss the importance of reexamining our existing files.

Arranging the Evidence
I'm a great one for organizing the evidence I have located. If you were to visit my office, you would see binders labeled with surnames and in my file cabinets you would find folders with surnames, given names, country and county names, forms, and "to be followed up" files. In the surname binders you would find materials in archive-safe polypropylene sleeves, arranged by given name and all evidence about each person arranged in chronological order. There are even cross-reference sheets to spouses (also filed in binders by their surname/maiden name) and copies of joint records such as marriage licenses and deeds filed in both places.

I've found it extremely helpful to arrange documents, facts and evidence in chronological sequence. And while I can transcribe or note information into my genealogy database and place notes in this sequence, it is important to also arrange the evidence in chronological order as well. In this way, I can leaf through the records created during that person's life in the same order in which they were created. And sometimes, just 'walking through the life' will give me great new ideas.

The Second Time Around
Because the materials we acquire come into our hands piecemeal, it is important to take another look at them periodically. By doing so, sometimes new evidence that has come to light since we located a given fact can completely change how we look at that first fact. When coupled with other new knowledge, Item A + New Evidence B = Startling New Evidence C or New Clue D!

Consider for a moment the old genealogical adage, "When working with census records, always make note of six families on either side of your ancestors." Many family historians disregard this for the sake of saving time or saving a few quarters in the microfilm printer. What a mistake!

While investigating one set of ancestors, I spent time poring over the 1870 Federal census microfilm for a certain N.C. county. I finally located the family I sought and dutifully recorded the husband, wife and children. I also recorded the names of six complete families on either side of them, all of whom had different surnames. At that point, I did not know the wife's maiden name or if there was any relation between any of the people living there. I wanted to determine the names of the wife's parents, however, but I could not find any other clues at that time.

Several years later, when I went back to research this family unit in more detail, I contacted the N.C. State Archives to locate a copy of the couple's marriage certificate. When the copy arrived, I now had the wife's maiden name—a common surname—in front of me. I entered the data into my database and filed copies of the certificate in both surname binders.

It wasn't until several months later that I started reviewing all the evidence and copies I had for the husband. The second time around, it became apparent that his wife's maiden name was the same as the surname of one set of next door neighbors in the 1870 census. This set me off on another quest for land records and wills. To my surprise, I learned the following:

1) The adjacent neighbors were the parents of the wife.

2) The parents gave the couple the land on which they built their home as a wedding present, and the deed itself stated that the parcel was "a deed of gift" as part of the bride's dowry.

3) The father's later will bequeathed items to the couple I was researching AND to three of the wives of other neighbors who appeared in adjacent homes in the 1870 census. It turned out that these three women were daughters, and that they were sisters to the wife in the original family unit.

4) Further research into land records revealed that the parents had broken up a much larger parcel of land and gave 100 acres to each daughter as she had been married.