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Kip's Tips
4/4/2000 - Archive
Tips for Reading Early American Handwriting
When people first start researching their ancestry they often begin by searching home sources, indexes, computer databases, and printed sources in order to determine what others may have researched on their pedigree. Today, this “survey phase” of genealogy extends to searching the Internet, as well as compact discs [genealogies, periodical indexes, census indexes, vital records, etc., on CD-ROM].
While there are many resources available for researching in the home, it doesn't take long for beginning researchers to realize that they need to search original records—in courthouses, libraries, archives, and historical societies, and copies of originals on microfilm, microfiche, and CD-ROM. Such records include census schedules, church registers, wills and other probate records, land records, military records, court records, tax lists, passenger lists, journals, and so forth. It is at this stage that researchers often realize that many older records are handwritten in an antiquated script that is often difficult to read. Knowing how to read and interpret old records is an important aspect of the genealogical research process.
While the ability to read the script contained in these old records comes from experience, or by attending lectures and workshops at conferences, there are things a beginner should know. Following are some tips for reading early American handwriting, such as a researcher might find in early colonial government or civic records. For more instruction, those who are just beginning their study of old handwriting (known as paleography) should also study the examples on the Internet site Deciphering Old Handwriting, by Sabina J. Murray
www.firstct.com/fv/oldhand.html .
See especially the old style (initial) “s,” common abbreviations, and numbers. Examples of letter formations can be found at Old Handwriting Samples
www.rootsweb.com/~ote/writing.htm .
Tips for Reading Early American Handwriting
Keep a good quality magnifying glass with you when you go to a library, courthouse, or archives. You shouldn’t anticipate that there will be one you can use.
Study more recent handwriting and work backward toward the seventeenth century.
When reading old records, you should compare letters and words that you can read with those that are more difficult to read in the same document.
Most records used by genealogists have dates and were kept chronologically; therefore, look for months of the year and compare the letters in the months with the words you are having difficulty reading.
Common phrases were often used and repeated in some records, such as wills and deeds. You can study common phrases to learn the handwriting style of the scribe.
Personal names and place names (localities) were often misspelled. You should use a gazetteer, map, or local history to help identify the correct spelling of place names (such as a city, town, or township). Scribes often abbreviated words, such as Abr. for Abraham. Writing was often done phonetically (the way the word sounded).
Do not try to read the document too fast—transcribe and evaluate it carefully. And remember, always evaluate the evidence and cite your sources!
Bibliography
Cyndi’s List: Handwriting & Script
www.cyndislist.com/handwrit.htm
Kirkham, E. Kay. The Handwriting of American Records for a Period of 300 Years. Logan,
Utah: Everton Publishers, 1973.
Sperry, Kip, comp. Abbreviations & Acronyms: A Guide for Family Historians. Orem, Utah:
Ancestry, 2000.
______. Reading Early American Handwriting. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1998.
______. “Reading Early American Handwriting.” NGS Newsletter 25 (Sept./Oct. 1999): 234-35.
Stryker-Rodda, Harriet. Understanding Colonial Handwriting. Baltimore: Genealogical
Publishing Co., 1986.
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Kip Sperry is an associate professor of family history at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.
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