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The Parke Society Newsletter Issue 2002 - Vol. 39 No. 3 |
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Dennis Lee Lorensen #1185 has also been a frequent contributor to the Newsletter. Perhaps foreshadowing his current project, he gave to one of his articles the title "The Safari Continues - The Danvers Ancestry of Alice Freeman," at 1998 Vol. 35 No. 3, (p. 33). He is a thirteenth-generation descendant of Robert1 (MA 1630), ...
As mentioned, "Ancestral Safari" deals specifically with the family of Robert Parke (MA 1630). However, it offers practical lessons to everyone interested in tracing his or her family's history, in the difficulties of dealing with information from medieval sources, the need to exercise care in making assumptions based on other researchers' work, and the willingness to revise one's own conclusions when necessary based on new information and better interpretations. ... PDP.
Two of the most important resources for descendants of Robert Parke (MA 1630) are the
"Ancestral Safari" series [see above], and [W.G. Cook's] book Looking Backward
(The second edition of Mr. Cook's book was reviewed by Jean Churchill #934 in the
Newsletter, 1996 Vol. 33 No. 2, p. 21.) Mr. Cook's works are a veritable gold mine of
genealogical research. However, newer members need to be made aware that some of the
ancestors covered in some of Mr. Cook's earlier articles ...
... (page 33)
Several other reports were given. One was the successful campaign to protect the County's cemeteries from development. ... Another report described a study of a 100-grave burial site dating to the Revolutionary War ...
I had timed my vacation to begin with this monthly meeting of the OCGS because Jean Churchill had mentioned in her article (The Parke Society Newsletter, 2002 - Vol. 39 No. 2, page 21) that there is usually an interesting speaker following the general meeting. And following the presentation their research room would be open ... the speaker indeed had an interesting presentation for us.
Marilyn Terry presented City Directories: a Valuable Resource. She noted that the first New York City directory was published in 1786, and by 1860 there were more than 70 regularly published city directories in the US. There is more information than the family address in these early directories. For example if a resident died following the past directory publication period, the date and residence at the time is often listed. If the resident moved during that period the entry may tell you where they had moved to! You may also learn the occupation of the individual, the name of the business they may have owned or where they were employed. ... Other items worth checking are: [11 items are listed].
Only a few of the many published directories are accessible on the Internet. For example, the 1858-59 Newburgh City Directory is now on-line. Many of the early directories, however, must be located in the various libraries that include a regional historical reference room. ... To find out if the city directory you are interested in is on the Internet, Marilyn cited the following: [9 URLs are listed].
All in all the visit with the OCGS was both enjoyable and informative, and has
reminded me again that each the many organizations that are involved with genealogy
can add something to our knowledge on the subject. ...
(page 33)
...For the Newsletter, a highly specialized print publication with small circulation, and little or no potential for causing harm, we need not have as much concern as for our Website. ...
... Accordingly your editor suggests only that if you are going to submit for
publication anything in which you provide information about a living person,
you obtain that person's permission to do so. ... With such an approach,
we should be able to navigate successfully between the Scylla of making public too
much information, and the Charybdis of so little that our publication has diminished
value. PDP
(page 34)
[Webmaster's note: I personally agree with the editor's distinction between the privacy
demands of the published Newsletter and the Society's Web site. When you submit your
articles to the Editor, your Webmaster will not assume that you have also granted permission
to incorporate in our posted pages those portions of your material pertaining to facts
about "people who have not appeared in a released US Census." Readers (and search 'bots)
are thus more likely to learn about members current lineages through the Newsletter than
within our Website. Your comments are welcome; please write to any of the officers listed
on page 34 of the Newsletter.]
But to provide help, the society must have information to share. ...
All new family information should be shared with the Society, especially information that corrects, updates or completes previously submitted lineage information. We can never know in advance what small fact may be the key to establishing a previously unrecognized linkage. Also vitally important is information about newly discovered branches in your family. At any time, someone could join who turns out to be a member of such a branch. Nothing is more fulfilling to a genealogist than to help people make such connections.
Last but definitely not least, members should consider whether they need to update the
family group sheets they completed when they first applied for membership. ...
Tad's and Jean's postal and address e-mail address appear in the masthead on the second
page of this issue [and on the home page of this site]. PDP
[Webmaster's note: A downloadable PDF Form rendition of the Society's family group sheet
is currently under development. The PDF Form will allow you to complete new or revised
group sheets on your computer, then print and mail your form. We hope the PDF Form will
greatly facilitate both your prepararion and the checking and filing of your group sheets.
In the meantime, please contact the Historian or the Librarian for blank paper copies of
the group sheet form.]
The Bennington Museum Genealogy and History Library.
This excellent facility is located on West Main Street, Bennington, VT 05201. Telephone 802-447-1571; or e-mail bennmuse@sover.net. Some of the general research resources available at this Library are: U.S. Census Indexes for New England, New York, and other areas. Registers of New England Historical and Genealogical Society, indexed. American Biographical-Genealogical (Rider) Index, all states. Indexed genealogy columns of Bostan Transcript and Hartford Times. Family histories, mostly New England. Materials on the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and civil War (Vermont). Also Branches & Twigs (publication of the Genealogical Society of Vermont) index to 180,000 names. Various Church records. Early maps & atlases. Abby Maria Hemenway's indexed 5-volume 19th century Vermont Gazetteer. Cemetery records. And more.
This library is recommended for those Park/e/s researchers whose ancestry is from the New England region, particularly Vermont. The U.S. National Archives, Silvio O. Conte branch, Dan Fox Drive, Pittsfield, MA, is also within driving distance.
...
Lore & Legacy - A History of the Cheek, Sale & Sparks Families (2001). By Jeffrey Lewis Williams. Reviewed by Jean C. Churchill #934.
Mr. Williams is well established in the financial world, having been elected to the Financial Executives Institute and listed in Who's Who Among International Entrepreneurs. At the age of 38, he took a three-year sabbatical to research his family history. Applying the same drive that made him a success in business, he succeeded in tracing his ancestors from 15th century England through their migration to this country in the 17th century. Most of them finally settled in western North Carolina by the mid-18th century.
The Parks mentioned in this book belong to the line of Thomas Parks of Virginia
(d. 1761) (Lineage Key=C). He is provisionally treated as the founder of his lineage,
although whether Thomas was an immigrant, or where he might have come from, have yet
to be determined. ...
(page 38-39)
The primary activities—the two-session meeting of the trustees, the banquet, and the annual corporate meeting—all took place on Friday, July 26. Perhaps the most important difference from past convocations was that no Society Research Room was set up. This had been a difficult decision for the trustees, but it was deemed a necessary experiment because of the changing nature of genealogical research and the need to use the Society's resources more efficiently. However, attendees had the opportunity to use the time to explore the history-filled Washington area and investigate the extensive and varied resources available for in-depth research, such as the DAR Research Library, the National Archives, and the Library of Congress.
... [our guest speaker,] Mr. Jim Raywalt, Master Genealogist... spoke on the problem of migration in tracing one's ancestors, the value of conducting research in actual libraries in addition to the Internet, and the resources available for genealogical research in the Washington area.
...
While the 2002 Convocation may not have been noteworthy for large attendance, and no Society Research Room was provided, your editor found it eminently worthwhile. I was glad for the opportunity to witness at first hand the working of the organization and to meet face to face the people responsible for that. I was impressed at how much business was conducted, and that very smoothly. I am eagerly looking forward to future convocations, and I recommend that everyone attend who can possibly do so!
Sykes, Brian,
Sometimes we can benefit from looking at what we do from a new and unfamiliar
perspective. Such an exercise can energize us by suggesting to us what our effort
ultimately means. Thus can our business of genealogy be compared with the explosively
developing science of genetics. ...
Our immigrant ancestors were often labeled illiterate simply because they weren't
proficient in English. They might have been quite capable of reading and writing in
their native language, but were not bilingual. ...
(page 44)
No Universal Way to Spell Surnames
By Donna Murray Allen. Reprinted from the St. Petersburg Times - with permission
Editor's note: Many thanks to Cecilia B Parke #535 for bringing this article to our
attention. It seems particularly appropriate for an organization whose members are
researching people named Park/Parke/Parks/Parkes! PDP.
(page 48)
Also in this issue
Welcome New Members!
(page 34)
In Memoriam
(page 35)
Announcements
(page 36)
Corrections and Additions
(page 37)
The Thirteen Commandments for Names
(Humor for the Genealogist. page 41)
Queries
(page 43)
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