Monday, February 25, 2013

Crying “Uncle!”


Have you ever had everything coming your way so fast and furiously that you found yourself reverting back to childhood mode and crying, “Uncle!!!”?

After my comments yesterday on trying to trace a distant branch of the Samuel Bean family in San Mateo County, California, I was left with no less than ten—yes, count them, ten—obituaries that I needed to find in order to uncover the fates of Sam’s daughter Blanche Bean Watrous’ family members. Still.

Needless to say, I wasn’t having much luck.

For one thing, I am still bemoaning the search capabilities of Ancestry.com’s historic newspaper collection. I find it rather tedious. And clunky—if you can use that adjective to describe a computer database’s search engine.

Not that I’m a one trick pony. I do have subscriptions to other historic newspaper outlets (although, admittedly, I haven’t yet paid much attention to Ancestry’s newest bright shiny spin-off, Newspapers.com). Let’s just say they don’t have what I’m looking for.

What I am looking for is a resource that will give me a portal to the Wild West—or, at least, its semi-tamed version in northern California in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Not colonial New England. Not east coast cities. All I’m asking for is access to a consistent stretch of dates for the main places around the Bay Area. How hard can that be?

I know I sound spoiled. After all, wasn’t it a few years ago (well, okay, twenty) when I had to drive to the state capital and pick my way through dusty index files, myself? Researching from the comfort of home, using nothing more than a computer screen and keyboard, would have been such a dream only a couple decades ago.

The trick, of course, is finding the online resource that provides access to newspapers for the geographic location I’m seeking—during the years I need them.

Thanks to a device as simple as Twitter (you are on Twitter, aren’t you?) and the audience pull of a few dedicated genealogy researchers, it turns out I found my answer in a postscript to last week’s “GenChat” with co-hosts Jen Baldwin, Stephanie Pilcher Fishman, and Terri O’Connell.

Last Friday night’s GenChat was focused on Researching Newspapers, a timely topic for me—although not a good time for my schedule. Thankfully, I saw Jen tweet a follow-up to let everyone know that she had posted a transcript of the evening’s chat on Storify.

I’m not much of a speed reader, but flipping through 140-character Tweets can turn anyone into a fast reader. I started scrolling through the transcript, and stopped still when I got to @JLRoessler’s entry about a great California newspaper resource:
I've used a great one for California I heard from on google+ but being on my phone, no link sorry.
I’m thankful I read all the way to the end of the transcript, because Jodi Roessler came back with just the thing I needed: a link! Better yet, a free link!
Found it! California Digital Newspaper Collection - FREE cdnc.ucr.edu/cdnc
I wasted no time loading that link in my browser. Opening up my genealogy database, I began honing in on those Bean and Watrous family names.

That’s when I started getting that overwhelming feeling that I’ve gone from being the proverbial kid in the candy shoppe to being the kid on the short end of an impromptu wrestling match: I felt like hollering, “Uncle!”

I’m finding all sorts of articles that will round out my understanding of the dynamics in the extended Bean family—and, tantalizingly enough, I’m locating mentions of family members I had no idea even existed.

Take this entry, found in the San Francisco Call on October 6, 1895:

CARRIER--In Oakland, October 4, 1895, Laura Carrier, cousin of Mrs. Harry G. Watrous, a native of Wisconsin, aged 26 years 4 months and 26 days. Friends and acquaintances are respectfully invited to attend the funeral THIS DAY (Sunday), at 10:45 a.m., from the parlors of Halsted & Co., 948 Mission street. Interment Cypress Lawn Cemetery, by train leaving Third and Townsend streets at 11:45 o'clock a.m.
Unless there is another Mrs. Harry G. Watrous in the Bay Area, that would be Leon Bean’s sister, Blanche. Which leads me to question: what cousin Laura?!

With all these newspaper articles coming fast and furious in my direction, I’ve got my work cut out!

And I’m quite okay with that.

23 comments:

  1. Well thank goodness. When I read your title, I thought you were actually giving up. What was I thinking? Jacqi give up? No such thing! We should start a pool: How long before Jacqi discovers who Laura's parents were?

    I predict it's tomorrow's post.

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    1. Oh, Wendy, no, no, no! I'm with Winston (Churchill, that is): "Never give up!"

      However, I wouldn't recommend gambling over that Laura discovery. She's proving a tough one to catch.

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  2. I was going to suggest the California Digital Newspaper project too, if you hadn't heard of it. Sometimes we assume that everyone knows about the same databases we do. I have used it several times on those odd bird relatives who migrated all the way to California (just like me, I might add). :)

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    1. Deborah, thanks for the thought. I actually didn't know about that website until last weekend. I've focused most of my recent research on states back east, and Canada. Last time I had to do California research, I drove to access the newspaper archive!

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  3. Really helpful post, Jacqi! You are really on top of your genealogy research! I could use a little California newspaper research too. I'll check it out. Thanks! And thanks for your comments on Family Archaeologist.

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    1. You're welcome, Linda. I always enjoy what you post on your blog!

      Hope the California Digital Newspaper Project's collection has what you are looking for!

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  4. Thanks for the #genchat love! I am SO GLAD that our conversation was able to lead you to what sounds like an incredibly fabulous resource for you! Good luck figuring out Laura was! ~ Jen

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, Jen. I really appreciate not only the #genchat project, but the fact that you post the transcripts. With all the various time zones that we researchers are spread through, sometimes synchronizing schedules for together time doesn't always work. For instance, think of our fellow bloggers in Australia!

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  5. Woohoo! Congrats on your awesome finds Jacqi!

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    1. Thanks, Jana. Yes, it is Happy Dance time!

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    2. I just wanted to let you know that your blog post is listed in today's Fab Finds post at http://janasgenealogyandfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/2013/03/follow-fridayfab-finds-for-march-1-2013.html

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    3. Jana, thank you so much for including this post in your Fab Finds! What an honor!

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  6. That is fantastic! I love hearing about finds like this! We are so glad that #genchat helped! ~ Stephanie, Terri, & Jen

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    1. Yes, absolutely, Stephanie, it did help! And when I went to your blog to find contact info, I nearly flipped when I went to your "About" page and read the explanation for why you named your blog "Corn and Cotton." Hilliard! I was just there last month! If only I had known then...

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  7. So glad I could add something useful (even though I was ill-prepared and teased you with it...)! 4 of my GGG grandfather's 5 siblings (the 5th is still MIA) went west to become pioneer citizens of the town of Norwalk, CA. That collection has been quite helpful in my search for them and their lives in California. Best wishes on your continued success!

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    1. Jodi, you could have heard my groan all the way back east when I read your first entry on Friday's #genchat. Glad you came back and added that postscript! I heartily thank you for going back and adding the URL!

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  8. Way to go..something new in your research arsenal:)

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    1. Even though I live here now, California is a new online research field for me. Seems awkward, considering how long I've lived here. But I guess in genealogy, we're looking at where everyone else in the family lived.

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  9. This is a really happy story! A newspaper resource for California that is shooting out Beans and Watrouses in your direction! I sympathize that you are feeling overwhelmed right now, like, "too much information," but wow, what a wealth of clues! So exciting!

    Yay for #genchat! With so few newspapers indexed online, they found one for you.

    Remember those "colder-warmer" games we used to play when we were kids? You're getting warmer!!!

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    1. Precisely, Mariann: TMI!

      But I'll take it anyhow.

      Yes,#genchat is a wonderful device for gathering researchers' collective wisdom. A great idea. Kudos to Jen, Stephanie and Terri--the ones behind it!

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  10. I would definitely follow up on the Cypress Lawn clue. A large portion of my husband's family is buried there. There is a section of single graves but most people are in family plots. It is possible that many of your family is buried together.

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    1. I was hoping that, too, Sierra, but of course it isn't turning out that easy! Cypress Lawn says they have no record of such a burial. So much for finding out who else is buried with her.

      At this point, I can either surmise the newspaper report included a typo...or try and track down the records from the funeral home listed. I may also try looking for any microfilm resource for old death certs, in hopes that the burial information would be included.

      I'm pretty keen on tracing this surprise branch of the family tree, but evidently this one isn't giving up its mystery status without a fight!

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  11. I determined Laura Carrier was born on May 8, 1869 (based on the dates and age given).

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