Genealogy Jottings

Most years we try to take a genealogy research trip. Some trips can be one-day jaunts, but this year we will take a lengthy one. We plan to drive through the American Midwest to see the places our families lived and to visit a few repositories. This takes some planning.

Where will we go?

1. Farm locales. My family lived in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. We are compiling land descriptions for all the farms.
2. Repositories. The big stop will be the Allen County Library in Indiana. We may visit the Ohio Genealogical Society Library. Various county and city libraries are possibilities, too. I need to comb through the online catalogs for all these places to identify which ones are worth a stop.
3. Courthouses. So far, I have not identified one I need to visit, but I am open to the possibility if I find I still need some document that is not available online.
4. Cemeteries. These are a low priority because most of the information is now available on FindAGrave. If one of the repositories can give me a clue as to where someone not on FindAGrave is buried, I will take time to search for the grave and photograph it. I am talking to you, Jane Lawless and Caleb Reed.
5. Historic sites. We need to break up all the genealogy with some visits to local historic sites. I want to see the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve in Kansas, the Lincoln cabin in Coles County, Illinois, and the historic district and canal in Hudson, Ohio.

They always say that planning for a trip is half the fun. Maybe it is fun, but it is sure taking a long time. I am ready to be finished and move on to something else. Let’s hit the road!

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