Newspapers can yield much more than birth and marriage announcements and obituaries. Not every newspaper prints the same columns in every issue or every year, but I have found ancestors listed in unexpected ways.
Sometimes you know of an event to do with your ancestor, but you don't know the date it occurred.
I knew from censuses that one great-great-grandfather was a victualer, but since when? Then I found in the newspaper when he bought and sold his license under License Transfers in Liverpool.
I knew that another great-great-grandfather sold his farm and moved in to town, but I didn't know when. I found it under Property Transfers in the regional newspaper.
My great-great-grandmother traveled from Montreal to Bisbee, AZ when her daughter died and spent a night in a hotel in Tombstone. Look for Hotel Arrivals.
Under Shipping News or equivalent the newspapers sometimes printed a passenger list...
My great-great-grandfather King's siblings immigrated to Australia. His sister's husband died in Melbourne in 1910 and this was in the newspaper a couple months later...
Returns of banks in Aberdeen newspapers give ancestor name, address and occupation...
Below is a list of just some of the newspaper columns where you may discover your ancestors. How many can you find?
Download the list and keep it handy when researching your relatives.
Relevant Links
List of Common Newspaper Columns
I bookmarked this post for future reference. The list you provided is a great resource!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I could have posted many more examples but chose a few people are most likely to see, and from different areas of my research. I have learned so much even just lately, as new newspapers are being digitized.
DeleteIf I ever retire, I certainly will have plenty to occupy my time!
ReplyDeleteYou would think so... but I find there are still not enough hours in the day :-)
DeleteI've heard rumors to that effect!
DeleteI so love your discoveries! What amazing finds. Newspapers are awesome for such finds.
ReplyDeleteThanks Devon.
DeleteVery helpful! I have also found ancestral information in odd places in newspapers. One of my favorites is a column listing the names of people who had mail at the post office that they had not picked up. If nothing else, it confirms that the person was likely living in that community around the time the letter was delivered.
ReplyDeleteGood one to add to the list!
DeleteMy favourite is the land transfers.. I have quite a few that confirm dates of when ancestors moved.
I love browsing through old newspapers - you can discover the history of events - personal, local, national etc as viewed at the time - and come up, as you say with fascinating gems.
ReplyDeleteSo true! I also like to check the weather when person events happened for when I write their stories.
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