Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Favorite Genealogy Websites

HeritageQuest
It's great for placing an ancestor. Since I pretty much have all but 2 of my gg grandparents in the census records back to early 1800s I now use it mostly to track down siblings of my direct lines. This has sometimes led to more papertrails from my own direct line when they are listed in records of an area where their siblings lived.

FamilySearch
This site is really growing. Wish they had more TN records but I was so excited to find some of my TN relatives that moved to Huntsville AL in the AL death records which they recently added. They also have a good bit for my husbands Michigan lines.

Hugh Wallis' IGI Site
While I've used it mainly for the US sites I need to explore the Canadian ones for my husband's lines.

Linkpendium
Every link to be had for just about any surname or place. If it ain't here then it's just not out there yet.

Facebook
Facebook is wonderful for keeping up with my Genealogy contacts and also with my family.

Footnote.com
This is the one site that I did subscribe to this year. I love it but wish there were more offerings for those researching in the Tennessee area.

Rootsweb.com--Mailing Lists
I've always loved the RW Genealogy Mailing lists and they are even more useful with their current search capabilities.


Joe Beine's Death Index Site
The TN page of this site brings many of the sites I'd list seperately were it not for them being brought together there on the TN page

USGenWeb

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Genealogy Software

I started researching my family history back in 1990. At that time I didn't have a home computer. That changed in 1994. I was working and attending college(yes I've made a career out of going to school) so I didn't have much free time. The first software I used to organize my research was the "blue screen" version of what would become Family Tree Maker. Over the years I have only upgraded my software 3 times. I really couldn't see buying each version as it came out when the version I had did what I wanted it to do so basically I stuck with that version until I upgraded my Operating System and the software wouldn't work on it. I think I went from the Blue Screen version(I can't remember what number that was), to FTM 3. Then I had FTM 6 forever and a day. From that I went to FTM 10 which I've had for about 4 years. This software does everything I want to do(and more that I don't bother doing). I've tried other software through their free version or their demo and just never really liked them. The ones I recall right off the top of my head are Legacy, Brother's Keeper, TMG and PAF. None of them were as easy to follow as FTM. TMG was nice in the fact that you could customize it provided you had the free time to do that. I plan on staying with FamilyTreeMaker 10 until I have to change from Windows XP. Not sure what I will do then as I do not like any of the FTM versions after FTM 10.
FTM versions after FTM 10 feel like more of a marketing tool than anything else.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Elisha Miller Robinson(1825-1896)

In my search for a subject for my blog I began looking over photographs of stones in the Arkadelphia Cemetery here in Cullman Co. Alabama which I'd photographed several years ago. My daughter has several paternal ancestors resting there(mostly Hoglands). As I walked through the cemetery, the gravestone of Elisha M. Robinson had caught my eye and I made sure we got a picture of his and his wife's gravestones. Later while reviewing the photographs I noticed another Robinson. I had taken a picture of Emma Robinson McAnnally's stone(the McAnnally surname is another from this area in my daughter's paternal lines). Emma, as fate would have it, was the daughter of Elisha & Nancy E. Duncan Robinson.


With the information from Elisha's stone I went looking for records online so that I could learn more about him and his family. There is a good bit online about him though some of it is hard to follow.


Elisha Miller Robinson was most likely the son of Joseph A. Robinson & Betsey Miller of South Carolina. He is enumerated in Chattooga Co. GA in the 1850 census with his 1st wife Emily Caroline Stamper and 3 of their children--Jacob A. Robinson, Joseph Taylor Robinson and James Peyton Robinson.







His first wife Emily died in 1853 according to files at WorldConnect


He married Nancy E. Duncan 17 AUG 1854 in Floyd Co GA and moved the family to the town of Arkadelphia Alabama which at that time was in Walker Co. AL.(present day area of Cullman Co.). They are enumerated in the 1860 Walker Co AL census in Arkadelphia Alabama






You can read more about Elisha Miller Robinson's Civil War Service at
the following link.


Elisha Miller Robinson's life in Civil war Prison Camp--


Story from Archaeology.com magazine about Elisha Miller Robinson's life in a Civil War Prison Camp--as told by Dr. William B. Gresham, Jr., Birmingham, AL



A bit of info in the images at Footnote.com list the following

Elisha Robinson Civil War AL 13th Infantry

Description 5'10"

Fair Complexion

Dark Hair

Dark Eyes

Captured in Vicksburg Miss July 4 1863


Just doing a quick search I did not find the family in 1870 though they were in Blount Co. AL in 1880.






Pictures of gravestones relating to this family online at my SEROOTS site.


Elisha Miller Robinson

Born:    26 Feb 1825

Died:    08 Jan 1896

Buried: Arkadelphia Cemetery 



1st Wife--Emily Caroline Stamper

Born:   11 April 1827

Married:  29 Jan 1845 Chattooga Co GA

[source: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/chattooga/vitals/nzbride.txt]
Died:   19 Jan 1853



Children of Elisha Miller Robinson & Emily Caroline Stamper

Jacob A Robinson
          
B 19 Nov 1845

D 15 Jan 1895



Joseph Taylor Robinson

B 19 May 1847

D



James Paton Robinson

B 24 Jan 1849

D 14 Apr 1929 Cullman Co. AL

[Source: Film number: 1908465 Reference number: cn 10177
Collection: Alabama Statewide Deaths 1908-1974 ]



2nd Wife--Nancy E Duncan

Born:    8 Jan 1829

Married:  17 AUG 1854 in Floyd Co. GA

[Source: Vol. A (2nd volume) 1852-1873 FHL US/CAN Film 282712 ]

Died:  26 Sept. 1897

Buried in Arkadelphia Cem.



Children of Elisha Miller Robinson & Nancy E Duncan



Thomas Franklin Robinson 

B 18 July 1855

D 14 April 1926



Thomas Franklin Robinson's Bio from Notable Men of Alabama

--


John Robinson

B

D



Emily Robinson (wife of Allison Cicero McAnnally)

B 11 Oct 1858

D 12 Nov 1912

Emma Robinson McAnnally is enumerated in the Bryce Hospital for the mentally ill in Tuscaloosa AL at the time of the 1900 census. One of the stones located at Arkadelphia cemetery is that of her infant son, Elisha McAnnally. No doubt that played a big part in her mental state. She also lost several family members during the time period from 1895 to 1900.



Very interesting family to follow across the years.