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Skriv ut sidan - Äldre inlägg (arkiv) till 2005-12-27
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Titel: Äldre inlägg (arkiv) till 2005-12-27
Skrivet av: Jan Ek (Janek) skrivet 2005-02-06, 13:07
Hi Stein (and Maud of course),
I think you are putting too much faith in the censustaker actually nailing the correct situation. The usual question from all the censuses was: What age did you turn at your last birthday?. With one big exception though; the 1900 census, when the enumerator (census taker) asked for actual birth month and birth year, which is much clearer, and can't very easily be misunderstood.
If Johanna's DOB without doubt of Swedish church records being correct, really *is* 14 Aug 1845, it is an almost neglectable chance December 1846 being put down. That is not an explainable mistake. Maud; I hope the birthdate is from the Birth records, not just the Examination rolls? Mixing the parents dates on the sheet could happen, but with this Charles being much older (as most often is) it doesn't really help in this case.
Back to the general situation when the censuses were taken I think it is a toss between the question being answered with the last turning of age, or the one that particular census year, or even the closest one, either forward or backward in time. Many first generation Scandinavians were poor in English, and unless the censustaker was another Scandinavian I usually allow for one year off.
Another situation you quite often see is when a wife who we know is much older than her husband lie about her age, detracting 2, 3 up to 5 years or more from her age. But that game is then often more or less consistant over several censuses. I guess it was some social stigma to the situation old wife, young husband, and that this charade was kept up also for neighbours and friends. Since the enumerator, at least in smaller places, was rooted in the local community, they couldn't then answer faithfully.
About the obits. In Minnesota it is a recently added service of MHS (http://shop.mnhs.org/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=410&bhcp=1) to look for obits. One search costs the same as a copied death certificate, and you pay regardless of the obit being found or not. But with their highly experienced staff, and checking at least two local papers if there are alternatives, I think this is also good value for money.
My first choice in all states is always to check the corresponding US Genweb county page (http://www.usgenweb.org/) for possible local volunteers, and also RAOGK website (http://www.raogk.org/listing.htm) for the same. Even if you of course always reinburse your local angel generously for copies, postage and such, this is of course a cheaper way. And one that could lead to other local resources as well, and detailed answers beyond imagination.
A third possibility that could be investigated, is if the local library is willing to look for the possible obit in the microfilms they almost always have available for their local and regional papers. This is a service you never can take for granted, but in smaller places they do make an effort quite often. If so, they should of course also be warmly thanked and offered full reimbursment for costs.
Only alternative to the above is really to go there yourself, fantastic fun, very educational and satisfying, but not always possible for the Scandinavian researcher.
I have spent many great days around courthouses in Minnesota and other states, and also visited MHS several times. A fantastic facility that tops my list of favourite research facilities!
Regards, Jan, who should never be trusted to know everything, and is equally eager to learn much more