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Slushy Tracking
by Val Atkinson
Article ID: 18, First Published: December 2004BACK TO THE CENSUS TRAIL:
When I tracked William TULIP He did move about a little but obligingly kept the same occupation, and had children spaced in a most civilised manner, spanning census dates in the best tradition for ideal ‘finding’.
Everyone should have a ‘TULIP’ experience at least once in a genealogy lifetime.
Let me tell you about the one that almost got away when the tracks looked so promising (before they melted!)
Help me with John TONES and his family.
I want to discover his wife’s maiden name.
1871 CENSUS RG10 4955 133 31
90 CINDER OVEN ROW LINTZ COLLIERY DURHAM
John TONES Head M 37 Coal miner born Lazenby Yorkshire
Mary Ann TONES Wife M 47 born Tanfield Durham
Elizabeth TONES daughter U aged 19 born Tanfield Durham
John W. TONES son U aged 16 Seaton Durham
George TONES Son 9 Hebburn Durham
Mary Ann TONES Daughter 3 mths born Tanfield Durham
METHOD ONE: Children’s birth certificates. Easy? Think again!
• Mary Ann TONES baptised as child of John and Mary is actually the illegitimate daughter of Elizabeth.
• George TONES’ birth in parish records. Unable to trace birth certificate.
• John W. TONES not found anywhere.
• Elizabeth TONES not found anywhere.
METHOD TWO: LET’S TRY A ‘CHILD CENSUS TRACKER’ to check places of birth
Elizabeth TONES:
• 4 census entries with same birthplace.
• Found her marriage
• Full name is Elizabeth Jane TONES.
• Birth still not found.
George TONES:
• 3 census entries with 3 different birthplaces.
• Found his marriage.
• Birth still not found.
John TONES:
• 4 census entries with 3 different birthplaces.
• Found his marriage.
• FOUND BAPTISM UNDER THE NAME OF JONES in the area of the third birthplace.
• Obtained birth certificate.
MOTHER’S MAIDEN NAME IS TURNBULL.
TASK; Find marriage c1850
RESULTS: Eventually found 1854, two years after Elizabeth Jane’s birth.
TASK: Discover Elizabeth Jane TONES’ identity.
METHOD: Search parish records again.
RESULTS: She is Elizabeth Jane TURNBULL, Mary Ann’s illegitimate daughter.
TIME TAKEN ON THIS TRACKER? FOUR YEARS!
This was a bit different to ideal tracking experiences like William TULIP.
It was ‘the exception that proves the rule’. The general skills we learn as we track the obliging ‘stay put’ families can stand us in good stead for the other kind. Be prepared for them with a tracking plan you can leave when you’re weary and take up again when you feel inspired.
REMEMBER OUR AGREEMENT:
• Exceptions don’t phase us
• We’re here to crack the ancestor problem
• We don’t get discouraged
• We learn general skills with a view to specialising
• We solve genealogy mysteries
Important things to remember:
• KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE TRACKS
• DON’T HOLD YOUR BREATH!
• THESE THINGS TAKE TIME
This is about:
• Bringing the census to life with real people.
• Bringing the people to life through the census
• Slaving to find them
• Loving them warts and all!
Experiences like this lengthy tracker bring us to an understanding that:
• Fact is stranger than fiction
• No person in a family tree is ‘ordinary’
• They’re all unique characters, and they’re yours and mine.
TRUST ME IN THIS:
MAKE THE PLAN, AND TRACK THEM DOWN THROUGH DECADES OF SLUSH!
