This podcast episode focuses on the 1875 divorce case of Belle Carpenter and John W. Carpenter in Dallas County, Texas. Diana discusses discovering the divorce case while researching her ancestor, Isabella Weatherford. She shares how a newspaper article led her to find the court documents and describes using AI to transcribe and analyze the case file. They talk about the details of the court case, including Belle’s accusations of cruel treatment and abandonment, John’s response,...
Court records can be challenging to research for a number of reasons: difficulty finding them, transcribing them, and understanding them. With new artificial intelligence tools at our disposal, we now have an assistant that can tackle each of these challenges. My recent project to discover the father of Henderson Weatherford led me to the Lawrence County, Arkansas, court records. Transcribing and interpreting them gave me insight into a previously unknown Weatherford individual who might be...
In this episode of Research Like a Pro Genealogy podcast, Diana and Nicole continue their series on researching in England without parish records. They are joined by Jessica Morgan. Jessica is a genealogist specializing in British family research. The hosts and Jessica discuss using probate records to find family members, focusing on the differences between pre- and post-1858 records. They explain the court hierarchy in England and how to determine which court would have handled...
Research in England typically uses baptisms, marriages, and burial records, but other records can shed light on our ancestors. In part one, we looked at the parish chest; in part two, tax records; and in part three, wills and probate. In part four of this series, we will explore court records and how to locate them. Part 4. Court Records A well-known, though often underused, resource for British genealogy is court records. The courts weren’t...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro we delve into the intricacies of naturalization records, with a special focus on 20th-century cases. A significant part of the episode is dedicated to a case study of Adolph Salmon, a German immigrant. We discuss how Diana traced his naturalization journey through various records, including census data, newspapers, and court documents. We highlight the significance of creating timelines and merging information from diverse sources to reveal a comprehensive...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is an interview with Lillian Wingate about researching in courthouses. Lillian is the president of the Bulloch County [Georgia] Genealogical Society, Education Director for the Georgia Genealogical Society, and the Genealogy & Local History Coordinator at the Statesboro Library. Lillian actively works with GSU interns on various projects. She is also in partnership with the local courthouses and community projects. Join us as we learn what resources might...
Courthouse in St. Joseph, Missouri [1] Can understanding the laws and court system of a locality really make a difference in our research? The answer is a resounding YES! As we move back in time, we come to rely more on the records created by the courts such as deeds, probate, guardianship, and more. Knowledge of these types of records helps us break down our brick wall research problems. Like every state, Missouri enacted laws...
