One of my favorite sources to browse is newspapers, as you probably guessed. As a birthday and Christmas gift from my mom, I have a subscription to Newspapers.com. I visit this site almost every day, not only to track down ancestors and information about their lives but also to explore local history. You can learn a wealth of information about the era your ancestors lived in as it was happening. Historical events like The Great Depression, World Wars I & II, the moon landing, and much more. But that's a story for another time.
When I start researching a new family member, couple, or family line, after entering some basic details into my tree, I go to newspapers.com to see what information appears. Depending on the year and location, you can find quite a few clues for additional sources. Newspapers were known for publishing a lot of personal information, especially if it involved court cases. And it's these published details that can help you discover more documents, sources, and information about your ancestor. So, let's look at some examples.
Marriages
Licenses - When licenses were obtained, they were listed in the newspaper with the date the license was acquired. This will lead you to the license itself.
Engagements/Announcements/Showers - These will include more details about the couple, including parents' names, friends, a church, or addresses. If a church is named, you might be able to acquire a copy of the church register. From there, depending on the church, the register might also include baptism information, which could then lead to finding a copy of the baptismal certificate. Addresses could be used to confirm family in census records and city directories.
Wedding Details - This will usually be shared after the wedding has taken place. It can include names of the wedding party and their relationship, parents, the location where the wedding took place (whether a house or church), and even who officiated the wedding. If an announcement hadn't been published, this could be just as helpful to track down more sources and documents.
Nancy Ann Seidel Wedding 18 Apr 1973, Wed
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
(St. Louis, Missouri)
Newspapers.com
Births
These are hit and miss but can still be helpful with adding a birth year to your tree. Names of the children are not always given, but the names of the parents are given. This can lead to birth records and baptismal records.
Deaths
There are quite a few articles that you could look for that can help with the death information of an ancestor.
Obituaries - these can be a treasure trove of information about an ancestor's life and their relations. Also the location of the burial. This can lead to death certificates, church registers for deaths and burials, burial permits, and possible funeral home records. Depending on how detailed the obituary is about the ancestor could lead to other records such as military, marriage records, city directories, and more.
Burial Permits - Not every city requires one, but St. Louis did. I've had quite a bit of luck with burial permits thanks to newspapers publishing the list. This is especially helpful if an ancestor died before death certificates were standardized.
Card of Thanks/In Memoriam - Families of the deceased will sometimes submit a card of thanks for the newspaper to run to thank all those who called upon them during their time of grief, which can include organizations there were a member of and even the funeral home where you can contact for records as well. This will connect the deceased to the living family. Or sometimes they will publish an In Memoriam of the deceased. If you don't have a death date, this may be the only hint you have to try to locate more sources.
Notice of Letters/Administrative Notes - When an ancestor dies without a will, their estate is processed through the Probate Court. An executor will run a notice in the newspaper for anyone who has an account to settle with the decedent. This will not only tell you that your ancestor has passed away, but that you should look for a probate record. Now, these can go on for years, so keep that in mind when you are trying to determine the date of death.
Special Articles - If this were a case that had special circumstances, depending on what happened, you might find a court case if it was a murder, or you might find coroner records if the death was suspicious.
Inquests Held in deaths of three killed by trains28 Sep 1934, Fri
Sedalia Weekly Democrat (Sedalia, Missouri)
Newspapers.com
Property/Real Estate Transfers
These announcements will mention the names and possible property location. This will lead you to the deed paperwork. And if the location is given, you can look up the property on plat maps.
Court Cases
These can be as simple as name vs. name or a whole newspaper article about the event that took place. This will lead to court records. Sometimes they will have court cases listed under headings such as Probate Court Docket or Circuit Court Docket. Other records you could locate based on the articles: divorce records, guardianship records, custody records, or penitentiary records (if convicted).
Military Records
Depending on the article, it can lead you to many different military records.
- If your ancestor was drafted, his name and number could be in the newspaper, as that was sometimes the best way to notify a person quickly. That draft number can lead you to transport records and military files.
- If your ancestor went to basic training somewhere or graduated, you might find records from that training facility or locate a yearbook. Ft. Leonard Wood had yearbooks for its graduates. (See my website)
- If your ancestor was KIA, there could be a Burial Case File at the National Archives.
- If they were captured and a prisoner of war, there could be prisoner of war records.
- If letters were sent home, you could check with family members if anyone has them or remembers details from the letters.
- And of course, if their unit was listed in the newspaper, you can look up information about that particular unit, including maps from the battles they participated in.
Organization Membership
Some organizations have memberships and keep records. These organizations will sometimes list the names of their members and if they hold certain positions. This can lead to documents and records.
Wm McKinley Post 324
16 Dec 1904, Fri
Sullivan Sentinel
(Sullivan, Missouri)
Newspapers.com
Schools
Graduations, school programs, conerts, theater, etc will lead you to possible school records or at the very least the name of the school your ancestor attended. Then you might be able to find yearbooks.
27 Oct 1960, Thu Jefferson County Record (Hillsboro, Missouri) Newspapers.com
Businesses
If your ancestor ran a business, it could appear in the newspaper for many reasons. Which can lead to business licenses, addresses that can be used to locate on a map or in city directories. Even tax papers. If your ancestor owned a farm and operated a dairy business, cattle business, etc., these articles could lead you to farm censuses. Plus, check with local historical societies if they have any information about your ancestors. They receive items all the time related to businesses and farms.
Moonlight TavernThomas Fuchs
25 Apr 1940, Thu
The Ellington Press
(Ellington, Missouri)
Newspapers.com
I hope this gave you additional ideas on how to use newspapers to find more sources and documents. I can't tell you how many times newspapers.com has been helpful. Time to dive back into my research!
Do you have any other tips on how useful Newspapers can be when researching your family?
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