Publishing Photographs

Working to make family photographs available to everyone, so I'm putting together a few Picasa Web Albums. Can you identify some of the people in the "Unknown Callaways" Album? Please let me know who they are!

Unknown Callaways Album

1973 Callaway Family Reunion Album

William Richmond, James Pitt & Rhoda Irene

I've been doing some work on the individual ancestors page, specifically the three above. Luckily I was able to find pictures for James "Jim" Pitt and Rhoda Irene... but none for William Richmond. Does anyone have a picture of William Richmond they'd be willing to share?

Jim Pitt - Does anyone know who the boys in the photograph are?

Rhoda Irene - The back says Rhoda Irene Karr and Dan Karr. Originally I thought it was not the right one but additional writing says the little girl is "Bill Bennet and Rhoda Irene's daughter"

If you have other pictures to add, please contact me at jenncrogers@gmail.com

Browsing the Florida & Georgia Archives

Not much archive browsing today. There was only one Florida archive that looked useful and I've earmarked it. It was broken into counties but not alphabetized by surnames so it's going to take time to flip through the pages.

Two Georgia archives looked promising:

1. Georgia Headright & Bounty Land Records, 1783-1909 (Family Search Online)Calhoon, Abraham 
• C. - Canady, William: #213-215, 225-253
2. Georgia Probate Records, 1742-1990 (Family Search Online)
• Not searchable and sorted by County, another one that going to take time

With the Headright and Bounty, I found several names that I think I'll be able to match up pretty quickly. I think I found John D. Calloway in Georgia, but won't know for sure until I do a little more research. 

These have been added to the Library and Archives too.

Browsing Delaware Archives

Today I'm taking some time to browse through the unsearchable images in the Delaware archives. Luckily, the Delaware Orphan Court Records from 1680-1978 were organized in alpha order and I was able to pinpoint a Callaway pretty quickly. The deceased is a Jonathan Callaway, died 1882 and his minors, Dorcus, Geroge, Rachel, William, Mary and Susan (images 144-180).

I've also been browsing through the "Delaware Vital Record Index Cards" which are supposed to reference actual source documents in the Delaware Vital Records... I'm not sure they actually do though!

You can browse through them yourself. Just visit the Library and Archives page and click the links under "D, Primary Sources."

Unsearchable Records

Unsearchable records... What does that mean? You might think it means records that literally can not be searched. Maybe they're at an archives that's too far for you to travel or maybe they're gone. That's true and there are many of those.

But I'm referring to the "unsearchable" digital records. Records you have to browse through, flipping through image file after image file because you can't Ctrl+F for a name or type it in a handy search box. FamilySearch.org has many of these records and I'm just starting to go through them (see below). I'm not even finished with the A's yet. It's quite daunting... but exciting and fascinating too. These are primary source records and well worth the time.

These are also being added to the Library and Archives so check the page regularly throughout the Summer for updates.

• Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950 (Family Search Online)
• 1,742 search results found, none have been matched... yet!
• Alabama Estate Files, 1830-1976 (Family Search Online)
• 26 search results found, none have been matched... yet!
• Alabama Probate Records, 1809-1985 (Family Search Online)
• Not searchable - must browse through images which are organized by county. Coffee and Dale County are missing. Geneva is listed.
• Arkansas Confederate Pensions, 1901-1929 (Family Search Online)
• Not searchable - files are sub-categorized alphabetically by last name.
• Butts, H.G. - Campbell, J.B. - Image 956, 957, 958, 959, 960,961, 962
• Arkansas First Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 (Family Search Online)
• 174 search results, not have been matched... yet!
• Arkansas Probate Record, 1817-1979 (Family Search Online)
• Not searchable - files are sub-categorized by county
• It's going to take time to read through all the ledger pages.
• Arkansas Second Registration Draft Cards, 1948-1959
• 9 search results, none have been matched... yet!
• Arkansas County Marriages, 1837-1957 (Family Search Online)
• 2,177 search results
• Arkansas, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, 1864-1872 (Family Search Online)
• Another one that is not searchable, but I'm interested in reading through the documents since I know that John Hansford Callaway had slaves.

Post-Reunion

Last Memorial Weekend was the Annual Callaway Family Reunion for the descendants of Eli Elisha Callaway. I spent a great deal of time talking about my research, the stories I am composing and listening to memories being shared as we flipped through various photo albums. It was just the oomph I needed to get this blog going again.

So... I'm back and doing some redecoration and rearranging. First on the list is to update the research page which is titled "Library & Archives." This is the listing, as well as copies, of primary and secondary sources I've located and recorded. Not all the sources are directly linked to an ancestor, but they've been recorded so that if I come across them later - I don't have to go fumbling back through the research. I've spent many a time scratching my head, "I know I saw that somewhere..." or just give up and bang my head against the wall. Neither of which is very conducive to research.

Keep an eye out for more updates to come.