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Field Trip to Baltimore |
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For a number of years Baltimore has been on my genealogical "wish list" of places to visit. Family bibles, oral history, census, church, and cemetery records have all pointed to Baltimore. Later this year I am off to Baltimore to research the KAYLOR, KERNER, K�HNE / KUEHNE / KEEHNE, and CAREY / KEAREY families, circa 1800-1898, and to see the city itself. Getting ready for the trip, I pulled out the material that had been accumulated to date. Several years ago my cousin, Ed Kearey, helped with a major breakthrough when he discovered a great book, "Marriages and Deaths in the Baltimore Sun, 1837-1850". Entries in the index confirmed the names of GEORGE & MARGARET KAYLOR, which had been very difficult to read in the KEEHNE family bible. The index also provided a number of new leads, based on listings which included "son of George Kaylor" or "granddaughter of George Kaylor". Working with details from three family bibles, information in the Sun index, and census data, I began to assemble a "tentative" line of descendants for my gr-gr-gr-grandparents - a tree of fact as well as speculation. Finding the follow up index, "Marriages in the Baltimore Sun, 1851-1860", in a local genealogy library added more information to the skeleton family tree of George and Margaret, who lived in Baltimore circa 1800-1856. Based on the new material, I wrote to the Maryland State Archives and Baltimore Vital Records. Like building blocks, one new piece of evidence led to another. A death record for MARGARET KERNER CAREY listed GREEN MOUNT CEMETERY. A letter to the cemetery provided a major find: the KAYLOR family plot with several generations represented. After reviewing what we had, it was time to log on to the Internet. GenWeb Sites & Other Links Searching the Maryland State Archives Online Requesting Newspaper Notices Utilizing Free Look Ups Old Defenders - Battle of Baltimore BALTGEN and MDGEN Mail Lists - One of the best places to start a search is a local RootsWeb mail list. A mail list is a collection of individuals, corresponding by email about a common subject. The people on the Maryland and the Baltimore genealogical mail lists have been very generous in sharing information about the city, its history, research facilities and access to information. It is a terrific group of people. Excerpts from some of the postings provide some good insights into research in Baltimore. Some of their suggestions include what facilities to visit and where to stay if you are coming from out of town. Helen Simmons Carey was one of the first Baltimore list members to reply to my query. Helen and Niel Carey publish a bi-annual Carey/Cary Newsletter and head a group devoted to Carey/Cary research, all family lines, not just one. For anyone interested in the Carey or Cary surname, contact Helen for a complimentary copy of the CAREY/CARY FAMILY NEWS and to learn more about the Carey/Cary organization. Using the information I shared with her, Helen located an obituary for my gr-gr-grandfather, THOMAS J. CAREY. The obituary, indexed in "Joseph Macguire's Index of Obits and Marriages, 1861-5, Baltimore Sun", was particularly helpful as it included the following reference: "Norfolk and Portsmouth papers please copy". This was the first indication that there may have been relatives living in Virginia.
Are you looking for a particular topic or surname? Visit the RootsWeb mail list archives to review earlier postings to either of the lists. When prompted to type Name of List, type either MDGEN or BALTGEN. Tim Robinson is a BALTGEN mail list member who has been very helpful to fellow researchers. Visit Tim's Genealogy Site for Robinson & Wigginton Family History, for a listing of some of the research materials you can access yourself, or message your question to Tim through the BALTGEN mail list. Either Tim or one of a number of great list members may be able to help you out. One last comment about the mail lists: If you are fortunate to receive help from people on a mail list, give some thought as to how you can help someone else in return. You might say it is equally good to give as well as receive. GEN WEB SITES for Baltimore City, Baltimore County and the state of Maryland offer a great starting point for finding out what's available on the web. Since first visiting these sites in 1998 it has been amazing to see how they have grown. Many people have devoted their time and energy to sharing resource information. Special thanks to the individuals who organize and maintain these important web pages. You can find additional Maryland and Baltimore links listed on the "Family Ties" Genealogical Links Page. MARYLAND STATE ARCHIVES WEB SITE - In 1996 I sent several mail queries to the state archives regarding birth, baptism, marriage and death records for specific individuals. The MSA provided copies of the records they found. A list of sources which had been searched, successfully or otherwise, was also included in their reply. These initial mail inquiries were an important part of the research process. While preparing for the trip, I visited the Maryland State Archives Web Site, browsing for directions and hours. The MSA site provides instruction for research at the facility as well as by mail. It was interesting to find out that you do not need to visit the archives in Annapolis in order to begin your index research. You can search the MSA from the convenience of your home via Search the Archives. Typing the surname "KAYLOR" provided several hits, including a link to "BALTIMORE CITY SUPERIOR COURT (Chancery Papers) Maryland State Archives". After the page, listing a series of court proceedings, had finished downloading, I used the Find option on my browser, typing in the name "Kaylor". The window scrolled to the following:
I contacted the MSA by telephone and ordered a copy of this court document. Since I was providing the documentation number, the charge for the order was $10, which included copying up to twenty pages. Any additional pages cost 50 cents per page. If I had not provided the accession number for the document, and was requesting the archives to do a search, it would have cost an additional $10.
Unlike the example above, most of the information you will find on the MSA site, will be in the form of file numbers that will tell you where to access the information at the archives. The Special Collections index for the MSA covers a variety of subjects, such as business records, church records, newspapers, photographs, and maps. It should be noted that much of the material I received by mail in 1996 involved church records. These references, which appear to be part of the Special Collections, do not show up in a general search of the archives. If you are looking for birth, death or marriage records, Kathi Jones-Hudson, a member of the Baltgen mail list, shared the following links that will assist you when you visit the MSA site. In summary, the state archives home page offers an excellent way of letting your fingers do the walking before you even get to the facility, or if you are unable to visit the archives, it provides a way of narrowing your search for mail queries. For more information about the MSA and its facilities, view the Excerpts page for ideas/suggestions from other mail list researchers. BALTIMORE SUN NEWSPAPER NOTICE REQUESTS - If you can provide the specific dates and names of individuals, personnel in the Periodical Department of the Enoch Pratt library will search and copy the requested newspaper death and/or marriage notices for you. This service is very reasonable: it costs $2.00 for up to 6 pages and 20 cents for each extra page (as of June 1999). Requests are usually processed within two to three weeks. Copies of the notices will be mailed to your postal mailing address along with an invoice for the amount of money you owe. Requests can be made by email or by postal mail. Be sure to include your full postal mailing address so that the copies and invoice can be sent to you.
Request copies by email at: If you would prefer, contact the Periodical Department via postal mail:
Enoch Pratt Free Library This service is a wonderful resource for people who live out of town. For people planning to visit Baltimore, it also saves valuable search time and provides possible new clues before you even leave home. Information contained in the notices I requested has help bolster some of the earlier speculations regarding relationships within the Kaylor family. It is not uncommon for a death notice to provide last residence, refer to other individuals, or in the case of Thomas J. Carey, suggest other locales to investigate. FREE LOOK UPS - An Internet tool that I did not fully utilize until now is the amazing network of people offering to do free CD look ups. Some time ago I stumbled upon the Family Tree Maker Archive of CDs. This searchable database, also known as the On-line Family Finder Index, can tell you if a particular surname or full name appears on any of their CDs. However, Tom Harig passed along the URL that really makes this all come together : Genealogical CDs - Specialized Free Lookups. You need to view the site to see how it works. Volunteers do lookups for specific CDs, i.e. CD #178 - Church Records: Maryland and Delaware 1600s-1800s. The key is you MUST have checked the FTM database FIRST and determined that the name you are looking for is ON the CD. Do not expect a volunteer to do a blind search for you. They are generously offering their time; it is important that we do not waste it. Mail list members can also help out in this area. If you do not see a particular CD listed on the volunteer lookup site, you can try posting a request to the mail list. I have been very impressed with the willingness of people to help one another. |
| A summary of the May 1999 visit, including information about Greenmount Cemetery, Enoch Pratt Free Library, Maryland Historical Society, and more. |