Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Sunday, April 1, 2012
The 1940 Census Comes to Town
No foolin'! It's finally here, the day many of us have been eagerly awaiting for several months, the release of the 1940 census.
Details about the lives of approximately 132 million Americans were recorded with the taking of the 1940 census, and these details are being made available to researchers for the first time. The 1940 census will be the first U. S. census to be released digitally, and the first one to be available to researchers everywhere for free on its release date. Here are some places on the Internet to find these tantalizing facts.
At 9 a.m. on Monday morning, April 2, 2012, the entire 1940 Census will be available online at the following National Archives website: 1940census.archives.gov.
You will be able to browse digital images of the census records for free on www.Ancestry.com shortly after the official release.
Archives.com: www.archives.com/1940census
With census template and facts, this site will have the 1940 census available for free soon after release. This company is also participating in the community-based indexing project for this census.
Bureau of the Census:
www.archives.gov/research/census/1940/instructions-to-enumerators.pdf
You will be able to find the enumerator’s instructions for the 1940 census here. It is interesting to read these instructions, and this information can also help to clarify what was recorded.
FamilySearch.org: Another site where the census will be available to search for free shortly after census day is www.familysearch.org/1940census.
FamilySearch is also leading the community-based indexing project.
Steve Morse’s Site: stevemorse.org/census/unified.html will have a unified 1940 census enumeration district finder. Steve Morse has a lot of helpful information; in particular his guidance to search the Ellis Island database is worth checking out.
As you may already know, the 1940 census will not be indexed upon release. Until the indexes are created, you can locate individuals of interest by conducting geographic-based searches through the census data. Start with a possible address for the family you are interested in finding. Use Google Maps to locate cross-streets. Then use the cross-streets in the “Unified Census Finder” to narrow down to one or two Enumeration Districts. Pay attention to street names and house numbers; many were renumbered since 1940, particularly when 911 addresses were created. Checking an older City Directory can be helpful.
Let’s really celebrate the release of the 1940 census by finding our families among its pages, and by updating and sharing family stories that will certainly contain new chapters based on 1940 census data. Let your fingers do the walking through the 1940 census!
Details about the lives of approximately 132 million Americans were recorded with the taking of the 1940 census, and these details are being made available to researchers for the first time. The 1940 census will be the first U. S. census to be released digitally, and the first one to be available to researchers everywhere for free on its release date. Here are some places on the Internet to find these tantalizing facts.
At 9 a.m. on Monday morning, April 2, 2012, the entire 1940 Census will be available online at the following National Archives website: 1940census.archives.gov.
You will be able to browse digital images of the census records for free on www.Ancestry.com shortly after the official release.
Archives.com: www.archives.com/1940census
With census template and facts, this site will have the 1940 census available for free soon after release. This company is also participating in the community-based indexing project for this census.
Bureau of the Census:
www.archives.gov/research/census/1940/instructions-to-enumerators.pdf
You will be able to find the enumerator’s instructions for the 1940 census here. It is interesting to read these instructions, and this information can also help to clarify what was recorded.
FamilySearch.org: Another site where the census will be available to search for free shortly after census day is www.familysearch.org/1940census.
FamilySearch is also leading the community-based indexing project.
Steve Morse’s Site: stevemorse.org/census/unified.html will have a unified 1940 census enumeration district finder. Steve Morse has a lot of helpful information; in particular his guidance to search the Ellis Island database is worth checking out.
As you may already know, the 1940 census will not be indexed upon release. Until the indexes are created, you can locate individuals of interest by conducting geographic-based searches through the census data. Start with a possible address for the family you are interested in finding. Use Google Maps to locate cross-streets. Then use the cross-streets in the “Unified Census Finder” to narrow down to one or two Enumeration Districts. Pay attention to street names and house numbers; many were renumbered since 1940, particularly when 911 addresses were created. Checking an older City Directory can be helpful.
Let’s really celebrate the release of the 1940 census by finding our families among its pages, and by updating and sharing family stories that will certainly contain new chapters based on 1940 census data. Let your fingers do the walking through the 1940 census!
Monday, February 13, 2012
Scipio Civil War Veterans
The various municipal Historians in Cayuga County have expended a great deal of time and effort in compiling service records and names of the Civil War veterans of their respective towns. That includes this Historian! But just when I think I have every name, I find another one. Such was the case when I was looking at www.FultonHistory.com, a website I highly recommend. Filled with searchable newspapers from the central NY area, it is often possible to find new information on a subject.
Some of these names are new to me, some are not. I wanted to share them with you today:
From the Auburn Semi-Weekly Journal of January 4, 1907:
Libbeus Merry, a well-known citizen of Scipio, suffered a paralytic stroke this morning. Mr. Merry is 71 years of age and served during the Civil War with the ninth Regiment.
From the Auburn Citizen of August 1, 1930:
James Benton Hitchcock , 89 years old, prominent farmer of Scipio, died yesterday at his home in that town after being in failing health for some time. Mr. Hitchcock had lived in the Town of Scipio for many years, and was well known throughout that vicinity. He was born in Uxbridge, England on March 24, 1841 and came to this country May 10, 1850, when nine years of age. Mr. Hitchcock had a splendid war record, having served in many battles during the Civil War. He saw service in the siege of Yorktown in the battles of Hanover Courthouse, Gaines Mills, Malvern Hill, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg. He was honorably discharged at the close of the war with the rank of quartermaster sergant.
Mr. Hitchcock in 1874 married Miss Carrie Batten who survives him. He was the son of Thomas and Hannah Gunnell Hitchcock. For many years Mr. Hitchcock operated his farm in Scipioville and at one time was employed by the American Express Company in this city. He also had worked at cabinet making in Auburn and the vicinity of Scipioville. He was a member of the Scipio Center G. A. R Post and attended the Presbyterian Church at Scipioville. For 28 years Mr. Hitchcock served as Justice of the Peace.
He is survived by his wife; one son, Byron Hitchcock; four grandchildren and one great-grandson. Funeral services will be held at 2:30 o’clock Sunday afternoon at the home in Scipio with the Rev. Casper Gregory, pastor of the Presbyterian Church,. Officiating. Burial will be in Evergereen Cemetery, Scipioville. Mr. Hitchcock is also survived by two nephews, C. A. Hitchcock of Chittenango and Frederick W. Hitchcock of Sonyea.
From the Auburn Citizen of Tuesday October 10,1905:
Funeral of a Veteran
The funeral of Eber F. West was held at his late home in Scipioville yesterday afternoon. The house was filled with sympathizing friends. Rev. W. P. Garrett, the retiring pastor of the M. E. Church officiated. The M. E. choir sang two appropriate selections. The bearers were J. B. Hitchcock, Nathaniel Hoagland, George E. Carr, Daniel Sunshall (sic), George Bowen and Martin Myers, all of them veterans of the Civil War. Mr. West was a veteran, having enlisted in Company K under the late Captain Angel serving from November 5 1861 until June 30, 1865. There was a profusion of flowers. Burial was made at Evergreen cemetery, Scipioville.
Some of these names are new to me, some are not. I wanted to share them with you today:
From the Auburn Semi-Weekly Journal of January 4, 1907:
Libbeus Merry, a well-known citizen of Scipio, suffered a paralytic stroke this morning. Mr. Merry is 71 years of age and served during the Civil War with the ninth Regiment.
From the Auburn Citizen of August 1, 1930:
James Benton Hitchcock , 89 years old, prominent farmer of Scipio, died yesterday at his home in that town after being in failing health for some time. Mr. Hitchcock had lived in the Town of Scipio for many years, and was well known throughout that vicinity. He was born in Uxbridge, England on March 24, 1841 and came to this country May 10, 1850, when nine years of age. Mr. Hitchcock had a splendid war record, having served in many battles during the Civil War. He saw service in the siege of Yorktown in the battles of Hanover Courthouse, Gaines Mills, Malvern Hill, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg. He was honorably discharged at the close of the war with the rank of quartermaster sergant.
Mr. Hitchcock in 1874 married Miss Carrie Batten who survives him. He was the son of Thomas and Hannah Gunnell Hitchcock. For many years Mr. Hitchcock operated his farm in Scipioville and at one time was employed by the American Express Company in this city. He also had worked at cabinet making in Auburn and the vicinity of Scipioville. He was a member of the Scipio Center G. A. R Post and attended the Presbyterian Church at Scipioville. For 28 years Mr. Hitchcock served as Justice of the Peace.
He is survived by his wife; one son, Byron Hitchcock; four grandchildren and one great-grandson. Funeral services will be held at 2:30 o’clock Sunday afternoon at the home in Scipio with the Rev. Casper Gregory, pastor of the Presbyterian Church,. Officiating. Burial will be in Evergereen Cemetery, Scipioville. Mr. Hitchcock is also survived by two nephews, C. A. Hitchcock of Chittenango and Frederick W. Hitchcock of Sonyea.
From the Auburn Citizen of Tuesday October 10,1905:
Funeral of a Veteran
The funeral of Eber F. West was held at his late home in Scipioville yesterday afternoon. The house was filled with sympathizing friends. Rev. W. P. Garrett, the retiring pastor of the M. E. Church officiated. The M. E. choir sang two appropriate selections. The bearers were J. B. Hitchcock, Nathaniel Hoagland, George E. Carr, Daniel Sunshall (sic), George Bowen and Martin Myers, all of them veterans of the Civil War. Mr. West was a veteran, having enlisted in Company K under the late Captain Angel serving from November 5 1861 until June 30, 1865. There was a profusion of flowers. Burial was made at Evergreen cemetery, Scipioville.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Early Scipio Marriages
It is a challenge to find vital records in New York for any period much before 1850, and even those are pretty sparse. I am also always on the search for ways to identify maiden names of women so their branch of the family tree can be fleshed out.
I was fortunate enough to receive a transcription of some early marriage records for central New York, including Scipio, Springport and Aurelius. Let's see if you are related to any of these folks.
These early marriage records were provided courtesy of Norma Bilak in January 1998. A former very dedicated Historian, Norma is now deceased.
This material was copied from Nellie Flinn’s scrapbook by Arlene Young, then transcribed by Norma.
The following record of the marriages of some of the old inhabitants of Springport, Scipio, and Aurelius is taken from leaflets of a memorandum kept by Rev. Warner Lake, who for 20 years was Pastor of the Baptist Church, located near Powers Corners. Some of these folks descendants are still living in our midst. On a side note, the Rev. Lake was grandfather to J. B. and George W. Clark.
The town listed appears to be the residence of the husband. Some did not have a town listed, but presumably at least one of the couple was local.
Date names town
Nov. 20 1817 Harvey Bush to Arbella Whipple Aurelius
Feb. 19 1818 Timothy Bush to Lydia Bliss
Sep. 03 1818 Justus Boid to Almira Nutt Aurelius
Sep. 10 1818 Nicholas Gray to Laura Clark Aurelius
Nov. 01 1818 Gyeduthor P. Tabor to Mary Rob
Dec. 16 1818 Elam Anthony to Nancy Hunt
Mar. 23 1809 Wm. Crise to Eliza Elenor DeShong
Oct. 7 1809 Daniel Lummis to Polly Corley Aurelius
Oct. 14 1819 Mr. Roberts to Mary Bush
Nov. 2 1819 Hull Thompson to Diana Allen Scipio
Nov. 9 1819 Samuel Burghardt to Sally Snider Aurelius
Nov. 11 1819 Lewis Clark to Rhoda Lake Aurelius
Dec. 30 1819 Herlan Chamberlain to Anna Bush Scipio
Mar. 14 1819 Ichabod Clark to Hetty Gray
Mar. 21 1819 William Richardson to Hannah Dougherty Aurelius
Jul. 16 1820 Benjamin Roberts to Sarah Mosher Aurelius
Aug. 23 1820 Joshua Millard to Hannah Hall Scipio
Apr. ? 1822 Lenineu Mosher to Patty Booth Aurelius
Jul 7 1822 Abraham Johnson to Maria Bancroft Aurelius
Dec. 19 1822 Thaddeus Bennett to Betsey Ingram
Jan. 29 1824 Benjamin Sherman to Phebe Sprague Auburn
Dec. 29 1824 Amos Darling to Alma Hale Aurelius
Apr. 19 1827 Abraham Flinn to Fanny Weed Aurelius
Jan. 19 1826 Sylvester Frances to Lovey West
Jan. 19 1826 Alanson Rittenhouse to Mary Swallow Fleming
Feb. 2 1826 Manson Powers to Eliza Gray
Jun. 15 1826 William DeCoy to Harriett Duboll Springport
Oct. 18 1827 Abram Kirby of Ledyard to Lydia Gray of Springport
Jan. 17 1828 John Clark to Lizzie Flinn Springport
Mar. 9 1828 Oziah Smith to Hannah Lamb Springport
Apr. 9 1829 _?__ Wheeler to Sally Bigsby Aurelius
Dec. 13 1829 Mr. Boseman to Maria Beardsley Springport
Jan. 1 1827 Philip W. Hewitt to Nancy Seabolt Springport
Sep. 26 1827 Jacob Schenck to Maria Roberts Springport
Feb. 28 1828 Benj. F. Martingail to Widow Clark Springport
Mar. 29 1828 Zurah Curtis o Maria Wheeler Springport
May 12 1829 Samuel Dills of Scipio to Mary Lawrence of Springport
I was fortunate enough to receive a transcription of some early marriage records for central New York, including Scipio, Springport and Aurelius. Let's see if you are related to any of these folks.
These early marriage records were provided courtesy of Norma Bilak in January 1998. A former very dedicated Historian, Norma is now deceased.
This material was copied from Nellie Flinn’s scrapbook by Arlene Young, then transcribed by Norma.
The following record of the marriages of some of the old inhabitants of Springport, Scipio, and Aurelius is taken from leaflets of a memorandum kept by Rev. Warner Lake, who for 20 years was Pastor of the Baptist Church, located near Powers Corners. Some of these folks descendants are still living in our midst. On a side note, the Rev. Lake was grandfather to J. B. and George W. Clark.
The town listed appears to be the residence of the husband. Some did not have a town listed, but presumably at least one of the couple was local.
Date names town
Nov. 20 1817 Harvey Bush to Arbella Whipple Aurelius
Feb. 19 1818 Timothy Bush to Lydia Bliss
Sep. 03 1818 Justus Boid to Almira Nutt Aurelius
Sep. 10 1818 Nicholas Gray to Laura Clark Aurelius
Nov. 01 1818 Gyeduthor P. Tabor to Mary Rob
Dec. 16 1818 Elam Anthony to Nancy Hunt
Mar. 23 1809 Wm. Crise to Eliza Elenor DeShong
Oct. 7 1809 Daniel Lummis to Polly Corley Aurelius
Oct. 14 1819 Mr. Roberts to Mary Bush
Nov. 2 1819 Hull Thompson to Diana Allen Scipio
Nov. 9 1819 Samuel Burghardt to Sally Snider Aurelius
Nov. 11 1819 Lewis Clark to Rhoda Lake Aurelius
Dec. 30 1819 Herlan Chamberlain to Anna Bush Scipio
Mar. 14 1819 Ichabod Clark to Hetty Gray
Mar. 21 1819 William Richardson to Hannah Dougherty Aurelius
Jul. 16 1820 Benjamin Roberts to Sarah Mosher Aurelius
Aug. 23 1820 Joshua Millard to Hannah Hall Scipio
Apr. ? 1822 Lenineu Mosher to Patty Booth Aurelius
Jul 7 1822 Abraham Johnson to Maria Bancroft Aurelius
Dec. 19 1822 Thaddeus Bennett to Betsey Ingram
Jan. 29 1824 Benjamin Sherman to Phebe Sprague Auburn
Dec. 29 1824 Amos Darling to Alma Hale Aurelius
Apr. 19 1827 Abraham Flinn to Fanny Weed Aurelius
Jan. 19 1826 Sylvester Frances to Lovey West
Jan. 19 1826 Alanson Rittenhouse to Mary Swallow Fleming
Feb. 2 1826 Manson Powers to Eliza Gray
Jun. 15 1826 William DeCoy to Harriett Duboll Springport
Oct. 18 1827 Abram Kirby of Ledyard to Lydia Gray of Springport
Jan. 17 1828 John Clark to Lizzie Flinn Springport
Mar. 9 1828 Oziah Smith to Hannah Lamb Springport
Apr. 9 1829 _?__ Wheeler to Sally Bigsby Aurelius
Dec. 13 1829 Mr. Boseman to Maria Beardsley Springport
Jan. 1 1827 Philip W. Hewitt to Nancy Seabolt Springport
Sep. 26 1827 Jacob Schenck to Maria Roberts Springport
Feb. 28 1828 Benj. F. Martingail to Widow Clark Springport
Mar. 29 1828 Zurah Curtis o Maria Wheeler Springport
May 12 1829 Samuel Dills of Scipio to Mary Lawrence of Springport
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Mail in the 1830's
I was browsing through some old newspapers, including some available online at www.Fultonhistory.com, and found some records of mail waiting to be picked up. Looks like the Post Master wanted to start the new year off by clearing out some old mail.
On January 1, 1832, several Scipio people had letters remaining for them at the Post Office. Their names were printed in the Cayuga County Patriot. Where the name was not too clear, I have placed a question mark:
Roger Alexander
Uriah Benedict
Daniel Benham
Jas. E. Brinkerhoff
Thomas Bowman
Isaac Brown
David Carpenter
William Cowen
Ebenezer Chevall
Terry Clark
Gideon Cornell
William Daniels
Daniel Dearborn
Skaden Dean (?)
Mathew Easton
Owen Eddy
Jeffrey A. Takman (?)
John Fancher
Jonathan Green
Nathan Hale
Solomon Hull
Ebenezer Kimball
Reliance Newcomb (?)
Joseph Pierce
Richard Shaw
Henry Spencer
Alexander Story
Ephraim Starkweather
Lewis D. Sutphen
Seneca Tracy
John Winslow
Josiah Woodworth
Josiah C. Wheaton
Raymond Warin
William Weed
Marrin Warner or John Rellett (?)
Jethro Wood
John T. Walker
Certified by Andrew Groom, Post Master
Letters were also waiting for pickup at Sherwood’s Corners, but the newspaper is difficult to read and many names are illegible. Some I can see:
John Anthony
Timothy Butler
Humphrey Howland
Robert Lawrence
Lydia A. Palmer
Jethro Wood
Wilbur Dennis
Allen Hoxie
Josiah Letchworth
Irene Peck
Mary Smith
John Wood
Samuel Worden
Certified by A. Thomas, Post Master
The 1827 list of letters waiting at Sherwood’s Corners is much clearer:
William H. Allen
Thomas Alsop
Abm. Barker
Josiah Bowen
Nathaniel Close
Joseph Estes
Jesse McCarty
John S. Gifford
Phebe Johnson
Daniel Maybey
Henry H. Mosher
Joseph Manly
Monmouth Purdy
Benjamin Smith
James Stillson
James Sayles
Lucinda Sanford
William Slocum
Mr. Stubbs
John Vanduser
John Wood
William Wooden Jr.
On January 1, 1832, several Scipio people had letters remaining for them at the Post Office. Their names were printed in the Cayuga County Patriot. Where the name was not too clear, I have placed a question mark:
Roger Alexander
Uriah Benedict
Daniel Benham
Jas. E. Brinkerhoff
Thomas Bowman
Isaac Brown
David Carpenter
William Cowen
Ebenezer Chevall
Terry Clark
Gideon Cornell
William Daniels
Daniel Dearborn
Skaden Dean (?)
Mathew Easton
Owen Eddy
Jeffrey A. Takman (?)
John Fancher
Jonathan Green
Nathan Hale
Solomon Hull
Ebenezer Kimball
Reliance Newcomb (?)
Joseph Pierce
Richard Shaw
Henry Spencer
Alexander Story
Ephraim Starkweather
Lewis D. Sutphen
Seneca Tracy
John Winslow
Josiah Woodworth
Josiah C. Wheaton
Raymond Warin
William Weed
Marrin Warner or John Rellett (?)
Jethro Wood
John T. Walker
Certified by Andrew Groom, Post Master
Letters were also waiting for pickup at Sherwood’s Corners, but the newspaper is difficult to read and many names are illegible. Some I can see:
John Anthony
Timothy Butler
Humphrey Howland
Robert Lawrence
Lydia A. Palmer
Jethro Wood
Wilbur Dennis
Allen Hoxie
Josiah Letchworth
Irene Peck
Mary Smith
John Wood
Samuel Worden
Certified by A. Thomas, Post Master
The 1827 list of letters waiting at Sherwood’s Corners is much clearer:
William H. Allen
Thomas Alsop
Abm. Barker
Josiah Bowen
Nathaniel Close
Joseph Estes
Jesse McCarty
John S. Gifford
Phebe Johnson
Daniel Maybey
Henry H. Mosher
Joseph Manly
Monmouth Purdy
Benjamin Smith
James Stillson
James Sayles
Lucinda Sanford
William Slocum
Mr. Stubbs
John Vanduser
John Wood
William Wooden Jr.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
My Year in a Nutshell
Every year, I complete a report that captures many of the duties I perform as Scipio Historian. I want to share my 2011 report with you today.
YEARLY REPORT of Town Historian, Scipio 2011
This year I completed my eighth as Town Historian. The duties I performed included but were not limited to the following items:
I attended Cayuga County Historian’s meetings when they were offered and otherwise shared information with other local historians by letter and e-mail.
I responded to inquiries and requests for information of a historic or genealogic nature directed to me on: Mullally, Akin, Gould, Story, Chamberlain, Ensenore, Lawler, Peckham, Seeley, Doyle, Edgbert, Percy, Root, Batten and Fordyce among others.
I accepted and inventoried donations to our historical holdings.
I maintained and updated our scrapbooks.
I submitted a brief article for our town newsletter to inform our residents and increase local interest in our history.
I obtained and organized copies of historical writings about our town and made them available for our residents and visitors.
I kept a supply of business cards at the Town Hall so residents could have a means to contact me by mail, phone or Internet, and added the blog URL.
I wrote articles for the Citizen newspaper and the Genoa-King Ferry Tribune about Scipio history.
I maintained contact with the APHNYS to access information and share ideas.
I transcribed some otherwise unavailable vital records for Scipio provided through the County Historian’s office.
I continue to work with the Town Clerk, other municipal Historians and our residents to identify people places and other things about Scipio.
I continued a BLOG for Scipio at http://scipiocenterny.blogspot.com to encourage younger residents to participate in their Town’s history in a medium they understand, and for others to communicate electronically with questions, etc. That blog has had over 15,000 hits since inception in October of 2007, with 5,000 occurring in the past calendar year and has generated many e-mail inquiries and much interest and information about Scipio and her early residents.
I continued to add material to my file cabinet drawer at the Town Hall.
I met with various residents at various locations to discuss our history, accept donations of historical significance, and to gain new insight on our past.
I continued work on a family file system to cross reference early family surnames, to make sharing and look up more productive.
I obtained the results of a Cayuga Community College American History class project on the individuals buried in Scipio cemeteries and made them available.
I continued to compile information on our Civil War veterans in celebration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial.
I continued to research Scipio’s connection to the USCT and other Civil War information.
I accepted historical gifts from the public and provided archival quality storage if needed.
I delivered a bus tour of Civil War venues in Cayuga and Seneca Counties. This tour was held in August of 2011 as part of the National Conference of the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War (DUVCW).
As always, it is a pleasure to serve the Town of Scipio as her Historian.
Sandie Stoker Gilliland, Town of Scipio Historian
January 18, 2012
YEARLY REPORT of Town Historian, Scipio 2011
This year I completed my eighth as Town Historian. The duties I performed included but were not limited to the following items:
I attended Cayuga County Historian’s meetings when they were offered and otherwise shared information with other local historians by letter and e-mail.
I responded to inquiries and requests for information of a historic or genealogic nature directed to me on: Mullally, Akin, Gould, Story, Chamberlain, Ensenore, Lawler, Peckham, Seeley, Doyle, Edgbert, Percy, Root, Batten and Fordyce among others.
I accepted and inventoried donations to our historical holdings.
I maintained and updated our scrapbooks.
I submitted a brief article for our town newsletter to inform our residents and increase local interest in our history.
I obtained and organized copies of historical writings about our town and made them available for our residents and visitors.
I kept a supply of business cards at the Town Hall so residents could have a means to contact me by mail, phone or Internet, and added the blog URL.
I wrote articles for the Citizen newspaper and the Genoa-King Ferry Tribune about Scipio history.
I maintained contact with the APHNYS to access information and share ideas.
I transcribed some otherwise unavailable vital records for Scipio provided through the County Historian’s office.
I continue to work with the Town Clerk, other municipal Historians and our residents to identify people places and other things about Scipio.
I continued a BLOG for Scipio at http://scipiocenterny.blogspot.com to encourage younger residents to participate in their Town’s history in a medium they understand, and for others to communicate electronically with questions, etc. That blog has had over 15,000 hits since inception in October of 2007, with 5,000 occurring in the past calendar year and has generated many e-mail inquiries and much interest and information about Scipio and her early residents.
I continued to add material to my file cabinet drawer at the Town Hall.
I met with various residents at various locations to discuss our history, accept donations of historical significance, and to gain new insight on our past.
I continued work on a family file system to cross reference early family surnames, to make sharing and look up more productive.
I obtained the results of a Cayuga Community College American History class project on the individuals buried in Scipio cemeteries and made them available.
I continued to compile information on our Civil War veterans in celebration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial.
I continued to research Scipio’s connection to the USCT and other Civil War information.
I accepted historical gifts from the public and provided archival quality storage if needed.
I delivered a bus tour of Civil War venues in Cayuga and Seneca Counties. This tour was held in August of 2011 as part of the National Conference of the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War (DUVCW).
As always, it is a pleasure to serve the Town of Scipio as her Historian.
Sandie Stoker Gilliland, Town of Scipio Historian
January 18, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Abraham Lincoln Records in the National Archives
I was excited to learn of The Lincoln Archives Digital Project, which is busily digitizing all federal records created during Abraham Lincoln's administration that are housed within the National Archives. This is the first digital project to scan the entire contents of a president's administration. Once completed, the approximately 14 million executive, legislative, judicial and military records housed within the National Archives, including all documents, maps, and photographs, which encompass the Civil War era 1861-1865, will be available online, in color, transcribed and fully searchable to the global community.
This project will provide a full inventory of the holdings of the National Archives, which are within the scope of the project beginning after the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, ending on April 15, 1865, with his assassination. The exceptions are all records that are involved with the assassination.
There will be free access to these records through Memorial Day of 2012. The website is located at http://www.lincolnarchives.us/; there is also a blog located at www.lincolnarchivesdigitalproject.wordpress.com.
A quick click around the website shows detailed links to newspapers, photographs, maps and political cartoons to name a few features. For the teachers out there, or historians who give presentations, there are lesson plans too.
You can do a search to locate records, and there is an online site map that has an index of topics with links directly to the records. Scans of original handwritten letters and other documents are easy to read, and contain information from the Archives that has never been available online before. They include for example, handwritten orders from Auburn NY resident and Lincoln’s Secretary of State, William H. Seward, exempting specific aliens from military service.
All these features will grow over time as items are transcribed, and volunteers are always welcome to assist with the project. As we celebrate the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War and Lincoln’s administration, it would be an interesting project to participate in. The website is well worth a visit if you have an interest in Civil War information.
This project will provide a full inventory of the holdings of the National Archives, which are within the scope of the project beginning after the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, ending on April 15, 1865, with his assassination. The exceptions are all records that are involved with the assassination.
There will be free access to these records through Memorial Day of 2012. The website is located at http://www.lincolnarchives.us/; there is also a blog located at www.lincolnarchivesdigitalproject.wordpress.com.
A quick click around the website shows detailed links to newspapers, photographs, maps and political cartoons to name a few features. For the teachers out there, or historians who give presentations, there are lesson plans too.
You can do a search to locate records, and there is an online site map that has an index of topics with links directly to the records. Scans of original handwritten letters and other documents are easy to read, and contain information from the Archives that has never been available online before. They include for example, handwritten orders from Auburn NY resident and Lincoln’s Secretary of State, William H. Seward, exempting specific aliens from military service.
All these features will grow over time as items are transcribed, and volunteers are always welcome to assist with the project. As we celebrate the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War and Lincoln’s administration, it would be an interesting project to participate in. The website is well worth a visit if you have an interest in Civil War information.
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