Family Trees-Females
When entering a woman’s name in a family tree
Enter her maiden name (her last name at birth)
Using maiden names in family trees connects women to their birth families, ensures that you record their pre-marriage names, and keeps consistency in your tree among women who never married, married once, and married more than once
If you don’t know a woman’s maiden name, leave her last name blank
If a woman married, her married last name is recorded in the tree by entering her husband into the tree as well. His last name is assumed to be her married last name.
In cases where a woman didn’t take her husband’s last name, when a man’s name changed, or when two people of the same gender married, enter both partners’ last names as their birth names.
10 Sources for Finding Maiden Names -Thought .com
10 Sources for Finding Maiden Names- Thought . com https://www.thoughtco.com/top-sources-for-locating-maiden-names-1422659
1) Marriage Records
The most likely place to locate a woman’s maiden name is on her marriage record.
These can include not only the marriage license, but also the marriage certificate, marriage announcements, marriage banns, and marriage bonds.
It is generally necessary to know one of the spouse’s name, marriage location and approximate marriage date to find these records
2) Census Records
Check every census year available for your female ancestor, up until the year that she died. Young couples may be found living with the wife’s parents: an elderly parent may have been added to the household: or brothers, sisters, or other family members may be found living with your ancestor’s family. Families living nearby may be possible relatives.
3) Land Records
Land was important and often passed down from father to daughter. Examine deeds for your ancestor and/or her husband which include the Latin phrases “et ux.” (and wife) and “et al.” (and others). They may provide the names of females, or names of siblings or children. Also keep your eye out for a man or a couple selling land to your ancestors for a dollar, or other small amounts. The ones selling the land are more than likely the parents or relatives of your female ancestor. Investigate the witnesses to any transactions in which a widow is selling land, as they may be relatives.
If you have a possible set of parents for your female ancestor, search for their probate record or will. Surnames of female children, along with the names of their spouses, are often listed. Since estates often involved the division of land, deed indexes for your female ancestor may be able to lead you to probate proceedings.
If your female ancestor died recently enough to leave a death certificate, this is potentially one of the few places where her maiden name may appear. Since death certificates can often include inaccurate information, check the certificate for the name of the informant. The closeness of the relationship between informant and the deceased can help you assess the likely accuracy of the provided information. Seek death records for each of the women’s children as well. Even if the death certificate for your ancestor doesn’t include the mother’s maiden name, others might.
Check newspapers for the locality where your ancestors lived for birth or marriage announcements or obituaries. Even if you can’t locate an obituary for your female ancestor, you may find notices for siblings or other family members that provide helpful clues; she may be mentioned in the obituary of a brother, for example. Combining a list of your ancestor’s siblings with census research can help determine potential families.
7) Cemetery,Burial Records and Funeral Home Records
Tombstone inscriptions for married or widowed women may include their maiden name. Check surrounding tombstones as well, as it could be possible that parents, siblings, or other family members may be buried nearby. If available, funeral home records may include information on the deceased’s parents or next of kin.
Was your ancestor’s spouse or children in the military? Pension applications and military service records often include good biographical information. Family members also often signed as witnesses. In certain circumstances, women could also file for military pension benefits on behalf of a deceased husband or unmarried son; these applications often contain copies of marriage records or affidavits that a marriage took place.
Churches are a good source for birth or christening records which usually include the names of both parents, sometimes including the maiden name of the mother. Church marriage records will usually include the spouse’s maiden name and are an alternate source for marriage information for localities and time periods where civil registration was not in effect.
10) Naming Patterns
It is only a clue, but the maiden name of a mother can sometimes be found among the names of her children. Unusual middle names, among boys or girls, might be the maiden name of a mother or grandmother. Or the eldest daughter might be named for her maternal grandmother.
Cyndis List Cyndislist.com
Female Ancestors Category Index
- General Resources
- Libraries, Archives & Museums
- Locality or Ethnic Specific
- Military
- Occupations
- Our Foremothers
- Pioneers
- Publications
- Records: Census, Cemeteries, Land, Obituaries, Personal, Taxes and Vital
- Schools
- Social Networking
- Societies & Groups
- Suffragettes & Suffragists
- Witches
- Women’s History Resources
Related Categories
- Biographies
- Clothing & Costumes
- Diaries & Letters
- Family Bibles
- History Worldwide
- Odds & Ends
- Photographs & Memories
- Recipes, Cookbooks & Family Traditions
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Note: Also Try a Google Search- Finding Women in History
Finding Females- Your Guide to Finding Females Barb Snow
Finding Females- Your Guide to Finding Females Barb Snow
https://www.barbsnow.net/female.htmh
1. Mine Male Records
Unraveling the mysteries of women relatives, says genealogist Michael John Neill of RootDig.com, doesn’t begin with researching female ancestors. “The first step,” he tells FamilySearch, “is to fully document the male ancestor and to look for hidden clues that will lead to information about the women in his life.”
2. Let History Be Your Guide
To shine a light on the stories of female ancestors, Lisa Alzo of The Accidental Genealogist recommends creating a timeline of historical events that took place during their lives. These events can shed invaluable perspective and identify cause-and-effect situations. For instance, you might find that the Great Depression or World War II propelled your mother or grandmother into the work force.
To create a historical timeline that matches up with your female ancestor’s life:
- Establish a timeline that begins with the woman’s birth and ends with her death.
- Detail everything you know about her, including her marriage date and children’s birth dates and places.
- Add in life events, such as migrations and hospitalizations, as you uncover them.
- Incorporate significant national and international events, such as wars and epidemics.
- Work in local events you discover in county histories, which are often available at libraries and online bookstores.
3. Hunt for Headstones
- “Loving wife and mother of six dedicated to helping those less fortunate.”
- We can learn so much from gravestones. These markers often vividly evoke the spirit of departed family members. Tom Comstock of BillionGraves says an ancestor’s final resting place can also be an excellent source of detail about women relatives.
- The gravestone of a female ancestor may provide the last place she lived and uncover family relationships, middle and maiden names, and dates of birth and death. Emblems on headstones can reveal religious beliefs, professions, and memberships. Epitaphs may reveal a wide range of details about an ancestor’s life
Maiden and Married Names Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maiden_and_married_names
Womens History- A Report on the Status of Women in the United States Social Studies Standards at the Women’s National History Museum https://www.womenshistory.org/social-studies-standards
Rhonda McClure-Genealogy .com -Ladies Clubs and Lodges from the 1880’s https://www.genealogy.com/articles/over/heard022400.html
Married to an alien-Michael John Neil http://www.rootdig.com/adn/4944.htm
Women and Naturalization- Marian L Smith- Prologue https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1998/summer/women-and-naturalization-1.html
Women in WWII Museum
Women in WWII WWII Museum
https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/research-starters-women-world-war-ii#:~:text=The%20Role%20of%20Women%20in,effort%20during%20World%20War%20II.&text=More%20than%20six%
Black Sheep Society- Family Tree Magazine Premium Article https://www.familytreemagazine.com/resources/online/they-did-a-baaaad-baaaad-thing/
Uncle Hiram- on Black Sheep Society http://www.genealogytoday.com/columns/unclehiram/010630.html
Black Sheep Society on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheBlackSheepsSociety/
Searching for women at Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/rr/genealogy/bib_guid/female.pdf h
Maiden Names- Tips for Finding them in your Genealogical Research
https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~katw/genealogy/Maiden_Names.htm
Special Terms in Researching Women
Recommended Sources
Five Tips for Finding Maiden Names -Family Tree Magazine https://www.familytreemagazine.com/female-ancestors/research-maiden-names-tips/
Donna Pzezcha- Genealogy.com Finding Females https://www.genealogy.com/articles/research/50_donna.html
Book Review-New Source: Finding Female Ancestors and Maiden Names-The Hidden Source – Contents:
Every State Information
Marriage and Divorce
Property and Inheritance
Suffrage
Citizenship
Census Information
Bibliography
Selected Resources for Women’s History
Bibliography