Tracing the History and Genealogy of Your Home

Tracing the History and Genealogy of Your Home Have you ever wondered about the history of your house, apartment, church or other building? When was it built? Why was it built? Who owned it? What happened to the people who lived and/or died there? Or, a favorite question as a child, does it have any secret tunnels or cubbyholes? Whether youre looking for documentation for historic status or are just plain inquisitive, tracing a propertys history and learning about the people who have lived there can be a fascinating and fulfilling project. When conducting research on buildings there are usually two types of information that people search for: Architectural facts, such as date of construction, the name of architect or builder, construction materials, and physical changes over time.Historical facts, such as information on the original owner and other residents through time, or interesting events associated with the building or area. A house history may consist of either type of research, or be a combination of both. Get to Know Your Home Begin your search by looking closely at the building for clues about its age. Look at the type of construction, the materials used in construction, the shape of the roofline, the placement of the windows, etc. These types of features may prove useful in identifying the architectural style of the building, which helps in establishing the general construction date. Walk around the property looking for obvious alterations or additions to the building as well as roadways, paths, trees, fences, and other features. It is also important to look at nearby buildings to see whether they contain similar features which will also help to date your property. Talk to relatives, friends, neighbors, even former employees - anyone who might know something about the house. Ask them not only for information about the building, but also about former owners, the land upon which the house was built, what existed at that location prior to construction of the house, and the history of the town or community. Check family letters, scrapbooks, diaries, and photo albums for possible clues. Its even possible (though not likely) that you may find an original deed or even a blueprint for the property. A thorough search of the property may also yield clues between walls, floorboards, and other forgotten areas. Old newspapers were often used as insulation between walls, while journals, clothing, and other items have been found in rooms, closets, or fireplaces that for one reason or another were sealed over. Were not recommending that you knock holes in the walls unless you are planning a restoration, but you should be aware of the many secrets which an older home or building can contain. Chain of Title Search A deed is a legal document used to transfer ownership of land and property. Examining all of the deeds concerning your home or other property is a big step toward learning more about its history. In addition to providing the names of property owners, deeds  may provide information on construction dates, changes in value and use, and even plot maps. Begin with the deed for the current owners of the property and work your way back from one deed to the next, with each deed providing details on who conveyed the property to whom. This list of property owners in succession is known as the chain of title. Though often a tedious process, a title search  is the best method for establishing a chain of ownership for a property. Begin your search for deeds by learning where they were recorded and stored for the time and place in which you are interested. Some jurisdictions are even beginning to place this information online - allowing you to search for current property information by address or owner.  Next, visit the registry of deeds (or location where deeds are recorded for your area) and use the grantee index to search for the present owner in an index of buyers. The index will provide you with a book and page where a copy of the actual deed is located. A number of county deed offices across the U.S. even provide online access to  copies of current, and sometimes historical, deeds. The free genealogy website  FamilySearch also has many historical deed records online in digital format. Digging Into Address Based Records One piece of information that you will almost always have for your home or building is the address. Therefore, once youve learned a bit about the property and looked for local clues, the next logical step is to search for documents that are based on a buildings address and location. Such documents, including property records, utility records, maps, photographs, architectural plans and more, maybe housed in the local library, historical society, local government offices, or even in private collections. Check with your local genealogy library or genealogical society for help finding the location of the following records in your specific locality. Building Permits:  Learn where building permits are kept on file for your buildings neighborhood - these may be held by local building departments, city planning departments, or even county or parish offices. Building permits for older buildings and residences may be preserved at libraries, historical societies or archives. Usually filed by street address, building permits can be especially useful when tracing a house history, often listing the original owner, architect, builder, construction cost, dimensions, materials, and date of construction. Alteration permits provide clues to the buildings physical evolution over time. On rare occasions, a building permit may also lead you to a copy of the original blueprints for your building.Utility Records:  If other means fail and the building isnt too old or rural, the date when utilities were first connected may provide a good indication of when a building was first occupied (i.e. a general construction date). The water company is oft en the best place to start as these records generally pre-date electrical, gas and sewer systems. Just remember that your home could have been built before these systems existed and, in such cases, the date of connection will not indicate the construction date. Insurance Records:  Historical insurance records, most notably fire insurance claim forms, contain information about the nature of an insured building, its contents, value and, possibly, even floor plans. For an exhaustive search, contact all insurance companies who have been active in your area for a long length of time and ask them to check their records for any policies sold for that address.  Fire insurance maps  created by Sanborn and other companies document the size and shape of buildings, locations of doors and windows, and construction materials, as well as street names and property boundaries, for both big cities and small towns. Researching the Owners Once youve explored the historical records of your home, one of the best ways to expand on the history of your home or other building is to trace its owners. A variety of standard sources exist which should help you learn who lived in the house before you, and from there it is just a matter of using a bit of genealogy research to fill in the gaps. You should have already learned the names of some of the previous occupants and, possibly, even the original owners from the chain of title search covered in part one of this article. Most archives and libraries also have pamphlets or articles available which will help you with the specifics of searching for the previous occupants of your home and learning more about their life. Some of the basic sources for tracing the owners of your home include: Phone Books City Directories:  Begin your search by letting your fingers do the walking. One of the best sources for information about the people who lived in your house are old phone books and, if you live in an urban area,  city directories. They can provide you with a timeline of former occupants, and possibly provide you with extra details such as occupations. As you search, it is important to keep in mind that your home may have had a different street number, and your street may have even had a different name. City and phone directories, in combination with  old maps, are usually the best source for these old street names and numbers. You can usually locate old phone books and city directories at local libraries and historical societies.Census Records:  Census records, depending upon the location and time period, may tell you who lived in your home or building, where they came from, how many children they had, the value of the property, and more. Census records can be e specially useful in narrowing down birth, death, and even marriage dates which, in turn, can lead to more records about the homeowners. Census records are not currently accessible beyond the early 20th century in most countries (e.g. 1911 in Great Britain, 1921 in Canada, 1940 in the U.S.) due to privacy concerns, but available records can usually be found at libraries and archives, and online for a number of countries including the  United States,  Canada, and  Great Britain. Church and Parish Records:  Local church and  parish records  can sometimes be a good source for death dates and other information about former occupants of your home. This is a more likely avenue of research in small towns where there arent a lot of churches, however.Newspapers and Obituaries:  If you are able to narrow down  a death date, then  obituaries  can provide you with a wealth of details about the former occupants of your home.  Newspapers  can also be good sources for information on births, marriages, and  town histories, especially if youre lucky enough to find one which has been indexed or digitized. You may even find an article on your home if the owner was prominent in some way. Check with the local library or historical society to learn which newspaper was in operation at the time the former owners lived in the home, and where the archives are located. The U.S. Newspaper Directory at  Chronicling America  is an excellent source for information on what U.S. newspapers were being published in a particular area at a particular time, as well as the institutions which hold copies. A growing number of  historical newspapers can also be found online. Birth, Marriage and Death Records:  Ã‚  If you are able to narrow down a date of birth, marriage or death, then you should definitely investigate vital records. Birth, marriage, and death records are available from a variety of locations, depending upon the location and time period. Information is readily available on the Internet which can point you to these records and provide you with the years they are available. The history of the homeowners is a big part of the history of a house. If youre lucky enough to track former owners all the way down to living descendants, then you may want to consider contacting them to learn more. People who have lived in the home can tell you things about it that you will never find in public records. They may also be in possession of old photos of the home or building. Approach them with care and courtesy, and they may be your best resource yet!

WA2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

WA2 - Assignment Example Nelson (2012) calls tsunami as tidal waves while it is rejected as tidal waves by the governmental website for Tsunami. Tsunami is not essentially generated because of displacement of sea floor, but there are many other reasons. Its occurrence can be sudden and damaging for the coastal communities (Nelson). The word Tsunami was unknown to people before December 2004 when an earthquake of 9.1 magnitude hit Indonesia and vertically displaced the sea floor after which, a Tsunami got created and became the reason of killing nearly two hundred and thirty thousand people and affecting several millions. People suffered because of lack of proper warning measures taken by the authorities. Even after getting knowledge of tsunami, people continue getting affected as people saw a Tsunami in 2009, 2010 and 2011. There were tsunamis before, but the tsunami of 2004 made scientists to research it in depth (Nelson). The tsunami waves reach up to a height of 100 meters that build a wall against the land and eruption of this walled water on the coasts can be destructive for the residents of the coasts. These waves as per national geographic are created because of displacement of tectonic plates under the sea (National Geographic). With the rise or fall of boundary walls of the plates, the water over the ocean floor is displaced that moves forward in form of tsunami. Landslides and volcanic eruptions can also be comprehended as the reasons of creation of tsunami. In deep water, they do not have noticeable height, but in shallow water, their speed gets lessened and they get elevated energy and height that is damaging for the shores (National Geographic). Warnings can be sent to areas that are far from earthquakes and other regions as there is plenty of time to take actions. However, for coastal areas, the time for warning is less and people have to

SOCIOLINGUISTICS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

SOCIOLINGUISTICS - Essay Example However, quantitative study is the ideal methodology in studying variations in English language as a second language because it clearly outlines effects of language transfer. There have been a number of notable studies in the field of sociolinguistics from the view of English as a second language. However, in this case the main focus is on two studies. The first one was conducted in New York City by William Labov where he investigated the variations in pronouncing variable /r/. Labov argued that New Yorkers, especially the young people, had developed a tendency of pronouncing /r/ variable after vowels in their speech. This case would probably occur while pronouncing words like floor and fourth. Labov conducted his research in three stores in the city which included S. Klein, Saks, and Macy’s. His approach in testing these hypotheses involved face to face interviews with the store employees. He repetitively asked for directions to departments in the fourth floor and intentional ly made the respondent to repeat â€Å"fourth floor† pretending not to have heard it the first time (Wardhaugh, 2006). Moreover, the research involved a number of social factors such as social-classes ranging from high, middle, to low class. Labov found out that a significant number of employees in all the three stores never used variable /r/ in the first respond. The results of those employees who never used variable /r/ reflected 79 percent in S. Klein, 38 percent in Saks and 49 percent in Macy’s. However, in the second or third response of same words, the percentage of those using variable /r/ increased. The research also showed that variable /r/ was mostly observed while pronouncing â€Å"floor† than â€Å"fourth†. These in relation to individuals using English as a second language shows that there are higher possibilities of such individuals using /r/ variable in most cases. Labov further examined the results from the three stores and discovered that young employees, in Saks, used the variable /r/ more compared to elderly employees. On the other hand, Macy’s data showed an increase in the use of /r/ variable with age while S. Klein’s data did not show much variation. These results led Labov to conclude that, there is relatively minimal or no change of pronunciation developed in adolescence regardless of the social-class of an individual (Wardhaugh, 2006). Later, Labov conducted a more compressive research to test the hypothesis on pronunciation of the /r/ variable in relation to social class. He discovered that most upper middle class people in New York value pronunciation of the /r/ variable in words such as guard and car. This is, however, contrary to the history of / r/ variable pronunciation in New York. Use of variable /r/ in New York between eighteenth century and World War II had reduced significantly. Therefore, the only explanation behind the tremendous increase in using /r/ variable in New York would be the influence of immigrants, mostly English second language speakers, moving into the city (Bayley, 2005). Therefore, using English as a second language contributes to variation in the use of language. In this case, Labov interviewed more New Yorker, although this time, they were just required to give their view about the people whose speech differs only in pronunciation of /r/ variable. People between the age group of 0-20 years approved and used more of

How did the relationship between individual and state change over the Essay

How did the relationship between individual and state change over the course of the twentieth century - Essay Example This was a philosophy held by John Locke in the 17th century. In the traditional governments, only the high class citizens were allowed into politics and this did not include women. The Montagnards took up leadership and implemented revolutionary economic and social policies that resulted in revolts and violent reactions from the citizens. In the 19th century, most nations across Europe, North America and Spanish America adopted liberalism which opposed traditional conservatism and promoted representative democracy and the rule of law in government. Over the 19th and 20th centuries, there was a characteristic change in the ideologies of citizens that influenced their relationship with state. The French revolution was characterized by various liberal movements including the women’s march on Versailles which forced the royal court back in Paris. Before World War I, the European political scene was dominated by liberalism but this was slowly replaced by socialism in the early 20th century. The Soviet Union communism was based on Marxism–Leninism ideology which held that the policies of understanding social life were the prevalent truths since the party was enlightened. It denied the possibility of multiple truths. Nazism was a form of socialism in the 20th century that was featured by theories of racial hierarchy, expansion of power and subjection to a single strong leader. The Nazis under Adolf Hitler aimed at eradicating social divisions to promote a strong homogenous society by expanding its territories at the expense of its neighbors. Like the most previous ideologies, Nazism excluded women from political involvement and classified them as children. It was against interracial interactions and trained young girls to avoid race defilement. In the book Under a Cruel Star by Kovà ¡ly, the writer describes her trials as a Jew during the Communism and

Herbert Hoover Essay -- History

Herbert Hoover Herbert Hoover called it a "noble experiment." Organized crime found it to be the opportunity of a lifetime. Millions of Americans denounced it as an infringement of their rights. For nearly 14 years—from Jan. 29, 1920, until Dec. 5, 1933--the manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages was illegal in the United States. The 18th, or Prohibition, Amendment to the Constitution was passed by Congress and submitted to the states in 1917. By Jan. 29, 1919, it had been ratified. Enforcement legislation entitled the National Prohibition Act (or more popularly, the Volstead act, after Representative Andrew J. Volstead of Minnesota) was passed on Oct. 28, 1919, over President Woodrow Wilson’s veto. The 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States not only prohibited the "manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors," but their importation and exportation also. It was adopted after a nationwide crusade by temperance groups, notably the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, or WCTU. The amendment was enforced and defined by Congress in the Volstead Act. One result of the amendment was that the production and sale of alcoholic beverages became the province of organized crime. Americans did not stop drinking, and their demands for liquor were met by wide-scale smuggling and bootlegging, much of which was controlled by such gangs as that led by Al Capone in Chicago. The era of prohibition ended in 1933 when the 18th Amendment was repealed by the twenty-first Amendment. The stage was set for more than a decade of combat between the "wets" and the "drys"—those determined to keep drinking and those determined to enforce the law. In retrospect, the period has been called the Roaring Twenties and the Jazz Age. New music appeared along with new dances, a new feminism, and a general relaxation of standards after the rigorous years of World War I. The new mood was in complete contrast to the moral earnestness of many Americans who were determined to remain the ideal "Victorians." Organized efforts to limit the use of alcoholic beverages began in the United States during the 1820s. A by-product of the religious revivalism sweeping the nation, Prohibition soon became part of the whole social reform movement that preceded the Civil War. The earliest reformers called for moderation, not total abstinence, but as ... ...bition did not achieve its goals. Instead, it added many problems to those that it intended to solve. It came along in a social period where it was just simply unrealistic to have any success. The only beneficiaries to that of Prohibition were bootleggers, crime bosses, and the forces of big government in all of its corrupt forms. Though it failed to improve health, welfare, or America as a whole, the experiment with prohibition affords some valuable lessons. With this learning experience as part of the past, America should be able to confront its modern remnants in all of their assorted varieties. Bibliography Coffey, Thomas M. The Long Thirst: Prohibition in America, 1920-1933 New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 1975. Krout, J. A. The Origins of Prohibition, New York City: Russell & Russell, 1996. Lee, Henry. How Dry We Were, Enlewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1963. Rorabaugh, W. J. The Alcoholic Republic- An American Tradition, New York Oxford University Press, 1979. Turner, George Kibbe. "The City of Chicago, A Study of Great Immoralities," McClure’s Magazine, April 1927 (vol. 28). Warburton, Clark. "The Results of Prohibition," Auburn Press, 1996.

Can society fully control individuals?

Although society sets a myriad of rules and regulations that ostensibly circumscribes your actions, it is our choice whether or not to conform to these rules. Convincing examples to demonstrates this founds are found in A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Galileo’s choices of defying norms in the field of science. Nora’s decision to leave Torvald and seek her independence in the play A Dolls House by Henrik Ibsen explicitly demonstrates that, regardless of what society dictates, choices are always present ot the individual. Nora was one of many women who suffered from the male supremacy during the Victorian Era. Her husband, Torvald, would call her demeaning names such as â€Å"squirrel† and â€Å"pet† and expects her to obey every command because society dictates that she should. However, Nora defied her â€Å"social norms† and left Torvald to achieve her independence: an act considered to be unthinkable at the time. Thus demonstrates that decisions are contingent upon individuals, not society. Another example which shows that our choices area solely determined by ourselves is that of Atticus and his decision to defend a black man, Tom Robinson, in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Atticus, who lives in a town inhabited by a racist, white community, decided to do what he thinks is right and defended a black man named Tom Robinson, who was spurious accused of raping a white girl. Despite Atticus’s cognizance of the vicious calumny that he will be subjected to by society, he nevertheless made the decision which he considered is right and defended Tom Robinson. This further shows that decision are purely based on the individual. In addition, the fact that decisions of the individual can never be fully controlled by society is shown in the field of science, particularly through Galileo’s choice of having a heliocentric view on the universe. Galileo was a scientist who, after adequate research into the field, maintained that, contrary to what the church and Aristotle believed, the sun is in the center of the universe. At the time, society strongly believed that the earth is the center of the universe and considered every other scientist who said otherwise to be mocking religion and thus deserving punishment. Because of his theory, Galileo was convicted of heresy and consequently sentence to home imprisonment. Surely, it was Galileo’s decision to voice his theory which, rather interestingly, happened to be correct all along! The aforementioned examples are just three a vast number of people who decided to go against society wishes. If anything, these people exemplify the human nature of exploring the unknown, of thinking critical outside the box and of seeking dreams regardless of the perils and obstacles on the way, these are the people who make progress possible; without such individuals, society would be a collection of robots that operate based on norms and that would never be able to think, speak or act out anything that does not fit this â€Å"norm†. Quite simply, it is these people that liberated the oppressed and illuminated the path of knowledge.

Accounting Information System Security - 1574 Words

Since the society has become progressively dependent on networks for business, the management of company’s information online has developed into an issue to be concerned. AIS, which is short for Accounting Information System, is not merely related to accounting information management as the business develops around the world. In the various explanations of AIS in the Lecture 1, p12130 Accounting Information System, presented at the University of Nottingham Ningbo by Trevor Bayley, Vaassen (2002) defined AIS as provides information for decision-making and accountability to internal and external stakeholders providing the right conditions for decision making and ensures that no assets illegitimately exit the organisation. In terms of†¦show more content†¦Besides, the IT department should update its technology support timely and constantly. In views of how the network can be attacked by hackers, the process of the constructing a network of a company should be reviewed. F irst of all, when a website is being designed, the developer should ensure the script of the website is perfectly planned and repeatedly tested, not leaving any type of loop-hole for hackers to obtain confidential information of the company. In the second place, the users of network should carefully handle their crucial information. Raines (2008) claimed that majority of cybercrimes are caused by the reason of users giving their information to unverified websites. To consolidate the precaution of users about cybercrime, an awareness may better be established that computer virus can guide itself into a computer with great ability without being discovered (ibid). Pay attention to all aspects of computer security, insider threats to information occupies a significant place. Although outsiders, for example, hackers, are generally regarded as a big threat to a company, the company staffs are actually putting a greater risk for security of company information. 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