Please welcome guest blogger Judy G. Russell, CGSM, CGLSM
Harold Henderson, CG, an Indiana-based professional genealogist, used a case study involving a disappearing husband from Chicago to drive home seven lessons of the story that work just as well as landmarks of research.
In his presentation “Are We There Yet? Proof and the Genealogy Police,” Henderson traced Blanche Chilcote’s Husband Early 1900s Chicago to find his origins. Harold emphasized these principles:
1. Start with what you know, where you know it.
2. Get the most out of every record.
3. Learn the records landscape.
4. Stay indecisive! (Know when to take a flying leap.
5. Don’t be afraid to look twice at the same record.
6. Don’t knock off work too early.
7. Remember: the past always leaves a trace.
It’s a mark of how well Harold told the story that drove home his points that even with the room audio fading in and out, the audience was riveted from start to finish. We won’t give away what happened to Blanche’s husband, since the audio taping wasn’t affected by the room audio issues.
This session has been taped. During the conference you can buy it from the JAMB-INC booth in the main conference hall. After the conference, it will be available online at http://www.jamb-inc.com/category/genealogy. This is session F351 under the heading 2013 NGS Conference/Las Vegas, NV.
Judy’s website provides the following about her:
A Certified GenealogistSM and Certified Genealogical LecturerSM with a law degree, The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell is a lecturer, educator and writer who enjoys helping others understand a wide variety of genealogical issues, including the interplay between genealogy and the law.
