Missing Genealogy?

Question:

Missing Genealogy?

Could anyone recommend a website or a place to start where I could find my husband's family? He is not adopted, but his last name and others were changed when they came to N. America. How do I trace these people who changed their last name?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Maggie,
People overcome this every day; however, the thing to remember is that there are no shortcuts. What you need to do is get all of the knowledge you have of the family together first. Start with your husband. Collect birthdates, birth places, marriage information, death dates, and death places. Once you have collected all applicable information on your husband, move back to his parents, then his grandparents. Once you have collected the dates, interview all of the living relatives. You will be astounded how much information is out there. For instance, my great grandfather was a twin. We heard this information from my dads brother; however, my dad and his five other siblings didn't have this information. Write down all the stories that you hear, even if you think that they aren't true. Usually, folklore is dabbled with little pieces of truth.

It is likely that there are vital records at least as far back as your husbands grandparents, maybe even his great grandparents depending on how old they are and how many years are between generation. If you collect the ones you can and try to validate them with burial records and obituaries, you may find some of the suprises that are now apparently well hidden. When you get back before 1930, census records can aid you in your search. The thing to remember is that peoples names aren't always spelled right in the census either. It will likely require some hunting and pecking.

Keep in mind that many people claim that their name changed when they came to America, but usually if there was a change, it was likely in the spelling. I have found with my Dutch ancestors many simply Americanized their names, the meaning stayed the same. For Example, Veldhuis became Fieldhouse, Ostenbrug became Estenbridge, etc. brug is the dutch word for bridge, Veld is the Dutch word for Field, and huis is the Dutch word for house. Usually, a name change can be explained this way or by something similar. Very few actually changed their name just to change it or changed it to escape persecution. People have generally been proud of their names over the course of history.

So, the answer is there just is simply no shortcuts or any websites to get this information from. The answer is trace your husbands line back, person by person, generation by generation and the answers will present themselves to you.