UPDATE! Court Records Found using Full-Text Search!

Search terms are highlighted in these hard-to-read documents.

Last week, I spent several hours at the DAR Library in Washington, D.C., sifting through transcribed but unindexed court records with little success. Then, yesterday, I discovered those same records on FamilySearch using their Full-Text Search. Not only were these the original documents, but I also didn’t have to go through them page by page. I simply searched "Peter Reed," and records appeared!

Earlier this year, FamilySearch introduced Full-Text Search, and I spent days diving into land records, uncovering details I never would have found otherwise. I had hoped that court records would be added, and for many areas of the United States, that wish has come true. My to-do list has been completely ignored for the past two days—this discovery has been too exciting to put down. Here are some of the items I found:

• In Erath County, Texas, I encountered a lawsuit involving my great-grandfather that explained a few newspaper clippings in the family Bible.

• In a Wayne County, North Carolina, equity case, I found my third great-grandfather, Mitchel Giddens (spelled with one “l”), named as a witness. His signature appeared several times. Once, he was referred to as "Mitch" and described as a poor man planning to leave the area—new clues for me!

• I uncovered many Giddens court records in Duplin and Sampson counties, which will keep me busy all winter.

• I have always known my ancestor, Reddick Bryan, was civic-minded. Houston County, Georgia's court records prove just how active he was in local affairs.

• Finally, in Hinds County, Mississippi, probate estate files, I found my 2nd great-grandfather, John L. Hairston. I wasn’t surprised that he appeared to owe money to almost everyone!

For those of you not familiar with FamilySearch - all of this is FREE! Note that all records are NOT available from home. Tomorrow, I plan to visit my local library, a FamilySearch affiliate, as some records can only be viewed at a FamilySearch library or affiliate. 

Full-Text Search

To learn more about Full-text search at FamilySearch, check out these links for demonstrations and tips. 

Full-Text Search is found at this link. Make sure you watch the video to improve your search. If you don't have an account at FamilySearch, create your free account at familysearch.org 

Testing the Full Text Search in FamilySearch Labs - An Immediate Success!! From Randy Seaver (read his lessons learned and advice) 

FamilySearch Full-Text Search Is a Genealogy Goldmine - Randy Seaver's most recent post.

12 Strategies for Using FamilySearch Full-Text Search From Kimberly Powell

I have written two posts about Full-Text-search: 

• Last Week, Everything Changed . . . Finding Reddick Bryan Using FamilySearch's Full-Text Search 

• Navigating the History of Erath's Old Poor Farm with New Technologies.

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2024 

Pickles

The word "pickle" has had a special place in my mind for forty years - triggering good thoughts and memories.

 

In 1983, my husband and I purchased a house on Pickle Barn Court. The farmer who formerly owned the land told me about a cement slab in the area his father said was part of the old pickle barn. The custodian of the school where I was working told me her grandmother worked in that pickle barn as a young girl.

Our street name was often a topic of conversation, and everyone easily remembered our address. Our children were born when we lived in that house, where life happened for twenty-three years. 

 

When we sold our home on Pickle Barn and moved to our home on a street with a very nondescript name, our closing attorney thought it was quite a coincidence we were leaving Pickle Barn for a property once owned by a family named Gurkin (pronounced as gherkin like the small cucumber often used to make pickles).

 

And it shouldn't have surprised me when pickles carried over into my genealogy. When searching for land owned by my 4th great-grandfather, John Giddens, in Wayne and Duplin counties in North Carolina, I found the land in the area of Mt. Olive - home to the Mt. Olive Pickle Company. Now, the pickles in my refrigerator are always Mt. Olive Pickles. They make me smile.

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana
 

© 2023 

Bloomingdale Bros & Co - 1847 in North Carolina

Rev. John L. Clifton, guardian for Robert Craddock

Rev. John L. Clifton, guardian for Lorene Strickland

When looking for family in the John L. Clifton Papers found at the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Duke University, I copied non-family items that interested me. Seeing Bloomingdale Bros & Co. on these receipts piqued my interest, and I added them to my collection.[1] Did John L. Clifton purchase fabric and other items for the children from Bloomingdales of NYC? 

He did not. Bloomingdales, as we know it, was not established until more than 20 years after these receipts were written.[2] So, who were these Bloomingdale brothers? 

John L. Clifton was found living in the Northern Division of Sampson County in 1850, but no Bloomingdales were found in Sampson County.[3] 

Emmanuel Bloomingdale, a merchant, was living in the North Division of Duplin County on 6 August 1850 when enumerated on the 1850 census.[4] However, he relocated very soon after this enumeration. On 17 September 1850, Emmanuel and his family were enumerated on the 1850 census in the 17th Ward in New York City.[5]

  

No other Bloomingdales were found on the 1850 census of Duplin County, but Jacob Bloomingdale was found as the postmaster in 1847 in the town of Faison Depot in Duplin County - not terribly far from John L. Clifton's home in the Northern Division of Sampson County.[6] 

Emmanuel spent the remainder of his years in New York. At one point, he was a merchant selling "Fancy Paper."[7] I was unable to positively identify Jacob Bloomingdale in any document beyond the postal record. 

Jacob and Emmanuel appear to be the most likely candidates for the Bloomingdale Brothers; however, there may have been others, and there is definitely more to learn. I will leave it up to Bloomingdale researchers to finish this story. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2023 

    1. Receipts from Bloomingdale Bros. & Co., Clifton, John L., Papers, 1784-1916 (bulk 1830-1889), manuscript collection, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University, accessed 2017 and 2018.

    2. "Our History," Bloomingdales (https://www.bloomingdales.com/b/about-us/history/ : accessed 27 August 2023).

    3. "United States Census, 1850", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4BV-8X3 : Tue Jul 18 02:14:59 UTC 2023), Entry for John L Clifton and Anna Clifton, 1850.

    4. "United States Census, 1850", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4B9-MC1 : Mon Jul 17 22:58:57 UTC 2023), Entry for Emanuel Bloomingdale and Francis Bloomingdale, 1850.

    5. "United States Census, 1850", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCBN-4WQ : Tue Jul 18 00:05:03 UTC 2023), Entry for Robert Leggett and Mary A Leggett, 1850.

    6. "North Carolina Postmark Catalog Update," North Carolina Postal History (http://dev.ncpostalhistory.com/resources/north-carolina-postmark-catalog-update/ : accessed 27 August 2023) > Duplin County.

    7. "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch 

(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCH7-YPT : Tue Jul 18 01:45:52 UTC 2023), Entry for Emanuel Bloomingdale and Fanny Bloomingdale, 1860. Also, "New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2WXQ-YH5 : 3 June 2020), Emanuel Bloomingdal, 1899.

His Name was Jacob Giddens. He had No Middle Name. Please Make This Correction in Your Online Family Tree.

Jacob Gidden's gravestone at Pleasant Grove Cemetery in Bienville Parish,
Louisiana does not show that he has a middle name or initial.[1]

Last week, I wrote Gathering Giddens: Jacob Giddens - Wayne County, North Carolina to Bienville Parish, Louisiana. One fact I did not write about was the addition of a middle name for Jacob that appeared to happen in the last 20 years. This gave him the name of Jacob Wealthy Giddens in the overwhelming majority of online family trees. I am writing this post in hopes of providing his descendants with information to persuade them to eliminate that middle name in their online family trees unless documentation can be found. 

Gathering Giddens: Jacob Giddens - Wayne County, North Carolina to Bienville Parish, Louisiana

In 1819, while living in Twiggs County, Jacob Giddens sold the land he inherited from his father to John Smith of Wayne County, North Carolina. The deed record, found in Wayne County Deed Book 11, did not mention that the land was land inherited from his father, John Giddens. However, when John Smith sold the land to John Casey that same year, in the deed, it was stated, " A certain piece or parcel of land lying or being the lands that the said John Smith bought off Jacob Giddens which fell to him the said Jacob Giddens in a Division of the Lands of his father, John Giddens, dec'd." Note that unlike the land of his siblings, Jacob's inherited land did not begin at Jethro's Marsh Branch.[1] 

Finding Jacob Giddens in Bienville Parish is what started my interest in genealogy in the late 1990s. 

My mother, from Long Island, New York, and my father, from the small town of Borger, Texas, were both interested in family history and asked me to look for their families on my new Internet. I was hooked when I found both families connected in Bienville Parish, Louisiana.

Jacob Giddens, brother to my mother's 2nd great-grandfather, and Reddick Bryan, my father's great-grandfather, settled in Bienville Parish. Their descendants married, and for that reason, I have several cousins connected to both families. 

Gathering Giddens: John Giddens, Another Son Who Moved from North Carolina to Alabama

In my mind, I imagined the Giddens brothers living and working together in Alabama. Knowing that Isaac, Abraham, and Jacob lived in the southern portion of Alabama, I was surprised to find John Giddens in Madison County. John's home, Madison County, is at the top of the state and borders Tennessee. Isaac and Abraham first lived in Conecuh County bordering Florida. Abraham later moved to nearby Monroe County. Jacob lived in Barbour County bordering Georgia and marked by the circle on the right.[1]

John Giddens is another Giddens who is thought to be the son of John Giddens, a planter and early settler, in Wayne County, North Carolina. There is no direct evidence showing John as a son of the senior Giddens, but a few documents do provide some convincing indirect evidence. In 1800, the census showed two males living in the senior John Giddens' home between the ages of 16 and 26. The younger John is thought to be one of those males as he was not named a minor in the senior John's probate file in 1802. This would give young John a birth year of no later than 1784.[2]

Gathering Giddens: John Giddens, a Planter in North Carolina

This land transaction shows the only record of John's occupation, a planter. [1]

I first started researching the Giddens family in 1998. My mother's mother, Edith Giddens, was a descendant of Mitchell Giddens, the youngest son of John Giddens and his wife, Sarah.  

Much documented and undocumented information is found when searching for John Giddens on genealogy websites. In this post, I will highlight some of the conflicts and some of the many documents that tell about John and his family.

 

John Giddens vs. John Jacob Giddens

When John died in 1802, he had at least 1000 acres of land and a large inventory of other items, as well as a wife and eight children.[2] John's name can be found in many records both before and after his death. In all records I have seen, his name is written with no middle name or initial. 

Sometime in the last decade, his name began to appear as John Jacob Giddens in family trees at Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, and other sites. In October 2021, there were 162 trees at Ancestry for this John Giddens, father of Mitchell and other children. John Giddens is his name in 90 trees and John Jacob Giddens in 72 trees. In those 72 trees, there were no documents showing that his name was John Jacob Giddens.[3] 

George Lullen Giddens, a Merchant from North Carolina

According to his Confederate service record, George Lullen Giddens was tall (6'1/2"), earned his living as a merchant, and was born in Wayne County, North Carolina. 

George was born on September 12, 1840.  His parents were Mitchell Giddens and Letisha Britt. The 1840 census places the Mitchell Giddens family as living in the Buck Swamp District of Wayne County. Mitchell was a shoemaker and the son of John Giddens and his wife, Sally. Letisha was the daughter of William C. Britt and Patience Bell. 

In 1850, the Giddens family was living in Duplin County and it was reported that on December 18, 1852, Mitchell Giddens, father of George, died. His burial place is currently unknown. George had siblings John William, Sarah Jane, James Thomas, Patience Elizabeth, Henry Clay, David Crockett, Mary Susan, Bryant Rustus (also seen as Rustus Westly), and Sophia Alice. 

Friday's Photo: Mitchell Alonzo Giddens

Mitchell Alonzo Giddens was the son of my great-great-grandfather, George L. Giddens, and his second wife, Sarah Rich. He was born in Duplin County, North Carolina on September 18, 1900. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana
© 2019

Sources

Family photographs from the Giddens Family collection. Accessed July 2012. Used with permission.

"Retired Officer, M. A. Giddens, Dies Saturday," El Paso Times (El Paso, Texas), 25 Jul 1976, p. 34, digital images, Newspapers.com: accessed 26 Jul. 2019.  https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34262318/mitchell_alonzo_giddens_obituary/

“U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999 for Mitchell Alonzo Giddens.” https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/1265/31916_b033941-00162/28086815?indiv=try&h&db. Accessed 26 Jul. 2019.

#52ancestors Post Forty-Eight: Next to Last - Bryant Rustus Giddens

This photo was taken between 1910 and 1918. If Mildred and Albert were already married when this photo was taken, the photo would have been taken after the marriage of the
Northcutts in 1917 and prior to the death of Cleo Patra Giddens O'Cain in 1918.
Click on the photos to see a larger version. 

The writing prompt for #52ancestors, post-forty-eight is next to last. Bryant Rustus Giddens was the next to last child of Mitchell Giddens and Letisha Britt of the North Carolina. Bryant Rustus Giddens was probably born in Duplin County. According to Bible records, he was born on September 2, 1851. His father was living in Duplin County when recorded in the 1850 census and appeared to remain in Duplin until at least November 1852. 

#52ancestors Post Thirty-Six: Mitchell Giddens was a Shoemaker

August 4, 1834 - Sale of shoes, by Mitchell Giddens, as well as patching, mending,
and adding soles to shoes for Jesse Oates. This was found with other receipts
paid by the administrator of Jesse Oates' estate.

This week's writing prompt for #52ancestors is work.  I choose to write about Mitchell Giddens as one of the few documented facts about Mitchell is his occupation of shoemaker. 

December 25, 1833 - Sale of shoes, by Mitchell Giddens, as well as patching, mending,
and adding soles to shoes for John L. Clifton. 

According to a handwritten record from another family member's research, Mitchell was born on October 12, 1802, and died on December 18, 1852.  Dates for other family members have been accurate so I can only assume this is correct. I suspect these dates were copied from a Bible, but I may never know. 

#52ancestors Posts Thirty-Two: The Youngest Member of My Family Tree and Two Genealogy Trips Slowed My Summer Blogging

My research trip to NC included time at the State Library of North Carolina,
the David Rubinstein Library at beautiful Duke University, and fun
exploring Duplin and Sampson Counties. I learned so much more about
my mother's Giddens family. 

The Genealogy Center at the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana has
one of the largest research collections available in the world.  I spent two days
searching the periodical collection - the largest collection of English-language
genealogical and local history periodical collection available anywhere.
The extensive collection of family histories occupied all of another day. Prior
to visiting the library, I used their online catalog to put together a list of items to view.
Check out the Genealogy Center and their online catalog at this link. 

I work for a local school division and for the last seven years have worked throughout the summer. This year, I decided to go back to a 10-month schedule and just knew I would get much blogging done. Well, that didn't happen! 

The youngest member of my family tree.
Doesn't this make you smile!!! 

I spent a week researching in NC with my very good friend (since 1969) who has also been bitten by the genealogy bug. 

I had family visiting for almost three weeks (including the newest member of our family tree). Having children in the house was so much fun!

And, Sunday, I returned from a genealogy research trip with my second-cousin-once-removed. The highlight of the trip was spending three days at the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2018


Sources

Family photographs and documents from the collection of Diana Bryan Quinn

Friday's Photo: Oscar Lullen Giddens

This photo was found in an album that once belonged to my grandmother, Edith Giddens. Oscar was her
father's half-brother. He visited his half-brother, Charles, and family in Phillipsburg, NJ before 1920.

Timeline - Oscar Lullen Giddens

Date	Event
September 20, 1891	George L. Giddens married Sarah Rich in North Carolina.[i]
April 20, 1893	Oscar Lullen Giddens was born in Faison, Duplin County, North Carolina.[ii]
December 23, 1895	Sister of Oscar, Lina Letisha Giddens was born in Faison Duplin County, North Carolina.[iii]
1896	The family lived in Faison in Duplin, NC where George Giddens was a town magistrate.
July 11, 1897	Sister, Dorothy Mildred Giddens was born in Faison Duplin County, North Carolina. [iv]
June 30, 1900	1900 Census. Oscar's father, George, age 59, lived in Duplin County, North Carolina where he was a Postmaster. He lived with his wife, 24-year-old Sarah and children, 7-year-old Oscar, 4-year-old Lina, and 1-year-old Dorothy. His sister-in-law, Ada Rich, and brother-in-law, Milton Rich, also lived with the family. Ada was 14 years old and her occupation was "house labor." Milton, age 13, was listed as "farm labor." A boarder and dry goods clerk, Bessie Hobbs, age 20, lived in the home. Sarah had four children, but only three were living. She and George had been married for 9 years.  George's daughter, Frances "Frankie" Harper lived nearby with husband Warren Harper and family. His son, Charles, lived in Phillipsburg, NJ.

Friday's Photo: Is this a Giddens?

This was passed on to me a few years ago by a Giddens descendant. She found it with other Giddens photos. What branch of the military did this man serve AND, when was this photo taken. 

Diana

© 2015