When corresponding with cousins about genealogy, we tend to stick to the close ones: first or second cousins, maybe a third cousin, with the occasional once or twice removed. I recently solved a puzzle using a letter shared to me by a fifth cousin twice removed. I was trying to resolve a conflict in death dates. Her grave said a woman died on 6 December 1879, while I had reliable evidence that her husband was already remarried as her widower by then. The modern design of the grave marker … [Read more...]
Quick tip – No Cousin is Too Distant to Have the Information You Need
10 February 2016 by Leave a Comment
Quick tip – Watch out for same-named cousins
6 May 2015 by 4 Comments
Because Dutch children were often named after their grandparents, it is not unusual to find several first cousins with the same name, all named after the same grandparent. Often, these same-named cousins will be of a similar age, which can make it easy to confuse the two (or three, or even more!). When you are trying to identify someone, always try to find a document that list the person with his spouse and parents, for example in a marriage record or death record. That will tell you which … [Read more...]
