This compilation is the result of a 26-year, masterful reconstruction of the 1698 census of New York by the esteemed genealogist and librarian Kory Meyerink. In this effort, Mr. Meyerink was aided by not only the “surviving” portions of the 1698 census but also the statistical summaries of the census which have survived the passage of time. The fact is that we know exactly how many men, women, and children (all free whites) and slaves (usually black, and sometimes Native American) were counted in the census. With these numbers in hand, Mr. Meyerink was able to locate more or less contemporary substitute sources (e.g., militia lists, tax lists, church records, town minutes, etc.) and reconstruct the residents of the missing counties, towns, and manors. In a number of cases, he was able to find the names of the same New Yorkers on multiple lists, thereby enhancing the accuracy of the reconstruction. In other cases, he assembled lists as “composites” from multiple sources (e.g., Easthampton, Rye, etc.). In all, he has identified by name 96% of the men, 50% of the women, and at least 40% of the children alive in the colony of New York in 1698.

New York in 1698 is arranged alphabetically by county and thereunder by town, ward, or manor. Mr. Meyerink begins each county chapter with a detailed discussion of the reconstruction variables: original source(s), spelling, layout of the original information, statistical recap, a brief history of the area under investigation at the time of the census, and a bibliography for further research on that county. The chapter-by-chapter lists of persons are arranged to conform to the earliest known transcription of the 1698 census, or substitute. The volume concludes with a complete name index of 13,700 and, owing to the significant New Netherland heritage of turn-of-the-17^th century New York, a substantial listing of Dutch names with their English versions. Mr. Meyerink’s historical and methodological Introduction to the book–which also contains a separate bibliography–not only provides insight into the “missing” census itself but also is must reading for any genealogist or historian planning to conduct research into this fascinating period.

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Land is traced from the original patent to about 1825, showing the various owners and their descendants through several generations. The records include those of the district court as well as the county court and name about 4,000 individuals. The abstracts in most cases are the special verdicts of the juries, which sum up and give in concrete form the declarations and answers to the various suits. Other than wills and administrations, these land records are among the very few surviving Accomack County records that document family origins and descents.

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Following a weakening of Maryland’s Lord Proprietor’s hold on land affairs during the period 1689 to 1715, his proprietary rights were restored. The Proprietor’s Rent Rolls and the Debt Books were the means by which he kept track of the yearly rents he was entitled to. The Debt Books, in particular, consist of a list of persons owning land with the names and rents of each tract that he or she owned. The surviving Debt Books are arranged by county, by year, and then by the name of the person paying the rent.

Since 2013 distinguished Maryland genealogist Vernon. L. Skinner has painstakingly abstracted the contents of all extant Debt Books, county by county. This volume is the last of five volumes pertaining to Baltimore County. It spans the period 1769-1771, with a break for 1767. Skinner presents the contents of the Debt Books in tabular form: liber and folio citation, with any pertinent date; name of the person paying the taxes; and name of the tract of land and amount of acreage.

The post Abstracts of the Debt Books of the Provincial Land Office of Maryland: Baltimore County. Volume V appeared first on Genealogical.com.

Following a weakening of Maryland’s Lord Proprietor’s hold on land affairs during the period 1689 to 1715, his proprietary rights were restored. The Proprietor’s Rent Rolls and the Debt Books were the means by which he kept track of the yearly rents he was entitled to. The Debt Books, in particular, consist of a list of persons owning land with the names and rents of each tract that he or she owned. The surviving Debt Books are arranged by county, by year, and then by the name of the person paying the rent.

Since 2013 distinguished Maryland genealogist Vernon. L. Skinner has painstakingly abstracted the contents of all extant Debt Books, county by county. This volume is the fourth of five volumes pertaining to Baltimore County. It spans the period 1765-1768, with a break for 1767. Skinner presents the contents of the Debt Books in tabular form: liber and folio citation, with any pertinent date; name of the person paying the taxes; and name of the tract of land and amount of acreage.

The post Abstracts of the Debt Books of the Provincial Land Office of Maryland: Baltimore County. Volume IV appeared first on Genealogical.com.

Following a weakening of Maryland’s Lord Proprietor’s hold on land affairs during the period 1689 to 1715, his proprietary rights were restored. The Proprietor’s Rent Rolls and the Debt Books were the means by which he kept track of the yearly rents he was entitled to. The Debt Books, in particular, consist of a list of persons owning land with the names and rents of each tract that he or she owned. The surviving Debt Books are arranged by county, by year, and then by the name of the person paying the rent.

Since 2013 distinguished Maryland genealogist Vernon. L. Skinner has painstakingly abstracted the contents of all extant Debt Books, county by county. This volume is the third of five volumes pertaining to Baltimore County. It spans the period 1761-1764. Skinner presents the contents of the Debt Books in tabular form: liber and folio citation, with any pertinent date; name of the person paying the taxes; and name of the tract of land and amount of acreage.

The post Abstracts of the Debt Books of the Provincial Land Office of Maryland: Baltimore County. Volume III appeared first on Genealogical.com.

Following a weakening of Maryland’s Lord Proprietor’s hold on land affairs during the period 1689 to 1715, his proprietary rights were restored. The Proprietor’s Rent Rolls and the Debt Books were the means by which he kept track of the yearly rents he was entitled to. The Debt Books, in particular, consist of a list of persons owning land with the names and rents of each tract that he or she owned. The surviving Debt Books are arranged by county, by year, and then by the name of the person paying the rent.

Since 2013 distinguished Maryland genealogist Vernon. L. Skinner has painstakingly abstracted the contents of all extant Debt Books, county by county. This volume is the second of five volumes pertaining to Baltimore County. It spans the period 1757-1760. Skinner presents the contents of the Debt Books in tabular form: liber and folio citation, with any pertinent date; name of the person paying the taxes; and name of the tract of land and amount of acreage.

The post Abstracts of the Debt Books of the Provincial Land Office of Maryland: Baltimore County. Volume II appeared first on Genealogical.com.

Following a weakening of Maryland’s Lord Proprietor’s hold on land affairs during the period 1689 to 1715, his proprietary rights were restored. The Proprietor’s Rent Rolls and the Debt Books were the means by which he kept track of the yearly rents he was entitled to. The Debt Books, in particular, consist of a list of persons owning land with the names and rents of each tract that he or she owned. The surviving Debt Books are arranged by county, by year, and then by the name of the person paying the rent.

Since 2013 distinguished Maryland genealogist Vernon. L. Skinner has painstakingly abstracted the contents of all extant Debt Books, county by county. This volume is the first of five volumes pertaining to Baltimore County. It spans the period 1750-1756, with breaks for 1751-1753. Skinner presents the contents of the Debt Books in tabular form: liber and folio citation, with any pertinent date; name of the person paying the taxes; and name of the tract of land and amount of acreage.

The post Abstracts of the Debt Books of the Provincial Land Office of Maryland: Baltimore County. Volume I appeared first on Genealogical.com.

The heritage of the North End, once the site of large estates commanded by Newburyport’s local gentry, as well as ship building businesses and a variety of other manufacturers, is often overlooked and underrated owing to the developmental infill that has occurred there in recent decades. It was fortuitous, therefore, for students of history and genealogy that researcher Margaret Motes discovered the Merrill series, transcribed it, added photographs, and assembled these contents for the first time into the single volume at hand.

The reconstituted North End Papers, 1618-1880 will appeal to genealogists and historians alike. In the first instance, Oliver Merrill drew his findings from the registry of wills and deeds at Salem; the town records of Newbury and Newburyport; files of old newspapers, back to 1792, and a variety of published sources. Merrill’s research yielded genealogical entries like the following:

The lot of land upon which Thomas built the hospital building was a part of the estate of Patrick Tracy. In 1769 Mr. Tracy bought of John Wood four acres and 74 rods of land . . . In 1771 he also bought two acres and 72 rods adjoining from the heirs of Archelaus Adams . . . Mr. Tracy, in his will, left this land to the children of John Tracy. It could not be sold for money until these children came of age, but could be exchanged for other property of equal value . . . several lots of land were disposed of in this way, namely two lots on High Street and two on Broad and finally the remainder of the field was bought by Judge Charles Jackson in exchange for a house and 20 acres of land.

Since Merrill was as interested in Newburyport’s inhabitants as its structures, readers will discover an abundance of local history in his work. Witness the following:

The house on the upper corner of Merrimac and Warren was the home of Samuel Coffin, father of Capt. Abel, who after his return from service in the continental army built the house in which he passed the remainder of his life. Mr. Coffin with several men who lived at the “North End” enlisted in Capt. Newell’s company that marched to Bunker Hill in April 1775 . . . Mr Coffin was a soldier of the Revolution who fought . . . at Germantown and in other engagements. In the same company with Coffin was John Brett whose home was on Warren street.

Not content merely to transcribe Merrill’s original articles, Margaret Motes scoured the collections of the History Society of Old Newbury for relevant photographs of the North End, as well as shot new photographs of structures that have survived from the author’s day. Readers will find 27 such illustrations throughout her transcription, as well as a name and subject index of 3,000 entries to the contents of the volume.

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