Repost: Tip: Use HistoryGeo To Track Changing U. S. County Boundaries

Christine first posted this on September 23, 2017.

Brighton, Colorado (now in Adams County). Note:  I clicked on a random spot near the center of Brighton.

Mary L. (Burnight) Lytle (1853-1883), my 1st cousin 5x removed, died in Brighton, Arapahoe, Colorado.  By 1910 her daughter Isabel was living in Brighton, Adams, Colorado, same area. 

There are different ways to determine what county a particular place was in, and one that I've found to be very helpful is HistoryGeo, a subscription based website that takes Bureau of Land Management land records and maps them, called the First Landowner's Project:

Here, you will find our ongoing effort to accurately map the original landowners of the 29 U.S. public land states and Texas.

This limits the time period between about 1810 to 1940, and doesn't include the land in the eastern part of the U.S. that was measured by metes and bounds, but if you are trying to determine a place in that time period and in the more western areas you might find this helpful. 

U. S. County Boundary History, from 1810 through 1940.  Note that the info is from IPUMS, which is a sophisticated data tool that I have yet to really figure out lol.

© 2018 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Tip: Use HistoryGeo To Track Changing U. S. County Boundaries

Brighton, Colorado (now in Adams County). Note:  I clicked on a ramdom spot near the center of Brighton.

Mary L. (Burnight) Lytle (1853-1883), my 1st cousin 5x removed, died in Brighton, Arapahoe, Colorado.  By 1910 her daughter Isabel was living in Brighton, Adams, Colorado, same area. 

There are different ways to determine what county a particular place was in, and one that I've found to be very helpful is HistoryGeo, a subscription based website that takes Bureau of Land Management land records and maps them, called the First Landowner's Project:

Here, you will find our ongoing effort to accurately map the original landowners of the 29 U.S. public land states and Texas.

This limits the time period between about 1810 to 1940, and doesn't include the land in the eastern part of the U.S. that was measured by metes and bounds, but if you are trying to determine a place in that time period and in the more western areas you might find this helpful. 

U. S. County Boundary History, from 1810 through 1940.  Note that the info is from IPUMS, which is a sophisticated data tool that I have yet to really figure out lol.

© 2017 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Land Genealogy Gleanings: Focus on early Hibbs in Anderson County, Tennessee

Anderson and Campbell counties, in Tennessee.  It is a little hard to see but the orange arrow points to the winding Hinds Creek and it is interesting the there is both a Hibbs Island and Llewellyn (Lewallen?) Island along the Hinds.  I think it is likely that Mahlon Hibbs and Richard Lewallen lived in those areas, with Mahlon's son Samuel Hibbs living further upstream in Campbell County.

Here is some initial information from my land genealogy book (Anderson County, Tennessee Land Deed Genealogy, 1801-1831) that mentioned a few days ago.  I'm happy to report that my 4th great grandfather Mahlon Hibbs (1747-1852) and his (likely) son Samuel Hibbs (1791-1849) appear in land dealings:


[page 105 in book]
page 272
15 July 1817.  RICHARD LEWALLEN of Anderson Co., to MALON HIBBS, for $100, 100 acres in Anderson Co. on Hinds Creek, in Henderson & Co.'s Clinch survey, on LEMAR's line, crossing Hinds Creek, at the old waggon road, along said old road to HART's line to LEMAR's line, with his line to the beginning.  Reg. July Sess. 1817.
Wit:
HENRY H. DUCKER
ARMISTEAD BARTON
RICHARD (X) LEWALLEN


[page 117 in book]
page 26
12 Dec. 1817.  ISAAC HORTON, Sr., of Anderson Co., to SAMUEL HIBBS of Campbell Co., for $270, 200 acres in Anderson Co., in middle of line of lot B on JACOB WEAVER's line, corner near a small sink running on said middle, with line to top of Chesnut Ridge, to middle of upper half of lot B, including half of said upper half, a parallel line to conditional corner between HORTON & FLEM McCOY.  Reg. 20 Jan. 1819.
Wit: 
JACOB WEAVER
WILLIAM WEAVER
ISAAC HORTON


[page 145 in book]
page 19
29 Oct. 1822.  SAMUEL HIBBS of Anderson Co. to ISAAC ROBBINS, for $200, 200 acres, beginning on the middle of the line of lot B, JACOB WEAVER's line, to Chestnut Ridge, up the extreme height of the ridge to the middle of the upper half of the lot, including half of the said upper half of the lot, to the conditional corner of ISAAC HORTON, Sr., and FLEMING McCOY, to the beginning.  Reg. 18 Jan. 1823.
Wit: 
JOHN WHITSON
JOHN WALLACE, Jr.
SAMUEL (X) HIBBS


page 20
31 Aug. 1822. WILLIAM HOGSHEAD of Anderson Co. to JOHN McADOO, Sr., for $75, 100 acres, part of northeast half of lot H in the Henderson & Co.'s Clinch survey, sold by CHARLES Y. OLIVER, Sheriff, for double taxes on 20 April 1819 to WILLIAM HOGSHEAD.  Beginning near the bank of Hine's Creek, corner to a 220 acre tract claimed by RICHARD LEWALLEN, north to the upper line of lot H. HIBBS' corner, south to HIBBS' corner, northwest with HIBBS' line to the bank of Clinch River, HIBBS' beginning corner, down the river to the divistion line of lot H, with the division line to the corner of McADOO's land, the place where he now lives, thence with his line to LEWALLEN's tract, wih his line to the beginning.  Reg. 22 Jan. 1823.
Wit:
JOHN (X) FOX
WILLIAM McADOO
WILLIAM HOGSHEAD


[page 150 in book]
page 86.
4 Sept. 1822, MILIN HIBBS to HENRY LONG for $300, 100 acres on Hindses Creek in Henderson & Co.'s Clinch Survey, beginning on LEMAR's line, south crossing Hinds Creek, the wagon road, along the road to HARTZ line, with his line to LEMAR's line, to the beginning.  Reg. 5 Dec. 1823.
Wit:
JOHN McADOO, Jr.
ALFRED DUNCAN
MALIN (X) HIBBS



The dates on these land sales tracks very nicely with what I already know about their migration to Indiana (they showed up around 1823).

I looked up Henderson and Co's Clinch Survey, and found a page on Rootsweb dedicated to info and research by Phillip A. Walker on the Henderson Grant plus a map:

The Henderson Grant area.  Mahlon and Samuel would be in the center lower part, per the description in the land records.

Based on the land descriptions, I think this is about where Mahlon and Samuel Hibbs were (closeup of the above picture)

I think this is great boost for my research in this area.  I have more names to play around with (Lewallen, Hogshead, and Oliver) than I did before, which I hope will help me figure out who Mahlon Hibbs' parents were (and his wife Nancy Ann LNU's parents as well).  

I already recognized the Weaver name since a man named William Hibbs (about 1785, possibly Mahlon's son or close relative) married Elizabeth Weaver and they were lifelong residents of Anderson County, Tennessee.

© 2016 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Texas Land Records and Taxes

Have you used the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) site for land patents and related information?  If you have Texas ancestry it is important to know that the state of Texas also has a similar site for Texas land records, the Texas General Land Office (GLO).

Texas land records and tax records can be used together to discover where your ancestors were if they owned Texas land.

To view the interactive map you launch the GISWEB Viewer, which opens a new browser window or tab.

"The GISWEB, an interactive mapping application, provides access to vast collections of land and energy related data at the Texas General Land Office. The GISWEB display upland and submerged Original Texas Land Survey boundaries, Permanent School Fund land, upland and coastal leases, oil and gas well locations, and current imagery.

If you select Instructional videos it launches another viewer (which takes at least a few minutes to load so be patient), and eventually 19 minutes of short tutorials appear in the left-hand slide show directory.  I recommend spending some time getting acquainted with this. 

I knew that my 3rd great grandfather J. T. S. Warren (1825-1894) lived in the Douglassville area of Cass County, Texas:

I was unsuccessful in finding familiar names in the "Grantee" search for in Cass County, but using graphical search and the 1890 tax list for Cass County, Texas I had transcribed some years ago I found the general area.

from:
Cass County, Texas Records of 1890
Gen 976.4195 N2 CAS (at Carlsbad Library, San Diego, CA)

Assessment of Property in Cass County Texas
Owned by Residents and Rendered for Taxation

Owner                           Abstract#     Cert#             Original Grantee      Acres     Value$
Warren, J. T. S., Sr            1071             574              M. Ward                 250        +
Warren, J. T. S.  Sr            1068             3344/3445    J. Walling                50        450

Warren, J. P.                     1071            571              M. Ward                 150       +
Warren, J. P.                       55             577              P. W. Birmingham    100       450/300*

Warren, Bill (c)                  258             546              Jno. Davis               50          75

Warren, Joe (c)****          1070            2089/2199     J. Wadkins              137       274

Warren, Pompy (c)            1077            516               E. Watson               60        120

(NOTE:  I'm not sure what the *, +stand for.  (c) is almost certainly "colored".)

M. Ward = Matthias Ward?? 

From this it appears that J. T. S. Warren probably lived south of Douglassville, along the modern Texas Highway 8, in the M. Ward and J. Walling areas (they were the original grantees).  Notice that J. P. Warren (a son of J. T. S.) also lived in the M. Ward area as well as the P. Birmingham area on the right.

I learned to use tax records in another way from genealogist Kelvin Meyers in his Ancestry Academy ($) lecture on "Texas: Researching the Lone Star State" using the abstract number that was on the tax record for each owner.

Using one of the abstract numbers in the 1890 tax list, I searched again.

This gives a more specific part of J. Walling's area where J. T. S. Warren was taxed.

****I'm almost certain this is Joseph Warren (1821-1891), a former slave and land owner and ancestor of  Darelene Warren Rothwell, who wrote the award-winning 2005 book "East Texas Biographies: A History of African-American Families and Slaveholders in Cass County, East Texas, from the Colonial Days and Slavery to the Twenty-first Century".  Darlene was the first person I talked to about Warrens in Cass County.  She was very encouraging and helpful, even though it turned out we had no common relations or ties (there were two totally separate Warren lines in Cass County, naturally LOL).  The book was a private short run publication and may only be available directly from Darelene for purchase if she still has extra copies, but you can also check on WorldCat for availability.





© 2016 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Fantastic Find: Beyond the Federal Bureau of Land Management General Land Office Records

As much as one can mine from the Bureau of Land Management General Land Office Records, there is even more to find from state and colonial governments, like Virginia, Maryland, and Texas, that aren't covered by the Federal government.

This is a great compilation of resources all in one place!  I'm all about consolidating links so I can get to them quickly and not Google everything.





© 2015 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Finding Abner Hartley in the Homestead Records

Solomon Hartley (1775-1815), my 4th great grandfather, had three sons: George Hartley (my ancestor, 1805-1880), William Hartley (1807-1874), and Abner Hartley (1813-1890).

During the late 1820's and early 1830's Solomon's three sons moved out west from Philadelphia to Cincinnati.  Abner married Sarah Frazer/Frazee in 1836 in Cincinnati and appeared in the Cincinnati directory as a chair maker (like his brother William) until 1843.  By 1860 he and his family had settled in Jersey County, Illinois (across the river from St. Louis, Missouri), and was working as a wagon maker.

I think this was about the time that George Hartley lost touch with his brother Abner Hartley. George's descendants figured that Abner died somewhere in Illinois, date unknown.  When I first started tracing my ancestors using Ancestry.com I was determined to find out what became of Abner and his family.  I found that Abner was still in Jersey County, Illinois in 1880, but then died in Broken Bow, Custer, Nebraska on 22 August 1890.  What had drawn him there?  I think the opportunity to purchase new land via the Homestead Act of 1862.

Homestead records, specifically Nebraska Homestead records (the database is available on Fold3.com and now on Ancestry.com), show Abner Hartley commenced living in Cliff Township, Custer, Nebraska on 15 September 1884.  His son, Abner "Ner" Hartley, immediately moved in with him.

[First page of the official form.  Note Abner's signature, always a nice touch to see their signatures! from the Fold3.com version of the Land Entry Case Files: Homestead Final Certificates.]

In December he paid for the land:

[Copy of receipt, from Fold3.com, Land Entry Case Files: Homestead Final Certificates.]

Abner and Ner appear living together the following year on the Nebraska 1885 Census.  Abner's married daughter, Mary (Hartley) Myers, was living next door.

[Abner Hartley and family in Nebraska, 1885.  National Archives and Records Administration; Nebraska State Census; Year: 1885; Series/Record Group: M352; County: Custer; Township: Cliff; Page: 4]

Like any detailed application, the Nebraska Homestead Records can provide great information for the lucky researcher who has ancestors who were part of this westward movement.  For example, here are some excerpts from Abner's interview on his 2 November 1889 claim for his land.  It gives some nice insight on what his life was like:

Ques. 28.--Describe fully the house on this claim, giving value thereof; also describe fully all other implements thereon of whatever kind, giving the value of each and total value of all implements.
Ans. sod 14 x 18, with additions 12 x 14, --2 rooms, board floor, 3 doors, 3 (or 8??) windows, large sod roof, $150. Cellar 10 x 20, $30. Stable sod 14 x 30, $75. Chicken house 10 x 20, $25. Cistern 12 feet deep, $25. Fram corn crib 12 x 8, $25. Pig pen 10 ft. square $10. 125 fruit trees, $100. 50 forest trees, $10. Fencing $20. 34 a.(acres?)plowed $68, 34 a. backset $68.
Total $655

Ques. 29.--What farm implements do you own and use on this claim? State kind and number, and how long you have owned the same.
Ans. do not own any except one plow, and too old, have hire most /any work done.

Quest. 30.--What domestic animals and live stock do you own and keep on this claim? State kind and number of each kind.
Ans. 100 chickens.

Ques. 31.--State what articles of furniture of every kind you keep and use in your residence on this claim, and how long you have had them there.
Ans. Cooking stove & utensils, table, chairs, cubboard(sp), bed & bedding 'cubbard(sp)". Owned them from 4 to 5 years.

Ques. 33.--How many seasons have you raised crops on this land, and what kind of crops have you raised each season?
Ans. five seasons, corn, vegetable, barley

Ques. 34.--How many acres have you put in crops each year, and how much did you raise? State the amount in bushels of each kind.
Ans.
85 (year) - 4 a. corn 200 bu. 1 a. garden.
86 - 10 a. corn 500 bu. 2 a. garden & potatoes
87 - 10 a. corn 600 bu. 2 a. garden & potatoes
88 - 12 a. corn 650 bu. 3 a. vegetables & potatoes, 3 a. oats, 50 bu. 2 a. barley 20 bu.
89 - 8 1/2 a. in barley & oats, 300 bu., 1 a. potatoes, 1 a. vegetables.

Ques. 35.--Have you the land in crop this year, or is it prepared for cropping the coming season? How much of the land is so cropped or prepared?
Ans. Have 11 a. in corn, haven't gathered it yet.

This is his affidavit of publication that is in his file:

[Includes the newspaper clipping of his claim.  Land Entry Records for Nebraska, compiled 1857 - 1908 State: Nebraska Land Office: North Platte Township: 17 North Range: 23 West Section: 15 Applicant Surname: Hartley Applicant Given Name: Abner Final Certificate Number: 2237 Final Certificate Date: 02-Nov-1889 Range West: 23 Township North: 17]

Unfortunately his application was approved on 19 March 1891, seven months after he died:

[Note the date his claim was approved.  Land Entry Case Files: Homestead Final Certificates. Textual records. Record Group 49: Records of the Bureau of Land Management. The National Archives at Washington, D.C. Land Entry Case Files of the Broken Bow Land Office, Broken Bow, NE: Homestead Final Certificates, 1890–1908. NARA microfilm M1915. Record Group 49: Records of the Bureau of Land Management. The National Archives at Washington, D.C.]

Roberta "Bobbi" King (via Fold3.com) wrote a great breakdown of the types of information that might be found in the Nebraska Homestead Records.  It is worth reading!




© 2014 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.