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Geography of Locality| History of Locality| Government of Locality

LEARN THE LOCAL GEOGRAPHY

Finding the Correct County

The atlas' in most libraries will break each of the states down into counties, and show what cities existed in that county at the time the atlas was published. Be sure and check the atlas date, because these lines often change. Become familiar with the names of all the local jurisdictions. These boundaries will be important when researching Census Records.

Gazateers Are A Useful Tool

A handy companion to the Atlas is the Gazateer. Gazateers are basically dictionaries or encyclopedias of place names. They describe the area, give topographical information, population levels, and sometimes the basic industries of the area described. They might even contain jurisdictional history, and ideas about what the area is noted for.

Mapping Software and Websites

New websites have become available to find exact addresses in the United States and elsewhere. Several sites allow searches of addresses to get street maps, arial maps and road maps. You can find almost anyone with some of the newest search engine capabilities.

Try these:

• Live.com
• Google Maps
• Map Quest to print out neighborhood maps of the area surrounding any address you input.

Use the Encyclopedias, Now Mostly Available Online

Encyclopedias can also be of some general use in learning about the area you are researching. Britannica, in particular often describes cities, town, and states in good detail. Most English speaking places of 2000 population or more are described in Encyclopedia Britannica. Most encyclopedias today are available in web-based versions. You might have to use them at the public library because of the subscription cost. A freely available online encyclopedia is Wikipedia, which has been constructed by the collaboration of millions of online users. Reliability of data can be questionable, but often is very good. Check addtional sources to verify any descrepancies. But often, the articles are posted by authorities in their field.

Use Travel Books

Don't overlook travel books as a good source of geographical and sometimes historical information. These books are:

• published to inform tourists about the area and to encourage visits.
• contain detailed information about the area today not available elsewhere.
• help you plan your trip to your ancestor's home.

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  • History of Locality
  • Government of Locality
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  • Other Resources

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Return to:

• Table of Contents
  
• Collecting Family Documents

• Documents at Home
• Vital Records
• Government Records

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This website written and designed by:
Sharon Marie Centanne,
Genealogy Research Instructor and Internet Trainer
Please direct any questions to:
Sharon.

This page updated May 2, 2008

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