Good Genes Genealogy Services

Blog

  • #42 Lost? Find your ancestors using these sites

    It’s Freebies Friday from your hosts, Good Genes Genealogy! Take a peak at our book, “Out of Sight…” published in February 2021 that puts you on the right path to locate your ancestors.

    Go to https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/mark-s-owen-ms-and-dr-ann-lineve-wead/out-of-sight-an-introduction-to-unearthing-your-african-american-and-afro-caribbean-genealogy/ebook/product-k447kz.html

    Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

    An excerpt from our book: There are thousands of federal, state, local and private records that offer guidance for genealogy researchers.


    Archives Library Information Center (ALIC)
    Listing of State Archives
    Alabama
    Alabama Department of Archives & History 
    624 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36130
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 300100, Montgomery, AL 36130
    Phone: (334) 242-4435\
    Email: mark.palmer@archives.alabama.gov
    Alaska
    Alaska State Archives
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 110525, 141 Willoughby Avenue, Juneau, AK 99811-0525
    Phone: (907) 465-2270 Fax: (907) 465-2465 E-mail: archives@alaska.gov
    Arizona
    State Library, Archives and Public Records 
    History and Archives Division
    Mailing Address: 1901 West Madison, Phoenix, AZ 85009
    Phone: (602) 926-3720 Fax: (602) 256-7982 E-mail: See the Contact Form
    Arkansas
    Arkansas History Commission 
    Mailing Address: One Capitol Mall, Little Rock, AR 77201
    Phone: (501) 682-6900 E-mail: state.archives@arkansas.gov

    52

    California
    California State Archives
    Mailing Address: 1020 O Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
    Phone, Reference Desk: (916) 653-2246 Phone, General Information: (916) 653-7715 Fax: (916) 653-7363
    E-mail: See the Contact Form
    Colorado
    Colorado State Archives
    Mailing Address: 1313 Sherman Street, Room 122, Denver, CO 80203
    Phone: (303) 866-2358 Toll-free, in state only: (800) 305-3442 Text: (303) 866-2229 E-mail: See the Contact Form 
    Connecticut
    Connecticut State Archives 
    Mailing Address: Connecticut State Library, 231 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT 06106
    Phone, General Information: (860) 757-6500 Phone, History and Genealogy Unit: (860) 757-6500
    Text: (860) CONNREF (860 266-6733)
    E-mail: See the Contact Form 
    Delaware
    Delaware Public Archives
    Mailing Address: 121 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. North, Dover, DE 19901
    Phone: (302) 744-5000 E-mail: See the Contact Form
    Florida
    State Archives of Florida 
    Mailing Address: R.A. Gray Building, 500 South Bronough Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
    Phone: (850) 245-6700 TDD: (850) 245-6096 Reference Fax: (850) 488-4894 E-mail: info@dos.myflorida.com
    Georgia
    Georgia Archives 
    Mailing Address: 5800 Jonesboro Road, Morrow, GA 30260
    Phone: (678) 364-3710 E-mail: See Ask an Archivist 
    Hawaii
    Hawaii State Archives
    Mailing Address: Kekauluohi Building, Iolani Palace Grounds, 364 S. King Street, Honolulu, HI 96813

    53

    Phone: (808) 586-0329 Fax: (808) 586-0330 E-mail: archives@hawaii.gov
    Idaho
    Idaho State Archives
    Mailing Address: Idaho State Archives, 2205 Old Penitentiary Road, Boise, ID 83712
    Phone, Archives: (208) 334-2620 Fax, Public Archives: 208-334-2626
    Illinois
    Illinois State Archives 
    Mailing Address: Margaret Cross Norton Building, Capitol Complex, Springfield, IL 62756
    Phone: (217) 782-4682 Fax: (217) 524-3930 E-mail: See the Reference Request Form (Illinois Residents Only)
    Indiana
    Indiana State Archives
    Mailing Address: 6440 East 30th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46219
    Phone: (317) 591-5222 Fax: (317) 591-5324 E-mail: arc@icpr.in.gov or see the Contact Form
    Iowa
    State Historical Society of Iowa: State Archives and Records Program
    Mailing Address: State of Iowa Historical Building, 600 East Locust, Des Moines, IA 50319-0290
    Phone: (515) 281-5111 E-mail: dm.library@iowa.gov
    Kansas
    Kansas Historical Society: State Archives 
    Mailing Address: 6425 SW 6th Avenue, Topeka, KS 66615-1099
    Phone: (785) 272-8681 Phone, State Archives Reference Desk: (785) 272-8681, ext. 117 E-mail: reference@kshs.org
    Kentucky
    Department for Libraries and Archives
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 537, Frankfort, KY 40601
    Phone: (502) 564-8300 Fax: (502) 564-5773 E-mail: kdla.archives@ky.gov or see the Records Request Forms
    Louisiana
    Louisiana State Archives
    Mailing Address: Louisiana State Archives, Louisiana Secretary of State, P.O. Box 94125, Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125
    Phone: (225) 922-1200 Fax: (225) 922-0433 E-mail: See the Contact Us Page

    54

    Maine
    Maine State Archives 
    Mailing Address: 84 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333
    Phone: (207) 287-5790 Fax: (207) 287-6035
    Maryland
    Maryland State Archives
    Mailing Address: 350 Rowe Boulevard, Annapolis, MD 21401
    Phone: (410) 260-6400 Toll free: (800) 235-4045
    Massachusetts
    Massachusetts Archives Division 
    Mailing Address: Secretary of Commonwealth, Massachusetts Archives, 220 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125
    Phone: (617) 727-2816 Fax: (617)288-8429 E-mail: archives@sec.state.ma.us
    Michigan
    Archives of Michigan
    Mailing Address: 702 W. Kalamazoo Street, Lansing, Michigan 48915
    Phone: (517) 335-2576 E-mail: archives@michigan.gov
    Minnesota
    Minnesota State Archives 
    Mailing Address: Minnesota Historical Society, 345 Kellogg Boulevard, St. Paul, MN 55102-1906
    Phone: (651) 259-3260 Fax: (651) 296-9961 E-mail: See the Contact Us Page 
    Mississippi
    Mississippi Department of Archives & History 
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 571, Jackson, MS 39205-0571
    Phone: (601) 576-6876 Fax: (601) 576-6964 E-mail: refdesk@mdah.state.ms.us.
    Missouri
    Missouri State Archives
    Mailing Address: 600 W. Main, P.O. Box 1747, Jefferson City, MO 65102
    Phone: (573) 751-3280 Fax: (573) 526-7333
    E-mail: archref@sos.mo.gov. Please read the guidelines before sending reference requests.

    55

    Montana
    Montana Historical Society 
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 201201, 225 North Roberts Street, Helena, MT 59620-1201
    Phone, Research Center: (406) 444-2681 E-mail: mhslibrary@mt.gov or see the Online Request Form .
    Nebraska
    Library/Archives Division of the Nebraska State Historical Society 
    Mailing Address: Library / Archives, Nebraska State Historical Society, P.O. Box 82554, 1500 “R” Street, Lincoln, NE 68501
    Phone: (402) 471-4751 Fax: (402) 471-3100 E-mail: nshs.libarch@nebraska.gov
    Nevada
    Nevada State Library and Archives
    Mailing Address: 100 North Stewart Street, Carson City, NV 89701-4285
    Phone: (775) 684-3310 Toll free, in state only: (800) 922-2880 Fax: (775) 684-3311 E-mail: See the request form
    New Hampshire
    New Hampshire Division of Archives and Records Management
    Mailing Address: 71 South Fruit Street, Concord, NH 03301
    Phone: (603) 271-2236 Fax: (603) 271-2272
    E-mail: archives@sos.nh.gov . For birth, death, and marriage records, contact the Division of Vital Records Administration
    at http://www.sos.nh.gov/vitalrecords/.
    New Jersey
    New Jersey State Archives
    Mailing Address, State Archives: 225 West State Street, P.O. Box 307, Trenton, NJ 08625-0307
    Mailing Address, State Records Center: 2300 Stuyvesant Avenue, P.O. Box 307, Trenton, NJ 08625-0307
    Phone: (609) 292-6260 Fax, Reference: (609) 292-4127 E-mail, State Archives: njarchives@sos.state.nj.us
    New Mexico
    State Records Center and Archives 
    Mailing Address: 1205 Camino Carlos Rey, Santa Fe, NM 87505
    Phone, Archives and Historical Services Division: (505) 476-7948
    Fax, Archives and Historical Services Division: (505) 476-7909
    E-mail: archives@state.nm.us

    56

    New York
    New York State Archives
    Mailing Address: New York State Education Department, Cultural Education Center, 222 Madison Avenue, Empire State Plaza, Albany,
    NY 12230
    Phone, Research Assistance: (518) 474-8955 Phone, General Information: (518) 474-6926
    E-mail, Research Assistance: archref@mail.nysed.gov
    North Carolina
    State Archives of North Carolina
    Mailing Address: 4614 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-4614
    Phone: (919) 807-7310 Fax: (919) 733-1354 E-mail: archives@ncdcr.gov
    North Dakota
    State Archives
    Mailing Address: 612 East Boulevard Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58505
    Phone, Reference: (701) 328-2091 E-mail: archives@nd.us
    Ohio
    Ohio Historical Society Archives/Library 
    Mailing Address: 1982 Velma Avenue, Columbus, OH 43211
    Phone: 614-297-2510 Toll free: 800-686-6124 Fax: (614) 297-2358
    E-mail: reference@ohiohistory.org or see the Reference Contact Form .
    Oklahoma
    Oklahoma State Archives and Records Management 
    Mailing Address: 200 NE 18th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73105
    Phone, Archives: (405) 522-3579 Phone, Records Center: (405) 524-4416 Fax, Archives: (405) 522-3583
    Fax, Records Management: (405) 524-7567
    Oregon
    Oregon State Archives
    Mailing Address: 800 Summer Street NE, Salem, OR 97310
    Phone: (503) 373-0701 Fax: (503) 373-0953 E-mail: reference.archives@state.or.us
    Pennsylvania
    Pennsylvania State Archives

    57

    Mailing Address: 350 North Street, Harrisburg, PA 17120.
    Phone: (717) 783-3281 E-mail: ra-statearchives@state.pa.us
    Rhode Island
    State Archives
    Mailing Address: 337 Westminster Street, Providence, RI 02903
    Phone: (401) 222-2353 Fax: (401) 222-3199 E-mail: statearchives@sos.ri.gov
    South Carolina
    Department of Archives and History
    Mailing Address: 8301 Parklane Road, Columbia, SC 29223
    Phone, Reference Room: (803) 896-6104 Fax, Reference Room: (803) 896-6198 E-mail: See the Genealogy Request Form
    South Dakota
    South Dakota State Archives
    Mailing Address: 900 Governors Drive, Pierre, SD 57501
    Phone: (605) 773-3804 Fax: (605) 773-6041 E-mail: archref@state.sd.us
    Tennessee
    Tennessee State Library and Archives
    Mailing Address: 403 7th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37243
    Phone: (615) 741-2764 E-mail: reference.tsla@tn.gov
    Texas
    Texas State Library and Archives Commission 
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 12927, Austin, TX 78711-2927
    Phone: (512) 463-5455 Email, Reference: reference.desk@tsl.state.tx.us
    Utah
    Utah State Archives
    Mailing Address, Research Center: 300 S. Rio Grande, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
    Phone, Research Center: (801) 533-3535 E-mail: See the Contact Form
    Vermont
    Vermont State Archives and Records Administration 
    Mailing Address: Office of the Secretary of State, 1078 Route 2, Middlesex, Montpelier, VT 05633-7701
    Phone, Reference Room: (802) 828-2308 E-mail: archives@sec.state.vt.us. For vital records requests use vitals@sec.state.vt.us.

    58

    Virginia
    Library of Virginia
    Mailing Address: 800 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219
    Phone: (804) 692-3500 E-mail: See the Contact Form
    Washington
    Washington State Archives
    Mailing Address: P.O. Box 40238, Olympia, WA 98504-0238
    Phone: (360) 586-1492 E-mail, State Archivist: archives@sos.wa.gov
    E-mail, Research Requests and Information on Public Records: research@sos.wa.gov
    West Virginia
    West Virginia State Archives 
    Mailing Address: Archives and History Library, The Cultural Center, 1900 Kanawha Boulevard East, Charleston, WV 25305-0300
    Phone: (304) 558-0230
    The West Virginia Archives will not answer e-mail research requests. All research requests must be submitted in writing.
    Wisconsin
    Wisconsin State Historical Society Library-Archives 
    Mailing Address: Archives Reference, Wisconsin Historical Society, 816 State Street, Madison, WI 53706
    Phone: (608) 264-6460 Fax: (608) 264-6472 E-mail: See the Archives Reference Request Form 
    Wyoming
    Wyoming State Archives 
    Mailing Address: Barrett Building, 2301 Central Avenue, Cheyenne, WY 82002
    Phone: (307) 777-7826 Fax: (307) 777-7044 E-mail: See the Contact Form 
    Source: State Archives | National Archives

    59

    Hidden Figures in Your Family – House Hunting

    If you find your relative’s diary

  • #41 City Directories address ancestral gaps

    There is no better resource than city directories to locate and confirm your ancestral loved ones.

    A year after my father was born, the 1936 city directory of Omaha, Nebraska provided great insight into the following:

    1. The names of my grandparents, Sampson and Daisy Wead.
    2. The occupation of my grandparents. My grandfather was a laborer at a meat packing plant. My grandmother was a housewife.
    3. The address of my grandparents.

    and

    4. Valued information about the other “Weads” who were my grandfather’s family members.

    City directories were large paperbound books that were printed annually by most cities and towns across the United States. Unlike the U.S. Census that was published every 10 years, the city directories offered a wealth of updated information that are helpful in following physical movements of our ancestors.

    Try it. Find city directories for your loved ones from libraries and other internet searches. Determine if the city directories provide you with additional information about employment, street addresses and telephone numbers that may fill in the blanks on your genealogy trees.

  • #40 My DNA results updates: Diversity+

    My DNA results were recently updated by ancestry.com. After a decade, I love receiving the additional research.

    In summary, I’m related to a diverse population:

    Updated September 2021 https://www.ancestry.com/dna/origins/9DBE5BC7-21AB-45AB-BA2F-0B23BF88E3B3?o_iid=90600&o_lid=90600&o_sch=Web%20Property

  • #39 Honor your ancestors on World Heart Day

    Second Great-Grandfather, Robert B. Wilks

    It may seem morbid, and it is. However, it is VERY important that we research our family ancestry to learn about health trends and episodes. As in the case of many of my paternal and maternal ancestors, their cause of death is heart-related. My 2nd Great-Grandfather succumbed to “Ch. Myocarditis” on December 20, 1932. He was 61 years old.

    Second Great-Grandmother, Melissa Catherine Gray Wilks

    His widow, my 2nd Great-Grandmother, Melissa Catherine Gray Wilks, passed from tis earth two years later on Nov. 23, 1934. She was 63 years old. Her results showed that her transition was due to “Myocarditis, Chronic.” They were husband and wife. The same trend existed among most of their 14 children, including my Great-Grandmother, Edna Robinson.

    Mind your heart. Change your diet. Complete your physical exams. My knowledge of my relatives has helped my physicians and other health professionals in their diagnosis and recommendations for my best health. Do the same for yourself by researching family members’ death certificates and other records.

    That’s how we should celebrate World Heart Day, Sept. 29, 2021.

  • #39 Honoring Black Women’s Suffrage Movement Strength on National Voter Registration Day 2021

    Nannie Helen Burroughs, holding the banner, is surrounded by her fellow members of the Women’s National Baptist Convention. Source: Library of Congress

    Nannie Helen Burroughs (1879 – 1961) urged white and Black women to work together for the right to vote. Her efforts did not result in the equal rights for women to vote when the 1920 amendment was passed and white women were granted the right to vote.

    On this day, Sept. 28, 2021, deemed the National Voter Registration Day to encourage the essential act that equalizes all of us, please honor the lives of so many great crusaders and advocates like Nannie H. Burroughs and register to vote.

    Nannie H. Burroughs died a few years before the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed. It granted my parents and all other Black adults the opportunity to cast votes for the first time in their lives. I’ve voted my entire adult life and could not imagine what our ancestors endured to be a participant in the economic, social and educational systems in this country and yet not have a say in its governance.

    Learn about your loved ones and friends who participated in the thousands of Black Right to Vote movements in the United States. There are many more Nannies whose lives are worthy to learn more about.

  • #38 Story of Muhammad Ali’s first attorney “lost” in the river … her contribution rolls on

    • Alberta Odell Jones, 1930-1965

    The worthy search for ancestors, friends and other loved ones remains important. As newbie or veteran genealogists, the precious lives of ancestors are not always scripted with a pleasant ending. Yet, we are comforted by the achievements of so many pioneers who paved the way for us.

    Such is the case of the little-known civil rights pioneer whose work as a Louisville, Kentucky prosecutor earned her a special place in history. Jones was the first attorney for the rising star boxing great Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) by writing his first contract in 1960, she participated in several civil rights marches, including the famed March on Washington in August 1963. She was appointed Louisville City Attorney in 1964 — the first woman of any race and ethnic background to hold that position.

    My triumphant Sorority Sister and one of the longtime unsolved mysteries about her death that was caused when she was tossed off the Louisville Sherman Minton Bridge into the Ohio River on August 5, 1965. She was 35 years old.

    Sometimes, we receive our “flowers” long after we have departed this earth. That is the case for Jones, who was the first African American female to pass the bar in Kentucky.

    • Alberta Odell Jones is recognized for her service; unsolved crime investigation continues

    There are so many more factoids you should learn about this lady. Take three minutes and read all about her! Look up some of your loved ones who may be fraternity, sorority, church, temple, school, work and other socially related ancestors. You can start your research by building your family trees and searching U.S. Census records for neighbors. It is worth it.

  • #37 Ancestor Appreciation Day … surprises!

    • www.envato.com

    My ancestors come in all shapes, sizes, colors and names. I appreciate that as our history is intertwined with one another. There is no escaping our past. That is why we study genealogy and that is to honor our ancestors for “going through” to allow us to live on this earth today and in future days.

    Happy Ancestor Appreciation Day!

    Like many of you, I am constantly searching and unearthing — when fortunate — new findings that shed light on my ancestors. It helps to instill confidence, grace, forgiveness, charm, intellect, strategies, empathy, joy, peace, reconciliation and more in our hearts and souls as we find out more about our ancestors.

    Learning of our Native American ancestry and more, is also healing.

    Here are a few of my new findings about our ancestors:

    1. I am named for my (Ann’s) paternal Great-Grandmother Ann Crum Shanks Green. Her father is Alfred Crum. Alfred Crum was born in January 1869 in Alabama. He married Mary A Middleton and they had nine children together. He then married Mary Crum and they had two children together. He died on June 26, 1923, in his hometown at the age of 54.
    2. I (Ann) have 793 DNA matches through my testing a decade ago through ancestry.com. As we work through the names, relationships and more of the potential 4th cousins and closer ones, here’s an ancestry.com message that I sent to one of my “for sure” newly discovered relatives on our maternal side:

    “Glad to know that my maternal great-great grandparents, Robert Brant Wilks and Melissa Catherine Gray (always use the woman’s maiden name in genealogy) are your same relatives. My great -grandmother Edna Wilks is the oldest female in the family and Lorene was her younger sister.”

    3. Also, on our maternal side, John Favor, a private from Alabama, fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War.

    4. Below the family tree, is a U.S. Census Schedule that shows John Favor, Jr. is a “free white” man. John Faver, Jr. received a signed land deed on June 8, 1820 or 1830 (the deed is hard to read) from the U.S. government. The prominent signature on the deed for the family land in Limestone, Tenn., was U.S. President Andrew Jackson. Jackson’s lingering legacy is the tragic Trail of Tears aka Indian Removal Act.

    Remember when I recommended forgiveness as part of our ancestral research. I have evoked forgiveness in the transfer of land in Tennessee during the time of the deadly trek of the nations of Native Americans.

  • #36 Go Back: Find a piece of history by taking a piece of advice

    The most valuable piece of advice that I received when I was new to the family genealogy research, was to return the search process and review the same documents that I had earlier discovered.

    Just days ago, I reviewed the information on my ancestors – again – I found new information about my ancestors. My breaks can be attributed to the ancestry.com’s ThruLines™ . This service is available to everyone with completed DNA results. Some 10 years ago or so when the DNA tests were first available to females, I jumped at the chance to get my results based on my desire to locate my ancestors. It continues to pay dividends today as records are constantly updated

    She is listed as my 4th great grandmother born Oct. 11, 1806, in South Carolina and who died on Feb. 20, 1892 in Saline County, Arkansas.

    What’s striking is how grandma is spelled on Great-Great-Great-Great Grandmother Elizabeth Jane Hardman Hayes tombstone. Also, I love the designation of the days and moths that she lived her life. It honors the great Elizabeth J. Wade Hardman Hayes.

    For a couple of years, I celebrated that I located my 4th Great Grandmother. Now there is more: I just located her father, mother, siblings and her spouses, thanks to ThruLines™.

    I found my 5th Great Grandfather! – Maybe

    Notice the inscription that details Robert Henly Courts Wade being among the first white settlers in DeKalb County, Georgia where he claimed his family’s homestead in 1829.

    Update: Friday, Oct. 8, 2021: With ancestry.com, we are examining whether this linkage is indeed my 5th GreatGrandfather. Stay tuned as these twists and turns are natural in the genealogy search for our relatives.

    Thanks to the ancestry.com additional genealogy research tool, ThruLines™, I was able to work through the hints complete with a grave marker and public trees from others researching the same man. It provided this public path to find my common ancestors who seemingly were hiding in the piles of research materials.  and private paths to my common ancestors. It is a huge help in narrowing down who is and isn’t potentially related to me. The ancestors whose profiles are not public via others who are searching for their loved ones, are only listed, yet additional information about those deemed “private” is not provided. That is still a big help as I am seeking to match names, dates, relationships, locations and other hints to gain full access to the great people who walked this earth before me.

    Guess what? These ancestors are buried in a private family cemetery, Wade Cemetery, just a few miles from my current home (Ann) in DeKalb County, Georgia. I will share more in future writings.

    Five generations from Robert Henly Courts Wade to Ann Lineve Wead Kimbrough

    To learn more about the exciting, step-by-step findings about our maternal ancestors who are listed as “white, Mulatto, yellow and Colored,” check out the Good Genes Genealogy Services’ e-book for November 2021. In the meantime, check out, like and follow our tweets, @GoodGensGen, @goodgenesgenealogy on WordPress and fb @goodgenesgenealogy.

    :

  • #35 How to set up your family chart template

    There are many free tools to help the budding family ancestry trackers to experienced genealogists set up charts and trees to affirm our heritage.

    • Locate and celebrate your roots

    Start somewhere, even if you have one complete name of an ancestor. Our heritage aids in our current-day families’ spiritual, mental and physical health.

  • Listen to our ancestors

    Speak up to right the wrongs

    https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dr-benjamin-ola-akande_hmmm-activity-6844787187758723072-QKyw