03 June 2012

Geography in Genealogy

They go hand in hand. Geography and genealogy are - must be! - intertwined in your research journey. Following the path of an ancestral line opens new doors, exposes new details and provides new ideas on every branch of the family tree.

Let's go back to Oscar for a great example of what I mean. We'll stick to the geography specific information here.


  • Born in New York. 
  • Moved to Michigan as a toddler.
  • Lived with sister and family in Missouri as a young adult.
  • Enlisted in Union forces in Missouri Cav, originally. 
  • After the war, he went back to Missouri for a couple of years.
  • Homesteaded in Nebraska, spent the remainder of his years in a three county area.


Part of Oscar Brown's Homestead file.
Personal holdings of author.

I know the family moved to Michigan because Oscar ran for state senate at one point, and that tidbit was included in his political ticket in the local newspaper. From there, I was able to locate possible property records held by his assumed father, and the grave of his sister, leading to her family. I never would have found any of that if I had not known he spent time in Michigan.

On the 1860 census, he is listed in the household of his sister in Missouri. When I first found him here, I did not realize it was his sister, but was later able to match the family connection using documents in his pension file. From that information, I searched the Shelby County, Missouri area much more thoroughly, and was able to find employment records for him there after the war. We always assumed he went immediately to Nebraska, but that was not the case. Again, without the geography, those records would not have been located.

His homestead records, the remainder of his census records and other family information tell me about his life in Nebraska, along with that of his wife and children.

Even with all the records in the world, knowing what they experienced in their day to day is so meaningful to so many of us. I have a secret weapon in this part of the search: National Geographic.

The photos, the maps, oh my! A true world treasure, National Geographic has been documenting history since 1888.


This year, I obtained a copy of The Complete National Geographic software. Love it! Immediate access to every issue, every page, right on my desktop! If you have not explored this resource, I highly recommend it. (Note, National Geographic and its affiliates and I have no connection. I am not being compensated in anyway for this mention in my blog.) Simple searches on the software cd's provide exciting and informative background information on many facets of my ancestors' lives, and the places they lived. I have been able to fill my tree with amazing facts, and those maps! I could go on and on about the maps...

Have a great geography resource? I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions!

15 comments:

  1. Jen, I grew up w/National Geographic, but WOW, what a fabulous idea to use it as a historic and cultural resource!! Love it.

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    1. Thanks, Laura! I have to give some credit to my 10 year old niece, though. She loves geography, and asked for the software as a Christmas gift; I didn't know it existed until she brought it up. Resources come from so many places... :-)
      Have a great day! ~Jen

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  2. I ordered it! What an awesome resource--thanks for the heads up. And it does away with the old joke about where one puts old National Geographic issues..:-)

    Here's a resource you might like if you haven't found it already: http://project.oldmapsonline.org

    I found some great stuff there! Railroad maps, old road trip maps...

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    1. Well maybe I should ask them for a commission after all! Hope you enjoy it, and it brings you as much depth to your family story as it does mine.
      I'll check out the website you mentioned. I have a feeling I've seen it before, but haven't explored it thoroughly.

      Thanks for reading, and commenting! ~Jen

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  3. Wow, I didn't know geography could help so much with following a trail of clues! And I surely was not aware of the Complete National Geographic Software. Thank you so much for this post. I'm working now with Family Tree Software, and I notice they have a "places" tab where, I believe, they can sync with Google maps.

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    1. I, too, use the places feature of my software, I just don't like it as much as using other maps, websites, etc. It's too restrictive sometimes, so I felt the need to branch out a bit. (Especially with areas that have changed state/county borders over a period of time.) Once you really get the path in place, it also helps to draw out the route on a map. I realized when I did so that Oscar would have had to go straight through the middle of Illinois to get from Michigan to Missouri... so what might I find about him in Illinois? It's the next thing on my list to research. I certainly would not have that about that unless I had put it down on a map of the USA.
      Thanks for reading and thanks for commenting! As always, much appreciated!
      ~ Jen

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  4. Great Post Jen! Yep, I totally agree with you on the importance of geography and genealogy. And thanks for the tip about the National Geographic software.

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    1. Thanks, Jana! I've always thought they went hand in hand, and had to put it out there *finally*. Thanks for reading, and for commenting! ~Jen

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  5. When I was in high school my brother and I were given a minor cubic ton of old national geographics from a neighbor. Of course we promptly took out all the old maps and posters and went about decorating our rooms. My brother had so many old maps on the wall that I just started calling it 'the Map Room'. Might have to check out this software too.

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    1. We always had them laying around the house, too, but I'm not sure if we made it to a "minor cubic ton"!! For years I held onto a Civil War map from one issue, and had it in my files on my gggrandfather. So much easier having it on my screen! Thanks for commenting, Merinda! ~Jen

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  6. BTW...have you tried the Google Earth desktop download? One of it's features is a historical overlay of the area you are looking at. So far the oldest I've found was 1939, but nonetheless, having the old aerial views can be interesting.

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    1. I have, but thank you for the suggestion! I'm sure there is somebody here who hasn't It's a great resource, though I don't believe I've been able to find anything much older than that.
      Thanks for reading, and thanks for sharing! ~Jen

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  7. Wow...love both geography and geneology and never thought to tie the two together. I home school so this would be a great idea to look at together! Thanks! Michelle

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    1. Another great way to use it that I've never thought of! Thanks for the suggestion, Michelle! Thanks for reading, and commenting. ~Jen

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  8. I love your blog! Thank you for the information. Looking forward to your other posts.

    family tree

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Please comment! I would love to hear your thoughts!