I've just started poking around at a branch of my in-laws' family and the search quickly took me to Tennessee, a state I have never been in let alone done any research on. Fortunately the family was from Knox Co and that seems to be a good county to work with. Right off the bat I found a site for the Knox Co Archives at http://knoxrooms.sirsi.net/rooms/portal/page/21590_Knox_County_Archives
which has a good running list of popularly requested holdings as well as an online Marriage Index. The staff was very helpful and even helped me understand what it was I was looking for and what information would be provided after I sent an email inquiry. Beyond having a helpful staff though, the charge for photocopies and shipping of marriage records is very reasonable ($3.80 uncertified/$6.80 certified for marriage records) and the turnaround time was quite timely. Although I still have a ton to learn about genealogy in Tennessee, my first experience with records from the Knox Co Archives was definitely a good one.
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Well, I have some ties to Tennessee, the main one being my "brick wall," Susan Elizabeth "Lizzie" Smith Bonner Brinlee, but I'm not sure which area she was from so I haven't done much research in Tennessee, yet. Knox County has been mentioned as a place of birth for her (don't know if the information is reliable), so I'll be interested to read about your Tennessee research to see what resources there are.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know Greta, I'll see what else I can figure out about the area for ya. I can tell you now though that if you're estimating that she was born before civil registration was required, in Tennessee it was fairly late (around 1908 though as usual, it took time for the counties to get their acts together and get full participation), you'll have to know her family's religious denomination to get anywhere with confirming a birth date. Either that, or you may possibly get lucky and she could be buried in a church affiliated cemetery. Now that I know what others looking at the site are working on, I can post a few more pertinent details for you all. Keep checking back for updates and thanks for your comment!
ReplyDeleteOh, I should have been clearer; my Lizzie didn't stay in Tennessee, but was born there (ca 1868) and I am guessing lived there until she got married (ca 1885?) and perhaps until the Oklahoma land rush. She may have been orphaned and was probably sent out to work for a family at a fairly young age. There are some other families of mine that spent some time in Tennessee, so I look forward to doing research there some day.
ReplyDeleteSounds like an interesting story to research, full of lots of bumps, lol! You may still be able to get lucky with finding a birth register for her though if her family had her baptized. I'll see if I can find out more though. Good luck!
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