Earlier this month, I was in my hometown of Columbus, Georgia and had some extra time one morning. On a whim, I decided to drive to the Stewart County Courthouse in Lumpkin, Georgia.
Most of my research on my maternal side is in Stewart County, and it had been years since I last visited the courthouse.
The staff is phenomenal and extremely helpful. I was like a kid in the candy store and I see more trips in my future.
I had limited time, like an hour and a half, to do some quick searches.
It is important to have a plan before you visit the record rooms of courthouses. Without one, you will waste valuable time looking for records.
My research is somewhat organized, not as organized as I want it to be, but, I was able to select the specific records I planned to look up on this trip.
Those records were the marriage records of my maternal grandparents, their parents and their grandparents.
I needed this information not only to have in my research on these people, but also to use in my application for membership in the Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passage (SDUSMP). I started this process late last year, but was stopped when re-reviewing the death certificate of my Honored Ancestor, Malinda Nicholson.
As mentioned previously, I spent some research time in this record room some years ago. If I had known what I know now, I would have made as many copies of birth and death records as I could. Back then, the vital records book was free to use. This time, I was asked not to open it and it was within my grasp. I kept glancing at those books while browsing the marriage books. I wanted to open them so bad! But, I didn’t want to ruin any trust with the clerks in the office, so I refrained.
I still had the file I used years ago when I began serious research of my family and had the books and page numbers of where I could find these vital records. The file has since been updated, but I kept the original information and was able to refer to it and print out the records I intended to find on this trip.
Using the indexes found on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org was also helpful when used to keep your research records organized.
I was able to quickly go to the marriage books of my ancestors and provide the clerks the information I needed and they were able to look them up and make copies of their actual marriage records for me. In some cases, I was able to get a copy of the actual application.
It was interesting to see how names morph into different names over the years.
For example, my maternal grandfather was always called “Grim” when I was growing up. I saw his name listed as “G.P. Harris” in some places, but I always knew him as “Grim”. Turns out, his name was actually Porter Graham Harris. I can see how Graham would change to “Grim” based on how his name was pronounced in rural Stewart County.
Here are some tips to use when researching in county courthouses:
- Have a plan of action
- Bring your laptop/tablet/phone
- Make sure your existing research has been reviewed and updated (excel files, OneNote, etc.)
- It’s okay to use your camera to take pictures of documents
- Brings some cash if you would like copies made
- Be ready to provide specific information to help the clerks help you
- Use research logs and family group sheets and make sure to have as much information completed as possible
- Before you go, know the office hours available for research
- Familiarize yourself with where the records are in the record room
- Make contact with any family members, DNA matches, fellow researchers
I will be taking another research trip in a couple of weeks to South Carolina, specifically Williamsburg County, SC with a group of fellow researchers/cousins of this area to do some research in the county courthouse and to visit with community/family members in the area. A post of that trip will be added to this blog!