Give All Information When Writing a Query

 Teddi sent a request for help to Olive Tree Genealogy. Here is her email to me:

I have been searching for my grandmother, Theodora Marino Pensyl, for several years now. She was married in Elkton, Maryland, on August 31, 1939 to Charles Wilbur Pensyl from Bedford, Bedford County, PA. They lived in Philadelphia, Pa near Jackson Street and my mother was born on September 18, 1940.

My mother's names is Dorothy Alice Pensyl; she was christened at the Catholic Church in the early part of December, 1940. My mother never had a birth certificate.

She never met her mother and she was raised by her grandmother, Alice Pensyl, until she turned five; at which time she was able to live with her father and his new "wife" (although they never legally married).

We do not know if Theodora was dead, or living and not able to see my mother due to my grandfather's ability to keep her hidden. I have tried Ancestry.com and was unable to reach anyone for assistance. Any ideas you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

Dear Teddi

Sometimes when a reader asks me for help, I immediately have questions. In this case I'm wondering how you knows these exact dates of marriage and birth of her mother. Why am I wondering? Because if you have the marriage record it must surely show an age for Theodora - and that would at least give an approximate year of birth. The birth record of Dorothy may show more details. Both are worth sending for if you do not already have them. If you do have them, you should consider sharing the information found on them when writing a query on a message board or privately (as you did to me)

Even though you say your mother never had a birth certificate, it is quite likely that one was filed and can be obtained. It's worth requesting it. 

Next question - have you found Charles and Theodora on the 1940 census? That would be very helpful to know because that will give you an age for Theordora and a location of birth.  It will also give the place of birth of her parents plus more detail.

Being curious, I had a quick look on Ancestry and I also googled the names. I found several queries you posted over the last several years. To my surprise you gave tidbits of information with each one - different each time - about Dorothea. I suspect you didn't realize how important and helpful each of these little pieces of information could be.

For example in one query you said Theodora sometimes went by Dottie. So that is another name under which to search, and I suspect Dorothy is yet another. In another query you mentioned you thought she had a sister Annette and a brother or father named Leo - these are names you can also search for online. It's crucial to provide these bits and pieces to anyone whose help you want whether on message boards or via email. Even family lore can prove helpful when facing a challenging research puzzle.

So please send for the birth and marriage records and let us know here on the Ask Olive Tree Genealogy blog if you have any other details (plus that all-important 1940 census record!)

Writing a Good Query Will Get You Better Responses

Nina asked a question but unfortunately didn't provide details necessary for Olive Tree Genealogy to answer specifically.

I have worked in both USA and Canadian records regarding Jackman and Reynolds families.  I know that Richard Jackman married to Mary ? (surname may be Morton, Reynolds, or Miller, but mostly likely was Reynolds.)  Their Bible had John Jackman (for whom I cannot find residence, wife, children), Elizabeth Jackman who md. William Wallace, William Jackman who md. Catherine Monks/Munks, Edward Jackman who did not marry, Ann/ Nancy Jackman or whom I don't have a marriage.  There was another child whose name was not in the bible - Hiram Reynolds Jackman who md. Martha Oliver.

 

Do you have any information on this family?  What was the surname of Mary who was md. to Richard Jackman Sr.?  Is there any proof available regarding Hiram Reynolds Jackman who had land dealings with Richard Sr. and his sons, and certainly seems to have been another son.  He moved to Michigan after selling his land.  Please help if you can.

Nina - I'm afraid I can't answer your question precisely because there is information missing that is needed

1. You have not provided any dates. I don't know if your family was living in the 1600s, 1700s, 1800s, 1900s.

2. Your locations (Canada and USA) are too broad to give specific answers as to repositories you might want to check. You mention Michigan for Hiram but again with no dates or a more precise location it is not possible to give you specific answers.

Depending what years your ancestors lived and where they were living during those years affects where you should look for more details. For example I can't tell you to check church records for such and such a town/city in such and such a township/county in such and such a province/state/territory.

And since every country, township, county etc has different records for different time periods and keeps them in different locations, I cannot give you anything other than generic answers.

My generic answer would be to consult local church records where your ancestors settled. Consult local land records for deeds, wills and general information on the buying and selling of their land. Consult census records and tax or assessment records. Look for obituaries and vital registrations of births, marriages and deaths.

I can't be more specific because I don't know where or when your ancestors lived.

 Remember there are 3 key items needed when asking someone for assistance - names, locations and dates.  You may want to take a look at an article "Good Query Bad Query" for some suggestions and reminders

When Asking for Help, Provide Needed Information

Ching asked a question about his (her?) grandfather

Hi, I wonder if you could help me find my grandfather in my father's side, I don't know how to start because my father didn't got a chance to meet him since birth, No one even wants to tell my grandpa's name. I don't know what to do now. Can you give me some solutions? thank you!

AskOliveTree.blogspot.com response:

Dear Ching - You've given me a generic question so I can only give you a brief generic answer.

You have not told me a location (where did your father or grandfather live? USA? Canada? China? Australia? Germany? .... or.....)

You have not given me a year or approximate year (or even century!). Since I have no idea how old YOU are, I can't being to estimate a year of birth for your grandfather. For example, if you are 20, and your dad was 20 when you were born, and your grandpa 20 when your dad was born, that takes us back to an estimated birth year of 1950 or so. So, one necessary fact in any query is LOCATION

Provide a continent, a state, a province, a parish, a city or town name - something to allow the person to guide you. All countries hold different genealogy records at different times and in different repositories

But if you are 50 and your dad was 30 and your grandpa 30 we start getting estimated birth years for grandpa of circa 1900! See the difference? And of course I have no way of knowing anyone's ages when their son/daughter was born. Another necessary fact in a query is YEAR

Always give some kind of estimate in a query, such as "My grandfather was born around 1910"

So jumping back to your question. You will have to start looking for birth and marriage records. Find your dad's birth record or his marriage record. That should give his father's name (depending what country you are searching in, and the time period!)

Perhaps there are available census records, depending on your dad's year of birth. And where he was born and lived.

Talk to family members - aunts, uncles, cousins, anyone you can find, and ask questions.

One other suggestion when asking for help - it's best to follow instructions on the website as to where to write for the help you want. You posted your query as a comment on another blog post. But at the top of every page on my blog it explains that you must send your query to ASKOLIVE@GMAIL.COM

Normally I delete queries that are posted as comments. I made an exception with yours because I hope you will take my suggestions, rewrite your query with the needed details, and resubmit to the correct email address.

I'd love to help you if I can

Proving a Cherokee Ancestor

Caroline asked

Parents of my gggrandfather, Samuel Lowery. Married Mary Edna Cheney, perhaps in Arundel Parrish, MD. Married her sister went to NE AL with 2nd wife and family. Traveled with the Alldredge family --sister of M.E. and Rachel. Looking for Cherokee Indian Heritage.

Olive Tree Answer: Caroline, you didn't provide me with any dates. So all I can do is direct you to a generic page which has many links for Cherokee Genealogy covering many years:

http://www.nanations.com/cherokee/index.htm

K.I.S.S.

K.I.S.S. = Keep it Simple, Sweetie

The image you see below is from a very nice woman.

She's written me before for help.

I like her.

I try to help when I can.

But her last email came in the fonts you see below, and there were 7 paragraphs of those fonts, each paragraph about the size of the one below.


"Big deal, what's the problem?" I hear you asking yourself.

The problem is simple. When you ask someone for help, you should make their life easy not difficult. The easier you make it for them to help you, the more likely you are to get a response.

Keeping it simple = Making it easy.

The best way to keep things simple and make it easy for others to help you is:

* 1. Make your query concise but provide needed details (dates, names, locations).

* 2. Write a query that is easy on the eyes. That means NO FANCY FONTS!! Not everyone has perfect vision. Not everyone can read page after page of fancy fonts.

Those are the two most important "rules" to follow when asking for help.

In the case of the query sent to me in those dreadful fonts - and I say dreadful because they hurt my eyes - I cannot read it. So as much as I like the woman who sent it, it's going in my trash.

Yes, I could copy it and paste it in WORD and change the fonts so that I can see them but why should I have to? Remember the person doing the asking is not supposed to make more work for the person helping!

So the very lovely lady who wrote me using these fonts - please don't be offended that I used your query as an example. I clipped out names so no one would know it was you. I apologize for using your email but it was a good example!

I get many queries in elaborate fonts. I get queries written in coloured fonts (often quite light) on coloured background. I get queries that ramble on for pages. I get queries that have no punctuation. I get queries that don't space out their sentences into paragraphs with nice white spaces between.

I don't respond to those queries. Many times I can't read them! They are too hard on my eyes. Remember not everyone has perfect vision. I don't.

I have very bad eyesight and I use a monitor that is 24 inches wide to make things larger. I also have an eye condition that makes it painful for me to read online or off. And forget light colours on light backgrounds, you may as well write in invisible ink!

The reading I do (queries, website work etc) has to be as painfree as possible.

Remember - K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple, sweetie)

And a personal note to the woman who wrote this query above - please resend it in non fancy fonts and I'll be happy to help!

I'm Kind of Strict About This!

An anonymous researcher posted this question in the comment section of my blog

I have a John O'brien who supposedly left Dublin Ireland about 1813 for the Phillipines. Would there be ship records for this location, from there they according to family stories went to Norfolk VA abt 1826, then on to Caswell Co. NC. Would I be able to find any ship records from either place to look for this family?

OLIVE TREE ANSWER: I'm posting this to remind readers to please abide by two "rules"

1. Provide your name in your query. I don't respond to anonymous questions

2. Don't post your query as a comment on the AskOliveTree Blog. You must email queries to me at the email address provided on this blog (AskOliveTree@gmail.com) I will delete all queries posted as comments. Comment sections on blogs are meant to be used as a way for readers to add their own thoughts, ideas, questions or suggestions related to whatever the blog post was about.

Sorry, anonymous, but your question won't get answered unless you write to me at the email provided and tell me who you are.

From Germany to Canada, but when??

Andrea asked

I am looking for my fathers family. Our surname is Morische and we are the only ones in Canada. He is from Germany and the story is that we wre kicked out of France around the time of Napoleon. Should I use a german site? I've tried ancesrty.ca but came up short

OLIVE TREE ANSWER: Dear Andrea. Once again I urge my readers to please provide DATES when writing to ask for help. Here's the problem. You say your father is from Germany.

Since I don't know how old YOU are (20s? 30s? 60s?....) I have NO idea of your father's age or when your father was born. You've also not given me a timeframe for his leaving Germany and coming to Canada. So it could be 1900 or 1940 or 1980 or yesterday!

To add to this problem of no dates is the fact that you said "Canada". It would be helpful to know what province or territory, in fact a more precise location would be extremely helpful.

Depending when your father came from Germany to whatever province/territory in Canada, you may be able to find census records online. Or birth or marriage records. This will provide you with clues! Best of all you may find him on a ships passenger list which will give more clues.

From there you should research in the usual way - going backwards, one generation at a time. Once you reach the end of Canadian records, you will have to begin searching in Germany or wherever else your hunt takes you.

Go slow. Do one generation at a time, gathering all the facts you can. Details such as dates, locations and full names are very important, don't overlook them.

Good Query Bad Query - Don't Fall into the Trap!

BH sent me the following query. I've removed all names,including BH's. I chose B's query because it's a perfect example of how NOT to write a query! But please don't think I am bashing BH or trying to make B feel bad. I'm not. Because I truly want to help BH find her ancestors, I want her to learn how to write a query that stands a chance of being answered.

Okay, here is the original query

I am trying to find lost relatives from the Ukraine, last name of my gradmother is H-------. I don’t know if that is the correct spelling, first name is M----. My mother’s maiden name is W--- and her first name was A---.Can you help me?

Let's look at what is wrong with this query.

First, as the responder, I have no knowledge of how old B. is. Therefore I have no way of estimating the years of birth of her mother and grandmother. So I have no timeline, no dates to work with. Was her grandmother born in the 1890s as mine was? Or is B a 20 year old whose grandmother was born in the 1940s?

Also, the questioner should NEVER make the person they are requesting help from, work this hard! Make it EASY for the person who wants to help you. Don't make them spend time trying to figure out something you know the answer to.

Number One Rule: DATES, DATES and more DATES! Estimates are better than nothing. Your query must include dates.

Next - what continent or country are we talking about? Yes you said they were from the Ukraine. Are they still there? Have they left for other countries? If so, which ones and when??

Number Two Rule: LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION! Provide at a minimum a country where your ancestors live or where you need help.

Lastly, you really have not told me what you want help with. Are you looking for living descendants? Are you trying to find your Grandmother's parents? I can't tell from your query.

Number Three Rule: WHAT? Tell the person whose help you want, EXACTLY what you want!

B, I really would like to help you. If you read this and recognize your query, please do send it back to me with dates, locations and exactly what you want help with.

Meantime, you may want to read Good Query Bad Query for more help with query writing. It may improve your chances of success in future queries.

Writing a Good Genealogy Query (revisited)

Bob asked:

I have been using Ancestry and did pretty good. My father was Robert Ernest Legg married to Clara Jane Bryhl. His Father was Guy Ellsworth Legg married to Carrie Belle Coomer. His father was William A. Legg married to Louisa Fleming. His father was Alexander Legg married to Clarrissa Allen. This as far as I got with the Legg's. I would appreciate all the help I can get.

Olive Tree Answer: Dear Bob, I'm afraid you've neglected 2 of the very important 3 "W"s needed when asking for help.

You've given me WHO but not the WHERE and WHEN. So I don't know if your family was located in Canada, USA, England, Germany or ... another country.

I also don't know dates. Even approximate dates would be helpful. So not knowing how old YOU are, I can't guestimate years for your parents, grandparents and so on. You could be 20 or you could be 80, as an example. That would make a huge difference as to years of birth of your ancestors.

So all I can advise you to do is to keep searching and tracing your ancestors backwards (as you have done). Look for birth, marriage and death records. Look for census records.

You may want to look at Writing a Good Query or the tutorial called Good Query, Bad Query for help and suggestions to make your genealogy queries the best they can be.

Writing a Good Query

Mary's Question:

I have a brickwall in locating Benjamin Laurence there between 1800 and 1815. He had 3 children born in Georgia and the children state in subsequent censuses in TN that their father was born in NC. I would appreciate your help very much.

Olive Tree Answer: Dear Mary,
I would like to help you but you have not given me much to go on. I chose to publish your query so I could respond for other genealogists to see what detail is required before submitting a query for a response. You may want to follow these guidelines before posting to a mailing list or writing privately to contacts, as well as here on AskOliveTree. It is always a good idea to include dates, locations and full names of all individuals. See Good Query Bad Query for more suggestions. Meantime, here are my specific questions for you:

1. When are the first and last appearances of Benjamin Laurence?

2. What is his spouses' name?

3. What are those childrens' names and where and when were they born?

4. Did you follow those children of Benjamin's until their obituaries and probate records?

Writing a Good Genealogy Query

Sallie's Question:

my great grandfather william myfrey spencer sometimes went by the names william and sometimes by myfrey. is there anything i can do to locate the information i want on him. sometimes my searches find nothing about him in the census. i found a copy of his death certificate, and his name was spelled william mifra.

Olive Tree Answer:
Dear Sallie - I chose your question to illustrate how important it is to provide details when writing a query. You have not given me any dates (When was William born? When did he die?), locations (did William live in USA? Canada? Germany? England? where??) or helpful details such as spouse's name, children's names.

Beyond forgetting to give me information I need to help you, you didn't tell me exactly what you want to find out! Are you looking for his birth record? His marriage record? His wife's name? His parents? Or something else?

There is help to write a good genealogy query at Good Query Bad Query

If you would like to provide me with details as outlined above, I will be happy to try to help you in your quest