It may seem
like a waste of our valuable research time to research people who we don’t even
know are related, but it can be time well spent.
Look at the
people mentioned in wills – who were the executors and administrators of the
estate? Who witnessed the will? Who
were the guardians of any minors? Remember guardians were not
necessarily appointed to take care of the children personally – their role was
to protect their legal interests. All these important roles were generally not
given to strangers. Who were the beneficiaries? Wills do not just list surviving children,
they often also give the married names of adult daughters. How does each person
fit in?
Look at
godparents at a christening or baptism, not just for your direct ancestors, but
for all their siblings as well. Each
child may have different godparents – again, it is not a role given to
strangers. Who are they, and why were
they chosen for the role?
Unless your
couple eloped, look at the witnesses to a marriage. Remember to look at both the civil and church
marriage records if applicable, and if a person married more than once, check
both marriages. The same applies for
informants on a death certificate, neighbours in a census or electoral
roll.
In shipping
records, look at where others on the same ship came from. Look at others already settled in the place
your family settled. Sometimes people
from the same area migrated in a group, or followed others who had already made
the journey.
Revisit your
documents now and then. With new
information discovered since you obtained each document, new names connect to
your family in new ways. You never know
what brick walls you might break through by researching someone who, at first
glance, does not appear to be connected to your family at all.
