Byers Genealogy & Research Services

More about demolishing cemeteries in Tennessee
Developers must get permission from the state to relocate cemetery burials elsewhere. It is a very complicated process. If they don’t, they are breaking the law.

A Nashville lawyer hired me last year about disturbing an ante-bellum plantation family cemetery where enslaved laborers were also buried. Descendants of the enslaved had enough evidence to believe their ancestors were buried in the cemetery and wanted to exhume some of the bodies to do DNA testing on them. They believed their great-grandparents were buried there, and if found to be true, wanted to reintern them elsewhere.

I was hired to determine the identity of other possible enslaved people who might also be buried there based on historical written documentation.

In addition, the lawyer hired an archeologist to “ … conduct(ed) a geophysical survey of Cemetery, which included studies involving ground penetrating radar, magnetometer, and electromagnetic induction meter. As a result, Dr. X identified thirty-eight potential graves at the Cemetery, with twenty-five being probable graves and thirteen being possible graves. However, Dr. X has identified eight graves which by their size are believed to contain adult decedents. He recommends that those graves be excavated for DNA testing.”
With the above evidence, the lawyer petitioned the state asking for permission to proceed with the exhumation of the bodies for the purpose of DNA testing. The title of the petition is “PETITION FOR DNA TESTING. TERMINATION OF USE OF LAND AS BURIAL GROUND. AND REMOVAL AND REINTERMENT OF REMAINS OF (names are intentionally deleted).”

I had to sign a non-disclosure agreement about my research which is why I have deleted those persons who are identifiable.

I am a professional genealogist living in Franklin, TN. By geographic default, I have become an expert researcher covering the southern states. My research includes finding wills and probate packages where I often come upon the mention of enslaved people. Recently I found a treasure trove of documents listing the enslaved people at Beechwood Hall owned by H.G.W. Mayberry in Williamson County, TN. The documents list the mothers’, their children and birthdates. This kind of detail is a rare find! More to come later!

If you are interested in researching your Black heritage, please contact me at [email protected] or byergenealogyresearch.com. https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/

Tip # 5 – Census Records
I’ve written a lot about names already. Just remember that if a name is spelled in an unfamiliar way, but when pronounced sounds like your name you should check out the record. With that said, my first tip about census records is NEVER rely on Ancestry’s transcriptions; always look at the original record. The transcripts usually only include the immediate family and often will not include other relatives such as in-laws, grandparents to servants, farm laborers or boarders. When you can’t find your grandparents, you will often find them living with one of their children in their old age, etc. I’ll have more tips on censuses later.
To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/

Byers Genealogy & Research Services Whether it's a lack of time, skills or knowledge or, perhaps, you've reached a dead-end; BGRS is here

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/ /FMfcgzQVwwxVsnfMTvlWnvKfWKnMpTdC

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TIP # 4 - NICKNAMES

People often used their nicknames in the records, and they aren’t necessarily obvious. For instance, the nickname most often used for Mary is Polly. Edward can be Ed, but also Ned, etc. If you are not sure whether you are looking at the same person because they are using their nickname you can always Google nicknames for the given name, and it will show you a list. You can test your knowledge using this fun little questionnaire.

Useful English: Ex. 6: Names and Nicknames Exercise 6 for English names and their typical nicknames. Упражнение 6 на английские имена и их типичные уменьшительные имена.

Tip #3 - Is that Surname Spelled Correctly?

Often you will come upon a record that matches the info you have, but you reject it because the surname is spelled differently from what you think it should be. All surnames will be found in the records with various spellings.

Historically, record takers wrote down what they heard, thus multiple spellings of the same name. So, if the spellings don’t match, but everything else does or is at least close, it’s probably your family. Example: Allen, Alyn, Alain, etc. See Tip #4 for more information.

To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/

Tip 4 – More on Surnames - The Soundex Code System (see Tip #3)
Before computers and Ancestry, I had to look at census records on microfilm. To find my ancestors, I had to use a system called Soundex.

“The soundex is a coded surname (last name) index based on the way a surname sounds rather than the way it is spelled. Surnames that sound the same, but are spelled differently, like SMITH and SMYTH, have the same code and are filed together. The soundex coding system was developed so that you can find a surname even though it may have been recorded under various spellings.” Source: https://www.archives.gov/research/census/soundex

Today this algorithm is used by Ancestry and other search engines. You can use it too for searching other databases, if you want to learn how.

To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/

Soundex System The Soundex Indexing System Updated January 9, 2024 To use the census soundex to locate information about a person, you must know his or her full name and the state or territory in which he or she lived at the time of the census. It is also helpful to know the full name of the head of the household....

Genealogy Tip 2 – Women’s Maiden Names

When adding a new generation to your tree, if you don’t know the maiden name of the wife then leave her surname field blank. If you download a record, such as a census, it is going to add the wife’s married name to her profile. It is good idea to get in the habit of deleting the married surname from the surname field before saving the census or other document.

If you don’t leave the surname field blank, Ancestry is going to search for her by her married name. By leaving the surname field blank, Ancestry will search for a marriage record that matches the couple.

To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/

Byers Genealogy & Research Services Whether it's a lack of time, skills or knowledge or, perhaps, you've reached a dead-end; BGRS is here

I make my living as a professional genealogist and recently joined FB's Ancestry Users page out of curiosity. Although there are how-to manuals you can buy on Amazon, I see a need for tips on how to avoid the many pitfalls out there.

I will start with “Tip One” and continue from there on a periodic basis. To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/ or view my website at byersgenealogyresearch.com.

Byers Genealogy & Research Services Whether it's a lack of time, skills or knowledge or, perhaps, you've reached a dead-end; BGRS is here

TIP ONE – ANCESTRY’S HINTS – PAY ATTENTION AND USE COMMON SENSE

All the hints that show up on your ancestor’s profile pages are not necessarily relevant to him or her. If your grandfather was born in 1908 and you have a hint for a Civil War document for a man with the same name who lived in the same place as your grandfather, you should realize it is not the same person. Delete the hint so you don’t waste your time revisiting it.

To keep up-to-date on my tips, you can follow my FB page at https://www.facebook.com/ByersGenealogyResearchServices/ or visit my website at byersgenealogyresearch.com.

Byers Genealogy & Research Services Whether it's a lack of time, skills or knowledge or, perhaps, you've reached a dead-end; BGRS is here

I love helping Black families find their roots. Just received this sweet note from a happy client:

Hi Pamela

I just wanted to say this is excellent work and news. Love the detail and explanation in the report. It will help as I further my own Genealogy research skills for other lineages; expecially dealing with my ancestor Emily; who I just KNEW that it was no way I could find anything else other than the 1880s census record. I don't know if you are free, but I would like to hire you for another project! If you're interested😁

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