Durban and Coastal Branch
Volume 22 Issue 1/2006
The Durban and Coastal Branch would like to wish everyone a successful year of research, and hope many of those brick walls will come tumbling down!
The Chairman, Nigel McFerran, reviewed 2005 and advised that financial accounts had been finalised and were available for perusal.
Nigel advised that neither he nor his committee would be available for re-election in 2006. Before announcing the new committee, Nigel thanked his committee, his Vice-Chairman Jaques Benadie, Treasurer Joan Rachmann, wife Cynthia in her capacity as Secretary, Librarian Ann O’Brien and Paul du Plessis of Preservations/ Archives, for their dedicated service and hard work, and for the support given him during his five year tenure as Chairman of the Society. Nigel also extended a special thank you to Jenny Harries and the Family History Centre for the use of their facilities for all Society meetings.
He advised the meeting that the newly elected committee for 2006 would be :
Jaques Benadie Chairman
Shirley Richardson Treasurer/Membership
Judy Letard Secretary/Newsletter
Dawn van Niekerk Librarian
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It was unanimously agreed that the highlight of 2005 was the Family History Fair which was held on 24 September by the Family History Centre at which the Society was fortunate enough to have had exposure. It was very well attended and a roaring success. Accolades went out to Jenny Harries for all the organisation and hard work that she put in to make it the success that it was. We all look forward to the next one which we believe will be bigger and better!!
Thanks was extended to all those who made donations of books, CDs and information to the our growing library. Our librarian has an index of all available information, so please feel free to use this facility.
Workshop
During 2005 a working group was formed of members who volunteered to catalogue films, microfische and CD’s that are held at the FHC. We are all familiar with trying to find a particular film, or perhaps even send for it when it may well be in one of the drawers or the filing cabinet. It was felt that this was one way to thank the FHC for their kindness in letting the Society use their venue and research material and at the same time it would be of great benefit to our members. The Chairman thanked the working group for their team spirit in helping to organise the Centre’s records. Once all the information is collated an index will be created for ease of reference.
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Members are reminded that the subscription fee of R100-00 for 2006 is now due. Payment can be made by cheque to The Genealogical Society of South Africa, Durban & Coastal Branch, P O Box 50063, Musgrave, 4062 .
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There are many of us who are not aware of all that is available at this valuable Repository. The PMB Archives are open on the 2nd Saturday of every month. . If sufficient members are interested at the time we will arrange a visit on 12th August which will take place in the morning instead of our usual afternoon meeting at the FHC.
To refresh our memories with of course the guidance of our Natal Mole, Rosemary Dixon-Smith, the following are some of the groups of information available :
a) MSCE – Master of the Supreme Court – Estates : These files contain items pertaining to the administration of an estate, e.g. a death notice, Will inventory, administration and distribution account. At present this Repository holds files for the period from 1840 to approximately 1971.
b) Birth, Marriage and Death Indexes and Registers : These records are compiled according to the place/district where the event was registered.
Now also available for Durban are the following :
- Birth Indexes and Registers 1868-1930,
- Death Indexes 1910-1949
- Death Registers 1868-1949.
- Marriage Indexes 1895-1984
- Marriage Registers 1887 -1972.
There are no restrictions on viewing these records since the Access to Information Act of 2000/1.
c) CSO : Colonial Secretary’s Office : Marriage Declarations : Records of marriages solemnized before the Magistrate of Pietermaritzburg for the period 1847 – 1888.
d) EI – European Immigration Department : 1849 – 1911. ; These are records of the arrival of immigrants in Durban via assisted or sponsored passages.
e) NDR – Natal Defence Records
f) NMP – Natal Mounted Police
h) A printed index to 'Archives of the Department of Home Affairs' for Natal can be found on the main table in the Reading Room.
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I Wish I knew
then what I know now!!
(Michael John Neill : Genealogical Institute of Mid America (GIMA) –Copyright 2005, MyFamily.com)
Much of early genealogy research is done by trial and error. Here are some things I wish I had known when I started research. Things always look obvious in hindsight and it is easier to see the error of our ways once we have spent years going down wrong paths.
Cite Your Sources
We’ve all heard or read it numerous times, but keeping track of where we obtained information is crucial. Time is wasted if we need to review or check something and we have no idea of where the data or record was originally located.
The Importance of the Original
When I began my research, I was content with finding an entry in a transcription or a published extract. The day someone finally told me to “get the original” was the day I started realizing that transcribers do make mistakes and that published extracts can leave out significant clues. And genealogists need all the clues they can get.
People Married More than Once
An ancestor’s marriage after the death of a spouse may have changed the family significantly. It may also be the reason for your brick wall. If a widowed mother remarries, her resulting name change and the potential last name changes of her children may cause additional confusion. If a widowed mother and her children “disappear” consider the possibility that she remarried instead of moving across country.
Relatives Are Everywhere
Pay more attention to the names of an ancestor’s associates during his first years in a new area. This is the time when he is less likely to know his new neighbours and more likely to rely on people he knew before.
Time Has Passed
If you are looking at a copy of an ancestor‘s death certificate, it has been years since that document was recorded. What has happened since that moment when the question was asked, “What was her maiden name?”
The informant may have thought about it for a split second and remembered the name to the best of her ability. Verification was not required. The informant then said the name and may have pronounced it the way they thought it should be pronounced.
A clerk then heard the name and mentally thought of how it should be spelled based upon his own education and experience. The clerk then wrote the name on the record in his own handwriting. He could easily have been thinking about something else and unintentionally made an error.
The paper may have deteriorated over time. The ink may have blurred or faded over time.
The microfilming or photocopying might have been hastily done. And now you are looking at that name on that record. Is there a chance for an error or a misinterpretation?
It Might Not Be a Mistake
There were times when I thought something on a record had to be wrong. After all, if it conflicted with my information, it had to be incorrect. I learned a long time ago to stop jumping to initial conclusions and compare each fact with previously located information. Maybe the record is wrong. Maybe I am wrong. Or maybe there is something I do not know about the records, the law, the time period, or the culture.
The Importance of Location
Knowing the residence of your ancestors as precisely as possible is key to locating them in records and determining if the correct person has actually been located. Location is important for rural and urban ancestors. Never neglect asking for former addresses when interviewing older family members.
The Living
Most of us ask questions of older relatives when we begin our genealogical research. As we venture into libraries, archives, online databases, cemeteries and other data rich locations, it can be easy to forget that a significant amount of information can still be obtained from the living, long after we have started our search. In fact, after we have done some research, we often have more questions we need to ask the person we originally interviewed. It is always worth regularly revisiting those living sources to see if they can answer your new questions or if they have remembered something they forgot to tell you on previous occasions.
Life Was Different
When we look at our ancestor’s choices we must remember that their options may have been limited.
Siblings Are Important
I could have saved numerous hours early on in my research if I had spent a little more time on my ancestor’s siblings. If records on my ancestor use the word “unknown” on virtually every blank, perhaps a record on her sister will be more informative. If a search does not locate an ancestor, perhaps looking for his brother will be the key to finding the entire family. Our ancestors spent a significant part of their life with their siblings. Perhaps we should at least spend some of our research time looking for them.
There Are Few Absolutes
For virtually every rule in genealogy, there is an exception. There will be individuals who do not follow societal norms, who leave little paper trail, and who move where they know no one. Those ancestors who break all the rules are the ones who build the strongest brick walls.
If you have hit a brick wall again and you don’t know where to
search next, perhaps one of your seasoned fellow members could give you some of
their invaluable advice. Please feel
free to contact Judy Letard, who will publish it in the next newsletter under a
new heading “LOOKING FOR…” You might be
pleasantly surprised at the outcome of the posting!
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Newsletter Articles
Members are very welcome to submit articles of interest for inclusion in our forthcoming newsletters. Please contact Jaq or Judy with your requests, suggestions and articles for circulation to members.
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Notice Board
Please don’t forget that there is a
notice board in our section at the FHC and members are invited to post their
area of interest to connect with others who are researching that same area to
enable the sharing of films.
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11th
February Personal
Research
11th March Personal Research/Speaker – to be
announced
8th April Personal Research
13th
May Personal Research
10th
June
Speaker - to be announced
8th
July
Personal Research
12th
August PMB
Archives
9th
September
Personal Research
14th
October
Speaker/Activity
11th
November Personal
Research
9th
December
Ancestral Tea
20th
January 2007 AGM
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Jaq Benadie, P.O.Box 2337 Pinetown, 3600.
Phone: (031) 708-3746. E-Mail: jaqb@telkomsa.net
Shirley Richardson
Phone: (031)
266 1753
Judy Letard, P O Box 1000, Mount Edgecombe 4300
Phone: (031) 508-7304 E-Mail: kdee@mweb.co.za
Dawn van Niekerk
- Phone: (031)208-2910
Annelise Peters
- Ph: (031) 208-2910
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Family History Centre,
Church of the Latter Day Saints,
144 Silverton Road.
Entrance in Montgomery Road
Phone: (031) 202 3024
Our meetings are held at 2.30 pm on the 2nd
Saturday of every month. Our AGM is held on the 3rd Saturday
in January.
For the record, the F.H.C. is also open at the
following times:
Wednesday 1pm
– 4pm
Thursday 9
am – 12 noon and 6.30 pm - 9 pm
Last Saturday of every month from 10 am - 4 pm
Or by appointment phone – cell 083 661 4457