Do you happen to have a carpenter in your family tree? How about a blacksmith? A bricklayer? Or any of 127 different crafts practiced in the American South (coopers NOT included, more's the pity). This is your lucky day! I have just stumbled over this bit of magic! The The MESDA Craftsman Database is an awesome resource. Search to Discover As a I often do, I was running … [Read more...] about Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) Craftsman Database Search
Genealogy Basics and Items of General Interest
West Craven Highlights now digitized and searchable online
If your family is from the Vanceboro area, you will certainly remember the paper that was produced by the Cannon family, West Craven Highlights. I'm not sure when this was done, but the whole project has now been digitized. You can browse all of the issues or search for specific names or topics. To browse the whole collection, go here: … [Read more...] about West Craven Highlights now digitized and searchable online
Genealogy + DNA Game Changers: Step up your game with these FREE resources.
In the 21st century, if you're serious about genealogy, then let's face it: You will engage in DNA testing. In fact, if you're really serious, you'll get as many of your older relatives tested as possible. Why? Because their DNA will contain more lengthy segments connected with the lines you're likely trying to test. And once they're gone, they're gone. You'll have a much … [Read more...] about Genealogy + DNA Game Changers: Step up your game with these FREE resources.
Formation of Pitt County, North Carolina
Pitt County was formed after Beaufort and Craven Counties, but the establishment of its border wasn't a one-time thing. Below, you can read about the formation of Pitt County, North Carolina from David Leroy Corbitt's book, The Formation of North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943. See if it helps some pieces start falling into place with some of your ancestors who seem to appear and … [Read more...] about Formation of Pitt County, North Carolina
Formation of Craven County, North Carolina
Read the descriptions below for Craven County's shifting borders and see if it helps some pieces start falling into place with some of your ancestors who seem to appear and vanish from this and neighboring counties inexplicably in the mid-to-late 1700s and into the 1800s. Remember, The Formation of North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943 by David Leroy Corbitt is available for … [Read more...] about Formation of Craven County, North Carolina
Formation of Beaufort County, North Carolina
The Formation of North Carolina Counties, 1663-1943 by David Leroy Corbitt is available for free at Archive.org, but for convenience's sake, over the next few days I'm going to post the sections on the formation of Beaufort County (including Bath County), Craven, and Pitt Counties here at East Carolina Roots, since the bulk of the content on this site gravitates towards those … [Read more...] about Formation of Beaufort County, North Carolina
Be careful with assumptions about “Verified” DNA relationships and those AncestryDNA “Hints”
Long story short: Hints shared with your AncestryDNA matches are only as good as the data that both of you have in your trees. This has been bothering me quite a bit and I decided I finally ought to just write something about it. I think it's important enough that I may have the person with access share this to the otherwise inactive East Carolina Roots Facebook … [Read more...] about Be careful with assumptions about “Verified” DNA relationships and those AncestryDNA “Hints”
Did you know all of these new records were at FamilySearch? I’ve got all of the links right here!
FamilySearch has been steadily putting a ton of North Carolina records on their site that aren't yet easy to access through the normal browsing methods. (Another thanks to Becky for tipping me off about some of the great new things that have gone up over the last few months!) Anyhow, I decided to compile a list of direct links to all eastern North Carolina counties in their … [Read more...] about Did you know all of these new records were at FamilySearch? I’ve got all of the links right here!
Merry Christmas to us! 🎄 Beaufort County Deeds now available online!
A great big GIGANTIC thank you to East Carolina Roots visitor Becky, who graciously commented on an earlier post about available deeds online that Beaufort County deeds are now available via FamilySearch. YES! Celebrating the birth of my LORD and Savior Jesus Christ is absolutely exciting enough for me, but now I get the added bonus of this genealogical goldmine! It's … [Read more...] about Merry Christmas to us! 🎄 Beaufort County Deeds now available online!
Buyer Beware: Make sure you know THIS about AncestryDNA before you buy a kit!
I have been recommending AncestryDNA here on this site for the past several months now because I'll be the first to admit it's much easier to use than FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA) in terms of seeing possible shared ancestor hints and locations of the ancestors of your matches. In addition, they'll generate matches further back in your genealogical history than will … [Read more...] about Buyer Beware: Make sure you know THIS about AncestryDNA before you buy a kit!
Using AncestryDNA? For goodness’ sake! Please post a tree!
Some amazing things are happening right now in our family thanks to several of us taking the AncestryDNA test. We're on the verge of solving the puzzle of our Whitford family origins (In other words, did we come from Scotland, as was long suggested, or perhaps somewhere else?) — a subject that has mystified many of us for generations! Without a doubt, I think the Ancestry … [Read more...] about Using AncestryDNA? For goodness’ sake! Please post a tree!
East Carolina Roots now recommends AncestryDNA for genealogy testing
(Get $10 off the AncestryDNA test! Link is below.) Thanks to many modern advances, such as the internet and genetic testing, we can now break through genealogy barriers that have stumped our forebears for generations. In the past, East Carolina Roots has recommended using FamilyTreeDNA for autosomal DNA testing, but now, based on my own experience, it seems like AncestryDNA is … [Read more...] about East Carolina Roots now recommends AncestryDNA for genealogy testing
