4. The Lost Ledger: Evidence Ellis Island Kept Its Own Arrival Records

   I have always heard that no records were created at Ellis Island, that the only records used were the passenger lists created by the ship company, and that Ellis Island officials merely inspected immigrants and marked the manifests. In my recent research, in preparation for a presentation, I uncovered multiple sources suggesting that this statement was not entirely true.

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5. Paying to Avoid the Civil War Draft

   While some men willingly joined the Union Army during the Civil War, many only served when the draft compelled them to do so. Some men were able to buy their way out of serving in the Union Army, even when drafted, by paying $300.

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6. Using Newspapers for British Research

   Sometimes we forget the usefulness of newspapers because physical newspapers aren’t as common anymore. Newspapers can provide information that is not available anywhere else or can produce clues to find other records.

   The most common searches in newspapers are for birth, marriage, and death notices, including obituaries. However, newspapers can be full of lots of interesting information from arrests to gardening contest winners and …

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