Interviewing relatives, writing letters, and badgering family members with questions are all integral parts of genealogy. Relying on oral history alone is a dangerous practice though. All oral history must be proven. Despite the fact that an elderly family members says it is’s so, does not make it true. That’s where documentation comes in. Review…
Causes of Death in Hawaii in the 1890s
As genealogists, we sometimes overlook the cause of death in records. The jargon is unfamiliar or the terms so old we can’t find them in modern dictionaries. What our ancestors died of can tell us a lot about the region where they lived and the times they lived in. Unlike names and dates, what they…
Child Laborers on Hawaiian Plantations
Not many know that children were a vital part of the Hawaiian sugar plantation work force. They were employed to do many jobs the adult workers did as well as many jobs that they didn’t. The Portuguese played an important part in providing a child labor force. Unlike Asians who migrated as individuals, the Portuguese…
World War I Draft Registration
These can be found in the FHC under U.S. Military Records, WWI, State, County. All males were required to register, whether they were a citizen or not. In June, 1917, men who were 18 years old registered. Then in June, 1918, men 18-21 years old registered. The 3rd registration was in Sept., 1918 for men…
The Importance of Nicknames in Portuguese Genealogy
In researching your family tree, you’ll come across an exorbitant amount of people by the names of Joao, Francisco, Manuel, Maria, Isabella, Alexandrina, Jacinto, Jacinta, Antonio, and Jose. It seems that every Portuguese family expecting a child referred to the same, very short baby name book. That why nicknames are so important to our research! …