GenealogyClassBlog

On Wednesday I introduced the class to the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries, which is a free resource offered online by the Newberry Library in Chicago. In trying to research your ancestor’s experience with the local court, especially the county court, you will need to determine which county would have recorded your ancestor’s business. Even if your ancestor was living in one place for several decades, if the time period was during the formation of the state’s county boundaries, it is possible that he or she lived in different counties. Add that to the possibility that your ancestor may have done business in the closest courthouse rather than his or her county seat, and things may not be as simple as you’d expect. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows the county boundaries as of any date you select in the Interactive Map. The URL for this resource is http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/index.html. Enjoy exploring!