Researching Female Ancestors

Women get shortchanged in many cultures, be it opportunity, wages, education, treatment or other ways. The same is true when we research our ancestors. The husbands and fathers were the land and property owners. The wife's inheritance from her parents became her husband's property. George Washington's wealth increased significantly as a result of his marriage to Martha Dandridge Custis.

The farther back into the lives of our ancestors that our research takes us, the harder it can be to identify our female ancestors and their families.

As the keeping of vital records became mandatory, the names of spouses and mothers appeared in more records. Parish church records in the British Isles and Europe included bride and groom in marriage entries, but rare was the maiden name of the wife appearing in baptismal and burial records.

You may find the names of female ancestors in various combinations:

1) Given & Maiden name: [Ellen Davis] Ah, we can but hope that this is the case for all of our female ancestors!

2) Given name & Maiden name unknown: [Mrs. Ellen Reed] This is probably the most common situation. Deeds, burial records, probate and other records generated frequently listed the husband and wife in the following manner - Jacob Reed, and Ellen, his wife. There are no clear clues to the maiden name of Mrs. Reed.

3) Maiden name only: This one is rare and generally appears in earlier records. I have come across a few instances in the 1500s. Jacob Reed married a daughter of Edmond Davis, At least we have the name of her father. The other way I have seen this is Jacob Reed married a daughter of a Mr. Davis.

4)  Name unknown: This one, unfortunately, is very common. No marriage record has been uncovered, the wife dies before any deeds or other records could be generated that might identify her.

She was buried in an unmarked grave on the family farm. The widower relocates and remarries, so the identity of the first wife is never known in the new location. 

Now, how do you find that elusive great-grandmother or 6x great-grandmother? I'll try to tackle that issue in the next series of posts. Some of the topics that will be covered: census, land records, probate, compiled genealogies, and vital records.