Tracing Your Ancestors 



13 



When the time comes that certain 

 definite infonnation is needed, and the 

 source of that infonnation is not acces- 

 sible, the services of genealogists may be 

 had. There are man}" persons who fol- 

 low this profession and are more or less 

 well qualified to conduct a search. 

 Some are merely record agents, that is, 

 they look up certain records and copy 

 the items found. Such agents are 

 usually qualified to suggest further 

 sources of infonnation. Their charges 

 are ordinarily based on the time con- 

 sumed in the work, so much by the hour 

 or day. Others are what might be 

 tenned constructive genealogists. These 

 will accept a commission to work up all 

 that may be found concerning an 

 individual and his ancestry, or a family, 

 and are usually competent to arrive at 

 correct deductions as to relationship, 

 etc. These usually base their charges 

 upon the service rendered, dependent 

 upon the difficulty of the work, its 

 importance, etc. Charges vary greatly. 

 It is always customary to forward the 

 fee in full or part at the time the com- 

 mission is placed. Of course special 

 arrangements are made in the case of 

 expected extensive and prolonged re- 

 search. 



Having unearthed what may be found 

 about one's American ancestors, it is 

 always satisfactory to learn something 

 of their origin. It is still more satis- 

 factory if their English, Scottish, Irish, 

 French, Dutch, or German ancestry, as 

 the case may be, can be discovered, and 

 this is frequently accomplished. It is a 

 department of genealogical work for 

 which special preparation and experience 

 is needed, and is most successfully under- 

 taken by Americans familiar with Euro- 

 pean records. The prospectuses so 

 often received by Americans sent out by 

 European record agents, publishers of 

 armorial works, etc., should be carefully 

 scrutinized before acceptance, and if 

 possible information sought of the 

 officers of some of the genealogical 

 societies in this country, who are in- 

 formed as to the reliability of many of 

 the foreign genealogists. 



Foreign investigation sometimes leads 

 to very interesting discoveries. The 

 work of the late Henry F. Waters, the 

 results of which have been largely 



printed, has given us access to a great 

 mass of material relating to the families 

 of American pioneers of the seventeenth 

 century. Other investigators preceded 

 him and have followed him, and very 

 much is known about our first settlers, 

 far more than is generally realized. 



COATS OF ARMS 



In all European countries there are 

 certain j^ersons whose right to use 

 armorial bearings is offLcially recognized. 

 In this country it is a matter of con- 

 science and good form. Coat armoJ 

 is sometimes the badge of ancient de- 

 scent, sometimes not. A grant may be 

 of yesterday or of five centuries past. 

 Some arms may be of such antiquity 

 that their origin is unknown. But in 

 every instance the right to arms is 

 hereditary. It is a right which descends 

 usually from the father to all his male 

 descendants. The use of coat armor is 

 hedged about by many rules, and when 

 properly observed these rules are a help 

 in genealogical research. An American 

 who inherited a coat of arms has a per- 

 fect right to display that coat, but unless 

 the right to bear arms is undoubted, a 

 matter either subject to proof or of 

 ancient usage, it is considered bad form 

 to use a coat of arms. Arms are not at- 

 tached to a name, but to a person. All 

 persons of the same name are not 

 entitled, to bear the same arms. The 

 usual source of information regarding 

 armorial bearings is Burke's descriptive 

 catalogue of arms made up from every 

 source imaginable. It has no authority 

 whatsoever, and is responsible for more 

 instances of "bogus" arms than any 

 other source. Heraldic Visitations were 

 established in England and maintained 

 for two hundred years, and few in- 

 stances of legitimate arms escaped 

 registration. Some arms in use prior 

 to the visitations are not recorded. If 

 descent from a person legitimately bear- 

 ing arms not recorded in the Visitations 

 can be proved, the right to bear those 

 arms exists. Arms illustrated in an 

 American family history are frequently, 

 we may say usually, not authoritative 

 so far as that particular family is con- 

 cerned. It requires very careful iden- 

 tification to prove the descent of ar- 

 morial dignities, and the ancestry of 



