Condon and Short: 1900 Census

1900 finds Charles Condon, his wife and son living with his father-in-law Daniel Short in Sefton, Fayette, Illinois.

1900 Illinois Census
Date Taken: 1 Jun 1900

Source Citation: Year: 1900; Census Place: Sefton, Fayette, Illinois; Roll: T623_300 Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 24.

Name: Daniel T Short
Relationship to Head: Head
White/Male
Birthdate: Apr 1832
Age 68
Married 43 years
Birthplace: Tennesee
Father's Birthplace: Virginia
Mother's Birthplace: Virginia
Occupation: Farmer
Rented Farm

Name: Maggie Short
Relationship to Head: Wife
White/Female
Birthdate: Mar 1839
Age 61
Married 43 years
Children 4, Children Living 4
Birthplace: Indiana
Father's Birthplace: Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace: Kentucky

Name: Chas Condon
Relationship to Head: Head
Male/White
Birthdate: Mar 1870
Age: 30
Married 7 years
Birthplace: Ohio
Father's Birthplace: Ohio
Mother's Birthplace: Ohio
Occupation: Farmer
Rented Farm

Name: Maggie E. Condon
Relationship to Head: Wife
Female/White
Birthdate: Mar 1871
Age: 29
Married 7 years
Children 1, Children Living 1
Birthplace: Illinois
Father's Birthplace: Tennesee
Mother's Birthplace: Indiana

Name: Willie
Relationship to Head: Son
Male/White
Birthdate: Feb 1894
Age: 6
Single
Birthplace: Illinois
Father's Birthplace: Ohio
Mother's Birthplace: Illinois

Freedom Fighters

With today being the Fourth of July and the day we celebrate the birth of the United States of America, I was thinking that it would be a good day to commemorate some of my ancestors that served in various wars to preserve the freedoms we enjoy. My grandma has told me on multiple occassions, and is very proud of the fact, that we have ancestors who have served in many of the major American Wars from WWII back.

• Joshua Bigelow fought in the King Phillips War 1675


• Redmond Condon, Richard Corwine, and John Day served in the Revolutionary War


• Samuel Corwine was in the War of 1812


• Daniel T. Short served during the Civil War on the side of the North


• John C Bigelow Sr served in WWI (pictured below)


• Robert N Daniels served in WWII along with my great uncle, John C Bigelow Jr.

I would have sworn I had more pictures in my possession to share, but I was only able to come up with one. (One thing I am finding by doing these Family History Friday posts is that my paper work is in horrible order! You think you know where something is until you go looking for it and can't find it!)

This picture is of my great grandfather, John Chester Bigelow (pictured on the right), and his brothers Harold (on the left) and Amerson (seated). They all served in WWI in 1918.This is the WWI draft card for John Chester Bigelow.

I am grateful for these men, and the many other men and women now and through out history, who have made sacrifices to serve their country and to preserve the freedoms we enjoy in the United States of America.

**Most of the above list is family traditon. I have only personally verified those who served in WWI and WWII. More fun work to do!**

1880 Census

Federal Census Records hold a wealth of information and give a great peek at a family in 10 year intervals. Federal Census Records are available from 1930 back every ten years with the exception of 1890 which was destroyed by fire. The further back you go, the less information you will find until eventually all you are getting is the name of the head of household and tally marks.

All of the census's are available online for searching but require a membership to do so. The two biggest places I do census searches are Ancestry.com and Heritage Quest. As mentioned last week, Ancestry is a paid membership whereas with Heritage Quest you can get access through the BYU library with your student/alumni log in (I imagine there are other ways to get in though this is the only way I know. Heritage Quest not only does census's, it has a large collection of family and local histories with original images online).

The 1880 census is an exception. It is available for FREE through Ancestry and also through Familysearch.org

What will you find in the 1880 Federal Census Records?

You will find full names of all people living in the household, their relationship to the head of household, their marital status, race, age, birthplace, occupation, father's birthplace, mother's birthplace, who their neighbors were (this is useful for establishing family relationships) and more.

Because the 1880 is free on Ancestry you should be able to follow the following links (that is if you are interested) and view the actual census records online. It is helpful to zoom in once or twice (150%) in order to be able to read the names. The names will appear in list form down the left side. Sometimes the surname comes first, sometimes it does not, depends on the census.
My ancestors in the 1880 census:

Charles Everette Condon with parents Jacob and Sarah Condon
Margaret (Maggie) Garvin Short and Daniel T Short with children
William and Sarah Garvin with two of their children
William Wesley and Isadora Alderson with child and Mother-in-law Sarah Winders

If you have your own name you want to search, follow the links above. Type in as much information as you have, if nothing comes up take out some of the information and try again. I've also found many times that my ancestors have given their nicknames to the census taker and that the ages are often incorrect.

1930 Census of Arthur T. Daniels and family

I've mentioned before that I am trying to find all of my ancestors in as many census's as possible. I have a few that are still proving elusive but have found a majority of my ancestors in the census records throughout their lives. It has been very interesting to see where they have moved (which proves very helpful when looking for other records) and what occupations they have held as well as what children were living in the house and when. Census records are an easy door for opening up other research possibilities. I'm excited about the many leads I have found. There's always something more to do.