FAMILY HISTORY CENTRES

There are more than 4,000 Family History Centres (FHCs) in over 88 countries. Each FHC has it’s own collection of records, with access to more records via the distribution centre at Salt Lake City in Utah, USA, or the national main centre. About 100 000 rolls of microfilm are circulated to FHCs each month. The Family History Library (FHL) was founded in 1894 to gather genealogical records and assist members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or Mormons) with their family history. The FHL is in Salt Lake City and the FHCs around the world are branches. They are open to the public for research purposes.

The records include over 2.4 million rolls of microfilms, 742 000 microfiche, 310 000 books, journals and other formats, 4 500 magazines and 700 electronic resources. In 2003, the collection increased monthly by an average of 4 100 rolls of microfilm, 700 books and 16 electronic resources. Most of the records contain information about people who lived before 1930. Records have been filmed in over 110 countries, and filming is on-going. The FHL and its activities are funded by the LDS Church.

The master copies of all the records are stored at the Granite Mountain Records Vault, which was excavated from a mountainside in Little Cottonwood Canyon, near Salt Lake City. If anything should happen to the FHL, most of its records could be duplicated. From time to time the microfilms in general circulation become worn or damaged and are replaced by a new copy produced at the vault. The FHL is in the process of digitising all its microfilms, and it is estimated that this will be completed by about 2012. An online index to the digitised records is also being created.

The collection includes the Ancestral File database, containing more than 36 million names that are linked into family groups. The International Genealogical Index (IGI) database contains approximately 600 million names of deceased individuals. An addendum to the IGI contains an additional 125 million names. Most of these names have been extracted from birth, christening and marriage records. The Pedigree Resource File database contains over 80 million names that are linked into families.

The main starting point should be the Family History Library Catalogue (FHLC), an indexed record of more than 2-billion world-wide records in the vault at Salt Lake City. Every FHC has a copy, and it is freely available on the Internet. The LDS Church continues to film records around the world and these are added to the index frequently. The FHLC can be searched by surname, place name, or subject, amongst others. The FHL has archived over 150 000 family histories, containing not only biographical data but multi-generation pedigree charts. By doing a surname search, you will see what family histories are available for that surname. By searching on a town name, you will see what records are available for that town. As an example, here are some of the records that are available for Benoni:

Parish registers of the Gereformeerde Kerk Benoni

Christenings: 1941-1987

Memberships: 1914-1950, 1941-1950, 1942-1988, 1946-1952

Marriages: 1914-1971

Includes date of christening, name of child, birth date, parents' names (with mother's maiden name), names of witnesses, place of christening, date and place of admittance into membership.

Parish registers of the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk Benoni

Baptisms: 1914-1950

Includes name, place and date of birth, date of baptism, names of parents including maiden name of mother, and names of witnesses.

Parish registers of the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk Benoni

Marriages: 1914-1971

Includes place and date of birth, place of residence, names of witnesses, occupation, and status. Includes surrounding area.

Civil registration (deaths) for Benoni, 1917-1945

Death register includes name, address, gender, race, age, civil status, occupation, date of death, place of death or birth, place of burial, cause of death, duration of illness. Later registers include parent's or guardian's name if deceased before age 10.

Civil registration (marriages) for Benoni, 1909-1964

Marriage certificates include names, ages, birthplace, whether banns were read, residence, and source of consent.

The IGI is one of the largest genealogical databases in the world. Every month new names are added and it is updated on a two-year cycle. Sometimes names are found on one version of the IGI but not on the other, for example the 1988 version included the names of thousands of Holocaust victims, but the 1992 version did not. This happened as a result of a dispute dating back to 1995 between Jewish leaders and the LDS Church. Not all churches have allowed their records to be filmed for the IGI. Some that have been filmed are not yet on the IGI. Each FHC has a parish list that is updated twice each year and lists which parish records are on the IGI and the years covered.

Use the IGI search filters when searching for a common surname. Take note of the source data when you find a result. This can help in finding additional information. If the source is a batch file then it will be of limited use to you, but if the source is a family group sheet, then you could be in luck. Family group sheets were submitted by LDS Church members and sometimes show three generations or more. The microfilm number is also important as it can help locate the parish in which the event occurred. Use that number to search for the microfilm in the FHLC and details on the parish will be shown. Often there are several parishes listed on one microfilm.

The IGI is also on microfiche. Because the IGI is mainly an index of parish records, many of which have existed since 1550, it is often possible to find generations of a family in one parish. The microfiche is organised by area and then alphabetically by surname and chronologically by event. You can also photocopy pages of the microfiche.

Look for the Research Outlines for the area you are researching. These have information on the location of record repositories. The FHC has foreign language letter writing guides. These help with writing letters to parishes or government departments for records.

Ask to see the Family History Publications List, which contains a complete list of the resources available to FHC visitors. Ask whether your local FHC has genealogy CDs in their local collection. These are usually of relevance to each FHC. Popular CDs include the 1851 and 1881 British Census Index, British Vital Records CD and the World Family Tree CDs. The British Biographical Index and Periodical Index on microfiche gives historical or biographical information on many families. The FHC also has a collection of maps for many areas. Most FHCs have a collection of books relating to subjects and areas most frequently researched by its visitors.

FHC staff are mostly volunteers. They can’t do your research for you, but many are helpful if you don’t know your way around the FHC and its records.

To help you organise your family tree data, the FHC offers the free Personal Ancestral File (PAF) software. PAF was one of the first programmes developed to help computer users organise and chart their ancestors.

When using the Ancestral File, Pedigree Resource File or the IGI, please use caution as there are errors, and you should check what you find against other records.

RESEARCH TIPS FOR BETTER RESULTS

Genealogists will, somewhere along the line, hit a brick wall when they can’t find more clues. Sometimes it takes the use of lesser known resources to break the wall. Here are some suggestions to try.

CITY AND TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES

The appearance and disappearance of people from directories can be important clues in your search. There are city directories and telephone directories available for many countries, some dating back to the 1700s. Most are indexed alphabetically by surname or street. Some list occupations. Libraries, postal archives and Family History Centres are some of the places that have copies.

There were directories for the Cape Town area as early as 1795. By the early 1800s the African Court Calendar or De Afrikaansche Staatsalmanak was in print. These government publications included lists of civil servants and the military. Later on other local residents were listed. There were also private directories such as the  South African Almanack and Directory, and the Cape of Good Hope Almanack and Annual Register. By the 1860s listings included the Orange Free State, Natal and the Transvaal.

As most directories in the 1800s and early 1900s were privately published, they appear under various names:

General Directory and Guide Book to the Cape of Good Hope
The Argus Annual and South African Directory
De Kaapsche Almanak en Naamboek
De Zuid-Afrikaansche Blygeestige Almanak en Naamlyst
Port Elizabeth Year Book and Directory
The General Directory of South Africa
The Natal Almanac
De Oranjevrijstaatsdshe Almanak
Jeppe's Transvaal Almanac and Directory
Longland's Johannesburg and Districts Directory
Kimberley Year Book and Directory
Donaldson and Hill's Eastern Province Directory
Laite's Commercial Blue Book for South Africa
The Transvaal and Rhodesia Directory
The Orange River Colony Directory
The United Transvaal Directory

In 1905 the first Anglo-African Who's Who was available. By 1907 there was the South African Who's Who which included photographs and brief biographies. This became an annual publication. Other biographical directories included:

The Natal Who's Who (1906)
Men of the Times: Pioneers of the Transvaal
Men of the Times: Old Colonists of the Cape Colony and Orange River Colony
Women of South Africa (1913)
The South African Women's Who's Who (1938)

Specialist directories included:

Sports and Sportsmen in South Africa (1926)
Sports and Sportsmen in South Africa and Rhodesia (1929)
Arts in South Africa (1933-34)
The Who's Who in Entertainment and Sport in South Africa (late 1950s, early 1960s)
Who is Who / Wie is Wie in Pretoria (1951)
Die Nasionale Boek (1938)
Die Afrikaner Personeregister (1942)
Die Afrikanerfamilienaamboek en Personalia (1955)

Various churches published their own directories or year books.

NAMES

Children were frequently named after grandparents, aunts and uncles on both sides of the family. Some families followed set patterns, such as the Scots and the Afrikaners. These two patterns were similar, maybe because of the various Scottish missionaries involved in the early Dutch churches in South Africa. The pattern was not rigid, but they were quite common in early families and can provide possible clues.

The general naming pattern was as follows:

1st son named after paternal grandfather

2nd son named after maternal grandfather

3rd son named after father

4th son named after father’s eldest brother

5th son named after mother’s eldest brother

1st daughter named after maternal grandmother

2nd daughter named after paternal grandmother

3rd daughter named after mother

4th daughter named after mother’s eldest sister

5th daughter named after father’s eldest sister

Women’s maiden surnames can sometimes be found in naming patterns. English families often used the mother's maiden surname as a middle name for children.

Slaves were given new names once they arrived at the Cape and sold. Some names referred to characteristics or a physical feature. There were also Biblical names and calendar names. The calendar names are often found amongst slaves from the Indian sub-continent. Some slaves were allowed to keep their own names, as in the case of the Lodge slaves. Origins were often found in slave names, such as “van Bengal” and “van Batavia”.

In 1807 Lord CALEDON ordered a census of Cape Town. It did not include government officials or soldiers. The total population was given as 15, 567, including 435 urban Khoikhoi.

In a separate census, there were 1,143 free blacks (644 were adults). This census showed that 252 free black adults used surnames, while the rest had names such as Adonis of Batavia and David of Bengal. The five most common free black surnames were ARENDSE, HENDRIKSE, JACOBSE, JANSE and PIETERSE. Later on, some of these surnames lost the se suffix.

Most of the earliest surnames at the Cape were of Dutch or German origin. Later on this was followed by English, Scottish and Irish surnames.

Most surnames have undergone some change in spelling over the years. Common surnames such as SMITH can appear as SMYTHE, TAYLOR as TYLER, STEWART as STUART. Spelling was not standardised and many early ancestors could not read and write, relying on parish or government officials as to spelling of their surnames.

MAPPING FAMILIES

Towns that once existed have been absorbed by expanding municipalities and often they’ve acquired a new name. Knowing which towns are incorporated in municipalities over the years, can help you find ancestors. Some records are only indexed under the old town names.

COMPILED RECORDS

Always check what is available in compiled records before starting your search. Even though many compiled records contain errors, they can still provide clues to help you further. Compiled records include books, microfilms and CDs. Local libraries or museums often have files of newspaper clippings, photographs and other local information about the town’s people, buildings, businesses, local events and organisations. Some have a local history and genealogy collection.

WITNESSES
Often registers of baptism and marriage contain the names of witnesses. The witnesses were frequently brothers, married sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins or in-laws.

SCHOOL ARCHIVES

School year books, newsletters photographs and admission records can help fill in gaps. Check with schools to see if they have archives or past pupils groups. Amongst the schools that have archives, is Durban High School. Their archives were set up in 1991. The second oldest government high school in Durban has gathered memorabilia, documents, trophies and photographs for its school archives. South African College Schools (SACS) in Cape Town also has a school archives. St Mary's DSG is another school with an established archives.

In 1945, Glenwood High School in Durban compiled a list of all its Old Boys who died in WWII. The Union Defence Force only published their list of the 12,000+ South Africans who died in the war, in 1952, and it only contained the surnames with initials, unit and date of death. Out of these, 81 were Glenwood boys. In the 1980s the school compiled a list of Old Boys who had died in Korea and during the Border War. They also compiled a WWI list. The school also has a Book of Remembrance which contains information and photographs of many of the dead. A computerized alphabetical name list of every Old Boy from 1918 to 1942 was produced. All the war dead are contained in a 3-volume set of bound books. The school’s admission records for 1910-1918 no longer exist, but the school magazine, The Magnet (published from 1912-1914) might be useful.

Pupils and teachers at Schietfontein Farm School, Pretoria, in 1898

CEMETERY RECORDS

Cemetery registers are kept by local municipalities. Information can include the deceased’s age, cause of death, place of death, grave number, and the religious affiliation. The Genealogical Society of South Africa has an ongoing cemetery recording project. This information is available for sale on a CD . The CD has more than 160 000 gravestones recorded. Johannesburg cemeteries have partial data available on the Internet (when the site works).