The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, Volume 21: Art & Architecture, Judith Bonner, Estill Pennington, and Charles Wilson ( Ed.s).

From the colonial era to the 21st century, this comprehensive volume examines the development of Southern art and its contribution to America’s cultural heritage, offering a  full review of both historic and current trends in the visual arts and architecture that are unique to the region.

The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, Volume 22: Science & Medicine, James Thomas & Charles Wilson (Ed.s).

With 38 essays, a comprehensive overview, and 44 topical entries, this book  describes the critical impact of science and medicine on southern history and culture. Essays explore the South’s natural history, medicine in the Civil War, slave health, public health, eugenics, environmental health, HIV/AIDS, and the rise of research institutions and hospitals.

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

In 1 branch of my family, a distant relative hired a professional researcher way before I was even born. The hired researcher found a lot of great information, especially considering the internet did not exist at the time (1950′s). When I finally connected with my distant relatives here in NC, I was so excited to receive a copy of the manuscript written around 50 years ago. I used that information as a guide to gather all the documents I needed when I hit a brick wall. Turns out, there is a good possibility that my earliest American ancestor from the line may not have married the person that everyone said he married. Now, it is so ingrained with this branch of the family that they were married because no one had researched it for themselves. Today – they all take what was written as fact. It is important to keep in mind that written family histories, whether published or not, are not primary records.

Perhaps the most important reason to research for yourself is just the thrill of it. If you’ve been bitten by the genealogy bug, there is a great satisfaction of finding records for yourself. Even if your relatives have cited down to the archival call number, there is a feeling of joy and excitement at seeing documents written during your ancestors lives, maybe even seeing their signatures.

All of that said, the Government & Heritage Library has many family history books in our genealogy collection. Come take a look at what we have!

On June 24^th, at 2 pm the North Carolina Government & Heritage Library will host a free webinar on BLNC, Business Link North Carolina.  BLNC, a free service offered to North Carolinians by the North Carolina Department of Commerce, contains a wealth of information on how to start a small business. Librarians and others can better assist their business community and entrepreneurs by learning what this great resource has to offer.  BLNC can help your community members start their own business with:

• ŸBusiness forms
• licenses and permits
• business plan resources
• employer requirements
• tax info
• financial resources
• minority resources
• government contracting

Christine Ryan, Small Business Ombudsman, BLNC

Christine Ryan, Small Business Ombudsman, will be your guide to BLNC. Christine works directly with representatives of agencies across state government to ensure that businesses receive timely and accurate information regarding licensing, permits and other government services.  She previously worked for the Attorney General’s Office, primarily in the Consumer Protection Division.  Christine has a BA from Fairfield University, a law degree from Wake Forest School of Law, and an MS from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Business Link North Carolina offers a central source for consultations, information and referrals… just the help you need to tap into all the State has to offer.

BLNC is a free service of the NC Department of Commerce.

Register at: http://statelibrary.ncdcr.libcal.com/event.php?id=298045

For more information regarding the webinar please contact Elizabeth Hayden at elizabeth.hayden@ncdcr.gov

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

The most famous oddity, which is only odd by today’s standards, is the Stanly-Spaight duel. Richard Dobbs Spaight, a well respected, prominent political leader died of injuries from a duel with John Stanly. The issue at stake was honor, and dueling wasn’t uncommon in the 1800s. Despite laws being passed against it, the practice continued until around the time of the Civil War.

Buggy accidents claimed the lives of some. Former Governor David Lowry Swain died after being injured in one. John Green survived a buggy accident, but was partially paralyzed from it. Perhaps news of such incidents shouldn’t surprise us, but they caught me off guard. I know automobile accidents happen all the time, but it hadn’t occurred to me that there had been carriage accidents!

Other articles have interesting notes about where, exactly, someone died. For instance, a number of articles indicate a person died at home. The article on Benjamin Cleveland indicates he not only died at home, but died at the breakfast table. The article on Francis Donnell Winston indicates he died in the same room in which he had been born. (The room itself is not named. Perhaps it was a bedroom?)

What may be the strangest cause of death so far, however, was experienced by Samuel Spencer. He, too, was a prominent political leader, known for advocating for a federal Bill of Rights, and was a judge in the late 1700s. A turkey played a role in his death. He was allegedly napping on his porch when he was attacked by a turkey. An infection resulted from the cuts and scratches delivered during the attack, and he passed on March 20, 1793.

ACCESS North Carolina: A Vacation and Travel Guide for People with Disabilities was recently named by Library Journal as one of the notable government documents for 2012.

ACCESS North Carolina mixes text and icons to offer basic tourist site data on nearly 400 different locations throughout North Carolina. Users can tell at a glance if a site is accessible or partially accessible for persons with ­disabilities. In addition to benefiting people with disabilities, the information in ACCESS North Carolina can also benefit people who are aging, and parents with child and infant strollers.

ACCESS North Carolina was produced by the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services, a division of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services .

To read the complete Library Journal article go to here.  To see the listing for ACCESS North Carolina, scroll down the article to State and Local, and then to North Carolina.

Families in Crisis in the Old South: Divorce, Slavery & the Law, by Loren Schweninger. Through in depth analysis of the antebellum South’s institutions of marriage and slavery, the author reveals a matrix of household, judicial and social relations and how these were influenced by the traditions of southern patriarchy. Conclusions regarding the impact of divorce and separation on white families and the enslaved were based on examination of  800 divorce cases from the Southern United States and show how these laws changed over time.

Kitchens, Smokehouses and Privies: Outbuildings and the Architecture of Daily Life in the Eighteenth  Century Mid Atlantic, by Michael Olmert. With emphasis on the Tidewater region of Virginia, this book takes the reader to the 18th century backyards of colonial America and explores outbuildings – - structures designed to support the drudgery and business of 18th century domestic life.  As a social, cultural and architectural history, the book  explores the world of work in  service of the ‘big’ house using narrative and illustrations.

Watching TV Off the Back of a Fire Truck: Voices from the Floyd Flood in Eastern North Carolina, Julie Fay, Joyce Newman and Harlan Gradin, Eds. Made possible by a  North Carolina Humanities Council writing project, this collection of  written accounts from North Carolinians affected by Hurricane Floyd reveals the personal impact of  disaster. For most, the writing and telling of these stories not only offers testimony about events, but also brings the opportunity for each individual to reflect on their experience ‘transforming catastrophe and chaos into a form of grieving and healing.’

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

In the past, I’ve talked about birth certificates – missing birth certificates and finding substitutes for missing birth certificates. Today I want to talk about delayed birth certificates. I will present today’s information as a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

What are delayed birth certificates?
People born before 1913 or who were born after 1913 but the birth was not recorded immediately could file for a delayed birth certificate.

Why were they filed?
Delayed birth certificates could be filed for many resources, but primarily they were filed to receive social security benefits or to obtain a passport, both of which required a birth certificate in the 1900s.

Who can file?
Anyone!

Where were they filed?
Unlike birth certificates, delayed birth certificates were filed in the county the person resided in at the time of filing. If your ancestors always lived in 1 place there entire life, it makes it pretty easy, but even in that scenario, county boundaries can change year to year. Many people’s ancestors moved throughout their life so it’s a good idea to check with each county their ever resided in.

How do I know if my ancestors filed?
A major clue is if they were born before 1913 and are listed in the Social Security Death Index or had a passport!

How do I obtain a copy of the delayed birth certificate?
In North Carolina, the originals are filed in the county Register of Deeds for the county it was filed in. The State Archives of North Carolina has indexes for some counties. In addition, the Government & Heritage Library has published books that either abstract the originals or transcribe the indexes in the Archives.

For example, we have the book Delayed Birth Certificates of Cleveland County, NC Volumes 1-9. We also have the CD-ROM Madison County, NC Delayed Birth Records. We have other titles in our catalog, including microfilm that can be loaned to other libraries only in North Carolina.

photo courtesy of borman818

Whether it’s your first time renting a home or apartment, or you’ve been doing it for years, the process of security deposits might be confusing to you. Why do landlords need them? How much can I be charged? What happens to my security deposit while I’m a tenant? This document, produced by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission, aims at addressing these and other questions. This information is not just for tenants alone, but is also beneficial to landlords, property managers and real estate agents.  Take a look at this short document and you’ll better understand where your money is going during the process of renting a residence.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

Applesauce cake, care of flickr user Patent and the Pantry. (Made from a recipe similar to, but not the same as the one in this post.)

The internet tells me that today is National Applesauce Cake Day. I couldn’t find out who officially declared that June 6 be reserved for the celebration of applesauce cake, but I did find some information on the origin of the recipe itself, claiming that it’s a 20th century creation related to traditional fruitcake. During World War I, applesauce cakes were “promoted as patriotic (less butter, sugar, eggs)” – coming from the idea that using fewer food resources was a way of contributing to the War on the domestic front*. The earliest mention I could find of applesauce cake in the United States comes from a 1904 letter to the Boston Globe‘s Household Department. It reads as follows:

Nellie Bly—Your apple sauce cake was delicious. I have read the household department ever since it started and find many good recipes. Sunnyside. (February 6, 1904)

Google’s ngram, which I’ve mentioned before, shows a sharp up-tick in mentions of applesauce cake leading into World War II.

So here’s a recipe from Favorite Recipes of North Carolina (page 33, digital page 35) available in our North Carolina Digital Collections. I’ve tried it myself, and have to say it’s definitely a frugal tasting cake; best for when you need a filling, but only slightly sweet snack.

*See http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodcakes.html#applesaucecakes

Architecture and Town Planning in Colonial North America, by James Kornwolf and Georgiana Kornwolf. This 3 volume set studies the architecture, landscape design and town planning of European colonies covering the United States (1562-1792) and Canada (1604-1815), and serves as a reference work and guidebook on the subject.

The Courthouses of Early Virginia: An Architectural History, by Carl R. Lounsbury.  The author presents contributions in architectural, social, archaeological, and political history to the early period of the Virginia ‘courthouse square.’  The origins of the court system, evolution of the courthouse plan, along with  the clerks’ offices and taverns that supported the  system, are detailed and include comparative examples from North Carolina and Maryland.

Essays in Early American Architectural History: A View from the Chesapeake, by Carl Lounsbury. ‘The essays in this collection represent the type of research that has reshaped our understanding of early American architecture over the past 30 years.’ The author ‘traces the manner in which domestic, ecclesiastical and public architecture illuminate the dynamics and aspirations of early American society.’  The emergence of regional building traditions and cultural landscapes,  along with the influences that shaped their evolution, are reviewed.

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook, by Barbara Duncan and Brett Riggs.  Organized around 7 geographical hubs within the original Cherokee homeland, this guidebook offers a unique journey to discover the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in the mountains of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. Travelers can find a deeper Cherokee Heritage rooted in sacred places, storytelling, folk arts and history. Featured sites include the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, Kituhwa Mound, Junaluska Memorial and Museum, and the Unicoi Turnpike Trail, a part of the Trail of Tears.

In Full Glory Reflected: Discovering the War of 1812 in the Chesapeake, by the Maryland Historical Society Press.  With vivid illustrations, this book recounts the war’s gripping stories of devastating raids, heroic defense, gallant privateers, freedom seeking slaves and threatened lands in the Chesapeake where much of the war occurred.  Also featured is information about the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail which traces the original routes of the Americans and British and recounts the dramatic events that produced the US national anthem.

Civil War Sites in the South, 4th Ed., Insider’s Guide (publisher).  This guide covers the South’s Civil War battle sites in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida with key sites, points of interest, and day trips.  It also offers features on military and civic leaders, a glossary of Civil War terminology, and excerpts from soldiers’  memoirs. Directions, locations, lodging and meal information are also included.

Touring Virginia’s and West Virginia’s Civil War Sites, 2nd Ed., by Clint Johnson. The 18 tours described by the author guide the traveler to all significant Civil War sites in both Virginia and West Virginia –  large and small battlefields, historic buildings, monuments, statues, rivers, and mountains. A histories of each location are included. 

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

US Colored Troops in the Wilmington Campaign Members of Company E, 4th USCT
Courtesy of the Library of Congress

May 22, 2013 was the 150th anniversary of the formation of the U.S. Colored Troops (USCT).  Almost a year ago, I posted about U.S. Colored Troops in North Carolina (please see this post to find out which regiments of the USCT were from NC).

On May 22, 2013, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) announced that all services records for the USCT have been fully digitized and available on Fold3. The records for all Infantry, all Artillery, and all Calvary are available on Fold3 to research. 

Information on these service records varies. Depending on how long they serviced, there could be less than 5 pages and up to 50 or even more.  Here is an example of information from a card of Lewis Bass, age 21 in 1863 of NC who served in Company K of the 35th Regiment. There was a total of 29 pages in his record:

Height: 5’4″

Where Born: Hamilton, N.C.

Occupation: Laborer

He enlisted May 29, 186[blank] for a period of 3 years in Washington, DC

He was sick and hospitalized June 30, 1863, November 1863, and again in January and February of 1864

In August 1865, he deserted the USCT at Barrows, SC, but returned in October of the same year.

He was mustered out in Charleston, SC June 1, 1866.

Come on over to the Government and Heritage Library to use Fold3 (for free) and search for your ancestors records in the U.S. Colored Troops!

We will reopen for regular business hours on Tuesday, May 28th,8:30 am – 5:00 pm.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

The photos were taken as part of the original NC ECHO project in the early 2000s. You can find all 11, and thousands more, in our North Carolina Digital Collections. Have fun, and let us know how you did!

The U.S. Navy Pictorial History of the War of 1812, by Don Philpott. To commemorate the recent bicentennial, this book combines fresh historical narrative with more than one hundred dramatic illustrations which focus on the War of 1812′s naval battles, its most important and influential conflicts. Most from the U.S. Navy archives, the illustrations are official works and and include depictions showing naval vessels along with historic individuals and battle scenes.

The Weight of Vengeance: The United States, the British Empire, and the War of 1812, by Troy Bickham. Presenting new historical information in a global context, the author commemorates the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812  transforming our understanding of this “forgotten” yet pivotal war.

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

Hirelings: African American Workers and Free Labor in Early Maryland, by Jennifer Dorsey. The author describes a time when black slavery and black freedom existed side by side on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and retells the history of free Africans and their descendants who,  since the 17th century, made the area home.

Looking South: Race, Gender, and the Transformation of Labor from Reconstruction to Globalization, by Mary Frederickson.  The author takes a comprehensive look at the effects of race, class, and gender, as well as events, movements,  and personalities,  in the development of the low-wage, anti-union, and state supported industries of  the ‘New South’ and  the ‘Global South.’

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

Courtesy of the Library of Congress

A few weeks ago I posted a tip of the week about using timelines to help sort out 2 or more individuals who could be the person you are looking for using the example of Rufus Mitchell and Rufus Mitchell, both of Guilford County and born a year or 2 apart. It got me thinking about other uses for timelines. I also realized that some people may be unsure how to create a timeline so I will use some examples of timelines I’ve created for my own research so you can see how I do it and hopefully that will give you some ideas on creating your own.

One of the best uses for timelines in my experience is to sort information you already have about a person to see what information you need to look for. Whenever I receive a request, I create a timeline of information that the patron has given me to determine where to start. Here is an example with John Doe and his wife Jane (fictitious):

John Doe (variations: Dough)
b. ~1806 Lincoln Co., NC
d. unknown
m.  ~1830 Lincoln Co., NC to Jane Doe

Children: James Doe (b. Dec 1839), Janet Doe (b. ~1842)
Parents: unknown
Siblings: Peter Doe (b. ~1803), Joseph (b. ~1800), Mary (b. ~1809)

• 1820 census – he is not listed as a head of a household
• 3 Nov 1826 – John Doe witnessed the deed between John Smith of Guilford County to James Johnson of Lincoln County 100 acres for $50
• 1830 census – he is not listed as a head of a household
• 1 Nov 1830 – marriage to Jane Mitchell in Lincoln County, Peter Doe as bondsman
• 23 Jan 1831 – purchased 60 acres for $10 from Paul Doe in Lincoln County
• 1837 Tax List – Lincoln County, Rutledge’s  Company with 60 acres valued at $50 and 1 taxable
• 1840 Census – head of house of Lincoln County 1 male under 5, 1 male age 30-40 1 female age 5-10, 1 female age 20-30.
• August 1847 – Will filed in Lincoln County for John Doe dated 1 Feb 1847 and proved in August court 1847

From the top portion, we see what we know and what we’re unsure about, but making a time line we can fill in the blanks. For example there is a will that was dated and proved in the same year so now we can fill in the death date as 1847. There is also a purchase of land from an unknown Doe – Paul. Who is this? father, uncle, brother?  Then we see 6 years later in the tax list he has the same amount of land but the value is more. Could that mean the 60 acres he purchased in 1831 was purchased for only $10 because it was more of a gift and really valued for $50? In this scenario I would next look into this Paul and see who he is. Remember this is just an example I created.

Now for a real one:

I created this during my own personal research. This is for a man named Edmund Pettiford who resided as an adult in Guilford County.

Edmund Pettiford (variations: Pettyford, Pittiford, Pettifor)
b. 8 Aug 1791, possibly Wake Co., NC
d. 30 Aug 1889 Grant Co., IN
m. 13 Dec 1816 Chatham Co., NC to Sarah Carter

Children: Willis Henderson (b. ~1820), Richard (b. ~1821), Beverly Daniel (b.~1822), Ransom (b.~1822), John Milton (b.~1824), Benton (b.~1826), Young (b.~1827), Clarinda (b.~1829), Franklin (b.~1830), Elizabeth (b.~1832), Mary Jane (b.~1834), and Sarah (b.~1836)
Parents: unknown
siblings: unknown

• 13 Dec 1816 – married Sarah Carter in Chatham County (Source: Marriage Bond)
• 1820 – I have not found him in the census yet, but believe he was in Wake County and the census does not exist for Wake County that year.
• 1830 – Wake County, NC census Little River Township, pg. 473 line 16
• 1840 – Guilford County, NC census page 229
• 28 Sep 1847 – entry in Guilford County Deed book 30 states that Edmund Pettyfoot [sic] owes Stephen Macy $18.03 for a livestock and crops raised on the plantation of said Macy
• 1850 – Guilford County, NC census, Southern Division with wife Sarah, p. 272a
• 1860 – Grant County, IN census, Liberty township, p. 309

The information above is displayed in a way that it is easy to see at a glance what I have for him and what I need.

Just a note, for the information on Edmund Pettiford, I have been researching the Pettiford line in NC since 2000. The information above for Edmund comes from research right here at the Government & Heritage Library before I ever started working here. Using Ancestry Library Edition and census microfilm, I was able to search the census information. For the marriage bond, the library has a microfiche index of all marriage bonds filed in the State Archives of North Carolina. For the entry in the deed book dated in 1847, I first found mention of that in the book Abstract of Deeds, Guilford County Books 30 and 31 (1845-1850) by Dr. A.B. Pruitt. This book for deed books 30 and 31 is part of a series by the same author that abstracted deeds beginning in 1784 and ending in 1857! Dr. Pruitt has created deed abstracts for other counties as well and other types of abstracts for 96 books in our collection by this author.  Come on over to the Government & Heritage Library to take a look at them!

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1, aka Whistler’s Mother, by James McNeill Whistler (1871)

This Sunday is Mother’s Day in the United States (you’re welcome, to those who had forgotten). I did a little poking around in our digital collections and NCpedia, to find some Mother’s Day tidbits for you.

If you’re interested in reading about particular mothers, NCpedia can help you there. There’s an article about one recognizable mother and native of Wilmington, North Carolina: Whistler’s Mother (pictured at right).  You might also want to read about Mary T. Martin Sloop, who was once named America’s Mother of the Year, or about Nanye’hi and Cherokee matrilineal customs.

Maybe you’re interested in the holiday itself? Mother’s Day was officially recognized by Congress in 1914, after many years of effort to create such a holiday by West Virginian Anna Jarvis and her mother, Ann, as well as earlier efforts by Julia Ward Howe.

North Carolina Education published an article entitled “Mothers’ Day–Its Origin and Celebration” in the same month the holiday was officially recognized (May, 1914, print p. 11). The author of the article describes the spirit behind Mother’s Day. Schools are mentioned as celebrating the day on the Friday before Mother’s Day, using the slogan “In Honor of ‘The Best Mother Who Ever Lived,’ the Mother of Your Heart. ‘”

The author of the article also talks about earlier commemorations of mothers, including a festival in Boston for “mothers who have not had a vacation from the city and who get few opportunities for such enjoyment of city parks.” Over 15,000 mothers were mentioned to attend the Boston festivities, which included storytellers, music, and educational talks. “Democracy was symbolized by the mingling of people of all nationalities and by the mayor dancing with the children of the poor.”

Another publication in our digital collections, Observance of Special Days, from 1959 (print p. 90-91), gives teachers details about major holidays and lists recommended activities. Here are a few examples for Mother’s Day:

• Collect and show pictures of mothers and “good family living” groups.
• Read or tell suitable stories. Then let children discuss and dramatize mother’s place in the home, showing appreciation for her kindnesses.
• Visit a homebound mother and present her with a gift — plant or flowers.
• Interview old people in the community and report to class on the customs of family living in early times.

The Allstons of Chicora Wood: Wealth, Honor and Gentility in the South Carolina Low Country, by William Scarborough. The author chronicles the history of a South Carolina planter family from the opulent antebellum years through the trauma of the Civil War and postwar period. With a focus on the patriarch, Robert R. F. W. Allston, his wife Adele Petigru Allston, and their daughter Elizabeth Allston Pringle Scarborough, the history of this prominent and extraordinarily enterprising  family is presented.

Katharine and R.J. Reynolds: Partners of Fortune in the Making of the New South, by Michele Gillespie. This marital portrait of power couple extraordinaire tobacco empire founder R.J. and Katherine Reynolds presents a business and social history of the modern South in the North Carolina Piedmont. With the backdrop of post-Reconstruction issues- rural poverty, industrial transformation, white working-class inferiority, racism, a one-party political system- the book describes how the New South’s elite developed business structures, social relations and racial hierarchies.

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

Used with permission from Microsoft

It’s no news that the housing market has had some trouble over the years. And it’s definitely no shock that the environment isn’t in the best shape either. Could there be some solution that would  benefit both mother nature and the housing market? Could a move towards energy efficiency make it easier to get a home loan?  This paper examines that very question- whether the energy efficiency of a home is associated with lower mortgage risks. Energy costs are rising because family size is decreasing while homes sizes are increasing, and because of the increase in energy bills, families have less income to meet other needs, such as a mortgage.  To help energy costs decrease, the authors of the paper propose that mortgage pricing or underwriting flexibility should account for energy efficiency. By creating more efficient houses, occupants have more income to put towards housing expenses, lowering default and prepayment risks. The paper describes different financing mechanisms for residential energy efficiency, overviews mortgage risk literature, describes the research design and method used, and discusses the results and derives implications for future research and policy.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.

Link: http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/ghl/themes/may.html

Check out all Explore NC topics: http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/ghl/themes/index.html

]]> http://statelibrarync.org/news/2013/05/this-month-explore-north-carolina-agriculture/feed/ 0 http://statelibrarync.org/news/2013/05/this-month-explore-north-carolina-agriculture/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GhlBlog/~3/DoZHDodOY8A/ http://statelibrarync.org/news/2013/04/new-additions-carolina-nature/#comments Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:00:22 +0000 Maria (acqserials) http://statelibrarync.org/news/?p=10734 New additions to the collections of the Government and Heritage Library:

Longleaf, Far as the Eye Can See: A New Vision of North America’s Richest Forest, by Bill Finch, Beth Young, Rhett Johnson, & John Hall.  Part natural history, part conservation advocacy, and part cultural exploration, this book highlights the special nature of longleaf forests. The authors explore the interaction of Longleaf pine with other species, the development of longleaf forests prior to human contact, the influence of the longleaf on southern culture, and ongoing efforts to restore these forests. The book blends  compelling narrative with stunning photography describing  North Carolina and southeastern forests.

Touring the Western North Carolina Backroads, 3rd Ed., by Carolyn Sakowski. The 21 tours in this book cover an area as noteworthy for its history as for its natural beauty and feature updated directions, new sites, photographs, and maps. Along with significant places, the travel routes of historic individuals are included.

Library materials will be available for check out at the Government and Heritage Library by North Carolina State Agency employees or may be borrowed through an interlibrary loan request at your local public library. To view other new library acquisitions, click here.

Sometimes when we are researching our ancestors, we find 2 or more individuals who can be the person you are looking for.  An example, this week I’ve been helping a patron search for an ancestor named Rufus Mitchell from Guilford County. The problem is there were 2 Rufus Mitchells during the time frame in question.

A way that really helps me and a tip I heard in a conference once, is to create a chronological timeline of what you know already starting with birth information and ending with death information.

What I do then is make an additional time line for the other individual(s) to compare with what I already know. Doing this I was able to figure out which Rufus was the right one based on information given to me for the 1870-1920 census, but there is still a problem in the 1850-1860 census. I’ve been able to separate them using time lines and it is up to the researcher to do some digging and figure out which Rufus was her ancestor.

This publication can be downloaded, printed, saved, and viewed by clicking here.