Free The Family Tree Problem Solver: Tried-And-True Tactics for Tracing Elusive Ancestors by Marsha Hoffman Rising

Promissory note from John Griffis, 1842.

    Figure 2-11 Record of John Griffis' estate.

    Figure 2-12 Record of John Griffis' estate.
    Following is an example of finding a death date using tax records. It also shows the importance of distinguishing individuals of the same name.
    The death date of Joshua Cornell of Greenwich, Connecticut, born ca. 1667, was unknown to researchers. He left no probate records, no deeds, no tombstone, and there was no mention of his death in the Quaker records — but I know that he died in 1743. I found the date using tax records.
    Greene County [MO] Circuit Court Minutes
    April Term 1839
    DRUERY MERRITT vs. BENJAMIN KIMBERLING
    Now at this day appearing to the satisfaction of the Court that the said Druery Merritt is deceased and it is considered by the Court that said suit be dismissed.
    Figure 2-13 Circuit court minutes proving the death of Druery Merritt.
    Both Joshua Cornell Sr. and Joshua Cornell Jr. were taxed a number of years in a row, including:

1742
AMOUNT AS GIVEN
Joshua Cornell
Sr. 53-8
Joshua Cornell Jr.
124-00
    The following year only Joshua Cornell was listed, with nothing indicating that there was more than one man of that name in the neighborhood who paid taxes.

1743
Joshua Cornell
174-17-6
    Notice that he is no longer using a junior or senior designation, and look at the amount — it is almost the combination of the earlier year's taxes for both men. Doubters may suggest that the younger man died, not the elder. Examining a few more documents in the area such as deeds, church records, or court minutes conclusively proves that the younger man was the one later creating or named in records.
    5. MIGRATION CAN OCCUR IN THE ELDER YEARS. If you are having difficulty establishing the death date of an older person who lived in one community for several years and then disappeared, most likely he or she migrated and then died in the home of a child — usually a daughter.
    6. A CHANGE OF NAME MAY INDICATE A DEATH. If “Peggy,” who was named after her grandmother, suddenly becomes known as “Margaret,” this may indicate the death of the older woman for whom the child was named. “Polly” may become Mary, “Betty” may become Elizabeth, and so on. Watch for the changing of a title from junior to senior. As you may know, before the twentieth century,
junior
did not necessarily indicate that a man was the son of the man with the same name who used senior. It demonstrated only that there was an older man of the same name living in the community. See chapter eight, “Sorting Individuals of the Same Name,” for a more extensive discussion.
    7. Watch for legal transactions of the off spring. The division of lands previously held is an indication of death, and if the lands are sold and the heirs leave the community, both parents are likely to be deceased. Land sold “in the interest of Samuel Connelly, a minor” may be a clue to the death of a parent. Note the absence of one-third of the land of the deceased; it may be held for the widow during her lifetime, and then dispersed at her death. When the land is divided into parts and all the children are accounted for, the wife of the deceased man has predeceased him.
Clues to the Occurrence of a Marriage
    1. Probate records should be checked carefully. Note wills in which the husband (or anyone with his surname) is named as a “legatee,” and look for probate in the county of the husband's or wife's residence at the approximate time of marriage.
    It was common during the eighteenth century for the witnesses of a will to be one person from the wife's side of the family and one from the husband's. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, but one certainly worth investigating. Often guardians appointed for the children will be a member of her family as well as one of his. Guardians are almost always family members. If you had dependent children, wouldn't you most likely choose a family member to look after any estate your children might