Your ancestry journey often begins with wanting to unravel the mystery of your immigrant ancestor. Do they go back only a generation or two, or were they part of the Mayflower or Jamestown migrations.
In this blog post, I’ll give you some tips you can use to help in your search. Plus, I’ll show you how I found my Irish immigrant ancestor, William Dunahoo and try to answer the question, now what?
Finding our immigrant ancestor isn’t always easy. But there are some things you can do to make the process a little smoother. Check out these tips:
Start At Home
Start your search with what you already have. Family stories, letters, old photos, and documents might hold clues about your ancestor’s origins. Look for any mention of places, dates, or other family members. These pieces can give you clues where to look next.
Use Census Records
Census records are invaluable. In the U.S., census records from 1850 onward list everyone in the household by name, age, and birthplace. Some later censuses include the year of immigration and naturalization status. This information can help you pinpoint when your ancestor arrived.
Check Passenger Lists
Passenger lists are exciting to find. They can give details like the ship’s name, departure port, and arrival date. Websites like Ancestry and FamilySearch have extensive collections of these records. Make sure to look for different variations in spelling, as names weren’t always spelled like we think they were.
Naturalization Records
Naturalization records often include the immigrant’s birthplace, arrival date, and the ship’s name. These records are typically found at the National Archives or online databases. Early records might be less detailed, but records starting in 1906 have more to offer.
Local Records
Local records in the immigrant’s new home can also give you clues. Church records, city directories, and local newspapers might mention your ancestor. Don’t forget to look for obituaries which could mention their place of origin
Online Communities
Join online genealogy forums and social media groups. Other researchers might have tips or access to records you don’t.
Document What You Find
Keep detailed notes of your research. Document every source and every lead, even if it seems small. This will help you track your progress and avoid duplicating work you’ve already done.
Be Patient And Persistent
Finding an immigrant ancestor takes time and patience. Not every search will give you immediate results. Persistence is key. Sometimes, taking a break and returning with fresh eyes can make all the difference.
Hire A Professional
If you hit a brick wall, consider hiring a professional genealogist. We have the experience and resources to work through more complicated records and can give you new ideas.
An Example From My Family
By starting with yourself and working backward, you probably found your immigrant ancestor’s country of origin in a census record. The first time I found my 2x great-grandfather, John Donahoo, was in the 1860 census in Grainger County, Tennessee living with his father, William.1 The country of origin for William says Ireland.
Finding William in records
William Dunahoo was born about 1818 in Ireland, but that’s all the information given…the country. All census records throughout William’s life are consistent with his home country of Ireland, but I want more. Notice that no one else in the household has a birthplace. Not helpful!
After finding every census record I could, my next stop was to look for naturalization papers. I didn’t find an image of his application, but a transcription exists that just says Ireland as William’s country.2 Nothing new there. He immigrated to the United States on 3 April 1836. That piece of information leads to new questions…did he come alone? What port did he come through?
Other records to search
I searched for passenger manifests but came up empty. So, it’s time to look at William’s FAN Club…those friends/family, associates, and neighbors to see what their records might reveal.3 You can read my blog post about using the FAN Club in your genealogy research here.
I started with William’s children, especially my direct line ancestor and William’s oldest child, John Dunahoo (or Donahoo). The 1880 census has John living in Grainger County, Tennessee with his wife, Sarah, and their 5 children.4
From this record, John was born about 1838 in Georgia and his parents were both born in Cork Ireland (the next image shows birthplaces for John, William, and John’s unknown mother, respectively.)
County Cork – I now have a county in Ireland to research, but I also have a possible U.S. entry point for William…Georgia. Not everyone came through Ellis Island, so Savannah, Georgia is a possible port of entry.
John’s brother, James, has conflicting evidence as to his place of birth. Some census records list Tennessee while one says Georgia. The one consistent item is the birthplace of his parents. All census records that ask for that information say Ireland. Looking at the other siblings of John and James, they all have Ireland as the home of their father, William.
Death certificates are another source of parent information, but out of all of William’s children, only one lived long enough to give that – and Ireland was all it said.
Now what?
At this point, do you know where to search next? FamilySearch has a wonderful resource that lists the most likely records to answer your research question. You can find that here. Not only should you look for these types of records for your immigrant ancestor, but also for their FAN Club.
While I am still searching for the smoking gun on what port William came through, I did find in John’s Civil War Pension Records a letter he wrote verifying his birthdate and birthplace (Savannah, Georgia) and other family information that is invaluable to my research. I think the port of entry in Savannah is looking very promising. Transcribing the file will take a while as it is over 100 pages.
Finally
Putting together the pieces of your ancestor’s immigration to America is sometimes challenging, but always rewarding. Whether you find direct evidence from your immigrant ancestor or members of their FAN club, narrowing down the place of origin is key. You don’t want to “hop the pond” before you know all you can here in the United States.
Genealogy tip: The FAN Club can be key to finding information about your immigrant ancestor. Look for all the records for the people in their life to see what else can be learned.
Finding your immigrant ancestor sometimes takes a little work. I’d love to help you find them. Click the button below to start. Let’s journey to the past together.
1 1860 U.S. census, Grainger County, Tennessee, population schedule, District 5, p. 75, dwelling 539, family 539, Wm Dunahoo household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7667/images/4296190_00497: accessed 8 Oct 2023), image 10; citing National Archives and Record Administration microfilm publication M653, roll 1250.
2 “Declaration of William Donahoo for Naturalization, 1849, Grainger County, Tennessee,” discussion list 2 Apr 2008, Ancestry.co.uk (https://www.ancestry.co.uk/boards/surnames.donahoo/103: accessed 8 May 2023).
3 The FAN Club is a term Elizabeth Shown Mills coined to describe the people our ancestors associated with.
4 1880 U.S. census, Grainger County, Tennessee, population schedule, District 5, p. 3 [penned], 430 [stamped], dwelling 26, family 26, John Donahoo household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6742/images/4244587-00604: accessed 8 May 2023), image 3; citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 1257.
Just curious – you refer to “immigrant ancestor” as if there is only one. I’m pretty sure there is an immigrant ancestor or more for each branch of my family, Percy, Dunshee, McKinnis, Jones, Rosenberg, Bittner… Am I not understanding the concept?
Good morning. Since you are researching one ancestor at a time (or one family unit at a time) I wrote the blog with that in mind. You are correct in that you will have many immigrant ancestors and you would apply this methodology to all of them. Thanks for your point of view. I appreciate feedback and how others read my work. Have a great week. Gray
That’s a very good point, thank you for enlightening me! I just started following you and am enjoying reading your posts and learning new ways to view my own genealogical endeavors. And a good week to you!