Revision as of 11:04, 12 June 2008

Family history research for ancestors living in big cities in the United States involves the same research processes as in other places but adds opportunities and challenges.

Sources To Use[edit | edit source]

Use the following sources while researching families:

City Directories
Church Records
State Census Records
Newspapers
Immigration Records
Naturalization Records
City Maps

Characteristics of Big Cities[edit | edit source]

stub text.

U.S. Cities Through Time[edit | edit source]

As an example of big cities in U.S. history, here are the ten largest for the years 1790, 1840, and 1900.

The Largest U.S. Cities in 1790[edit | edit source]

New York City (NY) had 33,131 residents
Philadelphia (PA) had 28,522
Boston (MA) had 18,320
Charleston (SC) had 16,359
Baltimore (MD) had 13,503
Northern Liberties (PA) had 9,913
Salem (MA) had 7,921
Newport (RI) had 6,716

The Largest U.S. Cities in 1840[edit | edit source]

New York City (NY) had 312,710 residents
Baltimore (MD) had 102,313
New Orleans (LA) had 102,193
Philadelphia (PA) had 93,665
Boston (MA) had 93,383
Cincinnati (OH) had 46,338
Brooklyn (NY) had 36,233
Northern Liberties (PA) had 34,474

The Largest U.S. Cities in 1900[edit | edit source]

New York City (NY) with 3,437,202
Chicago (IL) with 1,698,575
Philadelphia (PA) with 1,293,697
St. Louis (MO) with 575,238
Boston (MA) with 560,892
Baltimore (MD) with 508,957
Cleveland (OH) with 381,768
Buffalo (NY) with 352,387

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-Family history research for ancestors living in big cities in the United States involves the same research processes as in other places but adds opportunities and challenges.
+Family history research for&nbsp;ancestors living&nbsp;in big cities in the United States involves the same research processes as in other places but adds opportunities and challenges.<!-- Tidy found serious XHTML errors -->
-== Sources To Use  ==
+= Sources To Use  =
 Use the following sources while researching families:
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 *Immigration Records
 *Naturalization Records
 *City Maps
-*"A Handy Guide to Record Searching in the Larger Cities of the United States" by E. Kay Kirkham can be found in the Library Catalog fiche {{FSC|216818|item|disp=# 6010059}}, where it can be viewed online.
-== Characteristics of Big Cities  ==
+= Characteristics of Big Cities  =
-Residents in large U.S. cities share the following characteristics:
+stub text.
-*Many families rent their home or apartment. A smaller percentage of the population are found in the land, probate, tax, and other records involving property.
+= U.S. Cities Through Time  =
-*A lot of residents are new immigrants
-*Many people are looking to move
-*Neighbors are less likely to be relatives than in rural areas
-Other considerations:
-*The wide economic span--the city will have very wealthy residents and very poor residents.
-*Big cities have ethnic neighborhoods and communities. Families may move to be closer to a church congregation or ethnic group.
-*Big cities offer a variety of churches and congregations.
-*For health reasons, registration of births and deaths began sooner in big cities, but many people were missed.
-Research cautions:
-*Search the indexes and records carefully because different people can have the same name.
-*More people were overlooked in vital records and other local records.
-*City and county officials may have kept separate records, some of which overlap. Check the vital records in both jurisdictions.
-== U.S. Cities Through Time  ==
 As an example of big cities in U.S. history, here are the ten largest for the years 1790, 1840, and 1900.
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 *Buffalo (NY) with 352,387
-[[Category:United_States]]
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U.S. Urban Research: Difference between revisions