Find an ancestor by locality

Using Location information to find an ancestor

Knowing a locality can be very helpful in locating information about an ancestor. Following are the steps taken to find an ancestor who had lived in Miami County, Ohio.

Known facts:

The ancestor's name
His probably birth state (New York)
The location where he spent most of his time in Ohio
Names of his wife and family

Unknown facts:

His exact birthplace
How he got to Ohio
Documented sources for his marriage
What happened to him (he disappeared and was not heard from again)

The Search Process:

1. Searched the Miami County, Ohio article to see what information was available there.

There was a link to the Miami Valley Genealogy Index under the heading of Genealogy.
The link led to a page on the internet for the Miami Valley Genealogy Index.
That page had the option to search for someone with the first letter of their surname and then the surname, itself.
The surname was entered and the ancestor's name appeared with a list of transactions, including deeds and his marriage year.
This was an index, so no further information was available, but there are book and page numbers listed for further research. That will be pursued at a later date.

2. The Miami County, Ohio article also had a section for "Local Histories"

There was a link for The History of Miami County, Ohio, published 1880, W. H. Beers & Co., which was available at FamilySearch.
Following that link led to the book, which had been digitized and could be viewed and downloaded.
Searching through the book revealed information for the ancestor that included:

His birthdate
His occupation
Other places of residence
The names of his wife and children
Birth information for his wife