The Calendar and Colonial New York
All colonial genealogists learn that Britain and its colonies changed from the old style (Julian) calendar to the new style (Gregorian) calendar on January 1,1752. If you do colonial New York research, however, you also have to know that in Holland this change occurred 170 years earlier, in 1582, and the Gregorian calendar therefore was used in the Dutch colony of New Netherland.
Under the old calendar in use prior to 1752 in Britain and its colonies, the year began on March 25, and March was the first month, February the twelfth. Dates in January, February, and the first 24 days of March were often "double-dated" to indicate both the past and incoming years. For example, what we would call February 24,1714 would then have been February 24, 1713, but could also be written February 24,1713/14. It would also have been the 24th of the twelfth month, not the second month.
When the new calendar was adopted, eleven days had to be dropped, and this was done by declaring that the day after September 2,1752 was September 14, 1752.
The colony of New Netherland which preceded New York operated according to the laws and customs of the Netherlands province of Holland, where the new calendar had been in use since Pope Gregory introduced it in 1582. Therefore New Netherland records are dated as we would date them today, with the year beginning January 1 and no double-dating.
After the English conquered New Netherland in 1664, and except for the brief return of Dutch rule in 1673-74, the old (Julian) calendar was used in official documents, but the Dutch often continued using the Gregorian calendar (or some aspects of it) in their church and family records.
Some genealogists have tried to convert all old style dates to their new equivalents, and published only the new forms, just like we say George Washington was born February 22,1732, when at the time he was born the date was February 11, 1731/2. Unfortunately, too many genealogists have interpreted the old dates incorrectly, forgetting particularly that the months were not numbered as they are today. In the case of colonial New York, they may have converted a date correctly according to English rules, ignoring the fact that the record was a Dutch one that did not require any conversion.
It is recommended practice to show dates exactly as you find them in the records, and not attempt to "modernize" them. If you find a date between January 1 and March 24 where a double year is not indicated, then which calendar is being used, and the actual year, can often be determined by studying the source as a whole, and not just looking at the single record of interest.
Divorce in New York
Do you think your New York ancestors or relatives obtained a divorce in New York? It is possible, but for over 300 years obtaining a New York divorce was not an easy matter.
In colonial times there was only brief period between 1655 and 1675 when divorces were granted in New Netherland and New York. The best study of divorce in colonial New York is an article by Matteo Spalletta in The New-York Historical Society Quarterly 39 (1955): 422-440.
In 1787, after the Revolution, the New York State Legislature enacted a law which permitted divorce on the grounds of adultery. With few exceptions this remained the only grounds under which divorces were granted in the state until 1967. Divorces were granted at first by the Chancery Court, a state court, but in 1847 the power was transferred to county courts.
Each county clerk has maintained an index to "matrimonial actions" (divorces, legal separations, annulments). The index maintained by the clerk of New York County (Manhattan) includes the Chancery Court divorces for the southern half of the state 1787-1847; those for the northern half are included in Chancery Court records at the State Archives.
All of these indexes are open to the public. However, the divorce files which they index are sealed for 100 years. If the divorce was granted more than 100 years ago, you can examine the file, which is also in the custody of the County Clerk.
The April 1998 issue of The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record includes New York County's index to matrimonial actions 1787-1840. The introduction to that article repeats the information given above, with additional details.
Until the early 20th century, because divorce was not readily available in New York and was so tinged with scandal, many couples separated and remarried without the benefit of the law, at least one of them often moving to another state in the process.
In the 20th century, before the state's divorce laws were liberalized in 1967, New Yorkers unwilling or unable to charge their spouses with adultery went to other states (especially Nevada) and countries (especially Mexico) to obtain divorces. Couples obtaining such divorces usually would remarry outside New York State.
If a couple was divorced in New York before 1967 on the grounds of adultery, the divorce decree would usually specify that the innocent party was free to remarry while the guilty party (the adulterer) was not. The guilty party usually did remarry anyway, but went outside of New York State to do so.
Naturalization in New York: A Brief Introduction
Most naturalizations of the colonial period are covered in Denizations, Naturalizations, and Oaths of Allegiance in Colonial New York, by Kenneth Scott and Kenn Stryker-Rodda (1975). When New Netherland became New York, the Dutch inhabitants became British subjects by taking an oath of allegiance. During the period of English rule 1664-1783, anyone immigrating to New York from Great Britain or Ireland did not require naturalization, as they were already British subjects. Therefore naturalization records of this period pertain only to those coming from other countries.
Henry Hoff s article "Published New York City Naturalizations," NYG&B Newsletter 4 (Spring 1993): 4,lists other sources for published indexes and abstracts to naturalizations, primarily in New York, Kings, Queens and Richmond counties from after the American Revolution to 1860.
For the period from after the Revolution up to 1906 there is a consolidated naturalizations index covering courts in New York City and adjacent counties. This index is available through the National Archives and Family History Library, and also at the New York Public Library. The index includes pertinent information from the naturalization records themselves.
For the other parts of the state, and for the New York City area after 1906, it is necessary to consult indexes and files in the office of each county clerk (for county courts) and at the National Archives (for federal courts). New York State has four Federal Court Districts: Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western. Some of these records are also available elsewhere on film. See DOROT, Winter 1999-2000, pages 5-8 for an overview of finding naturalization records in New York City. The Jewish Genealogical Society, in partnership with the Italian Genealogy Group and the German Genealogy Group, is computerizing the indexes to the Kings County (Brooklyn) naturalization records from 1907-1924. The database, along with a link to other New York naturalization databases, is available on the JGS website. The Italian Genealogy Group has completed and made available on their website an index to the Suffolk County naturalization records from 1853-1990.
Two recent publications may be helpful in locating New York naturalization records: 1) Naturalization Records of New York State (New York State Council of Genealogical Organizations, Publication No.1,1996), and 2) Christina K. Schaefer, Guide to Naturalization Records of the United States (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1997).
New York's Colonial Wills
Probate records are among the richest sources for New York genealogy. If you are doing research in colonial New York, you have probably already discovered the 17 volumes of Abstracts of Wills which were published by The New-York Historical Society from 1892 to 1908. They are now available on a single CD-ROM with a consolidated index. This rest of this "tip" pertains only to the wills in this one source.
The wills abstracted in these volumes run from 1665 (the beginning of English rule) to 1800. All of these wills were proved (probated) in New York City, which was the capital of the English province of New York, and the capital of New York State until 1797.
The wills from 1665 to 1787 are from all parts of the province or state, having been sent to the capital for probate. Starting in 1787 they pertain only to New York County (Manhattan).
The Abstracts are a wonderful resource, but they must be used with great care. William S. Pelletreau, who did most of the abstracting, made more than a few errors, at least some of which can be excused because of the difficulty anyone would have in reading some of the old handwriting.
The last two volumes (16-17) of the Abstracts contain corrections to volumes 1-9 and 11. After you have found an abstract, check these two volumes to see if there are any corrections.
Then, once you've decided that the abstracted will is of interest to you, you should proceed to get the full text. If you are a member of NYG&B you can obtain a copy from microfilm in our library. These records are also accessible through any LDS Family History Center.
The full text exists in more than one form. The most reliable form is the original will, a loose document bearing the testator's signature. These wills have been numbered and there is an index to them in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly vols. 51, 54, 55. The documents themselves are now in the New York State Archives, and those up to about 1738 have been filmed and can be accessed at NYG&B or through Family History Centers.
If the will you want is in Volume 11 of the abstracts, it is an unrecorded will and the original will is the only place you can find the full text. For all other wills, however, you can find another copy of the full text in the court books, or libers. Frequently, the handwriting in the original will will be difficult to read, and the liber copy is in a much clearer hand—but remember that the liber copy is not the original but a copy, subject to human error even if it was made at the time the testator died.
After the Revolution all the wills in this series became the property of the Surrogate's Court of New York County (Manhattan), and you will find the libers cataloged under that county in the Family History Library catalog (NEW YORK - NEW YORK - PROBATE RECORDS). Actually, you will find two different sets of these libers. In the 19th century a new set was created, by hand, because the original set was suffering from overuse. There are a few libers in the original set that no longer exist, and for them we have to substitute the 19th century copies.
The original libers are at the New York State Archives. The 19th century copies are at the New York County Surrogate's Court in Manhattan. Both series have been filmed. In the Family History Library Catalog, the original libers are the series titled "Wills and Administrations 1680-1804," beginning with film 0497592. The 19th century copies are in the series "Record of Wills 1665-1916," beginning with film 0874513. Note, however, that the original liber 1 is cataloged with latter series (film 0907920).
NYG&B has the films of the original libers except those that are missing, in which case film of the 19th century copies have been substituted.
For further detail see Harry Macy Jr., "New York Probate Records Before 1787," The NYG&B Newsletter 2 (Spring 1991): 11-15 (but note that references to Queens College in that article should be changed to New York State Archives, reflecting the relocation of materials since 1991).
New York 1890 Census Substitutes
It is common knowledge that the 1890 Federal Census population schedules were almost completely destroyed by a fire in 1921. For New York State only parts of the Towns of Brookhaven in Suffolk County and Eastchester in Westchester County escaped the flames. There are, however, several substitutes for the missing census:
The special schedule of the 1890 Census for Union Veterans and Widows of Union Veterans of the Civil War has survived for many states including New York. An index to the New York schedule is available in both print and microfiche.
For the City of New York (Manhattan and the western half of what is now the Bronx) there is the so-called Police Census of 1890. This census has been partially indexed by name and there is also a finding aid that will direct you to the proper district to search on the census, provided you have an address for the family you are searching.
Finally, in 1892 the State of New York took its own census. As with the other New York state censuses, the county clerks retained a copy of their own schedules, and sent another copy to the State Library in Albany. Unfortunately all of the State copies were destroyed in the State Library fire of 1911, and many of the County Clerks have lost their copies for other reasons. The surviving county copies that have been filmed are: Albany, Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Clinton, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Erie, Essex, Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer, Kings, Lewis, Madison, Monroe, Montgomery, Nassau (then part of Queens), Niagara, Onondaga, Ontario, Orleans, Oswego, Otsego, Queens, Rockland, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Warren, Washington, Wayne, and Yates. There are indexes or finding aids for a few of these.
All of the above 1890 and 1892 censuses and finding aids are available at the NYG&B Library and at the LDS Family History Library.
Special U.S. Census Schedules
If your family appears in the 1850, 1860, 1870 or 1880 US Censuses for New York State, there may be additional information on them in the Mortality, Agricultural, and Manufacturing Schedules of those censuses, as well as the 1880 schedule of "Defective, Dependent, and Delinquent Classes." Films of these special schedules are available at the New York State Library and at the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.
For more information. see Special Federal Census Schedules For New York State.
Units of Local Government in New York State
Genealogists researching New York State records should understand the structure of local government in this state (outside of New York City). New York's counties are divided into towns and cities, and towns in turn can be divided into villages. The terms "town," "city," and "village" have distinct meanings in this state and should not be used indiscriminately.
The present structure dates back to 1788 when all the existing counties were divided into towns and cities. Before that year counties could be divided into towns, cities, wards, precincts, districts, or manors.
Towns are sometimes referred to informally as townships, but the official designation in New York State is "Town." Town governments provide essential services that in other states might be provided directly by the county.
Cities have their own governments completely apart from the towns but still subordinate to the county. A city may have been formed from part of a town, or may have replaced a former town entirely. Cities were traditionally subdivided into wards, and some still maintain that structure.
Unincorporated Villages: Within each town there are many local communities with distinct identities, that may be referred to as villages, hamlets, or just neighborhoods. Most of these are unincorporated, meaning they have no government of their own and are dependent on the town for all services.
Incorporated Villages: Beginning in the 19th century, some communities have chosen to become incorporated villages, meaning that they have their own governments which perform functions which otherwise would be provided by the towns. It is important to understand, however, that incorporated villages are still part of their respective towns, and their residents still receive some services from the town government.
The careful genealogist will always refer to a location by its proper title, whether town, city, or village, and will seek out the records appropriate to that level of government.
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Below are some helpful tips for researching genealogy in New York State.