FamilySearch Collection Update: New Records Added Online for Czech Republic, Mexico, and U.S.

Received May 11 from FamilySearch.org:

Eight new searchable collections were updated or added this week at FamilySearch.org—millions of new free images and records.

This week the complete name indexes for the states of Alabama, Colorado, and Illinois were published online at FamilySearch’s Record Search pilot (FamilySearch.org, click Search Records, and then click Record Search pilot) or Beta.FamilySearch.org.

The Delaware state birth records, 1875 Minnesota State Census, and Illinois, Cook County birth records were also added.

Also released was a digital image collection of church records from Litomerice, Czech Republic—60,000 images! Consumers will see these types of collections more and more online as FamilySearch digitizes microfilms in its Granite Mountain Records Vault. Instead of a microfilm reader in a local family history center, patrons use FamilySearch’s image viewer online to search these high quality digital collections—and they are accessible 24/7.

See the chart below for the complete list of all the newly added or improved collections.

None of this would be possible without the great contributions of many online FamilySearch volunteers. These individuals donate the time and effort needed to make these collections freely available to FamilySearch patrons. If you would like to help by donating a few minutes here and there online with projects of personal interest, become a FamilySearch community volunteer at FamilySearchIndexing.org. Many hands produce great work. Thank you for your support!

Collection Name	Indexed Records	Digital Images	Comments
Czech Republic, Litomerice State Regional Archive Church Records 1552-1905, pt. 03 - WP		60573	Browsable images only
Mexico Census 1930 Index, Yucatan	378550	1061300
U.S Delaware State Birth Records 1861-1922 - FSI	121234	93600
U.S Illinois, Cook County Birth Registers 1873-1908	1240000	33245
U.S 1875 Minnesota State Census	475000	13600	Must be registered to see images.
US Federal Census, 1910, Alabama	1870520	46763
US Federal Census, 1910, Colorado	767680	19192
US Federal Census, 1910, Illinois	5024520	125613

About FamilySearch
FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

52 Weeks of Online American Digital Archives and Databases: Colorado

This is the sixth post in a weekly series of Online American Digital Archives and Databases found for free at state, county, municipal, college and university history, library, and archive websites, as well as public and private library and museum sites, and historical and genealogical society sites.

3DFlags.com

Colorado State Archives - http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/ - as well as being the entry page to the Historical Records Database, the Family History Page, and the State Digital Archives (see next three entries), you can also check out D-Day Radio Broadcasts, Governor Owens' Historical Archive and Digital Trademarks

Colorado State Archives Historical Records Database - http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/hrd/index.htm - a searchable database of court, census (federal and Indian), vital, land, military, naturalization, voter, cemetery, and probate records, and much, much more!

Colorado State Archives Digital Archives - http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/digital/index.htm -a small but interesting collection of scanned photographs, postcards, and ephemera arranged by topic (mining, places, government, business, etc.)

Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection - http://www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.org/ - "currently includes 147 newspapers published in Colorado from 1859 to 1923...contains over 477,000 digitized pages and is a joint endeavor of the Colorado State Library, the Colorado Historical Society, and generous donors throughout the state."

Colorado Historical Society - http://www.coloradohistory.org - no digital archives; however, there are online exhibits and many indexes of directories, biographical subjects, and maps, allowing you to determine which resources they have on site/offline.

Colorado Virtual Library - http://www.aclin.org/ - provides access to information resources of Colorado libraries, plus a megasearch engine of the Colorado School of Mines Image Database, the Denver Public Library Western History and Genealogy Photo Collection, and Heritage West

Heritage West - http://www.bcr.org/dps/cdp/hw_search.html - "a database that brings together thousands of digital objects from the collections of museums, libraries, historical societies and archives from throughout the Western United States. Included in this database are photos, documents, artifacts, costumes, diaries, oral histories and manuscripts representing the West's cultural, scientific and historic heritage."

Rocky Mountain Online Archive - http://rmoa.unm.edu/ - a megasearch engine for archival collections in Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming

---

Colorado College Tutt Library Special Collections - http://www.coloradocollege.edu/library/index.php/SpecialCollections/#cdp - Century Chest (time capsule), Colorado Springs area early views, Colorado Menus Collection, Camp Amache - Japanese-American Relocation Center in Granada, Sand Creek Papers (1861 - 1864), and Rubén Cobos Collection of Spanish New Mexican Folklore

Colorado Plateau Digital Archives (from Northern Arizona University's Cline Library) - http://www.nau.edu/library/speccoll/digitalarchives.html - "...thousands of vintage and contemporary photographs, diaries and letters, oral history interviews, films, and maps"

Colorado State University Libraries Digital Collections - http://digital.library.colostate.edu/ - includes the University Historic Photograph Collection, Colorado Agricultue and Rural Life Collection, Germans from Russia Collection, Caspar Collins Map Collection, Carpenter Family Collection, and the Rock Mountain Farmers Union Collection

Fort Lewis College Center for Southwest Studies Research - http://swcenter.fortlewis.edu/research.shtml - college archives, info on Old Fort Lewis, digital archives includes maps, photographs, postcards and other materials, and naturalizations for Durango County

University of Colorado Digital Library - https://www.cu.edu/digitallibrary/ - aerial photos, Ben Hyde Papers (original maps of Indian and military positions), Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps (346 maps of 79 principal cities in 52 counties), plus links to digital collections at other institutions

University of Colorado Boulder Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Collection - http://libluna.lib.ad.colorado.edu/sanborn/index.asp - "346 maps of 79 principal cities in 52 counties covering the years 1883-1922"

---

Aspen Historical Society - http://aspenhistorysociety.com/ - shared stories, video gallery archives (skiing to mining), historic photos, Pitkin County marriage records (1882 - 1930), census records (1900 - 1920), city directories and phone books (various years from 1885 - 1933), cemetery records, naturalization records, research papers, some indexes of special collections

Bessemer Historical Society - http://www.steelworks.us/ - museum of industry and culture; history and online photos

Boulder Library Carnegie Branch Library for Local History - http://boulderlibrary.org/carnegie/ - includes oral histories, digital photos, Boulder-Colorado Sanitarium Collection

Clear Creek County Marriage Records Index - http://www.co.clear-creek.co.us/Depts/records.htm

Columbine Genealogical and Historical Society Online Archives - http://www.columbinegenealogy.com/hub/ - member surnames index, Littleton Independent obituary index, Colorado Territory Civil War Volunteer Records 1861-1865, Arapahoe County Marriages 1940 - 1965, Littleton Cemetery records 1869 - 1981, Nickels-Hill-Drinkwine Mortuary records 1915 - 1950, various cemetery locators and indexes, and various church records

Denver County Assessor's Office - http://www.denvergov.org/tabid/37889/Default.aspx?link=http://www.denvergov.org/apps/realpropertyapplication/realproperty.asp&title=Real%20Property - check out an ancestor's home!

Denver Library Western History and Genealogy Collection - http://history.denverlibrary.org/collections/index.html - digital image collection, 10th Mountain Division name database, and the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library Obituary and Biographical databases

Douglas County History Research Center - http://douglascountyhistory.org/ - interactive timeline, aerial and historical photographs, oral histories, Declarations of Intention index, biography index, county censuses, business directories, school and government records, plus much more!

Evans City Cemetery Burial Index - http://www.cityofevans.org/department.cfm?depID=16 - records from 1860 through October 2008

Fort Collins History Connection - http://history.fcgov.com/ -images of historic buildings, city directories, historic maps and photographs, Coloradoan newspaper database and obituary index, oral histories, and much more!

La Plata County Marriage Records Index - http://swcenter.fortlewis.edu/inventory/LaPlataCouMarr.htm

Longmont Museum and Cultural Center - http://www.ci.longmont.co.us/museum/research/index.htm -history, timeline, online photos, landmarks, historic architectural survey

Pikes Peak Library District Special Collections - http://www.ppld.org/specialcollections/ - digital photo archives, regional history series available in .pdf or audio downloads, Newsfinder ("contains citations to local news articles and obituaries from the Colorado Springs Gazette and other local newspapers. Wire stories (e.g. AP or Reuters), syndicated columns, editorials, letters to the editor, reviews, births, weddings and anniversaries are not indexed. The site also contains citations to the Colorado Springs Death Registers")

 ---

Check out my Colorado Online Historical Directories and Colorado Online Historical Newspapers pages.

Mary Emeline (WILBOURN) MIDKIFF

Source: Midkiff, Mary Emeline Wilbourn. Photograph. Taken before Sep 1919. Reproduction of original photograph in the possession of Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Spokane, Washington. 2008.

Mary Emeline WILBOURN was my husband's Great-great-grandmother Midkiff. She was born 11 Aug 1839 in Sandoval Twp., Marion Co., Illinois to Dr. John Wilks WILBOURN of Orange Co., North Carolina and Martha Susan DEADMOND of Bedford Co., Virginia. John and Susan's respective families had migrated to Marion Co., Illinois by 1831, when they married. Mary was the fourth of nine known children which included Rufus K. (b. c. 1833), Denita Frances (b. c. 1836), James Manissa (1837 - c. 1837), John Henry (b. c. 1843 - bef. 12 Mar 1878), Aramanthe E. (b. 1846), Thomas Jefferson (1849 - 1942), Sarah Jane (1851 - 1940), and Benjamin Franklin WILBOURN (1854 - 1944).

The Wilbourn family moved from Illinois to Grayson Co., Texas between 1843 and 1846, and were prominent in that early community. It was there on 24 Jul 1859 that nearly-20-year-old Mary was wed to Charles Anderson MIDKIFF. They lived in Sherman Township when the 1860 U.S. Federal Census was taken; a time when trouble between the North and South was brewing. Charles served with the Texas Cavalry for the Confederacy, along with two of his brothers. About that time, the family moved to nearby Springville, Cooke Co., Texas. During the war, their two eldest, William Preston (1862 - 1936) and Charles "Anderson" Jr. (1865 - 1948), were born. Louanna Ellen "Annie" (1868 - 1940), John Franklin (1870 - 1926; my husband's great-grandfather), Ethel Susan (b. 1874), and Thomas Jefferson "Tex" MIDKIFF (1879 - 1941) soon followed. An infant, Mae, did not survive.

The Midkiff family remained in Cooke County where they were enumerated in the 1880 U.S. Federal Census. Charles' occupation was a miller. Sometime within the next few years, they moved to Lexington, Cleveland Co., Oklahoma Territory, where some of their children were married and their first grandchildren were born. Ever on the move, the family may have also lived in Pottawatomie Co., Oklahoma Territory, and were definitely residing in Delta Co., Colorado by 1902, where Charles was cattle ranching.

The Midkiff Family in Delta Co., Colorado. Charles and Mary are in the center, surrounded by their children, children-in-law, and grandchildren.

Source: Midkiff Family at Home in Delta County, Colorado. Photograph. Taken c. 1902 - 1908. Original photograph in the possession of John and Mary Lou Midkiff, Midland, Texas. 2008.

On 10 Mar 1908, Charles wrote his brother in West Texas from Hotchkiss, Delta Co., Colorado and told him he had sold his ranch the summer previously, as he had been injured when his mules ran away with him, getting caught under the wagon and breaking his left leg. Because of being crippled, he could not work the ranch in the winter when the snow was so deep. This injury was probably also motivation for Charles and Mary to retire after a few years to Chico, Butte Co. in Northern California, where the warmer climate and town living were more suitable for the senior couple. Mary's mother and four younger siblings and their families, along with most of the adult Midkiff children with their families, also lived in the area; however, I haven't done enough research to discover if the Wilbourns or the Midkiffs emigrated to California first.

In 1914, both Mary and Charles are listed on the Butte County Voters Registration. California had granted suffrage to women in 1911, nine years before the federal government did so. After Charles died in 1919, Mary lived with their daughter Annie until her own death in 1923. Mary and Charles are buried in unmarked graves in the Wilbourn Family Plot in Chico Cemetery.

The "empty" grassy spot in the midst of the Wilbourn Family Plot in Chico Cemetery is the final resting place of Mary Emeline (WILBOURN) MIDKIFF, and her husband, Charles Anderson MIDKIFF, Sr. The graves of Mary's sisters can be seen in the foreground.

Source: Midkiff, Charles Anderson Sr. and Mary Emeline (Wilbourn) burial location, Chico Cemetery, Chico, Butte Co., California. Photograph. Taken 31 May 2006 by FindAGrave photo volunteer Laural N. D. at the request of Miriam Robbins Midkiff. Digital photograph in the possession of Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Spokane, Washington. 2008.

Ordering Vital Records

This morning I mailed off applications for vital records for ancestors of my husband. I was prompted by the posting at GenealogyBlog a few days ago that mentioned that there was a bill before the Colorado State legislature that, if passed, will prevent access to Colorado marriage records. Ridiculous! Of course, the reasoning behind this bill is identity theft and terrorism prevention, but once, again, paranoia has driven things too far! I can understand protecting records that are less than 50 or even 60 years old...but tell me how restricting access to marriage records that are 100 years old will prevent identity theft and terrorism? I can see it now...members of Al-Quaida are meeting to figure out a way to get counterfeit ID, and decide they will use Norm's great-grandparents' marriage record of 1907 to show proof of residence and thus citizenship. Oh, wait...that couple married 101 years ago! So I guess that member of Al-Quaida looks a little young to be married in 1907! Nevertheless, we must protect our citizens. Quick, shut down access to public records in the name of Homeland Security!

OK, off my soapbox. I ordered a marriage certificate from Colorado for John Franklin Midkiff, Sr. and Margie Ethel Tolliver; a birth record for Helen Mary Westaby (Norm's paternal grandmother) from Montana; and a death certificate for John Franklin Midkiff, Jr. (Norm's paternal grandfather) from Washington (State). To get applications, I simply went to www.co.gov, www.mt.gov, and www.wa.gov. I looked for "vital records" or "public health" links on the main pages of each website. All three sites were user-friendly, and I was able to find what I needed right away. If I hadn't been able to, I would have looked on the main page for a link to a site map, or done a site search.

I chose mail-in applications which I printed (all were .pdf files which I viewed with Adobe Acrobat) over online applications, which used third party businesses and were rather expensive. The mail-in applications may take some time, but they were reasonably priced. I didn't pay more than $17 apiece for the certificates.