Some weeks ago I was contacted about doing an interview for the podcast “A Study of Strange.” The subject is Cora Stallman, the woman who was found in the cistern (or was she…?), and the subject of many of my blog posts. I spent a very enjoyable hour talking to host Michael May about Cora and her mysteries. Hear for yourself!
If you’re new to my blog because of that, welcome welcome!
I write about people that I find in graveyards, and sometimes other places. Part of my deal is that I’m really taken with the idea that people who lived well before the internet now have a digital footprint. I put those digitized references together with other records, to come up with a picture of someone’s life.
If you’re looking for excellent watchable genealogy how-to videos, you would be hard-pressed to find better than Jen Shaffer, the Formidable Genealogist. We’ve never been introduced, but for some time I’ve been watching her do the good work her job requires…and get unwarranted grief for it.
Earlier this spring she debunked the popular myth about immigrants’ surnames being forcibly changed at Ellis Island. (And yes, it’s a myth; I’m not entertaining a debate.) Many families have this legend: Your flatcap-wearing great-great grandpa walked off the boat in New York and told them he was Wiśniowiecki or Kovačević or Bellincioni. But then an evil immigration officer changed Grandpa’s name to something “more American”—Weck, Kovak, Bello, etc. Poor Grandpa didn’t even have a choice.
Every day, my Brooklyn genealogy adventure inches closer. The Google Map is primed and bristling. I have a color-coded schedule that would impress any cruise director. I no longer have to scroll down on the Asana calendar to see the dates—they’re right there, reminding me of what I haven’t gotten done yet.
Real and present life has required my attention, as always. I caught two colds and broke a dental crown, so it’s been a real fun time. My research has thus been a bit sidelined. But the good news is that I got an awful lot of planning done early, and the work now is all online. It’s been hours of internet searches, trying to scoop up every bit of digital info I can now, so that my in-person experience is as good as I can make it.
Subbing in for Weinpahl: Weinpahls
One result of all those searches: I’m starting to think that my great-great uncle Gus Weinpahl never played pro baseball in Brooklyn. I can’t find anything that supports the newspaper article that claimed he played for the Brooklyn Bridegrooms. I can only find mentions of semi-pro and club ball. Ah well.
However, the upside is that all those newspaper searches for him reminded me of all the other Weinpahl mentions I hadn’t spent a lot of time on: Legal notices.
My family kept their lawyers BUSY. This is a list of land transfers and other legal events involving the Weinpahls, over 8 years.
I already know that some of these records are in Albany or no longer available. But some others might be in Brooklyn. And putting these events in a timeline is helping me understand some things. I’d call that a win.
Swing and a Miss
Despite my efforts, the goal of finding experts to talk to is just not panning out. Cold calls are always going to be iffy; I get it. So I’m moving on from that goal. I will do as best I can to get as informed as I can some other way.
Next Up
Last night I talked out my in-person research strategy with my husband (ex-librarian). He helped me divide it:
Industry research (candy/baseball/alcohol); and
personal research (names of individuals and the associations/orgs they’re connected to).
So when I show up at a library or museum, my search can start from one of those two angles and expand from there. This should keep me from being overwhelmed, losing my place, and giving up and going to get a bagel.
(There will still be bagels. They’re on the map.) ☗
This past week I continued to make progress on the plans for my upcoming Brooklyn genealogy trip. As discussed, I’m treating this like a fact-finding mission or a business trip. I have so much I want to get done, so much to see and experience—being strategic is the only way to do that.
Hotel and flight have been pinned down. Bodegas and Italian bakeries have been added to my big Google map. And I’m going to try to squeeze in a photography exhibit. All the important stuff.
Wins!
Genealogists will tell you that only a fraction of records have been digitized. So in this before-trip time, I’m doing all the online database work I can, but also identifying what I should aim for when I’m on the ground in New York.
You can book a free half-hour online consultation, and one of their four genealogy librarians will walk you through their offerings. She was great about explaining their processes and setting expectations. While my specific surnames aren’t getting hits in their databases, she helped me find resources that may be useful for larger-context searches.
So in other words, I will definitely be going to the Ghostbusters library!
Reaching out to the Center for Brooklyn History got me a nice email answer and some helpful links. I will definitely follow up on those, as I expect to be spending a lot of time there.
As I had anticipated, finding experts to talk to about candy/baseball/alcohol is slow going. My cold-call emails are are getting nos in return or no responses at all. It’s a bit of a bummer, but I knew this might happen.
if I can’t find an expert to talk to, I can still get informed. I’m already learning about pre-Dodgers Brooklyn baseball… and starting to question whether my relative REALLY played for Ned Hanlon.
At this stage I’m identifying who I want to focus on and what resources can be helpful.
In some cases (NY Municipal Archives) I’m casting a wide net, and I know that my chances of finding anything there are a toss-up. In other cases, like the church, I already know that an ancestor was a member there. My hope is that in those places, I’ll have better odds of finding a record or reference.
The goal of “gaining context” is a little more amorphous. As I mentioned before, there are three ancestors I’m particularly interested in understanding because, frankly, I think they had cool and fascinating lives.
3X great-grandfather Benjamin Huppler, a candymaker.
Great-granduncle Gus Weinpahl. Semipro ball player in Brooklyn, Sayville, and Connecticut, from about 1895-1910.
Gus’ father and my great-grandfather Justus Weinpahl. German immigrant, Civil War veteran. Buried at Green-Wood. He operated a liquor-dealing business (like a wholesaler) for almost 40 years.
I’ve started hunting for experts who can talk to me about these topics and are willing to spend the time (and I’m planning to compensate them).
Obviously, all of this–locations, experts, goals, itinerary–is a lot to keep track of. Below I’ve listed the sites I’m leaning on most heavily. All are free–important as I’m trying to budget for Brooklyn hotels AND expert hours. And none of these companies are paying me to promote them. I wish.
Asana I’ve used the project manager system Asana in other contexts, so I was already familiar with it. The free (“personal”) version has limits, but is still plenty useful. I’m able to do everything from creating a color-coded itinerary, to managing to-dos, to compiling a list of gear I’ll need to buy ahead of time.
My Maps/Google Maps My husband will tell you that I never plan a trip without using Google’s MyMaps. I use it A LOT. My one gripe is that it doesn’t integrate with Google’s directions finder (why? someone please fix this). But otherwise, I love using it for pinning locations and generally laying out adventures of all sizes.
Google Docs This one, you probably already know about. Google Docs is where I keep anything text-based: my suitcase packing list; the slide laying out my goals and strategy; and a big list of genealogy locations with addresses and hours. And anything I create with Google MyMaps also shows up there. I’m sure I will be adding more as the weeks go on.
ChatGPT I know, I know.
I was compiling my list of possible genealogy locations, and I decided to ask ChatGPT a few questions, on a lark. Ta-da: it pointed me toward two genealogy locations I hadn’t heard of or thought much about. Now I have a scheduled consultation with a librarian from the NY Public Library*, to find out if I can and if I should visit their genealogy archives.
So take ChatGPT with plenty of grains of salt, and plenty of fact-checking, but don’t count it out. ☗
*THE library from Ghostbusters. I hope they let me use their services!
Graveyard Snoop 