How can I find the name of my great-great-grandmother?

Question

My great-grandfather was born 16 Jul 1886 in Caddo Mills, Hunt County, Texas. His mother died giving birth to him. We do not know her name and do not believe she was married. We can not find a birth cert on my great-grandfather. Also, he was illiterate. He signed everything with an X. How can I find the name of his mother?

Answer 1

You could search for his marriage or death record which often include parents names.  Also check the 1880 census records searching his surname in  Hunt Co., TX, you may be able to figure out who his mother is considering they may have had the same surname.  Another possibility is searching cemetery records in Hunt Co. for deaths occuring on his date of birth.

Several people here are very experienced at researching this sort of information and have access to on-line genealogy sources so if you edit you question with his name, you may get your answer.

Good luck.

Answer 2

I would like to help, but I would at least need your great grandfather's last name.

Answer 3

This may be a long shot but sinceyou know where your GGF was born you might be able to find a birth announcement in a local paper. Also may be worth checking the obituaries for about a week or two after his birth.

Answer 4

I would contact the Hunt County Texas courthouse because even though it wasn't required until 1910, many of the counties kept these records. In my Texas county, I find these scattered around in the birth index, some out of order.

[phone]

Physical Address:                                          Mailing Address:

Hunt County Courthouse                                    Hunt County Clerk

2500 Lee Street, 2nd Floor                                 P.O. Box 1316

Greenville, Texas  75401                                    Greenville, TX  75403



http://www.txgenweb6.org/txhunt/  is the genealogy usgenweb site.

Since you know the date your great grandmother was born, it's safe to assume her mother died about the same time. Just note that it could have been several months before she died of the birthing (as my husband's great grandmother did though family said she died in childbirth).  Look for a headstone.  You can look at cemetery surveys on the www.usgenweb.org site, by going to Texas, then Hunt County.

Or from the main page, click on projects and go to cemetery project.  If nothing else, when you get to the Hunt County page, look for a link to the email list, sign up, then send out a message for help.

Texas is one of the best places to search for relatives because of the amount of records we are putting on each county site.

Then there's Find A Grave, which has submitted cemetery surveys.  Census records are available on the county sites or at http://www.census-online.com/links/

Find her obituary or the birth announcement. Small newspapers listed most deaths, births, etc as community news. You can order newspapers on microfilm from your nearest LDS Church.

Come to Austin and visit the State Library located behind the capital.  There might be books available on Hunt county during that timeframe.  Go to your library and ask for an inter loan library loan of the microfilm with the newspaper on it.

And finally, if she was indigent and no one could pay for the burial, it could be in the commissioners court records where they allocated funds for the burial. This is also on microfilm.

Answer 5

Genes reunited  is my recommendation. As there are several ways on that site of finding someone.

Good luck with your search!

Answer 6

birth certs don't begin in Texas until 1903, so it is not uncommon to not have one.  However, I can't say why you assume she was not married. One route is identify the father, and search marriage records from Hunt co (or surrounding counties).  Who was he living with in 1900?

Track the father, and it may turn up the answer.  You also don't indicate if he had older siblings, and if you have checked for death certs for any of them.  Parent names should be on those.

You also can post his name and other details here, and someone may be able to locate this.

psst- your email is not enabled, which often helps if someone finds info after your question closes.

edit

I live near Hunt co, might be able to help