How do you find?

Question

I am just starting with our history. My question is, if you have the father's information, how do you find any children that have moved? Assuming the father died 100 years ago.

Answer 1

try finding the obituaries for the parents, that usually said where the children lived, back then.

there are also county histories/biographical portraits still being produced in the first decade of the 20th century.  If they lived in the midwest, that might help.

use census records to try to pin down when various parties left the household.  Marriage records from that county and surrounding ones to see about names for daughters.

ask old family members what they remember.

look at surname organized notes on rootsweb, etc., for people from the diaspora families who are looking back to the original homeplace/county/country/state.

look at wills and probate records for addresses of children who moved away.

check WWI military draft notices to help pin down the possible new home of men who moved away.

check 1930 census to see if possible people named their children after the grandparents (weak, but sometimes a good clue)