FIND YOUR ANCESTOR IN USA

Starting your research:
Begin with your family! Collect, organize and study the records you have.
- Birth, marriage, death records are the most common ones. They can provide a handful of information.
Ask yourself what type of information each of these documents can possibly provide?
  • - Names, dates, and places are the basic components of your research.
Make a content table, create a family group record, build a family tree from scratch. They are all important to connect all the little bit pieces you have from your family story.
Besides your family findings and online genealogy websites, your biggest allies in your ancestor’s quest are:
  • - Libraries
  • - Archives
  • - Historical Societies
  • - Church Parish records
  • - Genealogical Societies
I am sure that they will help you with your research! After you have all the information from your family organized ask yourself what are the vital records you do not have, such as marriage or death certificate. 

 Sample of a marriage record from Massachusetts State Vital Records - New Bedford.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89MN-SCRV?i=297&cc=1928860


Vital records in United States

 Vital records are those records such as birth and death certificates, marriage licenses and divorce decrees. 
The link below is for the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics. This is a governmental website where you will be able to obtain birth, death, marriage, and divorce records for any state in United States.

Request your ancestor’s birth, marriage and death certificates. In these records you may also find new names and places that will lead you to the continuation of the research. You will go back in time little by little. Again, organize your research with any possible new information, then start searching the US Census.


 Do you know that the 1900 US Census was the first to ask how many years your immigrant was living in the United States?

Check this and other questions from the US Census here:


You can also download a blank form for any census year on the link below:


https://www.census.gov/history/www/through_the_decades/questionnaires/1900_2.html


These are the first steps in finding your Portuguese ancestor. I will provide other resources for researching in Hawaii, California and New England in another post. If you have any questions, leave me a message below.

11 comments:

  1. PhantomworksThursday, 07 November, 2019

    Hi Isabella
    I am looking for information on my g g g grandfather was antonio montero. he was from portugal. he was born around 1790-1800 in oporto Portugal. He came to America and was a mountain man in the early 1800s. http://hoofprintsofthepast.org/history/trails-and-travelers/
    If you could be of any help, please let me know.
    Thank you.
    Robert Montero
    rrpmgroup@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isabella BaltarMonday, 18 November, 2019

      Robert,
      Thank you for visiting my blog! I will send you an email to answer your question and ask a few more others to you. I will do it tomorrow, so if you did not hear from me on your Inbox, check your Spam as well. Again, thank you for your comments. Best regards, Isabella

      Delete
  2. Dob Costa FeitorWednesday, 01 January, 2020

    Isabella, Happy New Year. My son Chris has taken an interest in my Portuguese ancestry. My father was born in Cambridge to my immigrant grandparents from the Azores. My son notes that "We might have an issue getting back past John (Joa) Costa Feitor (your Grandpa) even though I was able to get his wife’s, Rosalena, parents Louis and Mary Perreria. We may have their birth city in the Azores. Interestingly my father did not pass down the Portuguese language as he married an Omish woman. Can you tell me what you can do for us in looking into our family tree in the Azores? We will continue to ask any living relatives in the US if they have any information. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isabella BaltarThursday, 02 January, 2020

      Dob, thank you for your wishes, I wish the same for you and your family. If you send me a message to myportuguesegen at gmail dot com, I will answer your questions. It looks like you have relevant information to connect to the native island in Azores. Let me know in your email what are the documents associated to the information. They are very important to validate your tree. You are welcome and I am looking forward hearing from you. Isabella

      Delete
  3. Opsahl channel 9Tuesday, 09 March, 2021

    Hello, I am looking for passport/ birth record of my great grandfather

    Francisco santos Luzio
    Sept 21 1888
    Azores

    Not sure if he was born in the Azores or that's where he got his passport and shipped off to USA.

    Tylerluzio@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isabella BaltarTuesday, 30 March, 2021

      Tyler,

      First you will need to find where your ancestor came from. Researching in the USA is mandatory if you don't have any information, or even if you have, as you will need evidence to support each generation.

      Isabella

      Delete
  4. UnknownTuesday, 16 March, 2021

    PLEASE HELP! Hello Isabella Baltar, I am looking for my GGG grandmothers and GG grandmothers family in Portugal (Azores)
    I have some info. I can email you. I hope that's ok.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isabella BaltarTuesday, 30 March, 2021

      Yes, you can email and send me what you accomplished in your research. Thank you.

      Delete
  5. ellenSunday, 05 September, 2021

    Hi Isabella: I am visiting Portugal June 2022 and would like to see where my grandmother's parents came from and see if their home is still there. Her father or grandfathers name was de Camera, Pedro Joseph and his wife was Maria da Estrela (?). Their father Manuel Peter Camera was born in Soa Vinceute San Miguel and he was born 1-31-02, I am going to assume is was 1802. Can you point me to where the birth records might be or help me in finding out where their house might have been?
    Thanks! Ellen

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isabella BaltarWednesday, 15 September, 2021

      Ellen, the island of São Miguel has many parishes, but you mentioned São Vicente, which I believe is São Vicente Ferreira, in Ponta Delgada Council. You start your search here: Azores Parish Records (Pesquisa de Registros Paroquiais)
      For birth, marriage and death records from the Catholic Church, from 1541 until 1911, click here:
      http://www.culturacores.azores.gov.pt/ig/registos/Default.aspx
      or at the time of your visit, go to Ponta Delgada main archive on this address:
      Largo do Colégio s/n - 9500-054 Ponta Delgada
      Good luck in your search!

      Delete
  6. Isabella BaltarWednesday, 15 September, 2021

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for visiting my My Portuguese Gen website. I wish you an exciting experience finding out more about your Portuguese ancestors in United States, Azores, Madeira, Portugal, Brazil through the resources I provide. They are so many and I try always to keep them updated.

If you want to share your thoughts about your experience here, or want to learn more about how to expand your Portuguese ancestry, you can leave me a message.

If you left a message and it does not show yet, be sure, it was received and soon will appear on the comments.

Again, thank you.

Isabella Baltar

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