New York is fortunate to have several excellent historical periodicals containing a variety of articles that are useful to genealogists—if genealogists only could find the articles, had the time to read them, and knew how to read them. By “knew how to read them” I'm not implying they're written in a language other than English (though some may be laced with academic jargon). Rather, I'm suggesting that most of us don't bother to read historical articles because we haven't considered the value of the contents to our research.
Some recent New York articles have helped my own research, usually in one of the following four ways: (1) the article touched on a problem I am working on or have worked on; (2) people or families I am interested in were mentioned incidentally or as an example; (3) potentially useful sources I was unaware of were cited in the footnotes; or (4) the article contained information that might be useful for future research.
I hope these examples will encourage readers of the Newsletter to seek out historical articles that will help them. The periodicals mentioned below are all in the NYG&B Library.
Anyone with late 19th century ancestry in Brooklyn might benefit from “One Brooklyn Block: Population Characteristics and Change, 1880-1910,” by Charlotte Woods Elkind, The Long Island Historical Journal5:2:229-47 (Spring 1993) [L.I. G 1.1], especially from the techniques used and conclusions drawn. In the same periodical, “The Role of Community in Civil War Desertion,” by Judith Lee Hallock, 6:2:254-65 (Spring 1994), sheds light on a common Civil War phenomenon, not only for Long Islanders but elsewhere in the U.S.
Patterns of settlement in upstate New York may point to prior place of residence. “Peopling the Post-Revolutionary New York Frontier,” by James W. Darlington, New York History 74:4:340-81 (October 1993) [N.Y. G 1], provides a current interpretation of some of these patterns with maps and charts. In the same periodical, “Mr. Downing and his Oyster House: The Life and Good Works of an African-American Entrepreneur,” by John H. Hewitt, 74:3:229-52 (July 1993) was of interest since some of Mr. Downing's descendants were traced in the Record at 121:209-11.
Thirty useful capsule biographies of affluent New Yorkers in 1860 are contained in “Villas on the Hudson: An Architectural and Biographical Examination,” by Janet Butler Munch, The Hudson Valley Regional Review, 10:2:93-124 (September 1993) [N.Y. G 116.4]. It is often difficult to find biographical information like this.
“ 'According to Holland Custome': Jacob Leisler and the Loockermans Estate Feud,” by Firth Haring Fabend, De Halve Maen 67:1:1-8 (Spring 1994) [N.Y. Soc 8.1], is helpful for understanding the differences between Dutch and English inheritance customs and how this affected 17th century New York life. In the same periodical, “Between Heaven and Earth: The Dutch Reformed Church in Flatbush Society, 1654-1664,” by Eric Nooter, 66:4:66-74 (Winter 1993) contains useful footnotes describing the early Flatbush church and civil records and mentioning a particular dissertation as the “best secondary source on Flatbush history.”
NOTE: For subject indexes to these periodicals, see The Long Island Historical Journal 6:1:106-20 (Fall 1993) and The Hudson Valley Regional Review 10:2:165-87 (September 1993). For the indexes to De Halve Maen, see the Record 124:53. For indexes to New York History, see the introduction to this publication's 1976-1985 cumulative index. For citations to historical articles and book reviews about New York, see the quarterly publication American History and Life under “New York.” This publication is not at the NYG&B but recent issues can be found at the Mid-Manhattan Library (5th Ave. and 40th St.) and elsewhere.
by Henry B. Hoff, CG, FASG, FGBS
Originally published in The NYG&B Newsletter, Fall 1994
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