Reseaching Smith family...?

Question:Does anyone have any suggestions for reseach with names that are more popluar? My grandfather was Smith. All I know is that he was born in Maine and there are a ton of Smith's in Maine. And ways to narrow it down? Unfortually, census records are not of much help, my mother and aunt being born in the early 1930's, so I can not look for him listed with his children.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Does anyone have any suggestions for reseach with names that are more popluar? My grandfather was Smith. All I know is that he was born in Maine and there are a ton of Smith's in Maine. And ways to narrow it down? Unfortually, census records are not of much help, my mother and aunt being born in the early 1930's, so I can not look for him listed with his children.

Up until about two months ago, I wasn't exactly sure of my Great-Grandfather [David C.] Smith's full name (only his initials), even though I had joined Ancestry.com, a family bible had furnished me his exact birth and death dates nearly 30 years ago, and I had obtained a copy of his marriage license. Consequently, I had almost given up on tracing an ancestor who died when my grandfather was three and who showed up in Texas in the middle of the American Civil War.

However, I noticed an Ancestry.com personal member tree that looked promising, so another contributor and I e-mailed each other back and forth. Not only did I find out my great-grandfather's name, but the names and birth and death dates of both his parents as well--not to mention the news that he was born in Massachusetts instead of New York (as the family had always thought) and that his dad was born in New Hampshire. I'll probably never go any further back in time with the Smith line than 1800, but Maine is rather nearby. Do you have an Alden Smith or Penelope Cooper in your family tree?

In short, don't be afraid to post on message boards and correspond with other researchers after you first talk to close family members and verify what you can through census records and by writing county clerks asking for birth certificates and marriage licenses (which will give you a basis for comparison).

The normal standard is working from the present, back, and for your situation, this is even more important. A more recent item would probably be his death certificate. This should include the exact name of his parents, and place of birth. Another record, if you can locate such, is the obituary.. looking for names of his siblings. This way, if you find 4 John Smiths (normally an analogy but not for you) in a county, you have 'side' info to use for matching purposes. How about social security? Is he in the social security death index, with his number? the file will not be free, but it can include details of where he worked and lived.
It can be easy to use an index for less common names. When you have a number of those, the approach is to make sure that you have ALL possible later documents, and those documents should help place him in a county, if not a town. And sometimes, you have to go with process of elimination.
ps
if you would like, plunk out what you do have (wife's name? etc) on the table, and maybe some fresh eyes can spot what you need.

What was your grand-fathers name? He was your moms dad and would have to be in the 1920 census. I have a Smith family I traced back to the immigrant in the early 1700's from my dads mom. It CAN be done, just go slow and think about what you know and work back from there. You know your mom was born where? Presumably your grandparents lived there in the 1920 census, try there first. That should narrow down your lsit of potential Smith's. Then what was your grandmothers name, she should be listed by name with your grandfather. Your Aunt might now some of this info if she is stil lalive, your mom should now who her parents were if she is til lalive. If both are dead look in the paper for their obituary, it might list their parents and where they were born. Lastly if you are REALLy stuck go to the local LDS Church(Mormon) and visit their Family History Center. They have people that can help and NO you do NOT need to be a Mormo to go there. And NO they will NOT try and convert you either!!!! They are just geneaogists doing research in the FHC.