This feature highlights items recently added to the collection of St. Louis Public Library, which may be of interest to genealogists.

1. Pyne, Rev. Frederick Wallace. Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. 7 vols. Rockport, ME: Picton Press, 1997 - . HG 929.3

The library recently received the final volumes in this set, which provides lineages for descendants of  Declaration of Independence signers. The seven volumes cover each of the original thirteen colonies. For each signer, descendants are listed down to the tenth generation.

2. Steuart, Raeone Christensen, ed. United States 1800 Census Index. 4 vols. Bountiful, UT: Heritage Quest, 2000. HG 929.3

This is a comprehensive index to the 1800 census for the entire United States. Because the listings are interfiled, this index will be very useful if you are unsure which state an ancestor lived in for the 1800 census.

3. Pruitt, Bettye Hobbs. The Massachusetts Tax Valuation List of 1771. Camden, ME: Picton Press, 1998. HG 929.3744

This list is based on assessors' returns of  in each town in Massachusetts. While the returns of some towns no longer exist, it includes approximately 38,000 polls (males who were eligible to be taxed). Tax lists can be very useful to the genealogist. In this case, it covers a year prior to the creation of Federal census lists. In addition, it lists all males over age rather than just heads of household as early censuses.

4. Bailey, Christina and Lorraine Cook White, comp. Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Vital Records. Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1994 - . HG 929.3746

The Barbour Collection includes existing town vital records for Connecticut, until approximately 1850; it is in the process of being reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Company. The Library has recently added ten new volumes of this series, covering towns alphabetically from Franklin, CT to Lebanon. We have additional volumes on order and will complete the set as volumes are published.

5. Martin, Jacob & Alfred Smith, eds. Abstract of Wills. Philadelphia, Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, 1999. HG 929.3748

This series includes reproductions of will abstracts from early Pennsylvania counties, including Berks, Bucks, Chester, Cumberland, Delaware, Lancaster, Montgomery, Philadelphia, and York. The volumes are indexed.

6. Ward, Roger G., ed. 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners (and Gazetteer). 6 vols. Athens, GA: Iberian Publishing Co., 1997. HG 929.3755

This series is based on tax lists of 1815. Landowners are listed alphabetically within regions. It includes contemporary maps of the area and a rough description of the location of the land being taxed.

7. Allen, Desmond Walls, ed. Arkansas Death Record Index, 1941 – 1948. Conway, AR: Arkansas Research, 1999. HG 929.3767

This is the last in a set of four volumes of indexes to the death records filed in the Arkansas State Department of Health. Information includes name, county, death date, race, sex, and age at time of death. This series of indexes begins with 1914.

…And Some Venerated Ancestors

These are selected older items that you may not know about, but which can prove helpful in Missouri genealogical and historical research. They represent only a few of the many valuable resources available at the St. Louis Public Library.

1. Eakin, Joanne C. and Donald R. Hale. Branded as Rebels: A List of Bushwhackers…. Lee’s Summit, MO: Donald R. Hale, 1993. HG 973.742

This is an excellent source of information on the bushwhackers and guerrillas who were allied with the Confederate army in Civil War Missouri. It includes Confederate service, irregular service, and death if killed during the war, as well as references.

2. Northcott, Dennis, ed. St. Louis County Coroner’s Records, 1826 – 1873. St. Louis, MO: Missouri Historical Society, 1997. HG 929.3778

These listings are abstracted from the Coroner’s records held at the Missouri Historical Society. They normally include name, date of death, cause of death, and location of inquest for deaths from unusual circumstances.

35. Stanley, Lois, George F. Wilson, & Maryhelen Wilson, comp. Divorces and Separations in Missouri, 1808 – 1853. St. Louis, MO: n.p., n.d. HG 929.3778

This is an abstract of information on divorces and separations as they appeared in early Missouri newspapers.

4. Stanley, Lois, George F. Wilson, & Maryhelen Wilson, comp. Death Records of Pioneer Missouri Women, 1808 – 1849. St. Louis, MO: n.p., n.d. HG 929.3778

5. Wilson, George F., Maryhelen Wilson, and Lois Stanley, comp. Death Records of Missouri Men From Newspapers, 1808 – 1854. St. Louis, MO: n.p., n.d. HG 929.3778

These books are two of several abstractions from newspaper listings of deaths that appeared long before civil registration began in Missouri.

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