ROOTS & BRANCHES

As I’ve spent a lot of time during the last year researching and writing a book about the uses of historical newspapers, I’ve come to a conclusion about what I call the most serious impediment to research about the past – “presentism.”

I define “presentism” as believing (often unconsciously) that things in the past always have been the way they are now.

Even though we may “know” better, it’s tough – maybe impossible in a lot of instances – to look at history without the filter of knowing how things work in the present and therefore making that the “default” for how things work in the past.

Related to his, is that I often say that “time” and “place” are the crosshairs of genealogy – with each foray into research, we need to aim those crosshairs to a different time and place … with different records most useful or even in existence.

An example that drilled this home to me recently was in looking at a list (published in a newspaper) of letters available for pickup at the post office.

Now in our present day – most of us have our mailed delivered and even those of us with post office boxes are likely to check them frequently without any sort of reminder necessary (oh, if only there were more checks than bills and “junk” mail, but that’s an ill of the present day to address some other time!)

The newspaper in question was a German-language weekly based in Reading but serving the counties of Schuylkill and Montgomery in addition to Berks. German immigrant Arnold Puwelle began Der liberale Beobachter und Berks, Montgomery und Schuylkill Caunties allgemeine anzeiger (German for “The Liberal Observer and Berks, Montgomery and Schuylkill Counties General Gazette”).

It was published from 1839 to 1864, the entire run of which is searchable and available on the free Chronicling America website sponsored by the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Among the many references to my Berks County ancestors is one from February 1844 that was headlined “Reading Post-Amt” (Reading Post Office) and prefaced as “Liste von Briefen, welche am 1. Febr, 1844 auf Hand waren.” (“List of letters, which were on hand on 1 February 1844”).

In that list was my great-great-grandfather, Henry W. Beidler.

What can I get of use from his name being on this list?

As with much of genealogy, we’re doing well if we have “half the story.”

Since I find him in the 1850 U.S. Census in Lebanon County (outside of the circulation area of this newspaper), it seems likely he was still in Berks County at this time.

A small “pebble” in the pile of his life, one of many that can be obtained from newspapers.