Your Kinfolk in Sickness, in Health

Question: I inherited 123 letters that were saved by my great-grandfather. These letters had been stored and forgotten in an attic for more than 50 years. They were written in Missouri and Illinois from 1876 to 1885. From transcribing these letters I have learned that the lives of Midwestern farmers were dominated by considerations of crops, the weather and illness. I would like to know more about the common ailments and epidemics of 19th-Century Mid-America. However, I have searched in vain for books on the subject. Do you have any suggestions?

Answer: Dr. James Byars Carter, whose expertise is in death and diseases of the 18th and 19th centuries and the use of mortality schedules in genealogical research, gave an excellent talk this past spring on the subject of “Early Diseases, Epidemics and Terminology of the 19th Century” at the National Genealogical Conference held in Biloxi, Miss. His lecture is available on cassette tape from TRIAD, Box 120, Toulon, Ill. 61483. Tapes are $6. Carter might provide you, for a modest cost, with a copy of the bibliography prepared for this speech. Write to him at 2802 Northwood, Austin, Tex. 78703.

Q: How can I obtain a vital records of my ancestor, Caleb Peddicord, who was born in 1803 in England and died in Baltimore in 1860? I need to know his parents’ names and where in England the family originated before coming to the United States in 1816. The Vital Records office in Baltimore was of no help.

A: Before writing to state or county officials for vital records, genealogists should first consult “The Handy Book for Genealogists” (available from Everton Publishers, Box 368, Logan, Utah 84321) and “Vital Records Handbook” by Thomas J. Kemp (available from Genealogical Publishing Co., 1001 N. Calvert, Baltimore, Md. 21202). These two books can be found in most libraries that have a genealogical collection and are indispensable to genealogists.

Maryland has birth and death records for Baltimore from Jan. 1, 1875, and statewide from Aug. 1, 1898. Since the records you need are prior to these dates, it is futile to request them from that office.

Birth and death records kept by states are modern--few exist prior to 1900. To learn more about your family you will need to consult county records (land, probate, taxes, etc.), censuses, naturalization records, newspapers and church records.