Help finding any information on a specific ancestor (James H. Freeman)
Hello! I am seeking help finding more information about my 3rd-great-grandfather, James H. Freeman. (ID; GWD7-VTD)
All I know (for sure) is that he had a child with Florence (or Flora) Black (ID: 9JDJ-2SY) at some point. According to the child Norman Morgan's birth record (ID; GWDW-97B), he was born on 15 April 1907 in Minneapolis, MN, USA, with the last name Freeman. James is recorded as a salesman and being from Canada, and 36 years old.
Another interesting addition to everything is from Florence's (aka Flora's) records. My family has gotten confirmation from her siblings that, in 1906 she did indeed travel to Saskatchewan and boarded with cousins before meeting and 'marrying' James H. Freeman, before they 'moved together' to Minneapolis, MN, USA, where Flora then gave birth in 1907. I did find the record of her with cousins in 1906 in a census; she is, interestingly enough, labeled as single at this time. The next record of her is her son's birth in 1907 in MN.
Her next record is in 1910, when she is listed as divorced (with the name Florance Freeman) and working as a servant for John Jay Baumgartner. (whom she goes on to marry in 1916)
I do know that James died about 1912, or again, that is what Florence Baumgartner has written when she altered Norman's birth record to say Baumgartner. I have plans to try to go in person to view this record soon at a FamilySearch Center.
ANY help would be super helpful. I've never reached such a difficult spot in my research before and am feeling so discouraged because I really feel like I have barely anything to even go off!
Answers
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Hello @Madi4309!
Something that could break the brick wall is a DNA test. Through triangulating matches, you may be able to find James' family. It mainly depends on how many cousins have tested.
Requesting a search for a genealogical marriage certificate at the e-health Saskatchewan website might also reveal some information. It looks like they'll refund about half the cost if they can't find it.
I'm unsure about the 1906 Saskatchewan census for James Freman. I'm also unsure if there's any connection to the 1901 census for another James Freeman in the same town of Carnduff (connected to this profile).
You may want to post again in the Canada Research group for their expertise.
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Thank you! I posted in the Canada research group and will be sure to take a look at that census record! I do have my great-grandfather's DNA test on Ancestry ( so Norman's son); however, I am not fully sure how/what to look for with that. I am attempting to do more research into properly triangulating these matches in hopes of finding someone from James's family!
All your help is greatly appreciated!
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Hi again @Madi4309!
Since your great-grandfather inherited about 25% of his DNA from his grandfather, James, his DNA test may be the key to solving the mystery. You'll definitely want to go to the DNA tab on Ancestry and take a look at his matches. Use the filtering options near the top right of the match page to narrow down your results.
If you have an active subscription, definitely try filtering by paternal matches, which would only show the Black and Freeman lines.
A free filter is Search. Type Freeman under Surname in matches' tree. Typing Canada under the Birth location in matches' trees could also help.
Go through each match. Focus especially on those that have a tree. You'll only be able to look at their trees with a subscription, but, if you take some notes, you can see those trees at your local library or FamilySearch center with their subscription.
Additionally, check out the Leeds Method, something that has helped a lot of people with brick walls:
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