Freedom’s first guarantee
Happy 230th birthday to the Bill of Rights They were among 12 amendments first proposed by Congress to the states on 25 September 1789. It took more than two years for three-fourths of the states to ratify ten of them.1 The Legal Genealogist recognizes — as...Happy Constitution Day!
On 17 September 1787… They are words for the ages. They begin: “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the...Doubts about dower
Not everywhere at all times On the 10th of December 1874, a couple with whom The Legal Genealogist has more than just a passing acquaintance sold off 39 and 2/3 acres of land in Parker County, Texas. G.W. and Martha L. “Cotrell,” as their names appear in the document,...Tarheel dower
Researching dower in North Carolina Reader Marcia is puzzled. “I have been doing family history in North Carolina and dealing with Dower and other goodies,” she writes. “When she got the land as a dower right did the widow own it outright?” Great question, because a...Doing as he was told
Thank you, Phoebe King Ensminger Burn It was 100 years ago today that Harry T. Burn did what he was told. He listened to his mama. And the result of doing that simple thing was historic in every sense of that word. It was precisely 100 years ago today that Harry T....Linking the Alabama Constitutions
The woes of web writers Years ago, The Legal Genealogist carefully researched and wrote up a long piece on the six — count ’em — six constitutions that Alabama has had in its closing-in-on-200 years of history. Yep. Alabama celebrates its...Constituting Massachusetts
Legal research in the Bay State Researching the way Massachusetts was created as a matter of law through its chartering documents is really easy, isn’t it? After all, The Legal Genealogist is quite sure that Massachusetts has only ever had one Constitution,...Inequality at Equality
The town with the incongruous name There’s no getting around it. The town of Equality in Gallatin County, Illinois, was anything but in early Illinois history. Because for years, there was slavery in one little corner of Illinois — the little corner near...Constituting Michigan
That first state charter The Legal Genealogist is on the road again. In Grand Rapids, Michigan, to be precise, for tomorrow’s Got Ancestors?! 2017 seminar of the Western Michigan Genealogical Society. We’re going to have a lot of fun tomorrow at the Grand...Subscribe by Email
