The vortex:

 The search function in Ancestry.com is a quick way to save source citations to your tree, but the system is not designed for quick and easy browsing, or in-depth reading of histories. Plus, the search results are often hit and miss. Luckily, many of the databases on Ancestry are compiled using books available in the public domain and can be found online.  One of my favorite places to find research materials is the internet archive: Archive.org. 

I usually end up at the Archive after getting frustrated with the slow loading images on Ancestry, so I look first for the specific title in the texts section.  That way I can search the document text, or download a copy to browse through later. I also browse other books with the same subject, author or publisher, just in case. I also recommend searching various related key words, and exploring titles by subject. Searches for the state and county are a good place to start. If that brings too many results, add the name of the town. If your ancestor was involved in one of the early wars, there are many books of muster rolls, regimental histories, and even books of miscellaneous records and memos.  Other records can be found in probate records, abstracts of wills, registers of birth, and passenger lists. All available on the Archive.

At this point you may realize you have 20 tabs open and you've downloaded 4 gigabytes of DAR journals.You're hooked. Since your day is already shot you may as well give up any pretense of work and dive into the Military service records, and pension applications. All 5269 books of them.  And stop by the moving images section to watch some early health or marketing films, Lego stop motion movies, even the first kiss ever filmed. Or stream the ever popular Grateful Dead bootleg concert recordings. Whatever piques your interest, there will be something for you to enjoy. Best of all, the site is free, and more stuff is constantly being added, so there is always something new to read or look at. 

The long and winding road

Of the things I am good at, staying on task for extended periods of time is not one of them. I  often amaze even myself at how far astray my focus can veer when a newer, shinier distraction is dangled in front of me.

Like this email:

Lib,

I just found a scrap of paper from my trip to Johnstown 2 yrs. ago. I was looking for an ancestor on the Davis side. I have pretty good records up to this particular Davis. He was Sergeant Isaac Davis, enlisted 1778 as a private in Capt. Veeder's Company, Col. Visscher Regiment. He was born in 1752 and his wife was Sarah Smith. He is listed in Vol. 40 Page 407 of the Muster & Payroll of Revolutionary War 1775-1783. Vol for 1914-15 of Collections of NY Historical Society(2V) 494. I wish I had kept better notes and I may have but just haven't found them yet. Anyway, this is the ancestor that I would like to pursue for DAR because he would go up to my Gr.-Grand Erastus Corning Davis. I'd like that direct line. Any ideas how to do it? My father, Aunt Grace and Aunt Helen all searched for him and I believe what I found is the only record of his that we know about. I have records of his son? Matthew and then straight to Erastus C.

Mom

What followed was a bit over a year, off and on, spent learning about genealogical research. Because who is going to say "no" to their mom?  I put up a tree on ancestry.com and we met a new distant cousin who is also researching the Davis family and found we have a lot in common—right back to our first U.S. ancestor, and his DNA. Every once in a while I would find a small bit of new information and put it into the puzzle, but still couldn’t find any documentation that Matthew was the son of Isaac. And no other family tree on the internet has a Matthew in this family. I know because I looked at all of them.

Did you know that Ancestry.com is like Facebook on crack for old people?  You think you’re just going to click one leaf then stop, but before you know it, you haven’t showered in a week and your kid is eating fried bread for every meal because you're too hopped up on the thrill of deciphering Muster Rolls to grocery shop or cook.

Now that I’m fairly well versed on how to dig up records, and find primary sources for US ancestors, I’ve adopted the title of Accidental Genealogist.  And because I do this as a hobby, and I’m a Yankee at heart, I’ll be sure to share all the good places to find records for free as I document the search for the elusive Matthew Oliver Davis.