South Bay Cities Genealogical Society

Promoting Genealogical Education and Research in Southern California's South Bay

Beginner's Basics

Just A Dash

by Connie Moretti

Surely you've seen family histories or biographies that identify an individual as, for example, Clinton Holcomb (1850–1924). It's our job as family historians to supply the details that are contained within the "dash". To share the information we have collected in a compelling manner and to bring our ancestors to life, we need to provide an interesting narrative in so far as possible.

Here's an example based on the "dash" for Clinton Holcombe:

The second son of Jacob and Mary Rodgers Holcomb, Clinton Colwell Holcomb was born in Deavertown, Ohio, on July 8, 1850. He had an older brother, Corwin Sylvester, and four younger sisters, Joanna, Ellen, Carry and Eliza. His father, Jacob, earned his living as a carpenter and cabinet maker, and as an adult Clinton followed in his footsteps in occupations related to building; first as a house painter and glazier and later as a painter and decorator.

The family lived in the village of Malta in Morgan County, Ohio, where Clinton and his siblings attended school. By the time he finished school at about age 18, Clinton began to work in a paint shop while his older brother was a journeyman carpenter.

In 1873 Clinton married Eliza Strate and they became the parents of four children: Harry born in 1876, Laura born in 1878, and twins Willard and Wilbur born in 1881. How sad the family must have been to loose young Laura in 1886 at the age of eight.

Clinton worked steadily as a house painter and window installer, and owned his home at 1225 Hyland Street in the 18th ward of Columbus, Ohio after paying off his mortgage.

By 1920, Clinton was concentrating on the aesthetic aspects of his business and contracted for decorating services. Their sons were grown and Harry became a Methodist minister, Willard worked as a stenographer and bookkeeper for the railroad, and Wilbur followed his father as a house painter and interior decorator

On October 25, 1924, the pernicious anemia which had troubled Clinton for years finally caused his death. He was laid to rest in the Holcomb family plot in Malta Union Cemetery in the county of his birth.

This brief "dash" is based on information gathered from only two sources — census records available at Heritage Quest Online or Ancestry.com and death certificates from the Record Search Pilot at FamilySearch.org. Just think how much more about Clinton Holcomb's life might be found by searching newspapers, city directories, court records, and county histories to name a few sources.

Just as a dash of salt can improve your soup, filling in the "dash" for your ancestors can make your family history come to life.

[First appeared in The Beacon, January/February 2010.]