Anna Harmon (1845-1899) was the daughter of Martha Langford and John Harmon and the next person in my Langford Descendancy project. Anna Harmon was born about 1845 in South Carolina and died on 6 April 1899 in Osborn Mills, Kanawha, West Virginia. Anna married Silas Paul Lindler about 1863 and had seven children, 5 girls and 2 boys.
Working in FamilySearch and Ancestry simultaneously allows records to be compared and the profiles corrected to reflect accurate information. Looking directly at source record images at an archive can also ensure Anna’s story is complete and accurate.
Table of Contents
Record Conflicts for Anna Harmon
The first analysis of records begins by comparing the information in the census records from 1850 to 1880.
| Info | 1850 Census1 | 1860 Census2 | 1870 Census3 | 1880 Census4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Anna Harman | Anna D. Harman | Annie Lindler | Anna Lindler |
| Birth Year* | 1843 | 1843 | 1845 | 1843 |
| Birth Place | South Carolina | Lexington, South Carolina | South Carolina | West Virginia |
| Mother’s Birth Place | South Carolina | Lexington, South Carolina | Not recorded | West Virginia |
| Father’s Birth Place | South Carolina | Lexington, South Carolina | Not recorded | West Virginia |
Census records are often the first records searched in the United States because they can trace and link people across multiple decades. However, census records can vary in reliability because different information may have been reported depending on who may have reported it. Reliability increases when the information can be correlated with other records.
Anna Harmon’s census information is somewhat reliable because it is fairly consistent across the censuses. The birth year is consistent for the year 1843, except for 1845 as reported in the 1870 U.S. Census. Birth year variations are not too concerning if they vary by a few years.
The 1880 U.S. Census does have a conflict with birth locations. The census records from 1850-1870 all report South Carolina as a birth location for Anna Harmon and her parents Martha and John Harmon. The 1880 U.S. Census varies by reporting West Virginia instead. Possibly the person who reported the census information assumed West Virginia was the birth location because the family was living in West Virginia. When correlated with other records, the South Carolina birth location remains consistent so the 1880 U.S. Census is an anomaly that can be set aside.
FamilySearch records Anna’s full name as Anna Delphia Harmon. None of the attached records can completely confirm the middle name. The 1860 U.S. Census includes a middle initial of D, so it is possible. Other records also record the middle initial, but cannot completely support Delphia as a middle name either. The middle name is a bit unusual and none of her extended family members have the name. Perhaps a family bible or other record that has the middle name.
West Virginia Vital Records
While attempting to verify Anna Harmon’s middle name, I reviewed the attached source records on her FamilySearch profile. The death index record source indicated the original image could be viewed at the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture & Heritage. This link provided by FamilySearch appears to be broken, but entering the base URL into the browser takes you directly to the site.
The West Virginia site offers a lot of resources for family history research. With a bit of digging on the site, it was possible to find a search form to search birth, marriage, and death records. A search for Anna Harmon with death in Kanawha County in 1899 brought the record right up.5
The record was a registry book that records a person’s race, gender, death date, death place, cause of death, parents, marital status, birth year, and spouse. This record helped to provide evidence for all of these things. In addition, the recorded death date was different than the index. The index stated her death date was 6 January 1899, but the registry entry shows it was 6 April 1899.
Anna Harmon’s death date on FamilySearch relied on the date in the index. With the image in hand, I corrected the death date, made a note of the change, and uploaded the image to her memories as evidence for the correct death date.
Cleaning up FamilySearch
Anna Harmon’s FamilySearch profile needed some additional cleanup. There was a duplicate for Anna Harmon and Silas Paul Lindler. The duplicates had been created when their daughter Mary M. Lindler was added to FamilySearch. Merging the duplicates cleaned that up.
The corrected death date and standardization of places further cleaned up Anna’s profile. The image of her death registry entry provides some good evidence for changes. As other family members work on Anna and her family, they will see a cleaner and more accurate FamilySearch profile.
Sources
- 1850 U.S. Census, Lexington County, South Carolina, population schedule, Lexington District, p. 384 (stamped), dwelling 654, family 654, John Harman household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 18 June 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication M432. ↩︎
- 1860 U.S. Census, Lexington County, South Carolina, population schedule, Lexington Village, Lexington Post Office, p. 9 (penned), dwelling 70, family 70, John Harman household; digital image, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 18 June 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication M653. ↩︎
- 1870 U.S. Census, Kanawha County, West Virginia, population schedule, Elk Township, p. 22 (penned), dwelling 149, family 149, Silas P. Lindler household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 18 June 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication M593. ↩︎
- 1880 U.S. Census, Kanawha County, West Virginia, population schedule, Elk District (north side), enumeration district (ED) 51, sheet 231B (stamped), p. 10 (penned), dwelling 62, family 62, Silas P. Lindler household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 18 June 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 1313. ↩︎
- West Virginia, “Vital Records (Interactive)”; digital images,
West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture & History (http://www.wvculture.org/vital-records-interactive/ : accessed 18 June 2024). page 184, Upper District, Anna D. Lindler, Osborn Mills, Kanawha County, 6 April 1899. ↩︎
