FamilY Lineage
MCHGS sponsors four different lineage societies for early settlers--First Families, Pioneers & Settlers Families, Victorian Families, and Civil War Families, and one for the Randolph Freedmen. The requirements for the first three are that the applicant must, in addition to being a member of the MCHGS, prove that a direct ancestor first resided in the area of Miami County, Ohio, within one of the time periods below.
Civil War Families requirements are: any member of the MCHGS who is a direct or collateral descendant of any person who served in the Civil War for the Union or Confederacy as a military member, in the Squirrel Hunters, or as a spy, male or female, is eligible as long as the Civil War ancestor lived, served or died in Miami County. The date of Civil War service must be between 12 April 1861 and 18 April 1865.
For the Randolph Freedmen, the applicant must prove his/her descent from an individual who was a former Randolph slave whose name is listed on the manumission papers in the will of John Randolph of Roanoke Plantation, Charlotte County VA, and who arrived in Ohio after the will's settlement in 1846.
First Families - Prior to 1831
Pioneers & Settlers Families - 1 Jan 1831 to 31 Dec 1850
Victorian Families - 1 Jan 1851 to 31 Dec 1880
Civil War Families - 12 Apr 1861 to 18 Apr 1865
Randolph Freedmen - 1846 or later
Lineage Society awards are made each November at the Annual Meeting. Please fill out a Lineage Application. The deadline for submissions is September 1. Only one lineage society pin will be issued to each approved member for any given MCHGS lineage society. An applicant may request to have all qualifying ancestors’ names (newly approved and previously approved) included on his/her new certificate for a given lineage society, assuming that there is room on the form for them all. Otherwise, only the name(s) of the newly approved ancestors will be included. Replacement certificates or pins may be purchased for a $4.00 fee each, plus postage.
RECOGNITION
Application Rules & Guidelines
- Introduction
Please direct any questions about the application form to the Society mailing address below or to [email protected] The subject line should read “MCHGS Application Form Request”.
An excellent set of LS research guidelines is provided on-line by the OGS at
www.ogs.org/pdf/lineage-rules-2006.pdf.
One exception to the OGS rules is that the MCHGS recognizes adoptive parents as direct ancestors. Copies of forms to be used for the items discussed below are accessible from the links at the bottom of the page.
- General Information
General Information A one time $15.00 fee is charged for a member's first Lineage Society application. Effective 1 September 2011 there are no other fees for added named ancestors or for any future applications. LS certificates and pins are awarded at the annual meeting each November. 1 September is the submission deadline each year. Replacement pins or certificates may be purchased for $4.00 plus postage.
- Completing the Application Form
Completing the Application Form The MCHGS LS Application form has four fillable PDF files, described below, which may be downloaded. Be sure to refresh your computer screen before downloading to make sure you get the most current forms. Paper copies may also be obtained by writing to: MCHGS, PO Box 808, 45356.
Application for Lineage Society (p 1) - Fill in the top section. In the table enter each named ancestor’s name, the LS being applied for (FF, PS, VF or CW), the initial residency year claimed and the unique permanent ID that you assign for the Family Line in which that ancestor is named. (Multiple ancestors may be named in the same Family Line). Use the format (YY-xx) when assigning Family Line Identifiers. For example, use “09-01” for your first FLI assignment of 2009.
Family Identification (pp 2-3) - Enter the FLI in the upper right corner of Page 2. Number the “Doc #” fields sequentially ( 1, 2, 3, ...). At the bottom of page 3 the name of the person who compiled the Family Line information should be provided and that person should sign the application. Often this is the applicant, but it is quite proper for this work to be done by another person.
Family Tree Chart (pp 4-5) - Fill in one chart for each Family Line, clearly indicating who the individuals at the start and end points are. Examples might be: 1) “Joe Jones, Collateral Ancestor” at the start and “Sam Jones, Common Ancestor” at the end or 2) “John Smith, Applicant” at the start and “Sam Jones, Common Ancestor” at the end. Family lines can be used to identify branches of a family, e.g., to clearly identify the relationship of a collateral ancestor to a common ancestor, or to identify a branch emanating from some other family line, without having to duplicate the proof documentation provided for that other family line.
Documentation Record (pp 6-7) - List and describe the contents of the documents used for proofs of claims made in the Family Identification file, using the assigned document numbers. Where more than one document is provided to prove a single claim, use letters, e.g., 5a, 5b, etc... , using a separate line for each document. Forms are available in both PDF and Word for this item. The Word version can be completed via computer.
- A Few Important Guidelines
See www.archives.gov/research/military/civil-war/index.html for Civil War records. Proof documents used in approved OGS LS applications are accepted by the MCHGS as proof of the same claims. Claims explicitly stated on the front page of an OGS application require only a copy of that page and the OGS Award ID as MCHGS proof. This avoids costly duplication of approved OGS applications, yet guarantees full access to them by interested researchers.
Use margin marks on proof documents to help reviewers locate especially important information, such as names, etc. Do NOT use highlighter pens. They look nice on the originals, but they often cause reproductions to be unreadable.
Number all sheets and indicate the total number of sheets. The sequence for the documents is: the Application form, followed by each set of Family Line documents being submitted. Each such set includes: Family Identification, Tree Chart, and Documentation Record forms plus the associated proof documents.
Please note: The MCHGS mailing address on some of the forms in this section has not been updated.