bennison@clt.DEC (Victor Bennison - DTN 381-2156) (12/29/85)
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There is a Wilson County in Tennessee, and a town called Wilson in Kentucky.
Wilson County, Tennessee, is not on the border with Kentucky. One thing to
do is to find your families in census records between 1850 and 1910 and find
places of birth for your people. If there are people born in Kentucky but
not in Tennessee or vice versa, then you probably have the state pinned down.
Of course, if nobody was born in either state, then they probably didn't live
there too long.
One general suggestion. I go to used book stores and look for old atlases.
They are usually quite cheap. I have a Rand McNally for 1922 that shows
the county lines very clearly, has a good index, and shows all the railroad
lines. It also has many many more towns listed then you
would find in most current atlases. I bought the atlas for $3.00. If an atlas
has the town of Stockton, PA, then it is probably pretty good. This is a very
small town that one of my ancestors was born in and the only current atlas
I can find it listed in is the huge and very expensive, if even available,
Rand McNally Commercial Atlas (many libraries have it, but I think it is
somehow leased). I saw a 1982 used copy for $100 at a bookstore in Burbank
last summer. I didn't spring for it, though I kind of wish I had now.
I picked up an 1888 atlas for 50 cents at a library book
sale. It isn't as good as the other one, but, for instance, shows country
boundaries in 1888. I also have a 1931 Rand McNally atlas and a 1957 Rand
McNally Atlas of World History. Another useful reference for finding counties
is the Handy Book for Genealogists, by Everton Publishers. Probably all
Mormon Branch genealogical libraries have one or two copies, and many other
libraries. It lists all the counties for each state and enumerates available
records for each county.
Vick Bennison
...decvax!decwrl!rhea!tools!bennison
(603) 881-2156