I hit a roadblock.

[no_hypocrisy]

I thought I hit paydirt when I discovered that one of the four sisters of my grandfather had 11 children. Got their names initially from the 1920 and 1930 censuses. But seven of the children were female and they changed their names when they got married. In my great aunt's obit in 1932, they were referenced solely by their husbands' names, e.g., Mrs. John Smith.

I tried looking for articles about their marriages in newspapers.com but could find nothing. Same with their lives after marriage.

I'm ready to solicit Pennsylvania Vital Records to see if I can't find more details.

I can't get over how I gained 11 "new" first cousins once removed in a day. I never knew they existed -- or that their family lived 4 houses away from my grandfather.

[COLGATE4]

1. Have you used Ancestry.com?

It has a wealth of information that may help you get past your roadblock.

[No Vested Interest]

2. Use alternative sources. Many indexes are now online.

Example: Look up the spouses on Find-a-Grave. Likely the cousin is buried next to her spouse. You'll find other info.

Social Security Index. - Most adults obtained their social security number in their late teens. Women thus mostly registered under their birth/maiden names.

Many states and counties have marriage licenses applications and marriage records online. Perhaps Pennsylvania is one of them.

Congratulations on finding so many new cousins. Perhaps they're waiting to hear from you!

[csziggy]

3. In addition to Ancestry, try FamilySearch.org

That's the LDS genealogy site so I don't upload my tree to it but I do use it for research. They have a number of church and parish records that Ancestry does not. FamilySearch is free and you don even have to register to use it.

If you don't have an Ancestry membership, send me a message and I will see if I can find anything.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. Thanks so much for this Mormon site.

My research already encompasses what they have to offer though.

I have used 1) Ancestry (free at the library), 2) newspapers.com, and 3) Find A Grave with good results.

I'll try the missing married female cousins tonight and let you know how it works out.

[csziggy]

5. I hate trying to track down the women

I wish they had never taken on husbands' names - so much that I never took my husbands' name.

Sometimes I have found daughters later in life when the parents move in with one or the other of them and you see them in the census. But for recent ones, that's no good.

Good luck with your search!

[GeoWilliam750]

8. Typically, the local genealogical societies are exceedingly helpful

These can usually be found by typing into google, "Whatever" County Genealogical Society

[No Vested Interest]

6. Contact the Main Library in the towns in which they lived.

Many libraries have their own local genealogy and local history sections, with much more specific information than found otherwise.
They may have info from small newspapers, even weeklies, that newspapers.com or genealogybank.com haven't accessed.

[no_hypocrisy]

7. Excellent point!

Fortunately the first generation Americans of my family stayed in only three cities until the Fifties.

Thank you!