{"id":6423,"date":"2014-03-06T16:33:19","date_gmt":"2014-03-06T16:33:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=6423"},"modified":"2026-03-02T10:00:02","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T15:00:02","slug":"8-genealogy-tips-for-tracing-female-ancestry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/8-genealogy-tips-for-tracing-female-ancestry.html","title":{"rendered":"8 Genealogy Tips for Tracing Female Ancestry"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><em>Introduction<\/em><\/strong><em>: In this article, to celebrate March being National Women\u2019s History Month, Mary Harrell-Sesniak provides practical tips to help you search for your female ancestors. Mary is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. <\/em><\/p>\n<p>You know that age-old expression, <em>What\u2019s in a name?<\/em> Well, it means absolutely nothing if you can\u2019t find your female ancestor in any of the records\u2014much less her maiden name.<\/p>\n<p>Since the majority of \u201cdead end\u201d ancestor quests are for women, I\u2019d like to share some overlooked avenues for breaking through those genealogy research brick walls, in honor of Women\u2019s History Month.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6424\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6424\" style=\"width: 730px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/photo-0306-2014-clark-family.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6424\" title=\"photo-0306-2014-clark-family\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/photo-0306-2014-clark-family.png\" alt=\"photo of the B. F. Clark family\" width=\"730\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/photo-0306-2014-clark-family.png 730w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/photo-0306-2014-clark-family-300x215.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/photo-0306-2014-clark-family-417x300.png 417w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 730px) 100vw, 730px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6424\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Library of Congress Photo: \u201cFamily of B. F. Clark, 219 N. 4th Street\u201d www.loc.gov\/pictures\/item\/ncl2004002862\/PP\/resource\/<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>(<em>Note:<\/em> all of the newspaper articles used to illustrate this article come from GenealogyBank\u2019s online <a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/explore\/newspapers\/all\">Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tip #1: Know All of Your Ancestor\u2019s Identities<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This tip suggests that when searching the women in your family tree, you need to search for every name she ever went by, whether it be a formal first name (given name) or an informal nickname.<\/p>\n<p>Most women, including myself, have multiple identities, depending upon the context.<\/p>\n<p>Someone might have a pet name within the family, a formal name on a birth record, and might also gain a new name in a religious setting. And a woman might also go by one spelling as a child, and then choose to spell her name differently as an adult.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Nickname References and Examples<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Useful English: Women\u2019s Names and Nicknames,<\/em> <a href=\"http:\/\/usefulenglish.ru\/vocabulary\/womens-names\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/usefulenglish.ru\/vocabulary\/womens-names<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Behind the Name<\/em>, a website which examines the etymology and history of first names.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Abigail: Abbie, Abby, Gail, Nabby<\/li>\n<li>Adeline: Addie, Aline, Dell, Della<\/li>\n<li>Clementine: Clem, Tina<\/li>\n<li>Henrietta: Etta, Henry, Etty<\/li>\n<li>Margaret: Daisy, Greta, Madge, Maggie, Mamie, Marge, Margery, Peggy<\/li>\n<li>Roberta: Berta, Bertie, Bobbie, Bobby, Robbie, Robby<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6425\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6425\" style=\"width: 444px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6425\" title=\"freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker.png\" alt=\"article about Daisy Walker, Freeman newspaper article 20 March 1909\" width=\"444\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker.png 444w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker-300x293.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/freeman-newspaper-0320-1909-daisy-walker-306x300.png 306w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 444px) 100vw, 444px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6425\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Freeman (Indianapolis, Indiana), 20 March 1909, page 4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Tip #2: Search All of Your Ancestor\u2019s Titles<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Titles aren\u2019t always formal. They can be applied according to the role one takes in the community, and vary from situation to situation. Take, for example, Mary Jane Smith, a popular neighborhood mom in Atlanta. It\u2019s possible some genealogical records only call her Mama Smith, whereas others might name her as Mary Jane Smith.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6426\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6426\" style=\"width: 507px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6426\" title=\"marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith.png\" alt=\"article about Mary Jane Smith, Marietta Journal newspaper article 4 June 1985\" width=\"507\" height=\"173\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith.png 507w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith-300x102.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/marietta-journal-newspaper-0604-1985-mary-jane-smith-500x170.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 507px) 100vw, 507px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6426\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Marietta Journal (Marietta, Georgia), 4 June 1985, page 6<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Ancestor Title examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Aunt, Aunty, Sis, Mama, Mother, Grandma, Grannie, Nana<\/li>\n<li>Goodwife or Goody Jones (a Puritan title)<\/li>\n<li>Miss America<\/li>\n<li>Mrs. Peabody, Mrs. Juan Moreno<\/li>\n<li>Nurse Miller<\/li>\n<li>Widow Channing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6427\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6427\" style=\"width: 556px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6427\" title=\"heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife.png\" alt=\"article about the Puritans' use of the terms &quot;goodman&quot; and &quot;goodwife,&quot; Heraldo de Brownsville newspaper article 4 July 1937\" width=\"556\" height=\"216\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife.png 556w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife-300x116.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/heraldo-de-brownsville-newspaper-0704-1937-goodwife-500x194.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 556px) 100vw, 556px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6427\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heraldo de Brownsville (Brownsville, Texas), 4 July 1937, page 5<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Tip #3: Search for Pseudonyms<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If a woman wished to compete in a man\u2019s world, she typically used a pseudonym.<\/p>\n<p>Many people have heard of Louisa May Alcott, who wrote the beloved novel <em>Little Women<\/em>. However, few know that Louisa used the pseudonym A. M. Barnard to publish a series of \u201cpotboilers\u201d that were thrilling Gothic stories.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6428\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6428\" style=\"width: 455px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6428\" title=\"dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard.png\" alt=\"book review of Louisa May Alcott's book &quot;Plots and Counter-Plots,&quot; Dallas Morning News newspaper article 26 September 1976\" width=\"455\" height=\"337\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard.png 455w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/dallas-morning-news-newspaper-0926-1976-alcott-barnard-405x300.png 405w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 455px) 100vw, 455px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6428\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dallas Morning News (Dallas, Texas), 26 September 1976, page 5aaa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>See <em>List of Works Published under a Pseudonym<\/em> at <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_works_published_under_a_pseudonym\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_works_published_under_a_pseudonym<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Tip #4: Search by Her Initials<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Many assume that men are more prone to be recorded by their initials, but it is common for women also, depending upon the circumstance.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Competing in a Man\u2019s World<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Female authors and artists very often use initials to compete in a man\u2019s world.<\/p>\n<p>Mary Jane (Olmstead) Stanton was a suffragette and author who appears in records under the name M. O. Stanton. In this 1890 newspaper article, written when Stanton was involved as a founding member of the Woman\u2019s Press Association of the Pacific Coast, some women were referred to by their initials (Mrs. E. T. Y. Parkhurst), others by their own names (Mrs. Sarah B. Cooper), and one by her husband\u2019s name (Mrs. Sam Davis).<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6429\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6429\" style=\"width: 299px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/san-diego-union-newspaper-1009-1890-womans-press-association.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6429\" title=\"san-diego-union-newspaper-1009-1890-woman's-press-association\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/san-diego-union-newspaper-1009-1890-womans-press-association.png\" alt=\"Woman's Press Association, San Diego Union newspaper article 9 October 1890\" width=\"299\" height=\"528\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6429\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Diego Union (San Diego, California), 9 October 1890, page 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>See obituary of Mrs. E. T. Y Parkhurst, which omits her husband\u2019s name <a href=\"http:\/\/cdnc.ucr.edu\/cgi-bin\/cdnc?a=d&amp;d=PRP18920521.2.30.6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/cdnc.ucr.edu\/cgi-bin\/cdnc?a=d&amp;d=PRP18920521.2.30.6<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Official Government Records<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Official government records, such as patents, are sometimes recorded by the inventor\u2019s initials\u2014so if you search only by the obvious names, you\u2019ll miss them.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/patents\/US3995?dq=submarine+lamp+and+telescope+sarah+mather+1845&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=LZsPU_iMC4GrkQek74CYDw&amp;ved=0CDQQ6wEwAA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Submarine Telescope and Lamp<\/a> was patented 16 April 1845 by S. P. Mather (Sarah Mather) under U.S. Patent 3995.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>The invention of the modern form of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/patents\/US448476?dq=deiner+rolling+pin&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=wZsPU6mEGMrwkQeQ94DIDA&amp;ved=0CDMQ6AEwAA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">rolling pin<\/a> was patented by C. Deiner (Catherine Deiner) 17 March 1891 under U.S. Patent 448,476.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>See <em>Inventions by Women<\/em>: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.factmonster.com\/ipka\/A0906931.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.factmonster.com\/ipka\/A0906931.html<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Tip #5: Incorporate Cultural Considerations in Searches<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As a country of immigrants, we shouldn\u2019t be surprised that name spellings vary from country to country, or that a bilingual family might interchange names according to the cultural setting. A woman might be called by her Old World name in the family setting, and recorded in other ancestry records by the more common American spelling.<\/p>\n<p>For example, an ancestor named Mary might also be known as: Maria if your family came from Spain; from the Netherlands, as Marja or Maaike; and if your female progenitor was Welsh, she might also be recorded in records as Mair.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6430\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6430\" style=\"width: 565px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6430\" title=\"duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa.png\" alt=\"article about Marja Rufa, Duluth News-Tribune newspaper article 11 February 1909\" width=\"565\" height=\"172\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa.png 565w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa-300x91.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/duluth-news-tribune-newspaper-0211-1909-marja-rufa-500x152.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 565px) 100vw, 565px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6430\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Duluth News-Tribune (Duluth, Minnesota), 11 February 1909, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Research Considerations<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It can take several generations before Old World names are Americanized.<\/li>\n<li>American and foreign versions were often interchanged, depending upon the cultural setting.<\/li>\n<li>Names are typically recorded differently in English-speaking newspapers than in foreign-language editions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Tip #7: Search Multiple Sources for Marriage Records<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There are more ways to prove a marriage than almost any other event\u2014but many sources for marriage evidence are overlooked. Some will not be found on the Web, so think creatively if you haven\u2019t been able to locate a woman\u2019s maiden name or marriage record.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Marriage Record Research Suggestions:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bibles<\/li>\n<li>Biographies<\/li>\n<li>Cemetery Records<\/li>\n<li>Church Books and Minister\u2019s Records<\/li>\n<li>Church Newsletters<\/li>\n<li>Civil Registrations (courthouses)<\/li>\n<li>Consent Affidavits<\/li>\n<li>Courthouse Records<\/li>\n<li>Death Certificates<\/li>\n<li>Diaries<\/li>\n<li>Divorce Decrees<\/li>\n<li>Engagement Notices<\/li>\n<li>Frakturs (form of artwork common with the Pennsylvania Dutch; see \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/frakturs-family-bibles-can-provide-proof-of-marriage.html\">Frakturs &amp; Family Bibles Can Provide Proof of Marriage<\/a>\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>Immigration Records<\/li>\n<li>Journals<\/li>\n<li>Land Records<\/li>\n<li>Marriage Banns\u2014or Publishing of the Banns (see \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/understanding-terms-found-in-historical-newspapers.html\">Understanding Terms Found in Historical Newspapers<\/a>\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>Marriage Bonds<\/li>\n<li>Marriage Certificates<\/li>\n<li>Marriage Licenses<\/li>\n<li>Marriage Permits<\/li>\n<li>Naturalization Papers<\/li>\n<li>Obituaries of Family Members<\/li>\n<li>Orphan Court Records<\/li>\n<li>Pension Files (widows)<\/li>\n<li>Probate Records<\/li>\n<li>Town Histories<\/li>\n<li>Town Records (prior to civil registration)<\/li>\n<li>Wedding Showers<\/li>\n<li>Wills<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6431\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6431\" style=\"width: 591px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6431\" title=\"cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits.png\" alt=\"article about marriage permits, Cincinnati Daily Gazette newspaper article 16 July 1878\" width=\"591\" height=\"181\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits.png 591w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits-300x91.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/cincinnati-daily-gazette-newspaper-0716-1878-marriage-permits-500x153.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 591px) 100vw, 591px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6431\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cincinnati Daily Gazette (Cincinnati, Ohio), 16 July 1878, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Tip #8: Enter \u201cMaiden Name\u201d as a Search Engine Keyword<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When I discovered this last genealogy research tip, it was a real \u201cAha\u201d moment!<\/p>\n<p>If you are looking for a maiden name, use \u201cmaiden name\u201d or \u201cmaiden name was\u201d as keywords in your search. Notice how many results were returned when I tried it in the GenealogyBank search box:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cmaiden name\u201d: over 125,000 results<\/li>\n<li>\u201cmaiden name was\u201d: almost 35,000 results<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6432\" title=\"genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search.png\" alt=\"screenshot of GenealogyBank's search page for keywords &quot;maiden name was&quot;\" width=\"580\" height=\"337\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search.png 580w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search-300x174.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/genealogybank-0306-2014-maiden-name-search-500x290.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Now incorporate those keywords with a name search, and see what you find! When I entered \u201cSarah Furman\u201d \u201cmaiden name,\u201d this record identifying her as a Strickland appeared\u2014a fantastic research find listing her 260 offspring!<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6433\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6433\" style=\"width: 711px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6433\" title=\"boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary\" src=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary.png\" alt=\"obituary for Sarah Furman, Boston Post-Boy newspaper article 22 February 1742\" width=\"711\" height=\"406\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary.png 711w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary-300x171.png 300w, https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/boston-post-boy-newspaper-0222-1742-sarah-furman-obituary-500x285.png 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6433\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Boston Post-Boy (Boston, Massachusetts), 22 February 1742, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Yes, finding all the genealogy records for your female ancestors can be tough, but employing these eight research tips\u2014plus a little patience\u2014might turn up some solid results for you in your family history searches.<\/p>\n<p>Please share with us in the comments section any successes you\u2019ve had from using these tips, and any additional methods you\u2019ve used to find the females in your family tree.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/sign-up?destination=%2Fcampaign%2Fpurchase%3Fsession%255Bexit_point%255D%3DLz9zX3JlZmVycmVyPSZzX3NpdGVsb2M9JnNfdHJhY2t2YWw9JmtiaWQ9Njk5MTk%253D\">Create a free account<\/a> at GenealogyBank for 7 days to start your journey and discover the stories your ancestors left behind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this article, to celebrate Women\u2019s History Month, Mary Harrell-Sesniak provides practical tips to help you search for your female ancestors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":20359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12701],"tags":[6215,3384,2719],"class_list":["post-6423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-female-ancestors","tag-ancestor-name-research","tag-female-ancestors","tag-genealogy-search-tips"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/illustration-0306-2013-featured-graphic-woman.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6423","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6423"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6423\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106964,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6423\/revisions\/106964"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6423"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6423"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6423"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}