Here is an abbreviation you hope you don’t see in a census or city directory for an ancestor — ‘P’ – it generally meant a pauper. There are usually several parts to a city directory. ... relationship to head of household, marital status, birthplace, religion, and occupation. City directories can help you to establish your ancestor's residence in a certain place at a certain time, and they can give information about a person's occupation, home address, name of a spouse, and names of neighbors. City directories can help you to establish your ancestor's residence in a certain place at a certain time, and they can give information about a person's occupation, home address, name of a spouse, and names of neighbors. Types of Directories City Directories often provide an individual's address, occupation, spouse's name, and other helpful facts. Another abbreviation that I’ve seen in my research which has helped me immeasurably is the term “rem” or ‘removed.’ This simply means that a person has moved away (i.e., removed themselves) from their previous residence. As a family historian I am so thankful for this because nowadays we are much more concerned with information privacy! Related FamilyTree.com genealogy blogs: City Directories. What does REM mean? City directories are published books that contained lists of names and addresses for people in a specific town or city for a particular year. The Key to Understanding Family Relationships, Ten Effective Strategies on How to Build a Family Tree. 4. Below is a reference list of the most common abbreviations found in city directories. There is so much information to be mined in what lies beneath city directory abbreviations. – “eodem” (the same). 1859 Columbia, SC City Directory Table of Contents. From about 1885 forward, the collection is complete for every year, with an annual city directory for Seattle and its environs. City directories are a valuable source of information. We can also conclude that this younger Alexander was working as a machine operator for an “S&Co” and therefore of an employable age. There are usually several parts to a city directory. They typically list the name, occupation and address of all residents in a town, city or region. There is so much information to be mined in what lies beneath city directory abbreviations. Each directory listed the name of a resident, an address, and sometimes more information, such as a person’s occupation. You are missing out on a great deal of genealogical information if you do not understand what lies beneath City Directory Abbreviations and their meanings. Here is another resource of abbreviations for occupations. In my experience these are usually family members of legal age, especially if they share the same last name. The list of abbreviations in many city directories also include the occupation of each resident to the extent possible. google_ad_width = 336; However, I’m going to use the New Haven, Connecticut City Directories as a baseline. Most of the words listed are only abbreviated in certain contexts, esp. Some abbreviations of occupations are self evident. City directories provide information about the occupant who resides at a property and also their occupation (if known). viz. This list contains the most common abbreviations used in the OED. Description ; The City Directories contains directories published between 1815 and 1945 by J.F. City directories are a valuable source of information. Well, you haven't. The section of most interest to the genealogist, of course, is the alphabetical listing of names, for it is there that you may find your ancestor. This database is a collection of city directories for various years and cities in Maine. City directories, for example, often abbreviated occupations of city residents in an effort to save space and cut publication costs.A guide to the abbreviations can generally be found among the first few pages of the directory. This is one of the Latin abbreviations frequently used in German documents. Depending on the size of the area, there may be several communities listed in the same directory. Click on a letter to see the abbreviations beginning with that letter. Oct 3, 2016 - Common abbreviations found in city directories. In this case the “r” indicates that this person resides within the same domicile of another person who is the head of that household (“h”). = videlicet; namely cum cont.= with a sermon dom.=dominus (-a); lord or sir (lady or dame) fil.=filius (-a)= son (daughter) fil.pop= filius(-a) populi or filius (a) vulgi; bastard son or daughter of a harlot in com.=in comitatu; in the county (of) libre = book lic.=per licentiam;by licence nupt.=nupti fuerunt; were married ob. To conserve space for each listing, city directories often use abbreviations. Some abbreviations are quite common, such as h for home or r, indicating residence. Sometimes they include additional information. Find out what is the most common shorthand of Occupation on Abbreviations.com! Prior to 1880, the directories provide an alphabetical listing of names, but not the corresponding house number, while later versions will include this information. As with any record, check multiple spellings for the name. Some can vary with an additional letter added or taken out. Jobs of Your Grandfather The Web's largest and most authoritative acronyms and abbreviations resource. when used as … Examine the list below for types of information you might find on a city directory. //-->, Home | Search | Records | Articles | About Many cities have an introduction which includes information about the city's government offices and listings of churches, cemeteries, schools, businesses, etc. 1881 Census of Canada. google_ad_height = 280; This has come in handy for tracking down mysterious ancestors. (Source: Ancestry.com) 3. You can find out what abbreviations mean in any city you are researching by simply searching Ancestry or Family Search. Learn the abbreviations used in the directory. They typically list the name, occupation and address of all residents in a town, city or region. As you can see in this closeup, there are quite a few abbreviations, the most interesting and utilitarian of which are the “r” and “h” in the upper right-hand corner. – “pro tempore” (temporary or acting in the place of). The first City Directory for Hagerstown, Maryland was published by John Randall in 1893. 17. p.t. There may even be a subtle distinction between r for residents who are related to the homeowner and b for boarders who are not related. Some census records also abbreviate occupations due to the lack of space on census forms. Back in 1938 in New Haven, Connecticut this was considered public information. /* News Stories, 336x280, created 12/8/08 */ 1940 Bloomington City Directory: Description: A List of Inhabitants, Their Residence and Occupation, A Classified Commercial Directory, A Complete Directory of Householders Arranged by Streets and Consecutive Numbers on Houses; A complete record of churches, schools, secret and benevolent societies, city and county officers, courts, etc. For example, old city directories would often abbreviate occupations of residents. Some city directories list adult children who … Below is a reference list of the most common abbreviations found in city directories. The Past ‘Relative’ to the future. Guide to City Directories of Toronto: Decoding Abbreviations; An alphabetical directory of streets in the city. Generally a city directory will contain an alphabetical list of its citizens, listing the names of the heads of households, their addresses, and occupational information. | Terms | Privacy | Link to Us, 7 Reasons to Subscribe to our Free Newsletter. To conserve space for each listing, city directories often use abbreviations. google_ad_client = "pub-5311404976636379"; This allowed more names to be written on each page. Abbreviations used in the directory are listed at the beginning of the alphabetical name listing in each directory. City Directory Abbreviations. Cities in the United States have been producing and distributing directories since the 1700s as an up-to-date resource to help residents find local individuals and businesses. Some abbreviations are quite common, such as h for home or r, indicating residence. Another Latin abbreviation found in … An individual's address can b… • If no identifier is given after an address, it is assumed to be a street. Some directories list a wife in parenthesis or whether a woman is a widow (including name of husband); a list of marriages and deaths of previous year; and death date. Abbreviations were often used in city directories to save printing space and costs. Others are not. Included in the Toronto directories in 1833, 1856, and from 1861 on That same Buffalo directory from 1939 includes an Introduction that spans 21 pages with photographs of the city and its landmarks, and sections on early history and settlers, historic sites, street names, statistics, and more. As I’ve written in a previous article, tracking down and compiling city data over time for a single person can also reveal a lot about a family and its history. Some examples of unusual city directory abbreviations are: ‘lbr’ – that is for a lumber yard; then ‘rr’ means the rear portion of the building; but if you see ‘RR’ using capital letters, it means rural route. If you look at the record below without knowing what the “r” and “h” means, it might be easy for you to be misled by what looks like 2 entries for an Alexander Standish at the same address. The following is a list of commonly used abbreviations within the City Directories. (The city was founded in 1853). These are generally published annually and may include an individual's address, occupation, spouse's name, and other helpful facts. City Directory Abbreviations. City directories often included histories of the area, some with images of the city, too. Don’t stop in the first alphabetical list that you find! SIGN UP to stay up to date on the latest posts from the Family History Foundation. Diffenbacher and R.L. City directory volumes in the Reading Room ... George Snowden’s occupation and home address. Jul 25, 2016 - A list of abbreviations for common occupations. Looking for the abbreviation of Occupation? Genealogy; Family History; Books; Flags; US & European Roots. An excellent FRENCH Old Occupation Site: Terms and abbreviations used on Census Returns If you find the description of an occupation not found here, I would very much appreciate it if you would email me with it so that I can update this site. City directories typically list names (and spouses), addresses, occupations, and workplaces. Entry for George Snowden in the 1931 city directory ... A list of abbreviations can sometimes be found near the start of the directory, and a list of firm abbreviations can sometimes be found at the start of the alphabetical listing. = obit; died s.p. Have you ever looked at a City Directory, seen an “r” or an “h” and just assumed it meant ‘rented’ or ‘home?’ Well they don’t! Locate (and make a copy) of the list of abbreviations, usually located near the front of the directory, to learn that "n" Fox St. indicates "near" Fox St., or that "r" means "resides" or, alternatively, "rents." Think You've Reached The End? Site created and maintained by Rodney Hall You might want to bookmark this site to keep it handy when you are exploring city directories. Abbreviations.