Learning how to read a citation in Filby's Passenger
and Immigration Lists Index, is not difficult but has several
steps to help you find the original record.
If you saw this citation in Filby’s index . . .
Horan, Michael 38; New York,
N.Y., 1848 9144 p47
Wife: Anne 34
Son: Michael 6
Son: Thomas 2
Daughter: Catherine 4
It would translate as follows:
Horan = Surname of passenger
as spelled in original published source.
Michael = Given name of passenger as spelled in
original published source.
38 = The passenger's age if given. If no date
given, the area will be blank.
New York, N.Y. = The place of arrival
1848 = The year of arrival. If no date of arrival
given, you will see “n.d.”
9144 = Source code where the
particular list can be found. Look in the "Sources Indexed"
section in the front of the Index volume.
p47 = The page number on which that particular
name is listed.
Below the individual would be accompanying passengers,
if any, together with each person's relationship to the main passenger,
and his or her age if given. Such names are listed in the order
they appear in the original published list.
Cross references have been added in the index for all accompanying
passengers. So in the above example, Anne Horan would be listed
as . . .
Horan, Anne 34 SEE Horan, Michael
It is helpful to realize that this index and its supplements
are available at the Monterey, California, Family History Center.
In addition the majority of sources mentioned in Filby’s
is also available at the center.
Reading
Filby’s Index in Electronic Format
The index is now available at www.Ancestry.com
under their Immigration Records and at ProQuest. For example,
at Ancestry.com, if you entered:
Edward Allen who arrived between 1630 and 1640
. . . you would receive a list of options that might include:
View Edward Allen 1636 Ipswich, Massachusetts
Record
Once you click on “View Record you would receive the source
like this:
Name: Edward Allen
Year: 1636
Place: New England
Source Publication Code: 9450 [notice this source
code]
Primary Immigrant: Allen, Edward
Annotation: Published extracts from The Magazine
of American Genealogy, section 4, nos. 1-27 (1929 - [1932]).
Good compilation but incomplete, since publication of the magazine
was suspended; it contains names from beginning of alphabet through
'Battles' only. Source
Source Bibliography: VIRKUS, FREDERICK A., editor.
Immigrants to America before 1750. An Alphabetical List of
Immigrants to the Colonies, before 1750, Compiled from Official
and Other Records. Surnames 'A through Battles.' Baltimore:
Genealogical Publishing Co., 1965. 220p.
Page: 32
You do not have to look up the source code because the annotation
and source bibliographies have already been linked for you. You
would then go to the Family History Library Catalog, or the Family
History Center Catalog and see if that book is available in book
form or on a CD, fiche, or film. Then go to that book or source
and go to page 32 and see the original citation. It might lead
you to another original record. This may sound time consuming
but it saves you years of work compared to how it was done just
a decade ago.
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