Have you looked in the voter registration rolls for your ancestors? Voter registrations are considered public documents. Perform an online search to find out the public law for the state or locality you are interested in and determine what records have been maintained and what you need to do acquire the information. Some States (most notably California) have placed their records online and they are available through subscription sites or through the State agency. Cyndi's List has 97 locality specific links under the heading Voters, Poll Books and Electoral Records, which includes localities, states and countries with voter registration information. Why not check it out and see if your ancestors registered for and voted in elections. (And a reminder - Cyndi's List is an excellent site for all things genealogy links).
Here is an example from the California Voter Registration Index. As you can see you can find out the name, address, voting district, occupation and party affiliation of any individual who registered to vote. In some Voter Registration Indexes age and length of time at residence are also included. Be sure to take advantage of voter registration information to add to your family's story.
Have you included voter registration as an event/fact in your Legacy family file?
See you back here on Monday for the letter W.
Electoral rolls are a great source for us in Australia. Our census records have been destroyed so these are the best substitute. Unfortunately for privacy reasons the rolls are not available later than 2008.
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