Published Records
Besides the primary source public records that are available from local
governments in the County, a number of published secondary sources also
exist.
Newspapers: A number of weekly newspapers have been published
in Penn Yan and in Dundee, and since the state did not require vital events
to be registered, deaths and marriages were instead often noticed in their
pages. They are nearly always well worth searching through, not only for
genealogical material, but because nowhere else can a researcher get such
detailed and delightful information about the times their people lived
in.
Penn Yan Herald (later the Democrat) 1818-1949
Yates County Republican 1824-1833; Penn Yan Whig 1840-1855; Yates County
Republican 1855-1883; Yates County Chronicle 1883-1905; The Chronicle-Express
1905-present
Penn Yan Express 1878-1905
Dundee Record 1841-1879
Dundee Observer 1878- present
Cemeteries: Genealogical researchers rightfully regard cemeteries as
valuable historic documents in themselves, even above their value as
monuments to those who have passed. Yates County, though it is one of
the smallest in the state, has over a hundred burial grounds, and more
than 40,000 dead. These have all been read and published. The
books are available in five volumes, with a sixth serving as general
index to the whole; for information about purchase, use the link in
the panel to the left.
Reference works: Two histories of the County were written during
the 19th century. One was published in 1873 by the editor of the Chronicle,
Stafford Canning Cleveland. An index
to this work, containing more than 24,000 names, is available on line.
The second county history, by Lewis Cass Aldrich, was published in 1892,
and with the exception of the chapter on the town of Starkey, is very repetitive
of Cleveland's work without the extensive genealogical information. Aldrich's
book does bring events up to date 20 years later, and covers the agricultural
industry, the steamboat era and other business-related topics much more
thoroughly than Cleveland's. The last third of the book comprises a number
of biographical and family history- oriented sketches, and a name index
may be consulted at the County Historian's office.
In 1895 Dr. Walter Wolcott published his Military
History of Yates County, in which he attempted to name all the
veterans of the nation's various wars who had lived in the County. The
book is best known for its lists of Civil War soldiers and the short
regimental histories with which they are grouped. However, there are
also lists of veterans of the Revolution, the War of 1812 and the Mexican
War.
The most comprehensive attempt to list soldiers who fought in the Civil
War is Robert Graham's Yates County's "Boys in
Blue" 1861-1865, published in 1923. This book also contains
very complete regimental histories, plus lists of draftees, bounty jumpers,
deserters, men who served as substitutes and so on. Cornell University
has posted a scanned copy of the book on its web site, and a name
index to it may be accessed by using the link in the left-hand panel
of this page.