Instructions to Applicant: Fill in Blocks B, D, E, and F on this page by entering text in each field. List your main ancestral line on pages 2 and 3, beginning with yourself as #1. Type or hand print all information. ***Read the rules of evidence on pages 3 & 4***

 HCGS USE ONLY / Application
SETTLERS
OF HANCOCKCOUNTY
/  FILLED IN BY APPLICANT
PROVED ANCESTORS / Name
01. / County
Society Name
02.
03. / HCGS USE ONLY
04. / First Families No.
05. / Date Application
Received
06.
07. / Acceptance
Date
08.
09. / Fee
Received?
10.
11.
 Applicant’s Name / Street Address / County
Full name of Spouse / City / State / Zip
ANCESTORS OF THE APPLICANT WHO SETTLED IN HANCOCKCOUNTYBETWEEN
1 JANUARY 1846 AND 31 DECEMBER 1865
Name of Ancestor / Year
first proved in Hancock Co. / Township
first proved in Hancock Co. / State or County
Ancestor came from
My HancockCounty Genealogical
Dues are paid for the year /  HCGS
verification
Approved By:
HancockCounty
Genealogical Society
President / Date:
HancockCounty
PioneerCommittee
Chairman / Date:

OBJECTIVES OF SETTLERS OF HANCOCKCOUNTY

The prime objective of the Settlers of Hancock County is to honor the memory of HancockCounty inhabitants who came to this county after the Pioneers, and their contributions to the development of the county, by honoring their descendents.

The research necessary to prove descent is intended to stimulate increasing interest in the Settlers of this county and it’s customs, culture, genealogy and history.

REQUIREMENTS FOR MEMBERSHIP IN THE SETTLERS OF HANCOCKCOUNTY

Any member of Hancock County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society who is a direct decedent of an individual who settled in the area of Ohio now known as Hancock Co. between January 1, 1846 and December 31, 1865, may become a member of Settlers of Hancock County. The membership is subject to approval of the application by the chapter Pioneer of Hancock County Committee, and receipt of a $10 application fee. This fee is for as many ancestors as the applicant can prove at this time or at a later date.

Information for other family lines may be included on blank paper, showing the tie-in to the lines on the basic application. Please include an ancestral chart to help visualize the connection.

AUTHORITIES as to descent: (List and include facsimile copies as stated on the following pages. Each stop must be proved.

1. ______/ 4. ______
2. ______/ 5. ______
3. ______/ 6. ______

This application, information, and all supporting documents and data become the property of HANCOCK COUNTY GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY: however, they cannot be published without consent of the applicant.

I hereby grant permission for the material to be published. _____ Yes _____ No

I______do hereby swear that the statements set forth in this application are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Signature of Applicant______date ______

HancockCounty Genealogical Society / Applicant's Name
Proved Ancestors: / ______
1.______/ Date application received
2.______/ ______
3. ______/ Fee Received ______
4. ______/ Acceptance date______

APPROVED BY:

HancockCounty Genealogical

Society President______Date
Pioneers of HancockCounty

Committee Chairman______Date______

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SETTLERS OF HANCOCKCOUNTY
***RULES OF EVIDENCE***

  1. Primary evidence from vital statistics (birth, death, and marriage certificates), court house or other government records (military, land records, deeds, wills, land warrants, naturalization records, tax list, guardianship, ward and trustee, and civil dockets), church records (birth and baptism, marriage, death, membership communicates), school records (enrollment and school census) is considered to be excellent proof
  1. Secondary evidence such as census records, newspaper clippings and obituaries (name of newspaper and date of publication are necessary), old letters (dates), Bible records (with title page and publication date) or other family records contemporary to the facts reported, County Histories (supported by primary evidence), is considered almost as authentic.
  1. Circumstantial evidence implied by facts or hearsay is not considered as proof unless backed up by primary or secondary evidence.
  1. Oral, written or published family traditions are often wrong and are not acceptable.
  1. Printed or manuscript genealogies, genealogical records, or genealogical compilations are not accepted as proof unless they are well documented and proved in themselves, or unless backed up by other acceptable proof. Family Group Sheets and unsupported information from an amateur or professional genealogist are considered in this context as genealogies and are not acceptable proof.
  1. Lineage papers from other patriotic and hereditary societies by themselves are not acceptable as proof.
  1. Material authored by the applicant, or his family cannot be considered as proof.
  1. Documents used as proof must, either by themselves or in conjunction with other acceptable documents, actually state the fact to be proved. If the document merely implies the fact, this is not considered proof. An example is the expression, "heirs" or "heirs-at-law" used in some estates. Ohio's (any state's) laws on inheritance have changed many times through it's history, and what is true during one period, may not be true at another. If these statements are to be used as proof of direct descent, the applicant must include with his application, copies of the inheritance law of the state showing that, at the year the proving document was dated, it was proof of descent "in the blood line", and must also include proof that the testator had at least one child.

Other examples of implied evidence which is not acceptable as proof are:

  1. Census records which show the name of the Head of the Family only, with numbers to represent the other residents by age grouping. Those unnamed persons are not proved as children or with of the family head, nor as residents, no matter how well they match the other records. Next door or close neighbors on a census record are not proved as related merely by their closeness on the census.
  2. A father is not proved as being in the area just because a child was born there. A birth proves only that the mother was certainly there on the birth date.
  3. Blood descent is not necessarily proved by owning the same land as an earlier owner by the same name, whether the land was received by inheritance or by purchase.

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  1. Old letters, family records, etc., can be accepted as proof for only the facts the writer of the records of letter would logically know, of his own knowledge. They cannot be accepted as proof for facts the writer could only have obtained by hearsay from older generations, or other sources. Identification of the writer and the date of the letter or record are a must. This same rule is true of county histories or other published biographies. The biographer (who probably gave the biographer this information) must have been able to know the information of his own knowledge.
  1. Land transactions (deeds, warrants, grants, etc.) can only be accepted as evidence of settlement in Hancock County between January 1, 1846 and December 31, 1865, if the record actually states that the individual was "of Hancock County", and was dated during the required timeframe. Many absentee land owners and speculators in early HancockCounty never set foot in the county.
  1. A tax list is usually a record of taxes levied the prior year, and therefore could prove residence prior to that year if the individual is shown as a resident, and not an "absentee owner".
  1. Proving female ancestors settled in HancockCounty is usually difficult. They must be proven as individuals by their maiden names.
  1. The ancestor(s) proved in HancockCounty must be a direct line back from the Paternal or Maternal ancestors of the applicant.
  1. Typed, hand-written or printed copies of original documents must be certified as a "true copy" by the court official, librarian, notary public, etc. An applicant cannot certify his own copies.
  1. Photographs or "true copies" of tombstone inscriptions usually only prove birth and death dates. However, sometimes relationships are shown on the tombstone and are considered good proof.
  1. Married female applicants must include a copy of their marriage(s) license, or record, to prove their name change(s).
  1. Please record state, County, Volume & page number & type (such as marriage, death, birth, estate, etc.) of official records used for proof.
  1. Please include a list of documentation for each step (step 1. Birth, death and marriage certificate(s) for married women).
  1. Please include a five generation chart.
  1. *** Ancestors proven in Hancock County, Ohio, prior to the required date for Settlers of Hancock County will automatically be considered as application for Pioneers of Hancock County, Ohio. A different form will need to be completed in this case.
  1. *** Ancestors proven as Pioneers of Hancock County are not eligible for membership in Settlers of Hancock County.

1. / I, / was born on
at / City / County / State
2. / I am the child of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and , his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
3. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and , his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
4. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
5. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
6. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
7. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
8. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State
9. / The said / Was the Daughter/Son
Of
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
and ,his wife
Born on / at / City / County / State
Died on / at / City / County / State
Married on / at / City / County / State

BASIC RULES OF EVIDENCE

This Application And The Accompanying Proof Documents Will Be Adjudged As Follows:

Primary Or Collateral Evidence From Vital Statistics, Court House Or Other Government Records, Church And School Records, Etc., Is Considered Usually To Be Beyond Doubt, And Excellent Proof, Secondary Evidence, Such As Census Records, Newspaper Clippings, Old Letters, Bible Or Other Family Records, Contemporary To The Facts Reported, Are Considered Almost As Authentic.

Circumstantial Evidence, Or Hearsay Is Not Considered As Proof,

Unless Backed Up By Primary Or Secondary Evidence.

Oral, Written, Or Published Family Traditions Are Very Often Wrong,

And Are Not Accepted As Proof.

All Proof Documents Must By Themselves, Or In Combination With Other Documents,

Actually State The Fact To Be Proved, Implied Evidence Is Not Accepted As Proof.

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