Living Life With Clay Aiken and Genealogy

Somewhere along the line, I ended up with two hobbies: Clay Aiken and Genealogy. I’m sure some armchair psychologist would ascribe that to a deep seated need to understand what ancestral influences played a role in my parents not allowing me to go to the Beatles’ concerts or Woodstock, but it’s really quite simple – both are incredibly satisfying pastimes.

So I decided to do a blog about both – a little Clay, and a little Roots. I hope you stick around and get some enjoyment from each.

At First There Was Genealogy...

I used to be so envious of people who talked about finding their roots – tracing ancestors back to the Civil War and beyond. Relatives who came over on the Mayflower. A long buried connection to a President or other notable figure.

Coming from Italian, Jewish, and Irish immigrant grandparents who barely had car fare when they landed here, I had no illusions of famous relatives lurking in my pedigree. Quite the opposite. If my mother’s generation of relatives were any example, I came from a long line of horse traders, gamblers, and con men. I can live with that. Keeps the bar pretty low and doesn’t present me with sleepless nights worrying how to measure up to my forebears. My father’s ancestors, Irish to the core, were content to work hard and drink harder.

One day back in 1992 a co-worker told me that he had just found a passenger record on a ship’s manifest for his Irish immigrant grandfather who emigrated to the US from Ireland back in the early 1900’s. Fascinated by his discovery and interested in learning if I could do something similar, I quizzed him on how he was able to find the record.

To make a long story short, that was the day I found out about US Census records and how helpful they could be not only in locating ancestors, but in pinning down timeframes so that other records, like ship’s manifests, could be searched. I also found out that many of these records were stored at the National Archives records centers, which had a number of regional offices as adjuncts to the main headquarters in Washington, DC.

At the time of our discussion, the 1920 Federal Census had just been opened to the public. Census records are not opened until 72 years have passed from their completion. (As I write this, the 1930 census records are now open, having become public in 2002.) From my co-worker, I learned that I could go to the nearest Archives regional office, which for me was in Waltham, Massachusetts and I could use index microfilm and other finding aids to locate my mother and father and their parents in the 1920 census. (My mother was born in 1909 and my father in 1911).

At that time the Waltham Archives was only open one Saturday per month, and they closed at 4:30 pm on weekdays so the Saturday was the only chance I had. I waited impatiently until the right Saturday rolled around and I got to go. Of course it was crowded, but I got a microfilm reader and with a little bit of help from the volunteers, I located the census records and found my parents; my mother was 11 and my father was 9. I was so excited. It was almost surreal to see my parents listed on this official document when they were so young. And that day offered yet another surprise – I was able to obtain the citizenship papers of my paternal grandfather. They were stored in Waltham because he became a citizen in RI. The information I got from the 1920 and 1910 census records helped me figure out the year he was naturalized, and another index located the document. That document offered more information as well – the name of the ship and the date of its arrival in New York at Ellis Island.

Eventually I was able to get the passenger manifest record of my grandparents’ voyage here from Ireland, but that’s another story for another blog.

Census records go back to the first census in 1790 and can provide a ton of information on ancestors. Each census is somewhat unique – some have more information on them than others. For instance, in 1850 the census starting naming each individual member of the household, whereby the 1790-1840 records only asked the name of the head of household. The other members were enumerated by age category, e.g., under 5 years old, etc. The 1900 and 1910 censuses asked how many children were born to the mother and the 1910 census asked how many of those born were still living. I was amazed to learn from that census that my grandmother had borne two more children than I knew about, but both had died by that census.

Today computer technology and the internet have made a breeze out of searching the census records. All of the available census schedules are online, although you may have to pay a subscription fee for most access services. All of them have been indexed, which was not the case when I started looking through them. Up until the last several years, you had to use multiple index tools and sources to find the right record. Today you can access a census record site and key in an ancestor’s name, and bingo – it will show you every census that includes that name. I no longer have to travel to Waltham for census work. I can do it sitting right here at my computer.

In my pajamas. With a cup of coffee. Or at 3 a.m. When I can’t sleep. I love technology.

Next time I’ll talk about how to begin the process of looking for your ancestors. Stay tuned.

And Along Came Clay Aiken...

I ended up with Clay Aiken about 10 years or so after I found genealogy, and it’s probably a good thing because if I had just been starting genealogy when I became a Clay Aiken fan, I’d still be wondering who my ancestors were. Following Clay tends to put everything else in your life on hold.

I first discovered Clay when my husband and I tuned into the second season of American Idol. We hadn’t watched the first but heard all the hype after it was over, so we decided we’d catch it the second time around and see if it was worth following. When Clay walked into the Atlanta auditions and told Simon Cowell that he was there because he was the next American Idol, my husband and I looked at each other and went “right!”. We were prepared for another off key, ear splitting annihilation of a previously lovely song, but we got the surprise of our lives. He opened his mouth, and had us at “Take...” - the opening line of his audition song. We were just blown away, and from that moment forward, we rooted for him until the end. We were disappointed when he did not win, but we knew that we’d see him again. He was too talented to be ignored, and he was not only charismatic but a great entertainer as well.

Here is a clip of Clay’s Atlanta audition, the one that started it all, in 2003.

Fast forward. Three years later I have been to 20 Clay Aiken concerts. (I’m a babe really. Others I know have been to almost double that.) I am anxiously awaiting his 3^rd CD which he tells us is coming QUITE soon. I have taken pictures and video of him in concert and made a couple of montages from photos and video clips that I and others have taken. Through the Official Clay Aiken Fan Club, I was able to meet him in person, get my picture taken and get an autograph. I actually made it to a concert where I had a front row seat. And I have joined a few message boards where I’ve met some of the funniest and most intelligent people I’ve ever known. Some of them have become wonderful friends.

Clay Aiken has moved so far beyond his American Idol experience. He’s matured as a performer and as a person. When he takes the stage, he commands it, in no uncertain terms. He is not afraid to try new things. Who would ever have pictured AI Clay singing Prince’s When Doves Cry while grinding on one of his back up singers? Who would ever have pictured AI Clay leaping onto a piano in tight black pants and a leather jacket singing Jerry Lee Lewis’s Great Balls of Fire? Who would ever have pictured AI Clay singing Elvis’ Suspicious Minds?

Don't believe me? Here's some video for you to look at.

I took Great Balls of Fire at the Meadowbrook venue in New Hampshire during the 2005 Juke Box Tour (JBT). It was the only concert where Clay wore his glasses because he had gotten something in his eye the day before.

The next video is When Doves Cry and this was taken in Boston during the JBT. It was shot from the second row. Don't let the choir robes or the choir boy image fool you. Neither of them last very long.

Suspicious Minds is a terrific Elvis song. This clip is from video I shot at the Indiana State Fair for the JBT..

And finally, Nobody Does it Better is a montage I made which celebrates the many faces of Clay Aiken - beautiful, sexy, dorky, hot, funny, and above all entertaining. It is sung by Carly Simon.

So if you want to hear more about Clay Aiken, stay tuned. I've got a lot more to say. And if you can't wait for your Clay fix, try reading some of the other blogs listed to the right.

MommaJudy

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Census Records