Understanding Terms Found in HistoricaI Newspapers

When first started searching historical newspapers to help with my family history research, certain terms that found in
old papers confused me.
n the beginning, found myself wondering: what was a "relict or a "consort, and why were there so many references to
"inst. or "instant, and "ult. or "ultimo? t took some time to sort all these terms out, and found various genealogical
dictionaries useful.
Knowing that some of you may be having the same confusion about this terminology, 'd like to share some examples
and definitions of the more commonly-found terms in old newspapers, with some insight on genealogical clues that
these terms may provide.
MEANINGS OF GENERAL NEWSPAPER TERMS
Communicated (often abbreviated Com.): When reading old newspapers, you may spot the word communicated or
its abbreviation, com. t can occur at the beginning of an article, or more typically it will be abbreviated at the end of the
article, and indicates that the item was written by someone other than a staff writer, and "communicated to the
newspaper for publication. A notice at the beginning of the newspaper article will often look like this:
Whenever you see the term communicated or its
abbreviation com., look for additional articles in
other newspapers. You never know if the first
article you found is completeoften it has been
edited from the original, and if you find that
original article it may contain more family history
information than the edited version of the article you found.
Here is an example where the abbreviation com. has been inserted at the end of the newspaper article. Note also that
this example has a "Request to nsert, explained next.
Requests to Insert: An often overlooked clue in old newspapers is a request for printers to republish a notice in other
locations. Generally, this indicates that a person or family once resided elsewhere, or has a familial or business connection
outside of the published location, and therefore readers in that additional location will have an interest in
Newburyport Herald (Newburyport, Massachusetts ), 7 Augus t 1838, page 3
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New-Hamps hi r e Patr i ot ( Concor d, New Hamps hi r e) , 20 J anuar y 1823, page 1
Bel l evi l l e News Democr at ( Bel l evi l l e, l l i noi s ) , 28 Mar ch 1921, page 2
news about the individual or family. This is a great clue to steer your family history searches to locations you might not
have considered otherwise.
Mast heads: Typically located at the top of the front page, the masthead is the printed matter consisting of the name of
the newspaper, along with details of its publication (date, location, etc.).
Here is an example of a masthead from a New Hampshire newspaper:
When saving important proofs for genealogical purposes, it is advisable to review the masthead. You may also learn
something interesting, such as that saac Hill, printer of the New-Hampshire Patriot & State Gazette, was also a publisher
of the "Laws of the United States.
DEFINITIONS OF RELATIONSHIP REFERENCE TERMS
Banns or Bans (or PubIishing of t he Banns): This is an ancient matrimonial term, originating from the Middle Ages.
A Banns proclamation was typically published on three consecutive Sundays prior to a wedding. The requirement was
abolished by the Roman Catholic Church in 1983, but is still used in some parts of the world. Original Banns certificates
are rare, but you may be able to locate a few in some archives.
n this 20th century newspaper notice, the entire announcement is about a couple's wedding banns:
n this 19th century newspaper
article, we see an amusing story
about how important the banns
requirement was:
Because he had no proof the
banns had been "regularly
published as required, the
Minister postponed the wedding
until the following day. However,
the groom would not be deterred!
He pulled off his hat, handed it to
Republ i can ( Bal ti mor e, Mar yl and) , 22 Febr uar y 1802, page 3
his bride- to- be, and took off running
at "full speed. He returned "in exactly
two hours and thirty- five minutes, to
the great joy of the betrothed damsel
with the requisite proof that the banns
had indeed been published
whereupon the Minister performed the
ceremony!
Consort : A consort is a partner, and
in the case of a death, a female who
leaves a surviving spouse. An easy
way to remember the term consort is
to think of a marriage as a
"consortium between a husband and
wife. A corresponding term is relict
(see the next entry), along with
spinster or bachelor, for persons who
remain single.
n this example from an 1802
newspaper announcing Eleanor
Harris's death, she is described as
the "consort of Thomas Harris. Note
the representation of the "s as an "f,
common in 18th and early 19th
Daily Advertis er (New York, New York), 22 Augus t 1807, page 3
century newspapers, so that "consort
actually reads "confort.
ReIict (reIict us): Relictus is a Latin
term meaning having inherited or been
bequeathed. Ergo, the relict is the
survivor (usually a widow) of the
marriage union.
The first sentence of this 1907
newspaper article reads: "Mrs.
Prudence Hale, relict of the late
Marshall Hale, died early yesterday
morning at the home of her son. t is
lamentable that the typesetter
misspelled her late husband's name
as Marshall "Hall in the headline.
DEFINITONS OF TIME FRAME TERMS IN NEWSPAPERS
Rather than print a specific date, old newspapers sometimes refer to a date by using terms such as instant,
proximo and ultimo. Occasionally they proximo and ultimo. Occasionally they do this for religious reasons, which Ill explain
shortly.
Also note that her death date is
reported as the 8th instant (again,
with the s spelled with an f so that
it actually reads inftant). Ill explain
what instant means shortly.
San J os e Mer cur y News ( San J os e, Cal i for ni a) ,
21 J anuar y 1907, page 1
Geor gi a Gaz ette ( Savannah, Geor gi a) , 27 Febr uar y 1800, page 2
Inst ant (of t en abbreviat ed inst .): This term refers to a recent
occurrence in the present or current month. n the consort example
above, Eleanor Harris's death date is reported as "the 8th instant. Since
her death notice was published on 22 February 1802, this means she
died on 8 February 1802.
Proximo (of t en abbreviat ed prox.): Proximo refers to something that
will occur in the future, or next month, as seen in this advertisement for
the British armed ship Louisa, which was scheduled to sail on the "20th
proximo. Since this announcement was published on 27 February 1800,
this means the Louisa will sail on 20 March 1800.
UIt imo (of t en abbreviat ed uIt .): Ultimo or Ultimo Mense is a Latin
term/phrase that refers to an occurrence from last month.
For example, in one old newspaper death notice Lt. Elliott's death was
specified as December 6, and in another (published in January), his
death was reported as having occurred on "the 6th ult, which is another
way of saying December 6.
Boston Courier (Boston, Massachusetts), 23 December 1841, page 4:
"DED, n Chester, N. H. Dec 6, Lieut Jacob Elliott, 86, a soldier of the
revolution.
Bellows Falls Gazette (Bellows Falls, Vermont), 10 January 1842, page 3:
"n Chester, N. H. very suddenly on the 6th ult. Lieut. Jacob Elliott, 86.
Whenever you find an "ultimo reference, cross- reference the date with
vital records, since the newspaper in this case is reporting on an event
that happened the previous month and is not immediate. Reports were
often reprinted from one paper to another, and after sufficient time had
passed the original date may have become unclear. n addition, some
historical newspapers occasionally used the "ultimo reference to refer to
an event from two months prior.
In this notice from 1842, ones first inclination is to record Mr. Bassets death as having occurred in December of 1841,
since the death notice was published in January and referred to the 23d ult. However, upon further examination, Ive
uncovered some citations that report his death as having occurred in November.
Bel l ows Fal l s Gaz ette ( Bel l ows Fal l s , Ver mont) , 10 J anuar y 1842, page 3
New-Yor k Mor ni ng Pos t ( New Yor k, New Yor k) , 30 September 1788, page 2
New and OId St yIe Ref erences f or Dat es (of t en abbreviat ed N.S. and O.S.): Another reason that dates in
historical newspaper notices may not be specific pertains to beliefs held by various religions, such as the Society of
Friends, aka Quakers.
Since the commonly- used names for months are based upon pagan Gods (e.g., January from Janus, February from
Februus, etc.), the early Quakers deemed it sacrilegious to use such names. nstead, the Quakers referred to months
by the order in which they appeared during the year.
n this example from a 1788 newspaper, the time of the yearly meeting is recorded as being "from the 12th [Day] of the
fifth Month, 1788, to the 19th Day of the same inclusive.
The conversion for Quaker
dates is complicated, so if
you find it necessary to
record one, seek out a
calendar converter and
undertake further research.
Mistakes are all too common.
Prior to 1752 (when the
American colonies adopted
the Gregorian calendar), the
first month of the year was not
January; the year started with
the Spring Equinox in the
middle of March.
The reason the calendar changed (from the Julian to the Gregorian system) was to accommodate for leap years. After
several centuries the equinoxes were not falling on the calendar at the proper time, so various days were removed and
the first of the year became January 1. When it was necessary to explain an old or new style date, an abbreviation of
N.S. or O.S. was added.
n this 1822 newspaper article, both dating systems are used to give John Stark's birth date: "Aug. 28, 1728, old style,
corresponding to Aug. 17, N.S.
I suggest you consider recording ultimo dates as approximations (died circa or about).
Republ i can Chr oni cl e ( thaca, New Yor k) , 29 May 1822, page 3
You may wish to consult one of my early RootsWeb Review articles, "Dates and Calendars through the
Ages, located at http://ftp.rootsweb.ancestry.com/pub/review/2007/0606.txt
You may also find it helpful to read "Quaker Dating before 1752 at the Swarthmore Friends Historical Library Website at
www.swarthmore.edu/academics/friends- historical- library/quaker- meeting- records/quaker- calendar.xml.
hope these definitions and genealogy tips helped you gain a better understanding of the newspaper terminology often
found in old newspapers. Have you discovered any perplexing newspaper terms in your genealogy research? Share
them with us in the comments!
Written by Mary HarreII-Sesniak
Mary Harrell-Sesniak, MBA, brings to the GenealogyBank Blog a blend of technical and
genealogical research skills. n addition to having been a columnist with RootsWeb Review, she was
president of a computer training/consulting firm for 15+ years, worked as an editor and has authored
several genealogy books. You'll find her an active contributor to a variety of online forums,
RootsWeb's WorldConnect, Findagrave.com and indexing projects.