Reviews

REVIEWS ABSTRACTS 18th Century Records of the German Lutheran Church at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (St. Michael's and Zion) Volume 1: Baptisms 1745-1769. Translated by Robert L. Hess; edited by F. Edward Wright Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. xxiii plus 433 pages, index, paper. $34.00. This is the first volume of a planned five-volume series on the records of one of the most important churches, genealogically, in early Pennsylvania. The baptisms are voluminous; the first three of the published volumes will be devoted to baptisms. The seven original church registers each contain baptisms, marriages, and burials. This volume includes all of those baptisms in Book I and parts of Books II and Ill Each entry usually includes the name of the child, the parents, and the sponsors. The usefulness of this publication and similar publications that give the full text of all types of entries in church records is amply demonstrated in the findings published elsewhere in this issue. Kent County, Delaware, Land Records, 1776-1783. By Mary Marshall Brewer. Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. vii plus 222 pages, index, paper. $21.00. Kent County, Delaware, Land Records, 1782-1785. By Mary Marshall Brewer. Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. vii plus 189 pages, index, paper. $20.00. Kent County, Delaware, Land Records, 1785-1789. By Mary Marshall Brewer. Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. vii plus 255 pages, index, paper. $23.00. The first volume abstracts Deed Book Wl, which has a few deeds dating from earlier years and concludes with several bonds from 1764. The second volume covers Deed Book Xl and Deed Book Yl through page 106, where the third volume picks up, which also includes Book A2. Delaware deeds are generally incredibly rich in genealogical detail, often containing full titles back to the patent. These title descriptions go beyond the surnames of the grantor and grantee, documenting silent transfers through intestacy in the ancestry of the grantor or sales to satisfy debts. Our ancestral connections, not hinted at in grantor-grantee indexes, can be discovered through the every-name indexes of publications such as these. 92 Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Vol. 44 (2005) 2005 Reviews 93 New Castle County, Delaware, Wills: 1800- 1813. By Mary Marshall Brewer. Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. vi plus 317 pages, index, paper. $26.00. Leon deVallinger compiled brief abstracts of Delaware probate records through 1800. This volume, covering volumes O (beginning with page 519), P, and Q, represents the third Delaware county for which Colonial Roots has continued the abstracts (see earlier reviews for Kent and Sussex counties). For many of the records, these are virtually full transcripts, so we may learn not only the names in the documents, but who received items such as a silver tablespoon and a pincushion and hoop. FAMILY HISTORIES AND LINEAGE BOOKS Colonial Families of New Jersey, Volume One: Somerset and Middlesex Counties. By F. Edward Wright Colonial Roots, Lewes, Delaware, 2004. xii plus 247 pages, index, paper. $24.00. In the style of the series for other localities, this book is a compilation of family groups (and strays) for thirty-eight surnames in these two counties. It draws largely from printed material, which are cited in-text and keyed to a list at the beginning of the volume. Some of the sources are abstracts, while others are compiled, so researchers will want to consult each source, but this type of volume can save many hours of research by pointing efficiently to the sources that the researcher should examine. REPRINTSAND NEW EDITIONS The Genealogist's Address Book, Fifth Edition. By Elizabeth Petty Bentley. Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, 2004. PDF file on CD-ROM, 2,684 pages, index, $19.99. It is good to see large publications for which the useful time frame is somewhat limited being produced on CD-ROM.This is the fifth edition of this title in fifteen years and it is four times larger than the fourth edition. There are sections for national, state, ethic and religious (the religious archives section is new), and special institutions. Addresses include URLs. In addition to the index, the files are fully text searchable. The Provincial Councillors of Pennsylvania, Who Held Offlce between 1733 and 1776, and Those Earlier Councillors Who Were Some Time Chief Magistrates of the Province, and Their Descendants. By Charles P. Keith. Reprint of 1883 edition by Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, 1997. 628 pages, index, cloth, $27.00. Perhaps the most useful aspect of this work is its intent to r cord all descendants of the thirty-six councillors. In 1883, when the book was published, there were few generations between the oldest living genera- 94 Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Vol. 44 tion and the councillors. Some of the sketches are quite extensive, others are very brief. Lists of Inhabitants of Colonial New York. By Edmund Bailey O'Callaghan; index by Rosanne Conway. Reprint of 1979 edition by Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, 1999. 351 pages, index, cloth, $17.50. E. B. O'Callaghan's four-volume The Documentary History of the State of New York, published between 1849 and 1851, which contains many early censuses, tax lists, and military lists, is of immense value to New York researchers, but difficult to use because of the lack of index. This work reproduced the lists and added an excellent index that conflated variant spellings, especially helpful for the numerous Dutch and German names. ORDERING INFORMATION COLONIAL ROOTS 217 Schley Ave., Lewes, DE 19958 Phone: 800-576-8608 www.colonialroots.com Internet: $5.50 for first volume; $1.00 for each additional item. Shipping: All shipping UPS; no PO boxes. GENEALOGICALPUBLISHINGCOMPANY 3600 Clipper Mill Road, Suite 260, Baltimore, MD 21211 Phone: 800-296-6687 Fax: 410-752-8492 Internet: www.genealogical.com Shipping: $4.00 for first book; $1.50 for each additional book 5% for Maryland residents; 6% for Michigan residents Tax: ARTICLES OF PENNSYLVANIA INTEREST IN NON-PENNSYLVANIA}OURNALS his feature provides brief mentions of recent articles of interest to Pennsylvania researchers who might not otherwise find them easily, since they were published in non-Pennsylvania journals and have not yet appeared in the Periodical Source Index (PERS!). T • Stephen B. Hatton, "Determining Children from Underused Sources: Jacob and Catherine Fought of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania," National Genealogical Society Quarterly 93(March 2005): 38-51.