Footnote is now Fold3

Footnote has changed its name to Fold3, reflecting its emphasis on military records (when a flag is ceremoniously folded, the third fold represents honoring the sacrifice of veterans).

I just signed up for this site five days ago, when it was still Footnote-- they had a special deal for ancestry.com members at the time.

I had run across this site before, but had assumed that whatever they had was on ancestry.com. Not so, however.

Footnote/Fold3 has many digitized images of records-- especially military records-- from the Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War, many of which are only available on this site:

I found service rolls for my 5th great-grandfather, Samuel Severance, who served in the Revolutionary War and fought at Bunker Hill, as well as an affidavit vouching for his replacement, nephew Jonathan Severance, after Samuel was discharged due to sickness.

I also found my paternal grandfather's naturalization application and his enumeration in the 1930 census (for some reason I couldn't find him in the 1930 census on ancestry.com). These documents helped fill in some of the blanks of his life from the time he immigrated here till the time he married my grandmother: after arriving in the U.S., he lived with his sister and brother-in-law, but by 1930 he was living in a boardinghouse and working in a delicatessen; he would later own his own deli.

If you're interested in family history and have relatives who served in any American wars, then I would say it's worth it to subscribe to Fold3.

And for people who were already Footnote subscribers, Fold3 representatives say not to worry-- their new name doesn't mean they're getting rid of non-military records.

Samuel SEVERANCE, American patriot

For Independence Day weekend, I thought I'd highlight the story of an ancestor who fought for America's freedom...

My 5th great-grandfather Samuel SEVERANCE, born about 1741, was a native of Kingston, New Hampshire, and enlisted in the Revolutionary army in the summer of 1775. He was in the Battle of Bunker Hill, and he brought back home a small stone as a memento of that event.

His wife Hannah (nee WINSLOW) sent him green beans, pork to cook them with, and some corn meal. His packages also contained berries lovingly picked for him by his six-year-old daughter, also named Hannah. The other soldiers were moved to tears, wishing that they had wives and children to send them such nice little gifts.

There is preserved a very touching if badly-spelled letter Samuel wrote to his family:

Madford [Medford, Massachusetts] July th 17. 1775,

These Lines comes to you, my loveing wife and dear children, hoping in the marcy of god that you are all well, and I hope in gods time I shall be restored home again; but if not, I beg of god that we may so live in this world that we may spend wone day in each others preasents in a world of glory, for I put noe trust in the arm of flesh, but my trust in in god alone for life and mearcy, and I hope in the mearcy of god that he will cary you throu all your troble and difictiles that you have to pas throu in this life. my love to father and mother, to brother John and wife. I hope that you are all well, and the rest of my friends, to my wife; what money I send home to you, you may take care of it. if you have aney pros[pect] of corn, I would have that old cow have a peas on her horns, so I have noe more at the preasent, so I remain your Loving housband til death peart.

Saml. Severance

Personally, I think the awful spelling makes this letter all the sweeter.

His son, my 4th great-grandfather Samuel Jr., would be born one month after he wrote this, so I can imagine how rough it was on both him and his wife; I'm imagining poor Hannah, heavily pregnant in the middle of summer, and her husband is off fighting a war and might not come home. Talk about mood swings and crying jags!

But as it turned out, she wouldn't have long to wait; he came down with "camp sickness", and was discharged. He was so pale and haggard when he returned to his family that little Hannah didn't recognize her father and hid herself behind a door in fear of this "stranger."

The above information and letter was furnished to the New England Historic Genealogical Society by E. George Adams, a descendant of Samuel's above-mentioned daughter Hannah (SEVERANCE) ADAMS, which appeared in Volume 12, page 22 of their Register. I'm very grateful to him for that.

Line: Samuel SEVERANCE I - Samuel SEVERANCE II - Mary SEVERANCE - James WINSLOW - Bessie WINSLOW - Dorothy PALMER - S. HOWES - Me.