How to Read and Convert Dates in Old Documents

Dates are a very important part of historical and genealogical research, but they also arent always as they appear. For most of us, the Gregorian calendar in common use today is all we encounter in modern records. Eventually, however, as we work back in time, or delve into religious or ethnic records, it is common to encounter other calendars and dates with which we arent familiar. These calendars can complicate the recording of dates in our family tree, unless we can accurately convert and record the calendar dates into a standard format, so that there is no further confusion. Julian vs. Gregorian Calendar The calendar in common use today, known as the Gregorian calendar, was created in 1582 to replace the previously used Julian calendar. The Julian calendar, established in 46 B.C. by Julius Caesar, had twelve months, with three years of 365 days, followed by a fourth year of 366 days. Even with the extra day added every fourth year, the Julian calendar was still slightly longer than the solar year (by about eleven minutes per year), so by the time the year 1500 rolled around, the calendar was ten days out of sync with the sun. To remedy the deficiencies in the Julian calendar, Pope Gregory XIII replaced the Julian calendar with the Gregorian calendar (named after himself) in 1582. The new Gregorian calendar dropped ten days from the month of October for the first year only, to get back in sync with the solar cycle. It also retained the leap year every four years, except century years not divisible by 400 (to keep the accumulation problem from recurring). Of primary importance to genealogists, is that the Gregorian calendar was not adopted by many protestant countries until much later than 1592 (meaning they also had to drop a varying number of days to get back in sync). Great Britain and her colonies adopted the Gregorian, or new style calendar in 1752. Some countries, such as China, did not adopt the calendar until the 1900s. For each country in which we research, it is important to know on what date the Gregorian calendar came into effect. The distinction between the Julian and Gregorian calendar becomes important for genealogists in cases where a person was born while the Julian calendar was in effect and died after the Gregorian calendar was adopted. In such cases it is very important to record dates exactly as you found them, or to make a note when a date has been adjusted for the change in calendar. Some people choose to indicate both dates - known as old style and new style. Double Dating Before the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, most countries celebrated the new year on March 25th (the date known as the Annunciation of Mary). The Gregorian calendar changed this date to January 1st (a date associated with the Circumcision of Christ). Because of this change in the start of the new year, some early records used a special dating technique, known as double dating, to mark dates which fell between January 1 and March 25. A date such as 12 Feb 1746/7 would indicate the end of 1746 (Jan 1 – March 24) in the old style and the early part of 1747 in the new style. Genealogists generally record these double dates exactly as found to avoid possible misinterpretation.   Next Special Dates Archaic Date Terms Julian vs. Gregorian Calendars Feast Days Other Special Dating Terms Archaic terms are common in older records, and dates dont escape this usage. The term instant, for example, (e.g. in the 8th instant refers to the 8th of this month). A corresponding term, ultimo, refers to the previous month (e.g. the 16th ultimo means the 16th of last month). Examples of other archaic usage you may encounter include Tuesday last, referring to the most recent Tuesday, and Thursday next, meaning the next Thursday to occur. Quaker-Style Dates Quakers typically did not use the names of the months or days of the week because most of these names were derived from pagan gods (e.g. Thursday came from â€Å"Thor’s Day†). Instead, they recorded dates using numbers to describe the day of the week and month of the year: [blockquote shadeno]7th da 3rd mo 1733 Converting these dates can be especially tricky because the Gregorian calendar change must be taken into account. The first month in 1751, for example, was March, while the first month in 1753 was January. When in doubt, always transcribe the date exactly as written in the original document. Other Calendars to Consider When researching in France, or in countries under French control, between 1793 and 1805, youll probably encounter some strange looking dates, with funny-sounding months and references to the year of the Republic. These dates reference the French Republican Calendar, also commonly referred to as the French Revolutionary calendar. There are many charts and tools available to help you convert those dates back into standard Gregorian dates. Other calendars you may encounter in your research include the Hebrew calendar, the Islamic calendar and the Chinese calendar. Date Recording for Accurate Family Histories Different parts of the world record dates differently. Most countries write out a date as month-day-year, while in the United States the day is commonly written before the month. This makes little difference when the dates are written out, as in the above examples, but when you run across a date written 7/12/1969 it is hard to know whether it refers to July 12th or December 7th. To avoid confusion in family histories, it is standard convention to use the day-month-year format (23 July 1815) for all genealogical data, with the year written out in full to avoid confusion about which century it refers to (1815, 1915 or 2015?). Months are generally written out in full, or using standard three-letter abbreviations. When in doubt about a date, it is generally best to record it exactly as written in the original source and include any interpretation in square brackets.

International Alliances during World Wars I and II

Since 1914 the United States military has grown and gotten to one of the strongest forces in the world, their technology has developed from Molotov cocktails to the development of the atomic bomb. As nations across the world started to build their troops and modernize, they also began to ally with each other, especially throughout Europe. The Triple Entente consisted of Great Britain, Russia, and France- and the Triple Alliance consisting of Germany, Austria and Italy. Since land was still being fought over in Europe it was bound for a war to start, the spark setting off the beginning of WWI was in the Balkans, this is where the Ottoman Empire disintegrates and new territories wanted to take control. By the time August rolled around Germany had declared war on Russia and France, but as they meet outside the river in Paris the war takes a pause and they just battle as a stalemate. Accompanying the entrance of this war was a huge modernization in weaponry including machine guns, tanks, submarines, aircraft, and submarines. As the countries continued to fight they began to come up with different ways to battle besides weapons and started to use chlorine and mustard gas. This made both sides of battle have to wear gas masks and the number of causalities to rapidly increase. However, in the United States, President Woodrow Wilson did not want to get involved with the actions taking place in the western world. The problem with this was these were the nations who the U.S. wereShow MoreRelatedAlliance System and New Imperialism Essay949 Words   |  4 PagesAlliance System and New Imperialism Jessica Gray, Bernadine Cross, Tameka Freeman, Rikia Wyatt His/114 January 4, 2012 Darrett Pullins Alliance System and New Imperialism Otto Von Bismarck formed of designed the European balance of power. 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These hostilities transformed into war on the 28th of June 1914,when a 19 year old terrorist, Gavrilo Princip, assassinated the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, creating the cause of war that one month later brought Austria-HungaryRead MoreEssay on cause of world war551 Words   |  3 Pages Cause of World War I Unlike World War II, the causes of World War I are not as clear cut. Historians say the war had been building up for some time prior to 1914. The quot;Great Warquot; was not caused by megalomaniacs hungry for power as in the case of Mussolini and Hitler during World War II. The origins are more complex. First one is the alliance Systems The causes can be explained, more in political terms than human terms. From the end of the Franco-Prussian War, a system of

Morally Correct free essay sample

Morally Correct Throughout life people are faced with difficult choices and how to act on them. The actions people take determine how they are perceived by others. According to John Ruskin, thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge are â€Å"of little consequence† when a person does not act on what he considers to be morally correct. George Orwell, Tim O’Brien, and Virginia Woolf assert Ruskin’s idea on the importance of action through their use of rhetorical strategies such as paradox, irony, and rhetorical questions. Although the circumstances under which actions are taken may be difficult, staying true to one’s feelings is most important, though it may not be the easiest path to take. The protagonist in Tim O’Brien’s â€Å"On the Rainy River† and Orwell in â€Å"Shooting and Elephant† disregard their personal feelings to avoid public humiliation and embarrassment. O’Brien’s protagonist fights for a war he is terrified of and does not believe in. We will write a custom essay sample on Morally Correct or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Though his conscience advises him â€Å"to run†, he decides to join the war to escape â€Å"shame†, â€Å"disgrace†, and â€Å"patriotic ridicule.† It is of no significance what the protagonist felt or thought, he went against his beliefs and became a â€Å"coward.† O’Brien’s being a coward is a paradox because he was brave enough to go to war, even though he went against his morals. The irony in Orwell’s autobiographical essay emphasizes Ruskin’s idea of thoughts and knowledge versus action. Being a white European man in authority should have given Orwell the power to act as he chose. Rather than Orwell controlling the Burmans, the Burmans controlled Orwell. He felt pressured to kill the elephant in front of the â€Å"two-thousand† Burmans to prevent being â€Å"laughed at† and â€Å"looking a fool.† Orwell and O’Brien commit acts that are against their morals to saisfy the expectations of th eir society. With the use of rhetorical questions such as â€Å"how far can she [Englishwoman] fight for freedom without firearms†, Virginia Woolf reasserts Ruskin’s belief. She mentions that Englishwomen â€Å"can fight with the mind.† They can think of ideas that will help their Englishmen win the war. Woolf declares, â€Å"to make decisions effective, we must be able to fire them off. We must put them into action.† Woolf believes that ideas are worthless to have unless they are acted upon. The aftermath of actions are consequences. People are responsible for their actions and the consequences that follow, be they good or bad. John Ruskin states that â€Å"the only consequence is what we do.† Taking action and taking a stand on an issue is more important than doing nothing. If a person’s beliefs counteract his actions, he is responsible for the consequences that follow.

One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest Literary Essay free essay sample

With great power comes great responsibility. Many people have great power, but tend to abuse it. A common example of this abuse is using people below ones authority to do most of the work, or black mail them. Then there are the people who utilize power carefully whilst not abusing them. In the novel â€Å"One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest† by Ken Kesey, McMurphy ultimately wins the power struggle with Nurse Ratched which leads to the patients recovery, her loss of control over the ward, and Nurse Ratched’s struggle for power. Before McMurphy arrived at the ward, Nurse Ratched had complete dominance over the patients. They did exactly what she said, no questions asked. She kept them there by making them feel insecure and unfit for society. Nurse Ratched had a logbook setup that appeared to be beneficial to the patients. In reality, the logbook was a method for Nurse Ratched to gather information which would be used against the patients for sending them to the main building. We will write a custom essay sample on One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest Literary Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page â€Å"They spy on each other. Sometimes one man says something about himself that he didn’t aim to let slip, to get enough evidence to have some guy reconditioned† (Kesey, 15). Nurse Ratched is exploiting the patients by making them turn against one another, they do not realize this as they are blinded by the fact that they get rewarded. The guy that wrote the piece of information in the log book, he gets a star by his name†¦and gets to sleep late the next day. † (Kesey,15). They desperately need the reward, to feel the slightest bit of comfort, due to the lock of freedom they get in the ward. After McMurphy arrived at the ward, he noticed that most of the patients were not mentally ill, and had no reason to be there. â€Å"I can understand it with some of those old guys on the ward. They’re nuts. But you, you’re not exactly the everyday man on the street, but you’re not nuts. † (Kesey, 195). Most of the men had lost their personalities, confidence, guts which caused them to deem themselves unfit to go back into society. â€Å"You could get along outside if you had the guts†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Sure! †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ If we had the g-guts. † (Kesey, 195). The men had been drained of all they had by Nurse Ratched, they had nothing left. In order to help them regain what they had been stripped of, McMurphy took them on a fishing trip. The fishing trip gave them some time outside of the institution, they were free to do whatever they wanted knowing they were ot being watched, or in the presence of Nurse Ratched. The fishing trip was very therapeutic to the patients, as it taught them a bit of how to deal with the outside world. â€Å"We were three jackets short, and there was a fuss as to who’d be the three that braved that bar without jackets. †¦ Everybody was kind of surprised that Billy had volunteered, took his life jacket off right away when we found we were short, and helped the girl into it. † (Kesey, 252). Before McMurphy came the ward, Billy would never have volunteered for anything. He would not have the confidence to stick out of the crowd. Billy rising above the crowd is a clear indication of the positive influence McMurphy had on the ward. They learn how to resolve their own issues, and see themselves as men. This gives them a huge positive influence on their confidence. Slowly, they start to realize they have proven themselves to the outside world. At end of the fishing trip, they show everyone their huge catches, and are proud of what they did. The men eventually get their confidence back and their back to how they were when they first joined the ward if not better. During the party McMurphy was throwing for his last day, most of the men had their confidence back, Billy Bibbit also lost his stutter after losing his virginity. The patients discussed about leaving the hospital after a few more weeks, whereas at the beginning of the novels they had no guts to leave. This also shows they no longer fear Nurse Ratched. At the beginning of the novel, the ward had complete control over the patients. The rules that were enforced would run the patients lives, such as the daily routine everyone had to follow, toothpaste locked away, and loud music. They did not get any say in what they wanted. As the novel progressed, Nurse Ratched gradually lost control. †We can see the nurse’s face get red and her mouth work as she stares at him, everybody’s watching what she’s going to do—even the black boys and the little nurses†¦she flips a switch and the TV picture swirls back into the gray†¦Ã¢â‚¬ You’re committed, you realize. You are †¦ under the jurisdiction of me†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ Mr. Harding! You return to your†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Mr. Har-ding! †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ You men—Stop this. Stop! † We’re all sitting there†¦and she’s ranting and screaming behind us. † (Kesey, 143-144). This is the first incident Nurse Ratched had no control over the patients in the ward. In her furious mentality, she suspends privileges in an attempt to display her authority again, and starts rationing cigarettes. That did not help much as the men still question her authority and her control goes downhill from here as there is not much she can do anymore. As soon as McMurphy set foot in the hospital, she knew he was a threat to her by the way he acted. She tries one of her old tactics and tries to humiliate McMurphy by calling him â€Å"Mr. McMurry† (Kessey, 25). She sees McMurphy as a threat from the beginning as can be seen by what she said, â€Å"That is exactly what the new patient is planning: to take over. He is what we call a ‘manipulator’. (Kessey, 27). His first attempt at changing Nurse Ratched fragile system was to change the routine, but he did not have any supports. He needed a team to make changes to the place, as Nurse Ratched required a majority vote, so McMurphy made a bet with the ward members, to drive her off the throne, without her having any power over him. He disobeys ward policies, such as taking showers when they were not permitted, and brushing his teeth. When Nurse Ratched arrived to work that day, she went berserk but kept it to herself. Another incident was when he claimed someone stole his clothes, and he takes off his towel only to see whale shorts. â€Å"She closes her eyes and concentrates. She cannot have them see her face like this, white and wrapped with fury. She uses all the power of control that is in her. Gradually the lips gather together again under the little white nose, run together, like the red-host wire had got hot enough to melt† (Kesey, 99-10). This was a major incident that lead to her fall from the throne, she could not handle all the trouble McMurphy was causing. Another point when he also broke her down was when they were watching the blank TV imagining the World Series. She was completely helpless as, no one would listen to her. She thought she could shut him down once and for all when she tells McMurphy he is committed, but he reclaims himself by shattering the window not once, but twice. In the end, McMurphy’s last act was choking, and exposing Nurse Ratched’s weakness, he stripped her of her clothes, and exposed her chest to everyone, which she tried so hard to conceal from everyone throughout the novel. This completely broke down Nurse Ratched, and in revenge, she lobotomized McMurphy. She may have gotten rid of him, but he succeeded in destroying the system, and throwing her off the throne. As most people left the Ward after that, or transferred, McMurphy may be gone, but his work will haunt her forever. In conclusion, Nurse Ratched has lost her power forever, as she has no control over the institution or authority left, in exchange for McMurphy’s life, and the freedom of many of the wards patients. The patient’s recovery leads to the loss of Nurse Ratched’s control, which caused Nurse Ratched to struggle for power. In the end, she did not win by getting rid of McMurphy, as he weakened the power she had over people forever. As William Edward Hickson said, â€Å"If at first you do not succeed, try, try again†. McMurphy was a perfect representation of this goal, he kept going against Nurse Ratched to break her down. One should always keep trying to achieve their goal, very few succeed the first time. Works Cited Kesey, Ken. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. Penguin Edition. United States of America: New American Library, February 1963