An assignment that requires you to only use one database seems simple, right? My advice for those beginning to do research in the Ancestry database is to lower your expectations and your ego. Until you get into the groove of things, it can seem like a grueling process that is taking you in circles, and there are even moments like this when you think you have everything figured out. Throughout the research process for this journal, I learned the importance of sufficient background research on the subject and proper utilization of search engines. These two issues caused frustration in my research as they became intertwined, and ultimately, I learned that the more knowledge you have before beginning archival research, the easier it will be to choose keywords successfully, which will make all of the difference. Whether your search is in a database or in person, it is impossible to look for anything if you don’t actually know what you’re looking for.
James Miller McKim (Find a Grave)
Beginning with a simple google search of James Miller McKim, I found the House Divided Project: Dickinson and Slavery biographical webpage for McKim. This gave me a basic overview of his life, the time periods I should expect to be looking at, and the locations that he would have lived. He grew up in Pennsylvania, registered as a Presbyterian minister in the 1830s, became a dedicated abolitionist soon after, eventually settled down in Philadelphia, and died in 1874.[1] With this information I thought I would be able to successfully search in databases, but came up short with results for “James Miller McKim” in the Pennsylvania Newspaper Archive and Early American Newspapers, 1690-1922. This is the moment in which I learned the importance of using database search engines to their full ability. After a bit of confusion about my results, I realized that I needed to search for the exact phrase “James Miller McKim” to avoid the random results. However, this also didn’t solve my problems, because there were only two results in the Pennsylvania Newspaper Archive featuring this name. As a public figure in Philadelphia, it didn’t seem quite right for there to be so few mentions of McKim in the news, but I had no reason to think I was still searching the wrong terms.
I decided to focus solely on Ancestry, where I seemed to be finding the most documents, but even on this one database, only a few out of 270 thousand results were about the right man. I would soon come to find out that almost every result that truly was McKim would be a record of his death, of which there are many. At this point in my research, I wasn’t taking notes, which was not a choice I would make again. During this process I learned that writing down any dates, locations, and names that you encounter should be noted, just in case they can come into use later. Even without writing dates down, I quickly read enough to remember McKim’s birth in 1810. Implementing his birth and death into the Ancestry database advanced search narrowed the results from 270 thousand to 17 thousand documents. This seemed to be helpful for a while, but I was still brought in circles between the many, many obituaries for McKim.
In an attempt to escape McKim’s death, I started to look for school records of his time at Dickinson, and realized I needed to know what year McKim graduated. My big breakthrough in research came from this google search, which led me to the Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections website. I did get the graduation date I was looking for, 1828, but I also learned that McKim was referred to by his middle name, at least early in his life.[2] This gave me a new search term that I thought would help me learn more about his time at Dickinson, but actually resulted in documents spanning McKim’s entire adult life. As it turns out, almost every document refers to him as J. Miller McKim, or J. M. McKim, which were likely buried far into the search results for somebody named James.
Marriage Record, 1840 (Ancestry.com)
With new outcomes that accounted for McKim’s different names, I was able to piece together a more intact story of his life. After graduating from Dickinson College, James Miller McKim became a member of the Carlisle Presbyterian Church in 1831 as a minister and is categorized in church records to have joined “by profession.”[3] Another church record states that McKim left that church by dismissal, not by death or suspension, which leads me to assume that he left this position because he was moving to Philadelphia.[4] By 1840, McKim was living in Philadelphia, PA.[5] On October 1, 1840, he married Sarah A. Speakman of Chester County, PA in Chester County, but he is said on this certificate to be from Philadelphia.[6] U.S. Census data from Philadelphia in 1850 tells us the members of the McKim household at this time; the family includes James, Sarah, three children, Anna, Lucy, and Charles, and two Irish women in their mid-twenties, presumably maids.[7] The Census categorizes McKim as a publisher, which aligns with a newspaper article from The Ram’s Horn in 1847 that lists him as a co-creator of Frederick Douglass’ proposed anti-slavery newspaper.[8] I did not, however, see any further mentions of this publication. There are several annual tax records confirming McKim’s residence in Philadelphia, the last of which is from 1866.[9] This causes me to think that he chose to move after his participation with Civil War abolitionist groups came to an end. The record closest to McKim’s death in 1874 is his will, written on November 20, 1872.[10] This record was difficult to read, but I also found a copy of McKim’s will, created after his death, that was much more accessible. This copy was found in the Register of Wills from Erie County, PA, written in 1884.[11] McKim left 500 dollars to Ann McKim, likely his youngest daughter, as she doesn’t receive any part of his estate. He gave 400 dollars to a woman named Ellen M. [Yandly?], and 100 dollars to his brother, John McKim.[12] McKim split his estate between Sarah, Charles, and other daughter, Lucy, with the executors of the will being Sarah, Charles, and Lucy’s husband, a man named Wendell P. Garrison.[13] James Miller McKim died on June 13, 1874 in West Orange, New Jersey, and is buried at Rosedale Cemetery in nearby Montclair, NJ.[14]
Gravestone of James Miller McKim (Find a Grave)
[1] “James Miller McKim,” Dickinson and Slavery, accessed April 3, 2025, https://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/slavery/people/james-miller-mckim/.
[2] “Class of 1828,” Archives & Special Collections, accessed April 3, 2025, https://archives.dickinson.edu/college-history-people-alumnusalumna-class-year/class-1828.
[3] First Presbyterian Church (Carlisle, PA), Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, March 19, 1831, reel: 275 [Ancestry.com].
[4] First Presbyterian Church (Carlisle, PA), Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1831, reel: 275 [Ancestry.com].
[5] J Miller McKim, “record of marriage for J Miller McKim and Sarah A Speakman, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, Oct 1 1840 [Ancestry.com].
[6] “Record of marriage,” 1831.
[7] U.S. Census Bureau, United States Federal Census, The National Archives: Washington, DC, 1850, series: M432, roll: 818, record group: 29, page: 443a [Ancestry.com].
[8] U.S. Census Bureau, 1850.; Frederick Douglass, “Prospectus for an Anti-Slavery Paper, to be Entitled, North Star,” The Ram’s Horn, November 5, 1847, 3:4, Library of Congress [Ancestry.com].
[9] Internal Revenue Assessment Lists for Pennsylvania, 1862-1866, The National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC, Records of the Internal Revenue Service, 1792-2006, May 1866, series: M787, roll: 27, description: District 5, record group: 58 [Ancestry.com].
[10] Last will and testament of James Miller McKim, Surrogate’s Court (Essex, New Jersey), Probate Records 1794-1902, November 20, 1872 [Ancestry.com].
[11] Certified copy of the last will and testament of James Miller McKim, Register of Wills (Erie County, Pennsylvania), Will Books, 1823-1916, October 4, 1884 [Ancestry.com].
[12] Copy of the last will and testament, 1884.
[13] Copy of the last will and testament, 1884.
[14] Rosedale Cemetery (Montclair, Essex County, New Jersey), Find A Grave (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/147168969/james-miller-mckim?_gl=1*1jszdfs*_gcl_au*NjQxMzc2NjY1LjE3NDI0NDA1OTQ.#source: accessed on April 3, 2025), entry for James Miller McKim [Ancestry.com].