Donald Lines Jacobus FASG (1887 - 1970)

Born 3 Oct 1887 in New Haven, New Haven, Connecticut

Ancestors

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Jillaine Smith [send private message]

Biography

Donald Lines Jacobus was born 3 October 1887 in New Haven, Connecticut, son of John I. Jacobus (b Dec 1855) and Ida Wilmot Lines (b July 1855). He never married.

Chronology

1887: Donald was born 3 October.^[1][2]

1900: Living with his parents and maternal grandmother in New Haven, Connecticut.^[3]

5 Jun 1917: Registered for the draft for World War I. He recorded his occupation as genealogist.^[4]

1942: He registered for the draft for World War II.^[5]

October 1970: Donald died.^[6]

Career

Donald Lines Jacobus (1887-1970) of New Haven, Connecticut, was widely regarded among genealogists as the dean of American genealogy during his lifetime. He established the New Haven Genealogical Magazine in 1922, which became The American Genealogist ten years later. He served as the periodical's editor until 1960. While Jacobus wrote many articles and publications, his best known may be: History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield^[7][8][9]

"Donald Lines Jacobus, FASG (1887–1970), of New Haven, Connecticut, was the first person elected to the National Genealogy Hall of Fame. He was nominated for this honor by the American Society of Genealogists, the Genealogical Society of Utah, and the DuPage County (IL) Genealogical Society. During his lifetime, Jacobus was widely regarded as the dean of American genealogists, and he is recognized as the founder of the modern school of genealogy in the United States. He was the editor and publisher of The American Genealogist for forty-three years, and he may have been the most prolific genealogical writer of any generation. His writings include the classic, Genealogy as Pastime and Profession. On his death, he was described by his colleague Milton Rubicam as "the man who more than any other single individual elevated genealogy to the high degree of scholarship it now occupies." ", ^[10]

Jacobus promoted primary documentation over all else, and pushed "to raise genealogy to the same high standards as other scholarly disciplines".^[11]

Today, genealogists, who strive for his standards of excellence, could find themselves receiving the Donald Lines Jacobus Award, named after the man who promoted those standards. "The Donald Lines Jacobus Award, established in 1972 to encourage sound scholarship in genealogical writing, is presented to a model genealogical work published within the previous five years."^[12]

Franklyn Bearce Gypsy/Native American Origins Controversy

Jacobus has published countless articles that demonstrate his skilled research and analysis of documented facts. In many cases, he has disputed previously made claims by others. He remains particularly famous (and to some, infamous) for his 1939 analysis of claims made in 1933 by Franklyn Bearce concerning the origins and Native American relations of early Bearce settlers in New England.

Jacobus Analysis of Diary and First 3 Generations

A current (late 20th century/early 21st century) researcher, Lee Murrah felt that Jacobus' arguments were wholly speculative, and as devoid of facts, as Franklyn Bearce's. However, he failed to see that Jacobus' arguments were at least based on the historical facts known about Puritan laws and society, which are excluded from Murrah's rebuttal.

Analysis of Lee Murrah's Rebuttal

Nobody, not even Franklyn himself (as shown in the attached images), has come back with any kind of valid counter-arguments, to contradict Jacobus' arguments against Bearce's "genealogy".

Sources

1. ↑ Self reported on: "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," index and images, FamilySearch (004135801 > image 2134 of 6333 : accessed 01 Jun 2014), . Citing NARA microfilm publications M1936, M1937, M1939, M1951, M1962, M1964, M1986, M2090 and M2097, Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.
2. ↑ Self reported on: "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," index and images, FamilySearch (accessed 01 Jun 2014): Connecticut: New Haven City no 5, image 2149 of 5823; citing NARA microfilm publication M1509 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d).
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," index and images, FamilySearch.org (accessed 01 Jun 2014): Connecticut, New Haven, ED 365 New Haven city Ward 6 , image 9 of 20; citing NARA microfilm publication T623.
4. ↑ "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," index and images, FamilySearch (accessed 01 Jun 2014): Connecticut: New Haven City no 5, image 2149 of 5823; citing NARA microfilm publication M1509 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d).
5. ↑ "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," index and images, FamilySearch (004135801 > image 2134 of 6333 : accessed 01 Jun 2014), . Citing NARA microfilm publications M1936, M1937, M1939, M1951, M1962, M1964, M1986, M2090 and M2097, Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.
6. ↑ "United States Social Security Death Index," index, FamilySearch (: record for Donald Lines Jacobus, accessed 01 Jun 2014), null, Oct 1970; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
7. ↑ Donald Lines Jacobus, History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield, Volumes 1-3; Baltimore, MD Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., (1991)
8. ↑ Wikipedia
9. ↑ Entered based on Wikipedia, 25 July 2013 by Phil Smith.
10. ↑ The National Genealogical Society [1]
11. ↑ Encyclopedia of Genealogy [2]
12. ↑ American Society of Genealogists [3]

See also:

The American Genealogist, Vol 47, No. 1 (Jan 1971)

Contributors

• Philip Smith created this profile on 25 Jul 2013.
• Jillaine Smith 14:13, 1 June 2014 (EDT)

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