Austrian-Hungarian Empire - Gen Tip # 2
The historical time we are focusing on and is valuable to Hungarian researchers is when Galicia was a territory that was once owned by the Austrian Crown, and then the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. As a territory under the rule of the Austrian Crown and then the Austrian-Hungarian empire, Galicia came into being in 1772, in what was called the 'first partition' (of Poland).There are many opinions about the region during those times. I've listened to academics and rabbis who present their teachings about Galicia on YouTube videos, and well, everyone has their opinion but the man who says it never existed is wrong. It did and there are maps to prove it.
That said, for most of you who are tracing ancestors who were in Hungary, present day Hungarian, Slovakian, Austrian, perhaps Croation, archives will be most important.
SHEPHERDS and SHOEMAKERS on GALICIA - CADASTRAL MAPS
Galicia is the focus of the website Shepherds and Shoemakers, a family history and genealogy site that I respect. It's informative and useful for genealogy. The site came up again when I was searching for information on CADASTRAL MAPS.
In the United States these maps are called Plat Maps. There are sketches, charts, and sometimes plans for the future on these maps. (For instance, I found one in the U.S. that showed the plans for streets, including the street names, that had not been yet paved - which go back to the late 1950's. A land owner and developer used these for many purposes, beyond designing his dream suburb with the names of his wife and children for street names. They were probably used to get the development past city planning officials and as part of a proposal for financing at the bank.)
Cadastral maps can be of value to your family history and genealogy project. Land surveys were done and the map illustrated the boundaries of properties, the real estate. The maps defined legal rights and responsibility regarding property ownership and use. This all tied in with the things one could not avoid. To quote my mom, "death and taxes."
You may be able to tie them in with census, wills, and other documents.
Undertaking the survey and making of the maps was an effort to better understand the towns and villages that it now controlled. The maps helped the government better understand the villages and towns, land ownership, and the value of each settlement that was mapped.
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