In general, courthouses are not exciting places. Stately, maybe. Some are even ornate. But unless the murder trial of the decade is being tried, courthouses are not usually considered exciting. Now add that you are twelve-years-old, you’re on vacation but spending part of that time at a courthouse and you have absolutely nothing to do. You might decide that, yes, courthouses are really, really boring.
A Typical Genealogy Family Vacation
That was me in 1976. My family was on vacation in the eastern United States. The trip was part leisure, part visiting relatives, and, of course, part genealogy. At this stage, we had already seen a lot and done a lot, and the next stop was Niagara Falls. Before that, though, it was time for a little genealogy. As we came into Buffalo, New York, just south of Niagara Falls, my parents informed us that they needed to stop at the courthouse.
The Old Erie County Courthouse
Oh oh, the courthouse. My brother and I both knew what that meant. A long, boring afternoon. Have your books and toys ready, kids, because it will be hours of just sitting around waiting for the parents to get done with their research. No big deal, I thought. I’ll ask Mom and Dad to give me a job to do, and then the time will go faster. Maybe I’ll even find something interesting. This was my usual tactic when we had to spend time in courthouses, libraries, and research centers. Afterall, books and toys only lasted so long, and then what?
When we pulled up to the Erie County courthouse, I had some hope. It looked kind of like a castle! Maybe there was a museum… Nope, no such luck. No museum, no displays. Maybe we could wander around the block… Nope, we were in a strange city, so no wandering around. We couldn’t even wander around the building – Mom and Dad wanted us to stay in the same area where they were researching. Maybe I could help find records… I asked for a job. No luck there either. They were looking at land records that required special access. Only they could look at the old maps and there was nothing for me to do. Nothing.
Hard, Boring Courthouse Benches
I read my book. That got boring. I wrote in my diary. That took – well, not very long. I seem to remember we were sitting on hard courthouse benches. Did you know that those benches get harder the longer you sit on them? The minutes dragged on, then the hours. Oh man, how long was this going to take? My brother was bored too, but he was used to it. He never helped with genealogy, so he always had his toy dinosaurs and coloring books ready. But that got old and there we both were – bored, bored, bored. We probably picked on each other, but I don’t even remember that. I think we were too bored to make the effort!
The Moral of the Story
I don’t remember ever being that bored on a family trip, so it must have been a really long afternoon. I can still feel the immense relief that swept over me when my parents emerged from their maps, saying that they were done and it was time to go. Hooray! Niagara Falls, here we come! As we left the city of Buffalo, I thought, “Goodbye Buffalo, the most boring city in New York!” Ok, that might not be fair. But I was 12. I know now that there might be plenty of interesting things to do in Buffalo, but sitting at the boring courthouse all afternoon is probably not one of them. I still think of it as the most boring courthouse in the United States. That’s probably not true either, but my 12-year-old brain has cemented the title.
So, here’s the moral of the story and a little tip for all you genealogy enthusiasts out there. If you have to bring your kids along when you do research, make sure they have something to do. A museum to go to or some records to search through. At least take breaks periodically to take them outside. (These kids genealogy activities probably won’t work at the courthouse, but they could buy you some time to do your research at home.) They will thank you for relieving the boredom! And they probably won’t write about how bored they were nearly 46 years later.
Want to know more about what it was like growing up with amateur genealogist parents? Read more of my stories here.
Image Credit:
“Old Erie County Courthouse” by joseph, https://www.flickr.com/photos/7150652@N02/16638137961
“Dad’s slides-Janet” from the records of Gerald and Ruth Dilley
