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Welcome to the web version of William T. Hearne's Brief History and Genealogy of the Hearne Family. This is based on the 1907 revision of his book and the 1912 Addendum. Both editions have been out of print for years. The 1907 edition can be had on microfilm or reprint duplication. The addendum seems to be much harder to find, and to my knowledge, is only available here. Hopefully putting the book on line will make this wonderful resource available to all who wish to use it. Hearne
History, Title Page (1907 edition) NewsTesting inline additions -- Take the poll! I'm trying something new with the addition of new information from Betty Crockford on page 478. For the first time, I've included content directly into the History. Prior to this, I've always left Hearne's original text exactly as it was, putting all new content only in the Notes sections at the bottom of each page. The original thought was Hearne's text was priceless in its original form. Perhaps also was the question whether our facts were better than his. It seemed a little presumptive to just change his content. After doing research over the years it's clear there are many errors and omissions in his text. More than once, now, I've been bitten by typos in the text, searching for names that aren't real because they aren't spelled correctly. Initially I struggled with even changing these spelling errors. Even though they were wrong, it felt like I was somehow altering a canonical work. Yet, Hearne's book is not a bible, rather, it is a collection of facts and stories. His purpose was first to gather the family into one, then inspire the upcoming generations with evidence of a noble heritage. Neither of those purposes is lost by adding new information. Indeed, Hearne himself was constantly adding new information. He published a second edition of the book. He published and addendum with hundreds of new names. Had he not died, I suspect he would have produced another addendum in 10 years. The question is not whether the corrections should be noted; that is already done via footnotes. They question is whether they should be corrected in-line, directly in the text. After consideration, I think it is a good way to go. The modern additions are clearly identified. The original pages are available for view any time. What's more, I think Hearne would have wanted it that way. Here are some examples of changes, both the old and the new way:
Let me know what you think of doing it this way. Contact me via email, or take the poll on the right. OrganizationThe web version is organized on a page by page basis, just like the book. Each page has text and a link to a page image for comparison. Many pages have notes and cross references submitted by other researchers; the notes follow beneath the actual text. In this way we can supplement on Hearne's original research -- he would have wanted it that way. You may browse page to page, or you may follow the text and skip the images. In addition to text, this on-line version includes an index of names and full-text search capabilities, links to other Hearne resources, and text versions you can download for your own searching. If you get lost, come back here by pressing the "Home" button, or use the Page Map which shows each page and whether it is text or a photo page. If you have a question, you might check out our Frequently Asked Questions page, or send me an email. Some of my own thoughts on Hearne's work are in Favorites. Work StatusThe transcription of the 1907 edition and the addendum are now both complete, with a complete index. Only a percentage of the photo pages are complete. You can see the status of the photo pages on the Page Map. Spread the Word!If you think this site is useful, link to it from your site. Or submit our URL to your favorite search engine. |
Take the poll! (See news lower left)What's New?
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