Ancestry Saturday: You've Got A Frustrated Friend, Pennsylvania

The slogan for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is memorable. Yes, I've got a friend there.

I've got an ancestor in Pennsylvania too. Quite a few, actually. My Grandmother was born in Pittsburgh. Though Ohioans at one point or another, half my great grandparents lived in Pennsylvania.

I wish Pennsylvania were friendlier to genealogy researchers. Other states beat the Commonwealth for allowing unfettered access to historical documents. Ohio info is more readily found, by far.

The state government teased us with some recently-published indices of deaths. Send $3 and you get a more detailed death notice. I sent multiple requests in August and waited the supposed "10-12 weeks" only to be told to wait some more. My checks got cashed though.

The excuse? Requests are high, 28,000 and counting. Program income is higher than expected too, but the personnel to handle it reminds low.

You've got an ancestor in Pennsylvania? Learn patience.