While searching Ancestry & FamilySearch, auto-checks county and place, notes boundary changes, shows historical county maps

Latest Version

Version
4.75
Update
November 3, 2024
Size
5.97MiB
Developer
randymajors.org
Category
Users
1,000+
Rating
5 ★
Manifest Version
3
Web Store Status
Languages Support
English
See more
Permissions
Storage
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Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Extension

Let this tool do the location work for you as you search on Ancestry.com or FamilySearch.org.

Optional upgrade for Ancestry.com users: Tree Fact-Checking and LifeMap!

U.S. county boundaries have changed over 17,600 times since America was settled in colonial times. Don’t sabotage your search for ancestors by not knowing the correct county for the historical years you are researching.

While searching on Ancestry or FamilySearch, this Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension for Google Chrome automatically checks that the county existed in the year you are searching, checks for valid places, warns of boundary changes, and links to historical county lines on Google Maps for the place and years you are searching!

Install today and never let an ancestor fall off the map again!

The Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Chrome extension makes use of the award-winning randymajors.org Research Hub’s Historical U.S. Counties on Google Maps tool, underpinned with the complete dataset of the authoritative Newberry Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Install the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Chrome extension by clicking the \"Add to Chrome\" button in the upper right corner of this page.

2. Go to any search form on Ancestry.com or FamilySearch.org and start typing a place and a year. As you finish typing in each box, the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Chrome extension will update information in a box as shown in the screenshots. Note that the information shown is updated based on the last year box and place box you were interacting with.

3. Read the Note and Warning messages that appear about some counties, and click the MAP link to view historical county boundaries for the place/county/state and historical year you are researching. The Auto-Checker first tries to center the map on the city/place/township you are searching for, and if it cannot find an exact match, it centers on the county you are searching for, and as a final fallback centers on the state you are searching for.

4. Using the map, when you find the correct county name for the year you are researching, put that county name in the place search box on Ancestry or FamilySearch in the form \"City, County, State, USA\"

ENABLE TREE FACT-CHECKING & LIFEMAP FUNCTIONALITY: If you are a randymajors.org Research Hub Monthly Contributor, the Auto-Checker will also check all U.S. location facts on Person profile pages on Ancestry trees, plus create a link to an interactive LifeMap for each ancestor! And your MAP links will open into ad-free fullscreen map windows any time you click a MAP link! LEARN MORE HERE: https://www.randymajors.org/access-ad-free-fullscreen-tools#compare

That's all there is to it. Hope the tool helps you discover some \"hidden\" records!

(When you install the Auto-Checker, you may see a standard confirmation window that states that the extension can “Read and change your data on www.ancestry.com or www.familysearch.org or www.google-analytics.com”. Rest assured that the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Chrome extension ONLY reads the place and year fields and shows the county information as shown in the screenshots above; it absolutely DOES NOT make any changes to your data whatsoever. No logins or email addresses are required to use the extension!)
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Source Manifest.json

{"update_url": "https://clients2.google.com/service/update2/crx", "manifest_version": 3, "name": "Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker", "short_name": "County Auto-Checker", "version": "4.75", "description": "While searching Ancestry & FamilySearch, auto-checks county and place, notes boundary changes, shows historical county maps", "permissions": ["storage"], "host_permissions": ["https://www.google-analytics.com/"], "background": { "service_worker": "background.min.js" }, "action": { "default_popup": "popup.html", "default_icon": { "16": "images/16BlueGlobe.png", "32": "images/32BlueGlobe.png", "48": "images/48BlueGlobe.png", "128": "images/128BlueGlobe.png" } }, "content_scripts": [ { "matches": ["https://*.ancestry.com/*","https://*.ancestry.ca/*","https://*.ancestry.co.uk/*","https://*.ancestrylibrary.com/*", "https://*.familysearch.org/*"], "all_frames": true, "js": ["jquery-3.5.1.min.js","dexie204.min.js","content.min.js"], "run_at": "document_idle", "css": ["rmrhExtStyles.min.css"] } ], "icons": { "16": "images/16BlueGlobe.png", "32": "images/32BlueGlobe.png", "48": "images/48BlueGlobe.png", "128": "images/128BlueGlobe.png" }, "web_accessible_resources": [ { "resources": ["hcLookup.json", "pCentroids.json", "pCentroidsAll.json", "images/16BlueGlobe.png"], "matches": ["https://*.ancestry.com/*", "https://*.familysearch.org/*"] } ], "content_security_policy": { "extension_pages": "script-src 'self'; object-src 'self'" }}
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How to download and manually install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension for Chrome

Looking for a way to install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extensions for Chrome, you can search for them in the Chrome Web Store, clicking the "Add to Chrome" button, and following the straightforward process.

However, you may need to install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extensions manually, this article outlines two simple methods to effortlessly install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extensions, whether they come as unpacked folders in compressed formats like .zip or as .crx files.

Method 1: Download Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension and manually install through Drag &Drop

If you ever need to manually install a Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension for Chrome, don't worry, it's a simple process. Just follow these easy steps, and you will have your extension ready to use in no time.

Step 1: Download the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker Extension by clicking the "Download CRX" button on the website.

Look for the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension you wish to install. Go to the website and download the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension package, which is usually a .CRX file and comes in a zipped file. Here ".crx" file is the format for Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension that contains all the data.

Step 2: Extract &Arrange Files

Once the file is downloaded, extract that file into its own folder. Similarly, give that extension files a permanent home. In other words, keep it in a folder that you don't accidentally delete it because these files will be needed to make that extension work.

Step 3: Go to the Chrome Extensions Page

Open Google Chrome and in the address bar, type chrome://extensions; it will open the Google Chrome extensions page. Make sure that "My extensions" is selected in the sidebar.

Step 4: Drag and Drop the Extension

Now, go to the folder where you extracted the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension and drag &drop the extension file from there anywhere onto the extension page within Google Chrome.

Step 5: Complete the Installation

Once you drag and drop the extension file, follow the steps that Google Chrome takes you through. Similarly, if the extension file is of .crx file format, you will be required to review the permissions and then add the extension.

Now, you can manage that added extension as you would like to with any other Chrome extension that you added through Chrome Webstore. Its icon will also appear in the Google Chrome Menu on the right side of the address bar once you activate it.

Method 2: Download Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension for Chrome and install in Developer Mode

This is another method to install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension manually, but the twist is that here, you install by enabling the developer mode option provided in Google Chrome. This mode is commonly used for testing extensions or running unpublished tools.

Step 1: Download the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension file

Select and download the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension by clicking the 'Download CRX' button on the website.

Step 2: Extract the downloaded contents

Convert the file to a ZIP file if it is in CRX format then extract the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension zip file or folder that you downloaded. Make sure you extract it using the same folder name and keep it safely in another folder, so you don't delete it by mistake. The extracted folder will be needed to keep your Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension running.

Step 3: Open Chrome Extension Setting Page

In the address bar of Google Chrome, type chrome://extensions and open the Chrome Extension Page.

Step 4: Enable Developer Mode

After opening the Chrome Extension page, look at the top right side, and you will find the toggle option of "Developer mode."Simply enable that developer mode option.

Step 5: Load the Unpacked Extension

Once you enable the developer mode option, you will see the menu of Load Unpacked, Pack Extensions and Update. From that, select the option "Load unpacked."

Step 6: Select the Extension Folder

Once the pop-up opens upon clicking Load unpacked, select the Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension directory and click on the "Select Folder "button.

Step 7: Confirm and Install

After you select an extension folder of a Google Chrome extension you're installing manually, confirm its installation for the final time and let the installation complete.

Conclusion

Here we've made a step-by-step guide on How to manually install Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker extension in 2 ways. We hope this guide proves helpful.

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User reviews

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Erin (ID: 00000027e6830000) Voted 5 ★ - Updated 06/09/2022 I just wanted to say thank you for your hard work! It is appreciated.

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Charles Powell (ID: 000000962cc9c934) Voted 5 ★ - Updated 07/19/2021 This extension on Microsoft Edge browser is changing the way I work. I am solving mysteries, eliminating confusion, and de-duplicating places, plantations, farms, ambiguous names, and non-populated areas more than ever before and with MUCH less effort. As you state, the data is already out there, but your website and extensions make it much easier to access and use, more than any process or tool that I’ve ever tried. For decades, I’ve avoided fixing these places and now I’m tackling it head-on.

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Librarian Fort Fairfield Public Library (ID: 000000bd15bafa29) Voted 5 ★ - Updated 03/28/2020 As I librarian I wholeheartedly support this Chrome extension! We have installed it on all of our genealogy computers at the library because it works for AncestryLibrary Edition too! So easy to use and is extremely helpful when searching older records. Once you've identified an accurate place name for a specific time period you will then be able to search other databases with that same location to open up much more information in your research.

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Laura Majors (ID: 0000007bc38a4b2e) Voted 5 ★ - Updated 03/24/2020 This is a great extension. So easy to use and super quick. Enabled me to find some info I had been struggling with before because the county didn't exist in the year I was searching. Who knew?

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Marisa Alonzo (ID: 0000009a5b1ffc2b) Voted 5 ★ - Updated 03/24/2020 Excellent Chrome extension! It makes it so easy to find county location mistakes when searching on Ancestry.com. It helped me uncover several census and other records that I didn't know existed for my great great grandfather. Now that this extension exists, I won't search on Ancestry without it!