Shapard History blog was created for the study, preservation and advancement of the genealogy of the Shapard family. This site includes biographies, images, photographs, research notes and sources.
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Sunday, March 13, 2016
UNDERSTANDING EARLY DATES
It is important for the
reader to understand that our calendar system and the way we understand dates
has changed throughout history. Prior to the year 1752, England and its
colonies (America) followed the Julian Calendar; being an ecclesiastical
calendar established by the Christian church in 325 A.D., which marked New
Year’s Day as March 25. Interestingly, the Latin roots of our words for
“September”, “October”, “November” and “December” still reflect this old
calendar system, meaning “seventh”, “eighth”, “ninth” and “tenth” month. However,
in the year 1752, England and its colonies (America) officially changed its
calendar system to the Gregorian Calendar, establishing New Year’s Day on
January 1st. This shift in dating systems often creates much
confusion for any date between January 1 to March 24, prior to the year 1752.
For instance, in the old calendar system, a man could die in March of 1740,
yet, be alive in December of 1740! If we see the date February 2, 1721, we automatically
assume that it is in the year 1721, when in fact, by our current calendar
system it actually occurred in the year 1722. One way to decrease the confusion
is by “double-dating” all dates that fall between January 1 and March 24,
before 1752. For instance, February 2, 1721 would be written February 2,
1721/2, reflecting both the Julian date (1721) and the corresponding Gregorian
date (1722). Make note that the shift from the old calendar to the new calendar
occurred on January 1, 1752, whereby, the day before was December 31, 1751. Within
this blog, all dates ranging between January 1 to March 24, prior to the year
1752, are double-dated.
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