Researching Matthew Shepard
Investigate the background of Matthew Shepard using the links below. We hope you find this information useful!
 | Did you know that in the 1881 UK census there were 852 people with the Shepard surname? In that year Shepard was ranked number 2731 for popularity in the UK. |
The name Matthew means "gift of God" and is of Hebrew origin.
Records of Matthew Shepard on Ancestry
Ancestry is a major source of information if you are filling out the detail of Matthew Shepard in your family tree. With over 30 billion records and 100 million family trees to search, Ancestry is one of the key websites to visit to help you trace your family tree back in time. Free trials are normally available and are a good way to fill out a lot of your tree quickly.
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Ancestry.com Global records search results for Matthew Shepard. |
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Ancestry.com US records search results for Matthew Shepard. |
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Ancestry.co.uk UK records search results for Matthew Shepard. |
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Ancestry.ca Canadian records search results for Matthew Shepard. |
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Ancestry.com.au Australian records search results for Matthew Shepard. |
DNA
Sometimes you can run into a brick wall in your tree and you just don't have enough evidence to make that next step back in time. A DNA test can sometimes help to make a link to a particular family name if you find you share common DNA with people who have the same or similar surnames as each other. If you are lucky then you may get a match within a few generations and discover some Shepard ancestors. Additionally, the modern DNA test can give you a breakdown of your ethnic mix - you may be surprised at the results!
Have you reached a brick wall in your Shepard Tree?
Birth, Death and Marriage Records for Matthew Shepard and the Shepard Genealogy
Birth, Death and Marriage records are often the best method of making the links to the Shepard Genealogy that will form part of your family tree. Although records vary from country to country, they are normally the most formal record of a person's relations. From the sources below you will be able to find a birth record and, from that, a birth certificate can be ordered which lists the names of the mother and father, taking you back another generation in your tree. A marriage certificate may also list the names of the respective fathers of the bride and groom which may then help you to find them earlier in life on a census record enabling you to fill out more detail in the Shepard family tree.
Search Parish Records for Matthew Shepard at Find My Past.
Investigate for the UK registered births, marriages and deaths of Matthew Shepard using the FreeBMD database.
Investigate Genealogy Bank for Matthew Shepard records.
Look at MyHeritage for Matthew Shepard information.
Investigate the LDS Database for records about Matthew Shepard.
Research the Shepard surname using fold3 Military Archives and view images of original Shepard Military records.
| Did you know that there are currently 552 people with the Shepard surname in the UK? Shepard is now ranked number 3519 for popularity in the UK. |
Shepard Genealogy Databases
Another way to build your tree quickly is to use the research other people have already done. This can help to confirm or refute your own deductions - however, be wary of taking this data at face value as other researchers may not have been as meticulous as you. Always try to back up deductions with some definitive sources rather than relying too heavily on others.
Look at the WikiTree database for user contributed records for Matthew Shepard.
Study MyTrees for information on the Shepard family and people looking to contact living Shepard relations.
Check out One Great Family for Shepard records submitted by people who are already researching the Shepard Family Tree.
Find Matthew Shepard from Ireland on findmypast.ie
Shepard Forums
There are a number of forums which are dedicated to rearching particular surnames. These can be good places to share your findings and also to tap into the knowledge that others may already have. These can sometimes be a good way of finding living relations as these tend not to show up on the other sources of information for privacy reasons.
Research the Shepard surname using Genealogy.com forums .
| Did you know that there are currently 45574 people with the Shepard surname in the USA? Shepard is ranked number 142 for popularity in the USA. |
Miscellaneous Shepard Databases
Explore the Ellis Island Database for information on Matthew Shepard. This database contains over 25 million immigration records detailing passengers arriving in the United States of America.
Some Famous People called Matthew Shepard
Matthew Shepard
Matthew Wayne Shepard (December 1, 1976 – October 12, 1998) was a gay American student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten, tortured, and left to die near Laramie on the night of October 6, 1998. He was taken by rescuers to Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he died six days later from severe head injuries received during his beating.
Suspects Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson were arrested shortly after the attack and charged with first-degree murder following Shepard's death. Significant media coverage was given to the murder and what role Shepard's sexual orientation played as a motive for the commission of the crime.
The prosecutor argued that McKinney's murder of Shepard was premeditated and driven by greed. McKinney's defense counsel countered by arguing that he had intended only to rob Shepard but killed him in a rage when Shepard made a sexual advance toward him. McKinney's girlfriend told police that he had been motivated by anti-gay sentiment but later recanted her statement, saying that she had lied because she thought it would help him. Both McKinney and Henderson were convicted of the murder, and each of them received two consecutive life sentences.
Shepard's murder brought national and international attention to hate crime legislation at both the state and federal level. In October 2009, the United States Congress passed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (commonly the "Matthew Shepard Act" or "Shepard/Byrd Act" for short), and on October 28, 2009, President Barack Obama signed the legislation into law.
Following her son's murder, Judy Shepard became a prominent LGBT rights activist and established the Matthew Shepard Foundation. Shepard's death inspired films, novels, plays, songs, and other works.
Source: Matthew Shepard, Wikipedia, The Free EncyclopediaOther names that sound a bit like Shepard
Family names can get corrupted over time, particularly where literacy was not as good. The following list contains some names that have similar sounds so you may want to also look at one or two of the more likely possibilites.
Sabberton Saberton Safford Safret Safriet Safrit Saporito Sapporito Saubert Savard Savart Saverd Savert Sawford Sawforde Scaparotti Schafhirt Schappert Schaubert Schifferdecker Schobert Schubart Schubbert Schubert Seabert Seabright Seaferd Sebert Sebright Seebert Seebright Seefried Seferth Seford Seibert Seifert Seiferth Seiffert Seifried Seipert Seivert Seivertsen Seivwright Sephardi Seubert Seufert Severt Seybert Seyfart Seyfert Seyffert Shapard Shepardson Shepeard Sheperdson Shephard Shepheard Shepherd Shepherdley Shepherdly Shepherdon Shepherdson Sheppard Sheppardson Sheppeard Shepperd Shepperdson Shewbart Shiffert Shipard Shippard Shipperdson Shiverdecker Shivertaker Shubert Shubird Shuford Shupert Sibbert Sibert Siebart Siebert Siefert Sieffert Siepert Sievert Sievewright Siffard Sifferd Sifford Sifrit Sivard Sivert Sivertson Sivewright Sivret Skipworth Sobrado Spearett Speariett Sperrett Spirit Spirritt Spoard Sport Sporton Sports Sportsman Spoward Spowart Spradbery Spradbrow Sprade Spradley Spradlin Spradling Spratley Spratlin Spratling Spratt Spraudlin Spread Spreadborough Spreadbury Spriddle Spriet Spritt Sproat Sproates Sproatt Sprott Sprought Sprout Spurden Spurdens Spurdle Spurdon Spurett Spurret Spurrett Spurritt Subartowicz Sverterye Swaffard Swafford Swaford Swoffard Swoford Sybert Syferd Syfert Sypert Sypherd Syphrett Syphrit Syverud Syvret Szubert
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