SYLVIA SCHON

Daily Star Staff Writer

AMITE -- The roots of thousands of family trees are nestled quietly at the genealogy department of the Tangipahoa Parish Library in Amite.

And Lenore Johnson offers an experienced guiding hand to help the curious uncover them.

Johnson, department head and interim library director, brims with information and enthusiasm for her work and the tools of the trade.

"This is worth its weight in gold," she says of "Tombstones of Tangipahoa," a large book by Yvonne Lewis Day of Baton Rouge.

The book is prominently displayed along with others by Day, which list the locations of cemeteries in the parish along with the names and dates on the tombstones where they could be read.

"Tombstones of Tangipahoa" deals with cemeteries large and small in the rural areas dating from 1800 to 2000.

An index in the back allows the reader to look up a name and find where that person was buried.

Others give the same information on cemeteries located inside towns.

There are also many books on individual family histories.

Those include the Ballard, Wainwright, Kleinpeter, Hughes, Parker, Goodbee and Edwards, Hoyts, Daigle, Sylvest, Fendalson, Wood, Woods, Connerly, Simmons, Mixon, Nesom and Moak families to name a few.

One of the largest is Zuma Magee's history of the Magee and James families from 1770 until 1993, which includes 17,000 names.

The genealogy department occupies one large, softly colored room at the library headquarters on Mulberry Street in Amite.

It is divided into the Louisiana section on the right and the "everything else" section on the left. In the back of the room are a couple of computers to delve into records online.

On the right are books and periodicals on Tangipahoa, Florida Parishes and state family histories.

Those include several volumes of the Louisiana Genealogy Register.

Kentwood resident Irene Reid Morris served as president of that organization at one time and remains a significant contributor to the subject.

"I think she should be named as a national treasure myself," Johnson said.

There is also a heavy volume, "Charting Louisiana - 500 Years of Maps.

"This is a real prize to have," Johnson says while turning the pages of photographs of hand-drawn maps of old.

The "everything else" section includes "how to" books on searching family trees.

There are also genealogy books on European immigrant, Native American and African American genealogy.

There are roster books of the names of every Confederate and Union soldier from the Civil War, Mayflower births and deaths and census data from 1790 forward.

There is also "The Hidden Half of the Family," a source book tracing family roots through women.

"I love this," Johnson said. "This is where Louisiana is better than other states."

In Louisiana, women were allowed to keep their maiden name as part of their legal name after they were married, which is helpful for searches.

None of the books may be checked out, but can only be used in the genealogy department.

Some of the "how to" books, however, are available at the branches for check out, Johnson said.

A computer search through the library's own Website can lead to old census sheets, that appear just as they were written.

There are more books and periodicals on Louisiana than anywhere else. The second largest collection is on Mississippi families.

"There is quite a bit. We are adding to the collection all the time. We buy almost anything published about Louisiana," Johnson said.

The Internet offers more opportunities and information as well.

"When people tell me they have a home computer, I try to give them some indications of the good Websites they can go to," Johnson said.

A veteran of many searches, Johnson has words of advice for novices starting down the intricate and many-branched genealogy road that leads to all sorts of interesting side tracks.

Those who want to at least start with and complete their own family history must "stay on the path," Johnson said. "You really have to discipline yourself. You need to go at this in a very scientific way."

The genealogy department is open Mondays through Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The phone number is 748-7559, extension 3.