SASE - Abbreviation for “self-addressed, stamped envelope”

SC - Abbreviation for “soldier’s certificate”

secondary source - Material copied or compiled from other sources or written at a later date from memory

second cousin - Person with whom one has in common two great-grandparents and their ancestors

“short form” - Certified transcription of a vital record

sibling - Brother or sister

slave census schedule - Federal census form for enumeration of slaves in 1850 and 1860

Social Security Death Index - Database of information about persons who were receiving benefits at the time of their deaths and whose deaths were reported to the Social Security Administration

soldier’s certificate - Numbered certificate awarded to a veteran who qualified for a federal pension based on military service; number used to access a pension application file

Soundex - Partially phonetic indexing system in which names are arranged alphabetically by the first letter of the surname, thereunder by a numerical code representing the remaining letters of the surname, thereunder alphabetically by first name or initials of the head of household, and thereunder alphabetically by state of birth of the head of household

source citation - Reference to a source of information

state archives - Repository of historical documents maintained by a state government

state historical society - Organization interested in preserving the history of a state

state vital records office - Agency of a state government in which birth and death (and sometimes marriage) records are filed

surety - Guarantor; one legally liable for the debt, default, or failure of another

surname - Person’s last name or family name