> > > > In the hope that some continued discussion will benefit newbies... > > > > > > > > None of my "proven" data is on any web site for several > > > > reasons. > > > > > > > > J. Hugh Sullivan > > > > > > I looked myself up on the web and found that I had died in Scituate, > > > Rhode Island a number of years ago. Reports of my death have been > > > greatly exaggerated. > > > > > > Barbara Combs obie '70 > > > > All of my data proven and unproven are on the Internet, without any > > names of the living and without sources, I have benefited so much > > from online postings that I feel the drive to share mine. When I am > > contacted I can send whatever sources I choose and we can converse > > on any points that come up. It makes me feel so good when someone > > writes me that they really appreciated the information and I have > > had some great breakthroughs from the ones that I write to and what > > a fantastic tool is the post it notes on many of the places that I > > research. > > Any questions are welcome newby or not > > http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=purplevw1&id=I65255 > > > > Sandra Tyler Duncan <[email protected]> > > Kindly folks, > > I just wanted to thank all of you for the discussion in this thread. > I think this is just the sort of stuff that a newbie like myself > needs to read. (I've been dabbling for about 2 months now.) On top > of that, the link in the 2nd post in the thread > > http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi > > is marvelous despite any of the shortcomings that have been > mentioned. I typed in just my great-grandfathers surname and place > of death and was rewarded with just one match which is > unquestionably him, along with ancestors going back farther than I > had ever imagined I would find. Perhaps not "unquestionably" to > some standards (which subject I have also been looking into - should > I really go looking for a physical copy of a book published in 1863 > to verify that what was copied to the internet is correct???) but > absolutely matching a great many points that my Mom had recorded > before her death in 1999. > > CSquared no maybe your mother copied from the 1863 book (mistakes and all too) what you have to do is look very critically at the 1863 book and try and find the original source of the data in the nineteenth century a PRIMARY source is a document created at the same time by the people involved in the event. a will a probate some church books but NOT many census records which are mostly SECONDARY sources because they are a fair copy from original census returns or an oral statement on a door step pencilled into a note book many of the older church books were written up later from scraps of paper with notes jotted down on them - which makes them ALSO secondary sources most census images are TERTIARY sources because they are copies of copies on line census indexes are on the FOURTH level or worse COPIES OF COPIES OF COPIES with spelling mistakes because of difficult to read handwritng, and mistakes made at the time by census collectors and today poorly paid typists far from the localities with no local knowledge. which demotes the family trees I put on line to the fifth level of quality EXCEPT for the bits I got from my mother's birthday book and old letters I own, and my visits to archives where I handled and read original documents which makes that part of my tree a SECONDARY SOURCE what your mother wrote about the people she knew is a primary source but we all have family stories which turn out to be legends with an element of truth, so when she wrote down what she was told . . . . -- check it out beware !!!! some of the nineteenth century and older genealogies are full of lies and assumptions - there were con men then too my worst mistake I made when I started was not finding CONTROL + S add source when I began with Family Tree Maker Hugh W -- Beta blogger http://nanowrimo3.blogspot.com/ visiting my past http://hughw36-2.blogspot.com/ re-entry http://snaps4.blogspot.com/" photographs and walks old blogger http://hughw36.blogspot.com/ MAIN BLOG Hugh Watkins <[email protected]>