Doug, I applaud your efforts at hosting individual pages on your Burg/ha/u/m ancestors. It is a great way to honour and to "immortalize" their histories. I have done such a website for my Benedict ancestors, using a Wiki engine. Each relative has an individual page, a vital stats table at the top and then links going up to their parents and links going down to their children. The site now has over a thousand pages, i.e. ancestors featured. If you want to see an example, this is the link to my great-grandfather, John Smedley Benedict: http://www.genealowiki.com/bin/view.cgi/Benedict/JohnSmedleyBenedict1859 The information is fully visible, searchable and can hold a family album of images. I don't have a problem with others seeing it (it is read-only), as most of the research was done by fellow Benedict's who had permission to edit directly into the pages. There would have been no way that I could have on my own done all the background research or the editing, so it is a collaborative project. I also found a number of Benedict descendants through this site that would have otherwise not known of me or vice versa. Good luck on yours, Jim Benedict Guild Representative for Western Canada Guild of One-Name Studies: Guild member #4794 Calgary, Alberta www.BenedictGenerations.com ======================================================== -----Original Message----- From: goons-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:goons-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Doug Burgum via Sent: December 19, 2014 7:12 AM To: Julie Goucher; goons@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [G] profile page references to Index records An interesting thread and I would like to add my thoughts. I spent decades researching the surnames Burgum and Burgham and originally shared my discoveries with anyone who cared to subscribe the the BURGUM FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY. The annual subscription was modest and did not really cover the costs of printing and postage. Eventually the cost of the quarterly journals became too great and I spent a great deal of time worrying how to share my research with BFHS members. Why should I just give my hard earned discoveries to the whole world? Eventually I created my own website at www.burgumfamily.com so anyone could just steal it if they wanted to. One of the best decisions I have ever made. I was rewarded by hearing from individuals eager to share stories, photographs and data with me. I heard from people I did not even known existed. My knowledge and my research expanded as a result. In turn I have been able to help those who have an interest in BURGUM and BURGHAM, whether distant relatives or not. I am currently creating a new BURGUM website, a database site, where every single individual BURGUM and BURGHAM (not living) will have their own page with every fact I have uncovered about them. The task is huge and I therefore have great sympathy with those trying to bring the Guild website into the 21st century. It is hard, complicated and time-consuming. I will, when I get time, share all my marriage info with the Guild. It is on my "To Do" list. Finally where would we be if other organisations chose NOT to share their databases, lists and discoveries? Free websites appear on these pages regularly and we often dash to their pages in the hope of finding additions to our own ONS. I am delighted to give my information away and thank goodness so many other people feel the same way. I, for one, have benefitted by sharing my life's work. > Doug Burgum > Researching Burgum and Burgham worldwide. > Odino, Andorra >