That is why I am surprised by the adoration of the Griffith's. My family surnames are very common ones in Ireland, and with no other info., how is one to know they have the right person? I guess I will keep saving my quarters and plan a trip to the homeland of my brave and wonderful ancestors, and dig around for a while !! I think a lovely thatched roof abode would be nice for a month----which month should I choose for optimum weather? Cousin Cece ----- Original Message ----- From: "Paul Gorry" <gorry@indigo.ie> To: <IRL-WICKLOW-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, September 03, 2005 11:04 AM Subject: [Wicklow] Read A Book! > Seeing the various postings about Griffith's Valuation makes me wonder yet > again if anyone who lives in cyberspace over reads a book. I know that > the > entire world thinks that the internet is where you find answers to > everything these days. But you won't find answers to everything about > Irish > genealogy, that's for sure. Dare I accuse people in general who inhabit > cyberspace of being LAZY!?! Well, I've said it. I'm not having a go at > anyone who's asked a question on this list (or anyone who's been helpful > enough to answer them). I'm just concerned that people seem to think that > all their research can be done by proxy by using this list or other sites > on > the internet. It can't! > > If you want to trace your ancestry back to Adam and Eve by sitting at a > computer, you'll probably find a ready-made family tree somewhere that you > can graft your people on to. It may look nice, but it won't be correct. > There is some wonderful (and FREE) information on the internet, but > there's > also a lot of rubbish. Knowing how to distinguish between the two takes > experience. In the Genealogy Advisory Service (GAS) at the National > Library > and National Archives in Dublin we get a lot of people these days coming > in > with information they got about their "ancestors" from someone they met in > cyperspace or that their long-dead grandaunt accumulated God-knows-where. > Instead of getting out of their house and going to the record office that > holds their grandparents' marriage record or the relevant census return or > whatever, they asked someone out there in the dark if they know anything > about Joe Bloggs who married Jane Doe. Based on the replies they start > gathering information on a Joe and Jane couple who may or may not be their > ancestors and turn up in Dublin with a lot of relevant and irrelevant > stuff > nicely blended together. > > You can take the wrong turn at any point along the path of your search > unless you do your research carefully. At the GAS I often find myself > stripping away the layers of internet-provided stuff people have > accumulated > till there is nothing left. The disappointed people had thought they knew > their ancestor was Patrick Murphy born in Ballygobackwards in 1840 because > someone told them they found him on the IGI but in reality they themselves > had not even obtained their grandparents' marriage record and didn't know > their great-grandparents' names for sure. Genealogy is a hobby but it's > one > that leaves being documentation for future generations. If your research > is > faulty your grandnephew won't think to question it when he picks up the > documents long after you're gone. As genealogy is a hobby people don't > take > it as seriously as other things they might do. I wonder how many of you > take medical or legal advice from strangers over the internet. If you > don't > take medical or legal advice over the internet, why not???? > > I generally warn beginners off using the internet until they have some > experience of REAL research. So, my advice for all beginners is READ A > BOOK. There are several good books on genealogical research out there. > Get > one about research in your home country first, as that's where you need to > start. Then, before trying to go beyond the Irish born ancestor, get one > on > Irish research. By far the most widely read book on the subject is John > Grenham's "Tracing Your Irish Ancestors" (second edition) which is > available > just about anywhere for purchase or for reference. A third edition is due > out soonish, but don't wait for that. Get out and get yourself a guide > book. Then when you've read it you'll be in a better position to ask > questions and judge the quality of the answers. > > Paul Gorry > > > > > > ==== IRL-WICKLOW Mailing List ==== > If you have a problem, question, need direction or to report a virus, > please contact IRL-WICKLOW-admin@rootsweb.com. off-list at Admin Thanks > > ============================== > Search Family and Local Histories for stories about your family and the > areas they lived. Over 85 million names added in the last 12 months. > Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13966/rd.ashx > >