I'm borrowing this from the Central Illinois Genealogical Quarterly, Spring 2014 who borrowed it from "Twigs and Branches", Dec. 1996. Mistakes we make: 1 - Not using family group sheets and pedigree charts. (Even with "computerized genealogy", these are important!) 2 - Not contacting relatives for assistance. 3 - Assuming that "no one else is working on my line." 4 - Not using maps of the area at the time your ancestors were living there. 5 - Not knowing the history of the area in which you are conducting research. 6 - Not using common sense when reading family histories. If a source for information is not listed, be cautious about accepting it.Some information may be hearsay. 7 - Gathering information on everyone with "that" surname, unless it is a very uncommon one. 8 - Not using primary sources: land, probate, church, county records but relying on printed histories. 9 - Not making photocopies. 10 - Not making a master copy. Leave the master copy at home when you travel to do research and take the duplicate with you. 11 - Not organizing your records. 12 - Not paying attention to clues your ancestors might have left. 13 - Assuming that your surname is never spelled a different way. One more e-mail to follow as I explain the above. Sandi --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. http://www.avast.com