Everybody should also note that when using info found in an online family tree, that the info is just what the person found out about the individuals he/she was researching, and that it doesn't necessarily have all of the info on that individual. Genealogy requires a lot of research and guesswork, many folks left no paper trail to follow and just can't be found in census, wills, deeds, estate records, etc, anything that one can think of to find that individual. It's rare that one can find an official document from the original family themselves that actually says that "Jane Doe was the daughter of Mary Smith & John Doe" - those are absolute records. When you can't find those records, that's when the guesswork comes in and it involves analyzing what one does have, and as anyone watching any law show can tell you, it is the prepondence of the evidence that one must use until or if something else turns up that is "absolute." But that is also one of the reasons that family trees are posted online, to help others looking for that "absolute" evidence, and that is also why one must do everything they can to "absolutely" verify what is found in those online trees. Deloris Williams ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, November 11, 2005 1:51 PM Subject: [WILLIAMS] More About Posted Data > Some people who see a specific name posted in a GEDCOM file on one of > these sites, feel that it is true. Someone recently contacted me about > one of my great-grandfathers. He said he was also descended from him. > Since I have extensive information on this ancestor, I did not recognize > his name or how he might fit into the family. > > When we compared notes, it was merely a case of "same name" and close year > of birth. I had documentation on this acestor and had traced him from > birth to death, including all census records in which he appeared. The > person who inquired lost "him" at some point in time and merely assumed > that "mine" was the same guy. > > It was disappointing for the person who thought he knew about the > ancestor, only to have it all disproven. > > Larry > >