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''To replace FamilySearch collections and Indexing ancestral information. Needs citations.'' |
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==Records and documentation== |
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[[File:Family-bible-births.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A family history page from an [[History of the Southern United States#Antebellum era|antebellum era]] family Bible]] |
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Genealogists use a wide variety of records in their research. To effectively conduct genealogical research, it is important to understand how the records were created, what information is included in them, and how and where to access them. |
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===List of record types=== |
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Records that are used in genealogy research include: |
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* [[Vital records]] |
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** [[Birth certificate|Birth records]] |
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** [[Death certificate|Death records]] |
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** [[Marriage license|Marriage]] and [[divorce]] records |
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* [[Adoption]] records |
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* [[Biographies]] and biographical profiles (e.g. ''[[Marquis Who's Who|Who's Who]]'') |
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* Cemetery lists |
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* [[Census]] records |
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* Religious records |
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** [[Baptism]] or [[infant baptism|christening]] |
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** [[Brit milah]] or [[Baby naming]] certificates |
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** [[Confirmation]] |
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** [[Bar mitzvah|Bar]] or [[bat mitzvah]] |
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** [[Marriage]] |
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** [[Funeral]] or death |
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** Membership |
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* City directories<ref>Peter R. Knights, "City Directories as Aids to Ante-Bellum Urban Studies: A Research Note," ''Historical Methods Newsletter,'' Sept. 1969 2:1–9</ref> and [[telephone directory|telephone directories]] |
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* [[Coroner]]'s reports |
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* Court records |
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** [[Criminal record]]s |
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** [[Civil records]] |
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* [[Diary|Diaries]], personal [[Letter (message)|letters]] and family [[Bible]]s |
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* [[Genealogical DNA test|DNA tests]]<ref>Elizabeth Shown Mills, "Documentation vs. DNA: The False Argument," blog post, QuickTips: The Blog @ Evidence Explained (https://www.evidenceexplained.com/quicktips/documentation-vs-DNA-false-argument : posted 28 July 2018).</ref> |
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* [[Emigration]], [[immigration]] and [[naturalization]] records |
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* [[Genealogy book|Genealogy books]] |
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* [[List of hereditary & lineage organizations|Hereditary & lineage organization]] records, e.g. [[Daughters of the American Revolution]] records |
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* [[Real property|Land]] and property records, [[deed]]s |
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* [[Health care|Medical]] records |
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* [[Armed force|Military]] and [[conscription]] records |
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* [[Newspaper]] articles |
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* [[Obituary|Obituaries]] |
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* [[profession|Occupational]] records |
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* [[Oral histories]] |
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* [[Passport]]s |
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* [[Photograph]]s |
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* [[Poorhouse]], [[workhouse]], [[almshouse]], and asylum records |
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* [[School]] and [[alumni association]] records |
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* [[Passenger ship|Ship]] passenger lists |
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* [[Social Security (United States)|Social Security]] (within the US) and [[pension]] records |
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* [[Tax]] records |
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* [[Tombstone]]s, [[cemetery]] records, and [[funeral home]] records |
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* [[Vote]]r registration records |
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* [[Will (law)|Wills]] and [[probate]] records |
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To keep track of their citizens, governments began keeping [[public records|records]] of persons who were neither [[royal family|royalty]] nor [[nobility]]. In England and Germany, for example, such record keeping started with parish registers in the 16th century.<ref>Thea Miller, "The German registry: The evolution of a recordkeeping model," Archival Science Volume 3, Number 1 / March, 2003 pp 43–62; Michael Drake, "An Elementary Exercise in Parish Register Demography," ''Economic History Review'' Vol. 14, No. 3 (1962), pp. 427–445 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/2591886 in JSTOR]</ref> As more of the population was recorded, there were sufficient records to follow a family. Major life events, such as births, marriages, and deaths, were often documented with a license, permit, or report. Genealogists locate these records in local, regional or national offices or [[archive]]s and extract information about family relationships and recreate [[Chronology|timelines]] of persons' lives. |
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In [[China]], [[India]] and other Asian countries, [[genealogy book]]s are used to record the names, occupations, and other information about family members, with some books dating back hundreds or even thousands of years. In the eastern [[India]]n state of [[Bihar]], there is a written tradition of genealogical records among Maithil Brahmins and Karna Kayasthas called "[[Panjis]]", dating to the 12th century CE. Even today these records are consulted prior to marriages.<ref>{{cite book | last=Verma | first=Binod Bihari | authorlink=Binod Bihari Verma | title=[[Maithili Karna Kayasthak Panjik Sarvekshan]] (A Survey of the Panji of the Karan Kayasthas of Mithila) | location=Madhepura | publisher=Krānti Bihārī Varmā | year=1973 | oclc=20044508}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | author=Carolyn Brown Heinz, | title=Fieldnotes: First lesson of the Genealogist | url=http://www.csuchico.edu/anth/mithila/genealogist2.htm | publisher=Department of Anthropology, California State University, Chico | date= | accessdate=2008-01-29 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329053241/http://www.csuchico.edu/anth/mithila/genealogist2.htm | archive-date=2008-03-29 | dead-url=yes | df= }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | author=Pranava K Chaudhary | title=Family records of Maithil Brahmins lost | url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1848092.cms | work=India Times | date=3 April 2007 | accessdate=2008-01-29}}</ref> |
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In [[Ireland]], genealogical records were recorded by professional families of ''senchaidh'' (historians) until as late as the mid-17th century. Perhaps the most outstanding example of this genre is [[Leabhar na nGenealach]]/[[The Great Book of Irish Genealogies]], by [[Dubhaltach MacFhirbhisigh]] (d. 1671), published in 2004. |
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===Record locations=== |
===Record locations=== |
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Several websites offer genealogical records, either in indexed or digitized forms. Some websites provide free access to records, while others require subscription fees. Examples of well-known fee-based websites include [[Ancestry.com]], [[MyHeritage]], and [[FindMyPast]]. Websites with free genealogical materials are often owned by governments, churches or nonprofit organizations, one of the most well-known being [[FamilySearch]], the location of the digital records of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Volunteer genealogists also create their own webpages compiling record indexes, images of records, or genealogical data, sometimes using already existing platforms such as [[Rootsweb]] or [[Findagrave]]. Different websites contain different records. In order to do thorough research, genealogists must consult multiple types of records accessible at different locations and websites. |
Several websites offer genealogical records, either in indexed or digitized forms. Some websites provide free access to records, while others require subscription fees. Examples of well-known fee-based websites include [[Ancestry.com]], [[MyHeritage]], and [[FindMyPast]]. Websites with free genealogical materials are often owned by governments, churches or nonprofit organizations, one of the most well-known being [[FamilySearch]], the location of the digital records of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Volunteer genealogists also create their own webpages compiling record indexes, images of records, or genealogical data, sometimes using already existing platforms such as [[Rootsweb]] or [[Findagrave]]. Different websites contain different records. In order to do thorough research, genealogists must consult multiple types of records accessible at different locations and websites. |
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===Record loss and preservation=== |
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Sometimes genealogical records are destroyed, whether accidentally or on purpose. In order to do thorough research, genealogists keep track of which records have been destroyed so they know when information they need may be missing. Of particular note for North American genealogy is the [[1890 United States Census]], which was destroyed in a fire in 1921. Although fragments survive, most of the 1890 census no longer exists. Those looking for genealogical information for families that lived in the United States in 1890 must rely on other information to fill that gap.<ref>{{cite magazine |
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| last = Blake | first= Kellee | date = 1996 | title= First in the Path of the Firemen: The Fate of the 1890 Population Census | url = https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1996/spring/1890-census-1.html | magazine = Prologue Magazine | location = Washington, D.C. | publisher = U.S. National Archives and Records Administration | access-date= 2 Aug 2019 |volume=28, No. 1}}</ref> |
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War is another cause of record destruction. During [[World War II]], many European records were destroyed.<ref name="familysearch preservation"></ref> Communists in [[China]] during the [[Cultural Revolution]] and in [[Korea]] during the [[Korean War]] destroyed genealogy books kept by families.<ref>{{cite news |last=Yan |first=Alice|date=18 March 2018 |title=Getting to the roots of the Confucius family tree: the cultural significance of knowing one's ancestry |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2136471/getting-roots-confucius-family-tree-cultural-significance-knowing |work=South China Morning Post |location=Hong Kong |access-date=2 Aug 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date=13 Sep 1975 |title=Genealogy Important In Korea, Expert Says |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EdFSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=IH8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5788%2C3311192 |work=The Deseret News |location= |access-date=2 Aug 2019 |quote=During the Korean War, the Communists tried to destroy genealogies and replace the strong family government with a dominant Communist figure. Refugees fleeing from the north brought their genealogies with them on their backs as one of their most precious possessions. Many of these genealogies are now found in fragmentary form in South Korea.}}</ref> |
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Often records are destroyed due to accident or neglect. Since genealogical records are often kept on paper and stacked in high-density storage, they are prone to fire, mold, insect damage, and eventual disintegration. Sometimes records of genealogical value are deliberately destroyed by governments or organizations because the records are considered to be unimportant or a privacy risk. Because of this, genealogists often organize efforts to preserve records that are at risk of destruction. [[FamilySearch]] has an ongoing program that assesses what useful genealogical records have the most risk of being destroyed, and sends volunteers to digitize such records.<ref name="familysearch preservation">{{cite web |url=https://media.familysearch.org/familysearch-strategy-to-help-preserve-the-worlds-archives/ |title=FamilySearch’s Strategy to Help Preserve the World's Archives|last=Hutchinson |first=Angelyn |date=20 Apr 2018 |website=FamilySearch |publisher=The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |access-date=2 Aug 2019 |quote=}}</ref> In 2017, the government of [[Sierra Leone]] asked FamilySearch for help preserving their rapidly deteriorating vital records. FamilySearch has begun digitizing the records and making them available online.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-preserves-precious-records-of-african-nation |title=Church Preserves Precious Records of African Nation|last= |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=Newsroom |publisher=The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |date=28 Sep 2017|access-date=2 Aug 2019}}</ref> The [[Federation of Genealogical Societies]] also organized an effort to preserve and digitize United States [[War of 1812]] pension records. In 2010, they began raising funds, which were contribute by genealogists around the United States and matched by [[Ancestry.com]]. Their goal was achieved and the process of digitization was able to begin. The digitized records are available for free online.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://fgs.org/community/preserve-the-pensions/ |title=Preserve the Pensions: A project to digitize the War of 1812 Pension Files|author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Federation of Genealogical Societies |publisher= |access-date=2 Aug 2019 |quote=}}</ref> |
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==Education== |
==Education== |
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Latest revision as of 22:15, 4 September 2019
- User:Tea and crumpets/Genealogy and reliable sources
- Genealogy in the Information Age: History's New Frontier?
- Naming Children in Early New England
- Genealogy
To replace FamilySearch collections and Indexing ancestral information. Needs citations.
Record locations
[edit]Genealogists may go online to find records, or travel to various locations. Many records of genealogical value, such as vital record certificates, family bibles, and genealogy books, are held in private homes. Genealogists may sometimes contact cousins to locate such records. Other records are located in libraries or archives. Many of the records from all of these locations have been digitized and posted online in various websites.
Governments, churches, public libraries, genealogical societies, and other organizations store records of genealogical value in archives. Some libraries are dedicated specifically to storing and providing access to genealogical records, with staff dedicated to helping patrons with research. One of the largest such libraries is the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, which houses over 2 million microfiche and microfilms of genealogically relevant material, as well as books and digital records.[1]
Several websites offer genealogical records, either in indexed or digitized forms. Some websites provide free access to records, while others require subscription fees. Examples of well-known fee-based websites include Ancestry.com, MyHeritage, and FindMyPast. Websites with free genealogical materials are often owned by governments, churches or nonprofit organizations, one of the most well-known being FamilySearch, the location of the digital records of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Volunteer genealogists also create their own webpages compiling record indexes, images of records, or genealogical data, sometimes using already existing platforms such as Rootsweb or Findagrave. Different websites contain different records. In order to do thorough research, genealogists must consult multiple types of records accessible at different locations and websites.
Education
[edit]Degrees, certificates, conferences, institutes, books, webinars, online courses, family history centers, community workshops
- ^ Donald Harman Akenson, Some Family: The Mormons and How Humanity Keeps Track of Itself Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2007; Johni Cerny and Wendy Elliott, The Library: A Guide to the LDS Family History Library. Salt Lake City: Ancestry Pub., 1988.