Citing Sources
I ran across an article the other day (My Plea for More Citation of Primary Sources by Scott Simpson) which discusses a major problem in genealogy.
I have found several discussions on genealogy message boards which discuss my ancestors. I have also found my ancestors listed in various places around the internet (GEDCOM files, genealogy web pages, etc). One ancestor was said to have had 13 children and all of their names were listed. No sources were given. How and where did this person find this information? I recently found a document at Footnote which appears to be the source of this information (from a Revolutionary War pension file) as it contains the same information almost word-for-word. I would have had a much easier time finding this information if the source had been listed.
Another example is the family of the son of the ancestor mentioned above. There are several pages online that list him, his wife, and many children with many dates filled in. Where did they get this information? I will be making a trip to the proper courthouses in the (hopefully near) future and I hope to find the answers there. If, however, someone had cited the sources of this information I wouldn’t have to go on a wild goose chase. I would know where to look for the original document to confirm it for myself.
Even without source citations the information shared at least gives us clues we may not have had otherwise (the two cases listed above are good examples and I really do appreciate the information). I have to admit that I am also guilty of sharing information without good source citations. I just want to re-iterate Mr. Simpson’s plea: If you have the primary sources, please cite them. If you have not seen the primary sources then say so!
Now would be a good time to mention Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian by Elizabeth Shown Mills. If you are serious about genealogy and don’t already have this book, get it! As of the date of this post Amazon has it for just $13.56 and it’s worth every penny. You can also check your local library.
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