There is a sign in the Family History library at my church which says: "Without Proof my family history would only be mythology."
Basic research means finding as many primary source documents as possible, and in the absence of those primary sources corroborating what we know about our family history with the best confirming documentation available.
In terms of family history research,
"PRIMARY RESOURCES are those that record an event at or close to the time that it happened; original records of events may include: diaries, journals, state or federal census records, courthouse records such as deeds, will probates, birth or death records, baptism or marriage records. Also included in primary records would be ship's passenger lists and military records." The USGenWeb Project)
SECONDARY RESOURCES, on the other hand, are information that was recorded after the fact, usually by someone who was not present - quite possibly by someone who wasn't even alive at the time of the event the record is about. this may include "Published records, including: family histories, indexes or compilations of census or marriage records, any sort of history (county, state, etc) and collections of cemetery inscriptions, for instance." (The USGenWeb Project)
As mentioned in the previous lesson, collaboration in doing family history work is a GOOD thing. However, in light of the ease of communication which modern technology makes possible, there can be a temptation to rely too much on that collaboration by simply getting copies of what other kind people are willing to share without taking the time to verify information through the use of primary sources, or in the absence of those, the most reliable secondary sources possible.
Fortunately, the technology available today also makes searching for primary sources easier than ever before.
For those looking for records in the Western United States, BYU-Idaho Special Collections many marriage and death records as well as census records and a whole host of published manuscripts about various families.
One source that was totally new to me was Gen.Forum This was of particular interest to me because of the information about immigration records which is a current concern of mine.
To find records specific to any state in the USA you can check out what is available at USGENWEB.ORG
I have very much enjoyed using various search tools to find information about my family lines. I have had some great successes at pushing the information I had started with back several generations which is exciting. However, until I can CONFIRM that information with corroborating documentation, it must be considered preliminary.
Particularly when using FamilySearch, there are MANY errors in the data which come from multiple people with marginal understanding of proper research techniques combining individuals or inputting data without due diligence. While I appreciate the kind intent of folks who want to help, uploading information that has not been sufficiently proven and then trusting that all the details will get worked out in the Millennium simply isn't useful.
Part of my goal for the coming months is to continue to extend what I know about my own family history. However, just as important will be the process of searching out documentation for what I already do know. By footnoting all of my records on Ancestry.com with scanned copies of the documents I have others following in my path or tying into my lines will be able to know that the information is accurate.
As it says in the article Assembling an Accurate Family History by Barry Leadbetter:
To assemble an accurate family history one must:
* obtain each piece of information from as many independent sources as possible
*include primary sources where ever possible
*properly assess the accuracy of each source of information and
*resolve the inconsistencies, giving more weight to the sources assessed as most accurate.
With that in mind, I have added several new links to my resources side bar - sites to go to for primary resources for records pertaining to the Civil War, the Revolutionary War and passengers of the ship Mayflower. I am excited to explore and see what they have to offer!
