Ne-Do-Ba

Shouldn’t these so-called “facts” be checked? Isn’t the Internet increasing the amount of bad data floating around? Isn’t it a bad thing to allow false information to be posted online where others will find it?

I picked on FamilySearch.org simply because it is a free site and the claims are easily verified. However, if we look at most any other online database containing “records” submitted by the general public, we will see thousands of similar, obvious errors.

You can go to almost any of today’s online genealogy sites and find information that appears to be false. I’ll pick on FamilySearch.org as it is a free and open database, making it a good example that everyone can see. However, similar examples exist on most of the commercial genealogy databases as well.

Did your married female ancestor use her middle name for her middle initial in one record and her maiden name for her middle initial in another?

It seems like there is a whole generation of would-be genealogists who don't want to look for documents past FamilySearch and Ancestry.com.

Even if you decide all your ancestors’ stories were hoaxes, you have not proven and learned everything. You still need to find out why the story was created, or how it originated. And the stories just might be true, in some way or another.

Stories do change over time.

A story with no immediately clear supporting evidence is not a platform for building information on an ancestor.

in practical terms, it is highly unlikely that anyone has actually achieved a "complete" search

in practical terms, it is highly unlikely that anyone has actually achieved a "complete" search

in practical terms, it is highly unlikely that anyone has actually achieved a "complete" search

My concern is that many researchers (using the term loosely) draw a conclusion from almost no evidence, much less waiting until they have performed an exhaustive search.

now the incorrect research is recorded by many family members and has been perpetuated in files across the Internet.

By its very nature, poor or incomplete research always causes the same type of problem.

you will eventually find evidence of your native ancestors if there actually are any in your family tree.

High cheekbones are not a sign of Indian ancestry. There are plenty of Europeans with high cheekbones.

Photographs of ancestors in Native American garb are not evidence either. How many times have you been to a fair or carnival where there is a booth for you to dress up in period clothing to have your photograph taken.

As with all good genealogical research, tidbits found in local histories must be backed up by additional research and documentation. The same applies to information found on websites and in published genealogies.

Names can be spelled a hundred different ways. Get over it. Spelling variations are a fact of life for genealogists. Get over it. Some of you ancestors didn't know the "proper" spelling of their own names. Get over it. Your ancestors likely changed the names or the spelling of their names when they moved to a new country. Get over it. The way names were spelled did not become codified until well into the 19th Century. Get over it. Some of your ancestors likely changed their names to avoid creditors, their family, their church, or their enemies. Get over it. People still change their names today. Get over it.