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Submissions: The Ancestral File, the IGI, and the Golden Rule(last updated 01 Mar 2003) The Need for AccuracyWhen searching the AF and the IGI, there is nothing more pleasing than finding good information. Conversely, there is nothing more frustrating than finding bad information which subequently leads you down a time-consuming false trail. All genealogists hate false trails, and most don't appreciate the folks who create them. Amazingly, though, many Ancestral File and IGI submitters create false trails for others by submitting bad data taken from poor sources. When genealogists submit records to these databases, they should remember the Golden Rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This lesson's purpose is to motivate Ancestral File and IGI submitters to base their submissions on good, original records. I address only the Ancestral File below, but the same ideas apply to the IGI. Duplication of RecordsDuplications in the Ancestral File occur when two researchers submit conflicting information on an individual. Nine times out of ten, the data on one of those duplicate individuals is bad or incomplete. The bad data which makes up a duplicate record is usually gleaned from family histories and other compiled sources, rather than from birth certificates and other original records. The unneccessary duplication which results clouds the Ancestral File with inaccurate information, leading other researchers down a false trail. If, for instance, the wrong county appears for the birth of an individual, it can cause other genealogists looking for the individual's parents to spend hours searching in the wrong county. In short, careless research by one submitter wastes the time of others. Using Original RecordsPreventing these errors is simple. When you research, research in original records. Find the strongest evidence available. Don't be satisfied submitting information from Aunt Edna's undocumented family history. Verify her findings using original records, and then submit to the Ancestral File. Perhaps the most noble act a genealogist can do is to take the time to research in original records, and to document sources for each find. Sacrificing herself for the sake of future researchers in her family, she will leave a most valuable legacy -- a detailed record by which her family can judge the accuracy of her research. With her sacrifice, she will save her family from having to someday redo all of her research. The Golden RuleWhen you submit to the Ancestral File, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Verify your data using original records, and submit to the Ancestral File the kind of information you'd like to find there -- the kind that can be trusted. |
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