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The pitfalls of Genealogy

ASTONITE

ASTONITE

master brummie
Over the years that I have been researching my family tree, I have painstakingly researched, where possible, all links, these have included, parish records, census data, electoral rolls, in fact any way of backing up any relevant material, however, of late, there seems to be a large number of people, especially on one popular web-site, who have just plucked a name out of the ether and added it to their trees. The problem with this is it leads so many people in the wrong direction. Surely it should be the responsibility of the site (who charge exorbitant prices to join) to put people on the right path, or am I being too nit-picky.
 
Astonite I fully agree, I have had photos taken from my family tree and put onto a couple of other ones and when I looked at their trees although there was one name the same, their family had nothing to do with mine. I have emailed to the respective family trees and told them they have the wrong person, but to no avail. Its very frustrating.
 
Hi, Carolina, I'm glad it's not just me, it's bad enough having to put up with the mistakes made by census enumerators ( I have had one relatives name spelled 4 different ways)
 
I also have someone who has added a family member to their tree with no certificates to back it up. I have now discovered the connection is totally wrong as I am in contact with the correct person. I have messaged the person like you am being ignored. If I use photo's or information from another members tree I always message them and thank them. I think it would be a mammoth task for the site to correct this, maybe they could have a complaint procedure. We all make mistakes I have done it and when told it was wrong I checked and deleted the wrong branch and apologised to the member.
 
I have noticed a big increase of interest in genealogy/family tree history over the past number of years and wondered why. Is it simply an interest in who our ancesters were, or are there other reasons such as may be being related to someone famous (or infamous) ??? Eric
 
this is a subject i really feel strong about..i would rather not have any info about my ancestors than have the wrong info..like a few others i have spotted more than one of my rellies on these trees that people set up on ancestry and more than once i have noticed that they have got it completely wrong...trouble is some folk jump far too quick and will attach themselves to a name just because it almost fits the bill and they are desperate to belong to someone but that does not mean to say it is the right connection.we must check double check and check again and cross reference..if i am not 100% sure i obtain certs and over the years again like many of you have spent quite a few bob on them but the reward for me is knowing for certain that i have got it right or wrong as the case maybe...i wish everyone good luck with family research...its hard work..time consuming and can cost a bit but well worth it...
:encouragement:

lyn
 
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I think that with some people it is just a pastime like some who used to trainspot. Some (I am not saying all) were only interested in ticking off a number in a book to say they had "got" it
 
There is a tree on An***try which shows a great aunt of mine being married to 2 different men at the same time, one in Australia & one in London, & having children with both of them. (She must have had a bike). I have told him several times that he has the wrong family & even found the correct link in England for him, but last week I found he had downloaded some of my family photos to his tree.
I give up.
 
I've had the same problem on the same family tree site. People have just copied information into their own tree whether it is correct or not. I've written and told people that they have made errors but have never had a reply. I have spent years on researching my family tree, and wouldn't want to add anything that wasn't verified as correct. One person (who I did know personally) had put a lot of my recent family history in great personal detail onto his tree without even asking me for permission. When I objected I never heard from him again - but he did remove the information.
 
yes. I´ve had that too. A fellow researcher took it upon herself to add details of my ex husband & my 2 daughters. I had to get really stroppy with her in the end in order to get her to remove them as I have them marked as private on my tree. I realise that the info is readily available online if you care to search, but I personally would never put full details of someones living relatives on my tree for all to see.
 
Me too!! I don't store my tree online but I have shared info particularly with Australia. Someone put details of living family and I had a terrible job to get them removed. Another one has linked in French Aristocrats but I know they come from Shropshire!!
Mum left a lot of details and a "Memory Book" written in an exercise book, I wish I had asked more questions.
Incidentally, I have 2 bigamists and a thief......don't be shocked at your discoveries!!!!
rosie.
 
In reply to Eric, I personally wanted to know my roots, it was quite a shock, my paternal great-grandfathers were German Jewish and Irish respectively, I also have a Welsh great-great Grandmother, and my mother was born in Scotland. I have been in touch with relatives I never previously knew existed, my only regret is knowing that both my great grandmothers were alive in the 50s, but I was never told of their existence. Like Lyn, I have spent hundreds on certificates and subscriptions, however the pleasure I have gained is well worth the effort. So far I haven't found anyone famous or notorious.
 
Hi gibbu1838
I don't know which site you are on, but you can make
Ancestry private. Only people you sent an invite to can see.

Regards stars
 
Stars is right, ancestry trees can be made private or so that you contact the tree owner before you can access the info.
Have to admit, I have gained some useful links from other trees, but before I use it, I always contact the tree owner to ensure they are happy with sharing it - have only had one refusal and then found that he had taken a photo from my tree without a word!! I have one "public" tree and one "private" tree and find this works well.
Eric, I started researching family history when we found a box of old photos and letters from dads family and I wanted to see where they were from and what they did. Like Astonite and Lyn, it keeps me occupied and I get a lift if I find new info, its not a cheap hobby though if you join one of the sites and order certifcates to backup your research, but like I say, worthwhile for me.And no-one famous or infamous for me, but a few shotgun weddings, from the most unexpected people!!!
Sue
 
rosie said:
Me too!! I don't store my tree online but I have shared info particularly with Australia. Someone put details of living family and I had a terrible job to get them removed. Another one has linked in French Aristocrats but I know they come from Shropshire!!
Mum left a lot of details and a "Memory Book" written in an exercise book, I wish I had asked more questions.
Incidentally, I have 2 bigamists and a thief......don't be shocked at your discoveries!!!!
rosie.
Click to expand...

lol rosie same here..i chased my bigamist gt gt grandfather on moms side all the way from ladywood to yorkshire..ive got both of his marriage certs and his birth cert and everything matches including his signature on marr certs..only just signed up to view the old newpapers today and already ive found 2 rellies had up for theft one of them our dads dad aged 14..my gt gt gt grandads sons son was also in trouble for running at his sister and mom with a knife and assulting a neighbour and my gt gt grandad and his brother on the other side of my family also got into trouble...to be honest i think its wonderful to find these things out and i dont feel ashamed or shocked one little bit..this is how things were over a hundred years ago and it brings our rellies to life and i form images of them in my mind and im of the mind that we must take the rough with the smooth.
oh in the newpaper cutting about our dads dad it actually quotes what he said in court which to me is quite a special thing as he died aged 45 some 4 years before i was born so i never knew him..good luck with your research rosie im off now to see what else i can dig up..
.
lyn
 
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hi

yep its difficult profession this one. Just been bowled middle stump. My deceased Sisters Mother in law
was always known as Mavis. So with the recent loss of my Sisters Husband Mavis's Son i re-emberked on his Family Tree. It all went well traked the whole lot back completed all the Families and ready to Hand over. I asked my Sister did you know Mavis came from so and so. No she came from Oldbury. I re-checked Mavis and no record anywhere. Oh my Sister said Mavis was her second name Ivy was her 1st name. Punched in Ivy and there we are in West Bromwich. Hours of work way back to imaginary great grand parents up the shoot.

Mike Jenks
 
Lyn and Rosie, up to yet I havent found a bigamist but my grandads brother made his 25th court appearance at the age of 22 for stealing, fighting and being drunk and disorderly, the judge said he was a member of the sloggers gang. He is also on the Pub Blacklist which for me is great because there is a photo of him, I've never seen a pic of anyone on dads side of the family.
Lynne.
 
what a wonderful history you have there lynne of your grandads brother and how lucky to have found a pic of him on the pubs blacklist because i believe at the moment we can only access 80 odd pics of blacklisted folk you must be chuffed.....if i have read it right the sloggers were rivals of the peaky blinders...well done lynne i know this has taken a lot of research...

lyn
 
Lynne I don't know whether to say that's great news because of the photo, or commiserate with his chequered record lol - but it does make a talking point
Bet you will be watching the Peaky Blinders series when its televised in the Autumn!
Sue
 
Hi

Completed searches on 1911 for my brother in Laws grandparents. Now match what I understand with the West Bromwich connection.
These days I only use the 1881 and 1891 free cens. It most cases this is far enough and gave up on Birth records.
Keep searching

Mike Jenks
 
Thankyou all so much for your contributions, what an amazing bunch of decendants, it makes me rather jealous that I haven't discovered any 'scallys' in my family yet, on the sad side, I've just dicovered two great-uncles who were both killed in 1917 in France aged 18 and 20, I have down-loaded their memorials from the CWGC website.
 
It is sad when you find young deaths, one of dads uncles was killed at Gallipoli, dad never knew this part of his family, it seems they became estranged for some reason, I'm still working on that!!
Moms cousin was a bomb disposal expert and was killed defusing a German bomb in Cornwall in WW2.
Dads uncle was awarded a gallantry medal for rescuing his CO under fire and duress in France in WW1, he had medals for this but apparently never spoke of the war at all - he emigrated with his family and in-laws to Australia and it was said that his mom never got over him going.
Sue
 
ASTONITE said:
Thankyou all so much for your contributions, what an amazing bunch of decendants, it makes me rather jealous that I haven't discovered any 'scallys' in my family yet, on the sad side, I've just dicovered two great-uncles who were both killed in 1917 in France aged 18 and 20, I have down-loaded their memorials from the CWGC website.
Click to expand...

astonite have you managed to locate either or both of your gt uncles war records..although some 60 per cent of them were destroyed during the ww2 bombings you maybe lucky that they survived..ive been lucky with one of my rellies records and have saved them all...they make fascinating reading..

lyn
 
Hi young Lyn, fortunately, I have managed to obtain both my paternal and maternal Grandfathers, 1st world war records, including service records, pension records and medals. I found out from these that my paternal Grandfather was a groom in the army.
Do you know if Shirley, Monkspath and Solihull electoral rolls are available, they don't appear to be on the midlands, or am I looking in the wrong place?
 
I have a tree on Ancestry which I keep as private,the only other person allowed access is my cousin Graham who also belongs to this forum.Two other members of our family have public trees on there ,in both cases they have the wrong John Briscoe married to the wrong Elisa.In one case they have given them an extra four children.
Barb
 
ASTONITE said:
Hi young Lyn, fortunately, I have managed to obtain both my paternal and maternal Grandfathers, 1st world war records, including service records, pension records and medals. I found out from these that my paternal Grandfather was a groom in the army.
Do you know if Shirley, Monkspath and Solihull electoral rolls are available, they don't appear to be on the midlands, or am I looking in the wrong place?
Click to expand...

thanks for the young lyn astonite lol...great that you have both ww1 army records...not sure if those areas you mentioned are available online as i have not had need to look myself....do you have access to the e rolls...i do on ancestry...if you dont and would like me to have a look for you just let me have the details either on this thread or if prefered send me a private message...

lyn
 
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Lyn, I remember Enos and his 2 wives/2 lives but now you have more interesting relatives,great.

The only strange thing I found in my tree was the fact that my great grandparents had 2 entries for their marriage in 1883 with different ref. numbers.
I questioned this with the General register office and they turned up something very interesting, 2 marriage certificates.
One on March 5th and the other on March 12.
Same couple, fathers , addresses, church, vicar but with different witnesses.
The only difference on the first one groom is 20 and 2nd he is 19.
The registrar told me that obviously something was wrong with the first marriage and the certificate should have been destroyed but as it was so long ago she sent me both.She didn't think the incorrect age could have been a valid reason so it is a mystery.
 
Thanks very much for the offer Lynn, I have looked on both Ancestry and Midlands Historical Data but can't find anything for these places, so maybe they come under a different system.
 
hi alberta i knew you wouldnt forget my enos wood..you helped me a great deal with him but we got there in the end..i know its not everyone cup of tea but those who do enjoy researching their ancestors its fascinating and yes i have come a long way since enos ive got that much info i dont know where to put it all lol...i went to visit our dad today in the nursing home and was able to read out what his dad said in court when at the age of 14 he stole a ladies wallet from a hotel in coventry.." yes i took it ive had a good time and spent all the money"..dad giggled at this and said yes that was our dad all over..he also had a tear in his eye so this is just another little bit of info i have been able to let dad know about his side of the family so to me its worth it ...he also enjoys looking at all the photos ive collected over the years of places he knew especially all the pub ones which helps keep his brain active and talking about the old days...it can only be good for him..

lyn
 
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