VA-ROOTS Archives

February 2004

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From:
nel hatcher <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
nel hatcher <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 3 Feb 2004 09:31:05 -0600
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Website: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~nhatcher/faq.htm
List Admin: Hatcher email list
Researching: Cook, Hall, Hatcher, Kuhns, Miller, Shepherd, Timberman
HATCHER DNA Project: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~nhatcher/hatDNA.htm
"Genealogy Without Documentation is Nothing" - Paul Drake

I have to agree with Marie. Although one will find mistakes on records found
online, one must always remember that all of these records have been
transcribed by a human being who can either misinterpret the original
writing or simply make a typo, either of which can be fatal to those
attempting to use that online record.

But this also holds true for the researcher who obtains a copy of the
original from a library or research facility. This researcher can also
misinterpret wording in that document and form an erroneous opinion
regarding relationships. OR, if that researcher simply is not fully up to
speed on the laws of that time, more erroneous conclusions can be drawn.

In my humble opinion, it is not so much WHERE you find the record as it is
your ability to interpret the meaning of that record. I know for fact that
there are innumerable family trees online that all have the same bad
connections (every one of them copying each other's geds), and many of these
bad connections were made by pre-computer researchers and since then
debunked by the finding of additional (sometimes online) records.

Cheers,
Nel

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