AT First Families, there is unproven (not disproven, but hopefully someday will be proven :-)) information there regarding Edward Saunders of Northumberland Co, as father of John Saunders who marries Mary Risle in York Co VA. 1670s/80s.  Many Saunders researchers know the connection is thus far tenuous.

I have been told that the information found at First Families is based on contributions from individuals and somewhere buried in that website is information on the submitters.  About three years ago I did have a conversation with someone from the website, and I was told that changes would have to be be submitted by the individuals contributing the data.  In the same manner that Rootsweb doesn't go in an correct folks gedcoms at worldconnect, LDS won't correct ancestral files or pedigrees, neither will the First Families folks I was told back then.

The website holds no particular status (unlike the Mayflower Society, DAR, etc.)...so I have just chalked it up as another source.  My parents' ancestors for all intents and purposes were in the Ozarks by 1850.  Their families have been hooked to ancestors a number of times that are wrong or shaky with no documentation.  One error that came from a cousin (wrong Waller bride, would have been 7 years old), I perpetuated on my Waller/Shelton line and I've tried to go in an get it fixed (with great success)at gendex and World Connect.  Family Treemaker reports, etc. are so inpenetrable in most cases that I haven't tackled them on the prolific Sheltons.  On another Shelton line published in a book I am pretty sure it is wrong, but I haven't proven the correct one (I think) with documentation.  (I descend I think from three Shelton brothers).

My Waller/Shelton birthdate disaster as I like to think of it (because I devoted alot of time to a now nonexistent Cooper line)-- has made me step back at all points.  I spend very little time researching (unless providing already collected info to others), any connection to which I am not confident I've connected the dots from me to that individual, though if I do place an ancestor amongst a family (let's take Murrells) in a place (ie on a map) where the ancestry of the other Murrells is known...I may collect general information on the family.

I have researched quite alot at DAR, and conclude that the mistakes on linneages found at most websites have been out there for ages.  The family books there often undocumented EXCEPT for the author's own particular line, where you'll get photocopies of recipes in the church cook book (one of my favorite "gravy" kinds of data).

At the moment on my VA Bentley lines there is a nucleus of about 10 researchers, that are ready to do the research (ie, rent those microfilms) sort it all -- over the next little while. We know that the attempts made by others to connect the dots just don't add up, as we have too many Bentleys hooked up to too small a group of folks.

I guess at the moment I am enjoying being involved in a serious research effort where we fly theories around, look at documents now extending to SC, NC TN & KY  but no one has any axes to grind.   I wasn't even planning on working on Bentleys now, but I'm not going to pass this opportunity up.

My best regards,
Janet Hunter

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