Oh, I still transcribe and post wills, deeds, etc. on RootsWeb and/or
USGenWeb and I will always do that. I also administer several RootsWeb mail
lists. But I will never again spend a day and a small fortune photocopying
and putting together a two inch thick envelope of "proofs" for somebody who
will probably never bother to utter a word of thanks and who will lay claim
to my work as their own. If they can seek out the documents I have posted,
more power to them!
Mickey
-----Original Message-----
From: Research and writing about Virginia genealogy and family history.
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Bill Davidson
Sent: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 2:09 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Fading interest in Genealogy
I too wish that people would "give credit where credit is due," but the
occasional lack of that courtesy does not stop me from posting what I learn.
I only want "the truth and nothing but the truth," and when I find it, I
believe that I really should share it with others.....no matter what some of
them might do with it.
I think that the high rate at which genealogy-related information was being
added to the internet in the late-1990s and early/mid-2000s was bound to
taper-off to some degree. There are only so many documents out there to be
found, interpreted and discussed. In addition, many folks have discovered
just how hard (and frustrating) this "hobby" can be, and their initial
enthusiasm has waned (too many "brick walls"). It is also hard, no doubt,
for people to concentrate on genealogy when their IRAs are "tanking," their
homes are being foreclosed, they cannot afford gasoline to get to work, etc.
DNA testing has helped to renew the discussions to some degree, and many
"revelations" have come from that science. I look at this testing as just
another very valuable tool to use (there is nothing "magical" nor "mystical"
about it), and I wonder if some of those who take no stock in it are just
afraid that their 20+ years of research might be proven wrong. I love dusty
old libraries and courthouses as much as the next person, but I cannot turn
my back on scientific proof, when/if it is made available. I would
literally not take a million dollars for my own DNA test results, nor for
the DNA test results of my male maternal cousin (though his surname is
"Brown," he turned-out to be a "blood Smith".....this is why, it seems, that
our gg-grandfather was named Smith W. Brown). Each of these DNA tests
proved "connections" that documentation alone simply NEVER
could......period.
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