Mike, I very much agree with your interpretation of the differences between an Event, Fact and Source, although I am not dogmatic about it! (I'm not suggesting that you are BTW.)
Whilst I agree that Residence at a place is a Fact, the act moving into that place would be an Event. The Source for the former may be a census and for the latter a diary. I do understand why some people say that a census is an Event, after all it is something that happened, but I would argue that because it was not initiated by, say, an ancestor, nor had any effect on that ancestor then it is only a source. The ancestor's only contribution was supplying the information - I will not enter the debate as to whether the census, or ancestor, is the actual source! In other words, when it comes to deciding between Events/Facts I differentiate between something the ancestor does, and something which records what s/he did. To me though, the most important thing is to be consistent in one's interpretation, otherwise the reader will be confused by what is actually intended. Ron Ferguson http://www.fergys.co.uk/ -----Original Message----- From: Mike Fry Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2011 10:23 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [LegacyUG] Facts, Events and Sources The recent discussion about whether an Obituary is an event or a source has prompted me to ask Legacy (and probably the Group) for a better definition of what constitutes an Event and what constitutes a Fact. To me, a Fact is not time-based. You may uncover a Fact (eye-colour) in a document that has a date on it. But the Fact does not have a date. It has a Source that has one or more dates associated with it. An Event is something that happened and which implicitly has a date associated with it. Thus, the taking of a Census is an Event, because it happened at a certain point in time. However, I would not consider Residence to be an Event because it generally happens over a much longer period of time. Residence is a Fact. Of course, this distinction between Facts and Events is not always as clear cut as I have tried make out. People must decide for themselves how they categorise pieces of data. A Source is not an Event, but it can be proof of a Fact or an Event e.g. a census. Generally, a piece of physical evidence is involved. Thus, Rons' assertion that an image of a Census form is a Source and not a Fact or and Event and the obvious consequence that an Obituary should also be a Source and not a Fact or an Event. It's unfortunate that the program should 'lump' Events and Facts under a single heading. This is what leads to the confusion that is often reflected in the discussions of this group. My general rule of thumb is: if it's a piece of paper (digital images and transcriptions not withstanding) it's a Source! Sources contain evidence of Facts and Events. -- Regards, Mike Fry Johannesburg Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp
