For those following the source examples messages, my apologies for not
responding sooner, I've just returned from out-of-town.
Now to respond to Mark's comments below...
This used to be a dilemma for me too! How does one set up the source for a
vital record, such as a birth certificate? I used to have one master
source, entitled "Birth Certificate". This kept my master source list
fairly clean. If I wanted to know who all had a birth certificate as a
source, I could press the show list button, and I would get a big list.
However...this doesn't help me much for a couple of reasons.
First, I can't take advantage of anything in the master source such as the
repository, author, comments, etc. For instance, a birth certificate of my
grandfather is kept at a different repository than one for his wife.
Second, by setting up my birth certificate as outlined on the "tips from the
experts" site, when I click on the show list button, now I can have a list
of everyone affected by or mentioned in one person's certificate - more
useful than a listing of everyone who has a certificate.
Third, having talked to several professors at BYU about documentation
techniques, each of them explain a bibliography in the same way. For
instance, if I cited my grandfather's death certificate in my publication,
this is a unique, master source. It's bibliography entry must include the
certificate number, the author (State of Idaho, Vital Records Division), and
the year of death. According to them, it would be wrong for the
bibliography entry to just say "Birth Certificate".
I completely understand your opinion, which is shared by many others. I
used to do it your way. Having studied documentation guidelines, talking
with other professional genealogists, and consulting with History and
English professors, I have finally decided to do it as outlined on the web
page. Whichever way we do it, let's all just be consistent!
Thanks for your comments,
Geoffrey D. Rasmussen
Millennia Corporation
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.legacyfamilytree.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Mark Usher <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Wednesday, May 24, 2000 12:10 PM
Subject: RE: [LegacyUG] Source examples
> Geoff,
>
> The source examples were most welcome and interesting. I have a point to
> raise though regarding the primary records.
>
> I have been in a dillema regarding these for some time. I finally came to
> the conclusion that a primary record should be recorded in the source
detail
> and not in the master source.
> I came to this conclusion because when you have many 100 birth
certificates,
> death certificates and marriage certificates, the master source list
becomes
> very clogged.
>
> I find that, recording the primary sources in the same way that you record
> the census information much better.
> ie:
> Master Source = Census 1881
> Source Detail = The person / details on the form / scanned image
>
> thus giving:
> Master Source = Birth Certificate
> Source Detail = The person / details / scanned image
>
> I would appreciate any thoughts on this method of sourcing the primary
> records from you or any of the other users.
>
> best wishes
>
> Mark Usher
>
>
