Is Genealogy an Elephant?

By Illustrator unknown - From Charles Maurice Stebbins & Mary H. Coolidge, Golden Treasury Readers: Primer, American Book Co. (New York), p. 89., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4581171

I am sure I am one of the blind men feeling the genealogical elephant. But I am also certain that there are many other blind men out there in the greater genealogical community. Why do we have such differing opinions about the nature of genealogy and its methodology? Could it be that the subject itself is the answer to that question? Genealogy is really a very personal endeavor. Each of us begins and becomes interested in our ancestral heritage in a different way and how we proceed depends as much on our own personal background and interests as it does on any objective approach to the subject.

Unfortunately, genealogy is fragmented by those who believe that their way of doing research and recording the results is the only way. They are certain that their opinion of the elephant is correct and the others are all wrong. This week, I had two experiences giving me an insight into two of the very divergent views of genealogy. One of the experiences involved a group of teenagers who were brought to the local Family History Center for a "family history experience." The second was attending a meeting of a local genealogical society where we listened to a presentation about the resources of the Maryland State Archives. The two experiences were certainly at different ends of the elephant.

My elephant reality includes a large number of such disparate experiences. For example, there is a major emphasis in some parts of the greater genealogical community on citations and proper report writing. Neither of my recent experiences could have possibly viewed the genealogical elephant through touching on either citations or reports.

I spend a huge amount of time with online family tree programs. But I also do research in libraries, archives and other large and small repositories. You only have to think of the difference between beginning a family tree on an online genealogy program and sitting in an archive looking at original records to understand the disparity between these two experiences.

When I work with people who have a real desire to find and connect with their ancestors and they struggle with technology, I feel their frustration and can certainly understand that not everyone has "grown up" computers. I guess I am still trying to completely identify and quantify the genealogical elephant and perhaps harmonize all of the disparate impressions and beliefs about the subject. I had one person who I spoke to recently say, "I need to hire a professional genealogist. I have been doing genealogy for more than thirty years and I just can't resolve some of my research problems." He was seeing his part of the elephant quite clearly.

Maybe we all need to start seeing our own part of the genealogical elephant.

Making Your Way Through a Fog of Names

A quick search on the Findmypast.com website for the surname "Smith" shows over 15 million results and of those results, about 1.4 million of those results have the name "John Smith." Of course, not all English names are as common as Smith or Jones, but every language of the world has its "commonly used" names. My own name has over 52,000 results. Fighting your way through record searches when your ancestor has a relatively common name is like walking into a dense fog.

Unfortunately, many genealogists never get past the "name search" level of genealogy. This issue is often referred to as the "same name = same person" problem. Separating two or more people with the same or very similar names can be overwhelmingly difficult. I have found people with the same name, living in the same small area, with the same birth and death dates. The only distinguishing features seemed to be their occupations.

If you don't care if you are related to a person and are simply trying to fill in all the empty spaces on your pedigree, then this post is obviously not directed at you. But if you care about your relationship to the people you are researching, then you need to be aware of the methodology used to separate commonly named individuals.

I use Findmypast.com because I have a huge number of English ancestors. I also use the program because their particular search engine allows me to focus on the number of people with the same or similar name in a decreasingly smaller geographic area. For example, take the search for "John Smith." Here is a screenshot of the results.

Now let's add some qualifiers or filters. First, let's limit the area under consideration from England in general to a specific county.

Here, I put in Kent County and got a significant reduction in the number of results. By the way, you can use almost any search engine to do this, but Findmypast.com is particularly well suited for this kind of analysis. Now, let's add a time period, say from 1820 to 1825.

Although there is a drop in the number, the reduction isn't much help. This points up a basic issue with all genealogical research: We have to know where an event in the person's life occurred. I will take a look at a specific parish: Tenterden.

Now we are getting somewhere. We have only 42 results and some of them are not specific to Tenterden. If we go down the list, some of them also have middle names. Now we have to begin looking at each of the entries to see if the details match those implied from looking at the rest of the family.

The main challenge in using this type of analysis is knowing where the people lived and being consistent in looking in the same area. For example, in this list, there are two locations Wittersham and Appledore. How far apart are these two towns?

They are quite close together and we will definitely have to find more information before we determine which of these two is the one we are looking for. The first record that came up is from the 1851 England, Wales, and Scotland Census. We can start there to see the occupation that is listed and so we start the journey into more and more specific research.

In some cases, with my own ancestors, I have multiple people with the same names in the same places and have yet to find my way through the fog. The danger here is that you make an arbitrary choice.

FamilyHistoryExpos Presents an Online Virtual Genealogy Conference

https://familyhistoryexpos.com/viewevent/index/190

Some of my readers might recall that Family History Expos used to hold well attended, in-person, conferences around the U.S. Over time, however, the cost of traveling to various locations and the increased costs for renting the facilities finally mandated the end of onsite conferences. Since that time we have been holding webinars, online workshops and other activities. Of course, we have been publishing a lot of books. By the way, you can find our books on Amazon.com. Just look for the names of the authors: Holly Hansen, James L. Tanner, Arlene H. Eakle, Ph.D. There are also additional authors of some of the books. Here is one of the books as an example.

Now, we are going to return to having conferences, but these will be entirely online. The first of these events is the Pirates of the Pedigree, 2018 International Family History Expo, A Virtual Event. We will be online from October 15th through the 20th. Here is a description of the upcoming conference.

Join Family History Expos and researchers from around the world as we celebrate 15 years of service to the genealogy community! 

We have chosen "Pirates of the Pedigree" as our theme for this amazing event. With the advent of the internet and digital documents, we are surrounded in a virtual sea of opportunity. But too often the ancestor you are seeking is lost in the records. At this Expo, we will share experiences, resources, and techniques that will assist you in discovering which records may hold the clues to locating the correct ancestor from all the rest. 

After attending this event, you will know how to recognize those "Pirates" that would steal your treasured lineage. Let the internet connect family historians from distant lands to tackle the challenges we all face. 

This is a totally online event. Classes will be broadcast. Sponsor and Vendor links allow you to visit their website or special event page quickly. Visit websites, blogs, and social media sites where you can learn about the resources and services available to help you successfully and accurately research your family history. 

Paid registered attendees receive the following with their registration:

• Registration gift packet of digital fun and educational items donated by our Sponsors and Vendors
• Access to view and print class handouts
• Access to view recorded classes after the Expo is over
• Eligible to win door prizes

Public viewing of some classes will be available at no cost. Those attending free classes offered without registration will enjoy the slideshow presentation of the presenter only. To view classes at no cost, simply click the link provided in the Agenda (check in early to assure yourself a spot in the broadcast). The Agenda is in process. 

We hope you will all attend this innovative event. We also note that several other organizations are starting up the idea of a virtual conference. I guess our good ideas have spread across the industry. 

Using Voice Recognition in Genealogy: Names and dates and places

Over the years, I have used voice recognition software off and on, always hoping that it would become the solution to quickly entering information so that I could avoid typing. Most recently, voice recognition software has become ubiquitous with smartphones and apps such as Siri and Google Assistant or one of the many other such programs. For example, when I get a phone message on my iPhone, the message is automatically transcribed into text.

Significantly, all three of the major operating systems from Microsoft, Apple, and Google include a voice recognition program. Unfortunately, the availability of more sophisticated voice recognition software is limited to only one major program called Dragon Naturally Speaking for Windows and Dragon Dictate for Apple OS X both from Nuance.com. I say unfortunately because the operating systems programs lack any significant editing capabilities and there appear to be no other programs competing with the expensive programs from Nuance.com.

Because I see a distinct advantage in using voice recognition for a lot of reasons, I keep upgrading my copy of Dragon Dictate even though the upgrade prices seem outrageous.

Now, supposing that you have spent your money on purchasing a voice recognition program such as the ones from Nuance, how well do they work? This has been the issue since the beginning of the development of voice recognition software by IBM many years ago. In fact, Nuance.com is the present developer of the voice recognition software originally developed by IBM. However, IBM is still in the market and is selling Watson Speech to Text as an API add-on for software developers.

Two factors severely limit voice recognition: words that sound the same but are spelled differently and background noise. For genealogists, the real challenges are names and places. Most of the text that we deal with contains a fair amount of both. The programs usually get dates correct.

How well does an expensive commercial program such as my version of Dragon Dictate do with names? Here are some examples. Here is a list of five names from my ancestors:

• Samuel Linton
• Marinus Christensen
• Adeline Springthorpe
• Margaret Turner
• Sarah Foscue

Here is what I get when I read these names using Dragon Dictate:

• Samuel Benton
• Marina's Christiansen
• Adeline spring Thorpe
• Margaret Turner
• Sarah Foster you

There is a way to train the program but it would be extremely tedious to try to enter thousands of names. Switching to places, here are five place names, again, from my ancestors.

• San Bernardino, Los Angeles, California, United States
• Ramsey, Huntingdonshire, England, United Kingdom
• Brookfield, New South Wales, Australia
• Whittlesey St Mary & St Andrew, Cambridgeshire, England
• Toquerville, Washington, Utah, United States

Here are the same place names entered using the voice recognition software:

• San Bernardino, Los Angeles, California, United States
• Ramsey, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom
• Brookfield, New South Wales, Australia
• Whittlesey St. Mary and St. Andrew, Cambridgeshire, England
• Tocqueville, Washington, Utah, United States

The second best looks superficially correct. However, the errors are not so noticeable and would take more time to correct than it would take to retype the list. Here is what I get up I try to say Huntingdonshire several times.

• Lincolnshire
• Huntington Shire
• Huntingdon Shire
• Huntington

All in all, the place names come out much better than the names of the people. Even though the text has a high degree of accuracy using voice recognition, it is imperative that any text dictated be carefully edited. Here is an example of some text from a biography. I will mark the typos after I dictate the text.

Thomas Parkinson was born on December 11, 1830, in Cambridge Shire, England, the second son of James Parkinson and Elizabeth chattel. His father, James, was born in the not-too-distant hamlet aforesaid, Huntington Shire England and was also a farmer, as was his father before him. Students of English history no way to wealthy economic struggle in the 1830s and 40s, especially for the tenant farmer. Until that time agriculture have been the nation's mainstay, but with industrialization the best a man could hope for was steady work.

Here is the edited version of the same text.

Thomas Parkinson was born on December 11, 1830, in Cambridgeshire, England, the second son of James Parkinson and Elizabeth Chattle. His father, James, was born in the not-too-distant hamlet of Farcet, Huntingdonshire, England, and was also a farmer, as was his father before him. Students of English history know only too well the economic struggle in the 1830's and 40's, especially for the tenant farmer. Until that time agriculture had been the nation's mainstay, but with industrialization the best a man could hope for was steady work. 

When I am dictating using voice recognition, I usually watch what is entered very carefully and make corrections as I go along. However, you can see why some would conclude that using the program is not worth the effort to train and edit it. 

However, as voice recognition software becomes more ubiquitous it is entirely possible that it will become more accurate and therefore more useful. Right now, but still has a ways to go.

The Impact of the US Civil War on Genealogical Research

I continually find those who are researching their ancestors to be almost entirely unaware of the history of the time period when they lived. As I have noted several times previously, this is likely a result of the lack of real history being taught in U.S. public schools today. If your ancestors lived in the United States during the time period between 1861 and 1865, then their lives were probably dramatically influenced by the U.S. Civil War (aka War between the States).

Although the total number of casualties of the Civil War is subject to dispute, the most common estimates put the number at around 1.5 million. The 1860 U.S. Federal Census put the total population of the country at 31,443,321. According to some calculations, 2% of the country or 620,000 men lost their lives. Total casualties were over 1.08 million. But what is also pertinent to genealogical research is the vast movement of populations and the loss of records.

Here are some of the major actions in the war that might well affect your own ancestors:

1. Sherman's March to the Sea

Here is a map of the campaign that is known as Sherman's March to the Sea:

By Map by Hal Jespersen, www.cwmaps.com, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5856078

If your ancestors had property anywhere in the area covered by this map, they probably suffered some loss due to the Union Army's and more specifically by Major General William Tecumseh Sherman's "Scorched Earth" policy.

What are the genealogical consequences:

• Loss of life
• Loss of property
• Displaced population
• Loss of record through the burning of courthouses and other repositories

2 Shenandoah Valley Campaign

Here is a quote from General Philip Sheridan about the consequences of the battles for control of the Shenandoah Valley:

Sheridan proudly inventoried his takings from the Valley to Grant after the campaign, “435,802 bushels of wheat, 77,176 bushels of corn, 20,397 tons of hay, 10,918 beef cattle, 12,000 sheep, and 15,000 hogs”(6). This list doesn’t include the vast reduction in productivity in the area that would prevent the area from being self-sustaining and profitable for some time after the campaign. The Shenandoah Valley campaign represents the changing tide of the war when the Union army discovered the effectiveness of ravaging the land, which brought them much military success but absolutely devastated the landscape. 

See Brady, Lisa M.. Environmental History and the American South : War Upon the Land : Military Strategy and the Transformation of Southern Landscapes During the American Civil War. Athens, GA, USA: University of Georgia Press, 2012 quoted on Fighting-the-Earth.leadr.msu.edu

3. Overall damage done by individual war campaigns and battles

Here is a map showing the location, by county, of the major battles.

Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35637

A careful researcher will take all of these issues into account while research almost anyplace in America during wartime. My own ancestors, the Sidney Tanner family, were living in San Bernardino, California and moved to Beaver, Utah as a result of the Utah War or more commonly called the Utah Expedition of 1857-1858, shortly before the Civil War. One of the prominent future Confederate Generals, then a Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston led the U.S. Troops on their invasion of Utah. He was subsequently killed at the Battle of Shiloh on April 6, 1862.

These seemingly random ancestral moves sometimes turn out to be much less than random when put in historical perspective. 

What if the records are wrong? Another genealogical nightmare

For the past six months, I have been looking at historical documents for about eight hours a day. That is a lot of documents. One thing that I see is that those people who created all these records didn't get all the information right all the time. I see lots of inconsistencies, misspellings, and writing that defies being deciphered. I also see two records from the same source with different information about the same event.

The answer to the question in the title is that you should never rely entirely on one record. Just because you find one record about an ancestor does not mean that you are through looking. Granted, as you go back in time or do research in some countries, one record may be all you can possibly find, but for research in the 21st, 20th and most of the 19th Centuries, the number of records kept mandates that you have a high probability of finding more than one and usually a larger number of records about any one family.

When I talk to people who despair about finding any records or any more records, I almost always find that they have no idea how many different records could be available. For example, in the United States, I just noticed that Val D. Greenwood has published a fourth edition of his book, The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy.

You can buy a copy on Amazon.com or maybe find one in a library as soon as the libraries purchase new copies. I have mentioned this before, but reading the earlier edition of his book is what got me started in understanding genealogy and how to do research. One thing I can say about the book, even though as a missionary in Annapolis, Maryland, I will have to wait to buy a copy, if you read this book and understand what it is saying, you will be a much better genealogist.

In every country of the world, there are some records that help genealogical research even if those records are oral traditions passed on from generation to generation. The real work of a genealogist is finding those records and preserving the information. If you can't think of any more categories of records to search, then start reading a good handbook of genealogy such as the one highlighted above.

MyHeritage Introduces a DNA Matching Filtering System

New Filtering System for DNA Matches

MyHeritage.com has taken a major step in helping those who take DNA tests for genealogical purposes to understand what the results mean. Here is a screenshot of my own results that shows part of the newly presented and organized information.

This is a clear step towards the goal of showing a suggested common ancestor. Unfortunately, on a few of the people who are classified as Extended Family have trees on MyHeritage that give me any idea how they might be related to me.

You can read about all the features added in this blog post, "New Filtering System for DNA Matches." The post also has step-by-step instructions.