Online Genealogists & Online Family Trees

This post has been a long time coming. It culminates from observations that I made over the last few years. I am also curious how many other fellow genealogists feel the same and have the same frustrations. The effect of the Internet on the world of genealogy cannot be denied. In the late 1990s, when I put my genealogy away for a period to work on other projects; the Internet was present but it was not all encompassing as it is today. When I came back to genealogy five years ago I could not believe how things changed for the better. Messages and notes could now be sent and responded to immediately via email instead of postal mail. Queries could now be posted worldwide on web sites instead of listing in select genealogical publications. Simple searches for out of the area resources such as archive addresses, phone numbers, and contacts required going to a library to find this information. Today most of us use Google for tracking down this data. Online genealogical research subscription sites are numerous. Three of these sites that I subscribe to are Ancestry, MyHeritage, and Geneanet.

Many genealogists do not use these subscription sites because they do not want to pay for something that they can use elsewhere for free; such as searching census records. I subscribe to these sites for the convenience of conducting research at any time of the day or night that suites me. On all of the previously mentioned sites, subscribers have the ability to upload their data to create online family trees along with photos. Many take advantage of this option. This is great in my opinion. However, this is where for me the aggravation begins.

My data has been uploaded to all of the mentioned sites and online family trees created. On one site, numerous family photos were also uploaded. This was done for a specific reason. So that others who are researching the same family line as me can find this information. The photos are used as "cousin bait." But a lesson learned for me is I am not baiting anyone. Other researchers simply take and attach my family photos to their trees. There is no problem with this but I am seriously perplexed as to why this is done without contacting me for possible further information. And even more questions arise when I contact them and ask them "where do they fit into the family tree?" Responses are never received by me.

Another "beef" for me about online trees is when a researcher erroneously attaches my family to their online tree and when I contact them to notify them of their error I either receive no response or they insist that they are correct.

The purchase of DNA kits and uploading this data to an online tree is also a question to me at times. On average a DNA kit costs around $100. The kit results are then posted sometimes to an online tree that has six individuals in it or sometimes no tree uploaded. Really? That seems like money not well spent. How would anyone be able to compare trees when their data is extremely scarce or does not exist? To give some people the benefit of the doubt, perhaps a DNA kit was purchased and uploaded simply to find their ethnicity. I do get that. They may not be interested in the research aspect; just where they came from.

For me the message I am trying to get across is if a fellow genealogist contacts you with a question or a remark, please get back to them. The response does not have to be done yesterday but definitely in a somewhat timely manner. It is plain rude to not respond. Ah, I feel better.

Online Family Trees

Since I came back to researching my roots I instantly found that the Internet has greatly expanded the reach of the genealogist.  Numerous paid online sites such as Ancestry, MyHeritage, and Geneanet allow subscribers to search and access their holdings for genealogical gold.  These sites and other web pages also allow their users to upload family trees for either public or private viewing.  These online family trees have both pros and cons to them.

I use all of the above mentioned sites.  My family information is public except for the data on living people.  I will not publicize any vital data on any of my living relatives.  My online tree is public so that I can easily share my information with anyone researching the same families or individuals.  Hopefully my available info will prompt another researcher to contact me.  Some researchers call this "cousin baiting."  Data is posted and other genealogists find it and then contact the tree owner.   I do this to lure other researchers to my tree and perhaps we find common ancestors/relatives and then we can collaborate.  So far I have been successful finding other cousins who are also researching their lines.  Using the MyHeritage site, I have found numerous cousins in the Netherlands who are researching the same lines as myself.  This was accomplished with their "smart matches."

At the same time using the same online sites can have cons also.  The biggest con that I have found is incorrect data on the Internet.  New genealogists need to realize that just because they found their ancestor on the Internet does not make the new found data correct.  The information definitely could be but not always.  There is a lot of misinformation on the Net.  Aside from obviously wrong data such as a child being born well after the death of his/her mother,  I have seen other people's data on websites and they list their ancestors under nicknames.  Perhaps they did not know their ancestor's real name?

Unsourced information is another dilemma on the Net.  Where did the researcher find this information? Did the info come from a marriage record, census record, bible record, or an interview? Another genealogist may want to recheck the record for accuracy or look for other information that might have been missed.

On Ancestry I found incorrect data on some of my ancestors on other researcher's trees.  I contacted the owner's of these trees to explain their error.  Some individuals were very glad to correct their data.  Others simply have ignored my notes to them and the wrong data stays in cyberspace for others to find.  Unfortunately no one except the tree owner can correct or remove the data.

Another dilemma that I have read about and have experience with is other researchers taking your data without giving credit to the original researcher.  On blogs and forums that I read, some researchers are vehement about not posting their family tree online for fear that someone may take their information and use it as their own.  I do not fear that issue.  I welcome anyone to view and use my data.  It would be nice if they did give credit to me in their work; but if they  do not so be it.  I posted many photos of my ancestors on Ancestry and I have been notified numerous times that another user attached my photo to their tree.  I am glad when this occurs but always question myself as to why these people do not contact me for more information.

I have not dealt with this issue yet but I have heard that it can be difficult to delete your online tree on certain sites.  I do not understand why it would be difficult to do this? But that is what I have read.  If I were to guess; perhaps their subscription expired and now they want to remove their tree.  Without having a current account, I would not expect a subscription site to let someone update the account.  I believe that if the account is valid then the user should be able to alter, change, or delete the information at will.  Perhaps I am wrong?