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CHAPTER 1 The Background

Q: Why do I need to know any background about the study of genealogy?

A: To increase your awareness of the larger community you participate in; to promote scholarship and fellowship while being aware of unethical activities; to support your own growing expertise among potential skeptics.

A brief overview of the past and the present will make us aware of the need to recognize competence and avoid dishonest practices. The popular pursuit of ancestors as we know it today was not always enjoyed by people like you and me. In times past, it was an exercise of the aristocracy, heralds, and landed gentry — the only beneficiaries of such a study. Heraldic authorities have existed since medieval times to record the progeny of leading families for matters of legal inheritance. Titles, land, fortunes, even kingdoms were not the only substantial benefits of proven succession. In the British Isles and Europe, the length of your pedigree or your heritable expectations have been a distinct social asset regardless of financial circumstances.

As in other disciplines that strive for standards of excellence, there are the few who blight the credibility of genuine genealogical research. Some examples result from careless or inadequate research. Others are deliberate frauds. The occasional fabrication of “impeccable” lineages for residual gain was a temptation that began long ago. Anthony Camp, former director of the Society of Genealogists in London, documented some historical occurrences in Britain, in his article “Forgery and Deception in Genealogy.”¹ Falsifying documents is not a new phenomenon. Such things happen here and there, even in modern times. Unscrupulous people can take advantage of the unwary or the pompous by inventing what they want to see, expecting that their work will not be examined. Auspiciously, our present world of fast communications alerts us to dubious enterprises and discourages unethical behaviour.

Leading genealogists are exposing dishonest claims and lineages, whether intentional or inadvertent. Although the plagiarism of Alex Haley (Roots) was exposed in a civil lawsuit, just as important was the refutation of his claims to precise African origins and ancestral timing by the meticulous research of Gary B. Mills and Elizabeth Shown Mills.² More recently, Boston-area genealogist Sharon Sergeant and others were instrumental in documenting the literary hoax Misha: A Memoir of the Holocaust Years. Forensic genealogy and the demonstration of genealogical standards more than hold their own in courts of law.

On a different angle, enthusiastic businesses still sell “family histories” marketed to the unsuspecting who want instant gratification. They are sold as The [insert your Surname here] Family History or similar titles, often packaged with a colourful heraldic cover. Besides a summary of the surname origin and locations where it occurs, the most relevant part is perhaps only a random list of telephone directory entries. Dr. Helen Hinchliff of British Columbia once chaired the Ethics Committee of the National Genealogical Society to produce a 120-page report on the dubious activities of mail-order firms.³ Such companies, whose names change regularly, are simply scam operators who prey on a gullible market. They would have us believe that everyone with the same surname is just one big family. More recently, the Internet has opened up the potential for websites of unreliable products. Mass-produced items make no attempt to connect to you, where your family history begins.

Equally unacceptable are heraldic devices purveyed as “family coats of arms.” Again, the ignorant are led to believe that armigerous bearings (which are legal property granted to one person) can be appropriated by anyone of the same surname. Sad to say, even the field of practising professional genealogists has seen the occasional invasion of phony credentials. “Certificates” with postnominal initials have been offered for nothing more than a goodly sum of money.

I won’t dwell longer on a small, shadowy area of genealogy, because it’s not difficult now to verify the quality of credentials or products. It takes more effort to properly examine and understand each source we use ourselves. This is why we need to stay informed, keep up with news, learn to network. The field of genealogy has reached a new assertive era with eminent advocates and educators. Ours is but to emulate!

North America

On this side of the Atlantic, the study of genealogy has shed the old stigma of elitism faster than in European cultures. The old notion of pedigrees “for gain or brag” still exists among some who dismiss genealogy, but has been greatly overwhelmed due to the huge popular interest of the last few generations.

Genealogical study has been active in North America since at least the nineteenth century. Our earliest French, English, Dutch, and Spanish settlers, who left centuries of legacy, differed in their political and religious backgrounds and their motives for emigrating. Many more ethnic and cultural groups have since joined the remarkable heritage mix on this continent. The once historical pattern of British emigration through ports like Quebec, New York, and Philadelphia, and our major North American migration pattern of east to west, lead thousands of genealogists back to these eastern areas, at some point, to search for their emigrant ancestors. From there, we all want to connect to “the old country.” And, more recently, descendents of the aboriginal inhabitants of North America have joined the quest in seeking to establish their lineages.

Hundreds of genealogical publications began appearing in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Some were well-researched and well-documented, inasmuch as the times and access to sources allowed. Some depended heavily on the oral or written recollections of descendants, well after the described events occurred — accounting for some deficiency in reference citations for the genealogical statements being made. In fact, many of the records we are now able to consult were simply not accessible when many of these books were published. We are very fortunate today that so much work is ongoing to recover lost documentary material, to restore and catalogue it, and to prepare finding aids and indexes.

Consulting publications of founding families and ancient pedigrees should never be understood as proof of anything. The next chapter will discuss trusting the printed or published word.

In the twentieth century, more and more genealogical societies were formed to provide support, information, and fellowship for growing numbers of family historians. Societies began publishing their own periodicals to assist their membership and preserve local information. Workshops and other methods of instruction became necessary. Textbooks began to proliferate. The custodians of the source materials used by genealogists — archivists, librarians, and government officials — have had to recognize and adapt to this surge in public demand. Natural leaders in the field emerged as teachers and authors of educational materials, and advocates for the preservation of and access to historical documents. Journals were publishing updates and corrections to the older “classic” publications.

Another adjunct to the interest in family history and pedigrees was the development of specialized societies. A few examples of lineage societies are: Daughters of the American Revolution, Descendants of Charlemagne, the Mayflower Society, and the United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada. Membership is predicated upon your ability to show evidence of direct descent from a certain qualified ancestor. Some societies have been taken to the nth degree, even to the organizing of illegitimate descendants of specific monarchs or black sheep ancestors. An arguably comparable concept is the more flexible approach of “one-name” or surname societies and the eclectic Scottish clan associations.

Methodology

One of the landmarks in the study of genealogy on this continent was the appearance in 1930 of a book called Genealogy as Pastime and Profession by Donald Lines Jacobus, a man considered by his peers and honoured today as “the founder of this modern American school of critical genealogists.”⁴ At that time there may have been thousands of family histories in print, but there was scarcely one about the techniques and methods of sound genealogical research. It is a fitting tribute to this man’s talent and perception, that almost eighty years later the book is still relevant — and even compelling — reading. As a sidebar, Jacobus’s legacy continues in the prestigious periodical he also founded, now called The American Genealogist.

As interest in family history grew, genealogists began to recognize the parallels between their own work and the legal preparation for court cases. Family detective work — its gathering of evidence and arguing of proof — seemed to suit the precedents of the legal tradition. Established phrases were borrowed from this field, such as the preponderance of evidence principle, to be discussed in the next chapter. Genealogist, attorney, and author Noel Stevenson was an instrumental leader in clearly describing those advances in methodological practice.

In the twenty-first century, the study of genealogy surged beyond this borrowing phase. For some time, respected genealogy journals had been requiring certain scholarly standards in their submissions. In effect, this meant publishing articles with carefully weighed case studies of identity and relationships, with well-cited sources. The Board for Certification of Genealogists published its landmark The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual to give cohesion and clarified form to the principles in consensual usage.

Ultimately, serious genealogical research exhibits a higher degree of demonstrated evidence than traditional academic history or even most legal standards.

Resources and Access

Meanwhile, relevant materials and sources of information were becoming easier to access. Before the availability of the Internet at the end of the twentieth century, researching ancestors in a distant area was a slow process. So often the answers to questions and contact with others were dependent on postal mail.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (popularly called Mormons) created the world-renowned Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, the repository for microfilm copies of millions of genealogical records from around the globe. Access to the FHL and to information and databases on its FamilySearch website is free. The FHL has Family History Centers in many countries where its microfilms can be borrowed. Their online catalogue facilitates preparation for ordering films or a research visit to Utah.

Similarly, government-affiliated repositories play an important role as custodians of source material relevant to genealogy. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in Washington, D.C., and Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa are constantly working to place online more descriptions of their massive collections of original documents and finding aids. Many useful microfilmed sources can be borrowed through public library systems. Digital images of their resources are coming online, sometimes in partnership with commercial concerns. Digitized historical books are now more common online with the cooperation of libraries and other resource centres.

Other public and private libraries also maintain major genealogy collections worth extended visits. A few in the United States are: the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana; the Newberry Library in Chicago; the Daughters of the American Revolution Library in Washington, D.C.; and the Boston Public Library. Large genealogy societies have also made their library catalogues available online. Most are freely searchable but with hands-on access for members only. Societies are adapting to the Internet world by offering such online membership benefits. Researchers have information at their fingertips that only a few years ago would have taken much longer to find.

Personal websites and commercial services for genealogical consumption developed quickly along with the Internet — a phenomenon growing everywhere on the globe. Ancestry.com is a popular subscription-based service, although Footnote.com and WorldVitalRecords.com are just two others of the many currently online, providing searchable databases either free or by fee. Bear in mind that company and website names have been changing regularly in only the first few years of the twenty-first century because of corporate restructuring and mergers; doubtless more will occur as competition increases. Rootsweb.com was one of the earliest Internet presences and continues to host a multitude of mailing lists and message boards. Ancestry, Rootsweb, and Genealogy.com are among many sites and services that became part of The Generations Network corporation — most recently the corporate name reverted to Ancestry.com, the name of its flagship product.

Not to be overlooked is the online WorldGenWeb, developed as a network of country and regional volunteers who provide information about local resources.

Skillbuilding

Education for the ever-increasing numbers of novice genealogists became a demanding new reality, especially with the Internet’s new brand of curious beginner, who might appropriate derivative material on websites and databases as gospel truth without searching for or seeing original sources.

Beginners are often introduced to genealogy by filling out a chart with their known family names and dates. Discerning instructors are realizing that, even before this step, beginners need an understanding of how to evaluate and analyze the documents that produce those names and dates. Before attempting to fill out that chart, it’s better to know all about what evidence you are citing for each person’s data. Learning evaluation and analysis is most effective when discussing sources such as birth, marriage, and death records of family members personally known by the novice.

Skill is involved along every step of the family history path. Some of us may have an intuitive grasp of the investigative process, while others may need to work a little harder at it. Nevertheless, we all need support and confidence to attain a satisfactory level of competence. Attending conferences, seminars, workshops, and courses has already been mentioned as essential for self-growth. Now there is even more access to learning, from online articles to podcasts and videocasts.

And there are top-level opportunities for validating personal skills. From the American Society of Genealogists came the independent Board for Certification of Genealogists; from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came their Accreditation Department, now the independent International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists. While these bodies evaluate individuals who intend to pursue the professional, business side of genealogy, testing is not limited to “genealogists for hire.” Far from it. For example, the BCG encourages all serious family historians to challenge themselves and improve their skill levels and thus uphold the standards of the field as a whole.

The Genealogical Institute of the Maritimes, created in 1983, was a similar leader in Canada. The Bureau québécois d’attestation de compétence en généalogie, based in the city of Quebec, and the Saskatchewan Genealogical Society have also developed programs for their geographic areas. Testing organizations are listed in chapter 3, Learning and Practice.

All these opportunities address the growing desire to discover our personal historical roots — a desire that needs the accompanying awareness of sound research habits and skills. The application of widely acceptable principles in genealogical research and writing benefits all of us alike. Each of us has a family history that deserves the best effort we can put into it.