To reply or not to reply?

[Frazer]

This is an interesting topic.  Sometimes I feel I would like to reply with a general response to a query and then I have second thoughts because I feel that the reply is not specific enough and might look silly.  For example, when people post a query about relatives from some Irish town or village that are familiar to me I'm tempted to tell them something about the place and then I wonder if they would find that annoying because they are really only looking for names and dates.

Sometimes, too, I feel that I could offer to do a little bit of research in Dublin but I'm afraid that it would open the floodgates and I'm also afraid of letting people down if I tell someone I will do a lookup and then something crops up at home to prevent me visiting the archives for a while. 

Does that make sense?

[sarah]

If I get a negative result I still reply 

A negative reply is still a result- if you say what you searched and where and how it is one thing less to search for that time being but it is narrowing the search!

Sarah

[Christopher]

Hi Frazer,  

I'd be interested in other people's thoughts about posting details about some Irish town or village that are familiar in response to a query that involves dates and names. My feelings are that it would help to paint a picture of where a person's ancestor lived ... it may jog someone else's memory and they may be able to add a required piece of the genealogical jigsaw.

Christopher

[celia]

What year is this topic Christopher i cant remember sending a mail to it

Celia

[Christopher]

What year is this topic Christopher i cant remember sending a mail to it

Celia

Hi Celia,

Do you mean this thread?

It started sometime in 2004 ... you sent a reply to it in January 2005.

Christopher

[Mum44]

Christopher -

I very often have to pull myself up from posting information which is only periferal to the main topic!  Not that I have any information at all about Irish Villages (although I have two Irish brick walls!) but I personally always find the odd side-line information just as interesting - and not usually at all irrelevent - to the names and dates.  I recently requested help with finding the marriage of my Irish 2 x great grandparents in Cheshire (which I still haven't got) but I do have now some fascinating  pictures and a real insight as to how they may have lived in the mid-1800's on the Wirral.

My personal feelings are that if a person is interested in family history, rather than just relation-collecting - then the posting of background information is very valuable.  However, I accept that not everyone feels that was and may well be irritated by what they may consider a smoke screen.

Hope these thoughts are as interesting as you expected - and should you have any ideas on Irish brick-wall bashing, I should be a grateful recipient!

[Frazer]

I'd be interested in other people's thoughts about posting details about some Irish town or village that are familiar in response to a query that involves dates and names. My feelings are that it would help to paint a picture of where a person's ancestor lived ... it may jog someone else's memory and they may be able to add a required piece of the genealogical jigsaw.

I agree Christopher.  Most of us are looking for dates and names, but I have noticed that some researchers might not realise that although their ancestor lived in a particular townland, a religious ceremony, e.g. christening, could have taken place in a neighbouring village simply because of the proximity of the church.

[Arranroots]

Gosh I was quite a RootsChat newbie when I posted this thread!

Having said that, I am still not sure that there is a "correct" answer - and replies to the thread over the years have shown that people do indeed differ in their preference.

On the whole, I think I come down in favour of the "added colour" option.  I confess I have been known to add trivialities to threads and hope I haven't caused annoyance.  As Mum44 suggests, once in a while it can be irresistable to tell others what you know of a particular area and you never know, it might be just the clue they need!

I am not sure where the thread started being about Ireland: in my view the same principle applies wherever in the world a particular query relates to?!?

There is still an element of judgement: the person who asked for a simple look-up doesn't want a three page diatribe about the local weather conditions (possibly) and I still have qualms about this sort of thing preventing the originator from getting the answer they were seeking.

Hopefully they still get what they were looking for!

A 

[celia]

I am not sure where the thread started being about Ireland:

Hands up Christopher 

Celia