Ancestry "Hints" problem

[msr]

And re the comments on 'name collectors' - well I suppose you'd better count me in with those !  I have about 6000 names on my tree.  There are a few reasons for this .....

1. I (unwisely) decided to research my wifes family tree by including it in with my own.
2. I like to go down all the 'branch lines', because this often flushes more distant relatives out of the woodwork who could help with my research, and maybe I can help them.
3. Going down branch lines sometimes finds unexpected useful information.

Again, it's almost ditto to the above.  Apart from:

1.  It's my husband's tree as well as my own (1500 names combined - so please don't imagine I collect names willy-nilly).
2.  Exactly so - although I'm still awaiting eureka moments   
3.  See No 2. 

In addition, if I find something I am not sure about I will make a note of it in the comments box which can be read by other researchers.  This lets others know that I am willing to be proven wrong and am prepared to admit it.

I would also like to know - Am I right in thinking that some 'serious researchers' look down on those of us who use Ancestry?   

[smeni]

Yes, must admit I started out tracking my husband's family, thinking I knew all about my side, but ended up tracking mine and various branches of it as well, so tree grew and grew!  But it is annoying when someone suddenly "pinches" a bit of research its taken me a while to do, thenn won't acknowledge you when you contact them (even if its only to say thanks but no thanks).  I know what you are saying about "looking down noses" - I started my research without Ancestry, visiting the old records office in London on a couple of occasions, and tramping around cemeteries (to no avail!).   Ancestry is really useful, especially now more records are on line, so don't decry it!  Just wish those who copy my records would be a little grateful!!

[sandiep]

Like Nick I have mine and husbands combined after all we are both our childrens family!..........I also have branch lines and have found them to have been very useful...........my tree is private although I have shared it lots so most info and certs etc are in public domain but I am happy to share.
If I have found mistakes I have contacted people and perhaps been lucky but have only ever been thanked........I have sometimes found I have been wrong and had to delete a whole family...........
I do buy certs and go places to prove my findings on Ancestry & other sites but certainly wouldnt have got this far without the web.
To say most of trees on Ancestry are just name collecters I find insulting there are a lot of us who have spent a lot of time and effort let alone money who have our trees on here and yes we do collect names as this  is an important part of genealogy ..no names no tree
sandie

[Nick29]

Unfortunately with the price of fuel rising on a daily basis, unless you're really lucky and have all your family concentrated in a small area, then trudging around the country is going to be very costly, and probably not an option for many people.  Ancestry (and the other genealogy companies) are probably among the few who are actually happy about the rising price of oil 

[Nick29]

Incidentally, you can still get it wrong, even with certificates.  For about 2 years now, I have had in my posession (what I thought was) my g.g. grandfather's death certificate, and I was very sad to see his death in the workhouse.  Then, a few weeks ago, during a discussion in this forum, someone commented that if my g.g. grandfather lived in Eltham, Kent, then he would not have been sent to the Greenwich, Kent, workhouse, because it was in the wrong borough !   And they were correct - I had the death certificate for the wrong person.   Certificates are no use at all, if you get them for the wrong people 

[coombs]

I only have ancestors who to the best of my knowledge have been verified in my tree. Quality not quantity to me. I find that a lot of the ancestry trees users are just name collectors. I have found people fathering children before they were born and today saw someone born in 1802 fathering a child in 1593. 

[carol8353]

Well the bottom line is that Americans 'don't do' geography ! 

Nick that did make me laugh- it's so true !

We stayed with some Canadian cousins in 1988- she is a school teacher(not geography  ) She asked where us Brits would normally go on hols and I told her att he time that a lot of us go to Spain. She then asked if we would drive there or would have to fly !!!

So neither do the Canadians 

Someone has my great grandparents on their Ancestry tree(never moved out of a small village near Taunton) who apparently died in the USA ........Grrrrrrr.

Carol

[Lisajj]

I think quite a lot of new researchers take information they find on other peoples trees as Fact without checking - I'm sure when we all started we did the same thing!  I have quite a few people who have copied info from my tree on Ancestry and then I've noticed that I've typed the date in wrong or something like that - yet the people who have copied it have just copied it directly, not checked it or anything!  I like the hints bit, even if sometimes its not quite right - remember it is just a 'hint'.  On occasions its actually made me either double check my research (which has been a good thing) or send me down a totally different path, one that I would never have thought of!

[Nick29]

You do have to be a little bit careful, though..... when I was persuing my maternal grandfather's line, I came across an Ancestry record which stated that my 6th great grandfather Andrew Griffin was born in Somerset in 1660, and died in the Isle of Wight ..... VIRGINIA, USA     My first thought was 'blinkin Americans', but on further research it turned out to be true !  

In fact, Andrew Griffin was one of the first trans-Atlantic traders, whose father was actually born out there in 1620.  The family is mentioned in the early records of the Virginia settlements.  And, Andrew must have crossed the Atlantic a few times, because his daughter (my 5th great grandmother) was born in Somerset.

So, if you see an ancestor who appeared to die in America, maybe it's true !