Bob displayed a photograph he had located in the State Library digital collection with the caption Young boy standing beside a headstone, Toowong Cemetery, Brisbane, circa 1902. Visible on the headstone is the text "In memory of Joseph Postlethwaite". He claimed that this should be sufficient information to enable a reasonable inference as to the identity of the child. What can you find? |
1 Comment
Even careful researchers who understand the need for meticulous recording of their sources appreciate the support of tools that simplify the process of creating a strong citation linking the appropriate source to each claim they make about their ancestors. Legacy Family Tree has a strong system for managing sources and citations that is built upon the principles set out by Elizabeth Shown Mills in Evidence Explained . Take care however that the flexibility available in Legacy FT can allow you to make inappropriate choices for your needs. You should always think carefully before accepting an option offered. Legacy bases all citations on a two part system. The Master Source List holds the broad details (title, type, author, publisher, location etc) of each source you use. A specific citation is created by attaching the details appropriate (ancestors name, date and place of event, page number in source etc). This means that once you have collected the details of a master source, you enter them into the software just once. The next time you refer to the same source, simply "use" the previous mater and attach new detail. The Master Source List is saved within your family file and can be examined with the command sequence View > Master Lists > Source. You can add a new source to this list in advance from this view or as you need it from a person screen (where the options are "Cite an [existing] master source" or "Create a new source". Note that the second Master List (called Source Type) is part of the immense flexibility within Legacy that you could edit (but probably should not). However you reach the screen to include a source for the first time, the options are the same. The safest option is to make a suitable choice from the list in the centre which will lead to new options that guide you through the creation of a template to collect the appropriate information for your source. Although the more information you can provide the better, you will not need to fill every box (because some items will not be relevant to your situation). Remember that particular details such as page number (in a book) or frame number (on a fiche or film) do not go in the master but are saved for the details.
If you later find some additional (relevant) information, you can amend the list to include it. The software will ask "Do you want this to apply to every reference to this source?". If your answer is no then what you have tried to change probably belongs in the Detail of the citation. For a comprehensive overview (more than 90 minutes of free video) look at Sources and Citations Made Simple, Standard, and Powerful from the Legacy FT webinar series. Bob followed up the discussion of Y-DNA testing (which can track direct line paternal ancestors) with a discussion of a test that can reveal information about your female line of descent - mitochondrial DNA testing (mtDNA).
Mitochondria are tiny organelles inside every cell that release the energy used for the processes of life. They contain a type of DNA that is different from that contained in the chromosomes. Because of the nature of human fertilisation, the mitochondria contained in sperm are jettisoned (like flat batteries) so all the mtDNA you have came exclusively from your mother. That means both males and females can use this test to investigate their female ancestors. You and all your siblings (boys and girls) have a copy of your mother's mtDNA that she obtained from her mother. Your father's mtDNA will match that of all his siblings but will be different from that of his children. If you cannot test your father directly, to learn his mother's mtDNA type (called a haplogroup), you need to test his sister's child (that is a first cousin - male or female - with an unbroken female line of descent from your target). |
Search This Site
Archives
November 2022
|