tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post738814584770608119..comments2024-03-03T16:35:25.083-05:00Comments on Marian's Roots and Rambles: Ancestry's New Vital Records Database: Is it worth all the hype?Marianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04738104230962644360noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-56941177163500250062012-04-12T12:18:47.550-04:002012-04-12T12:18:47.550-04:00I agree with Taco Goulooze and Anonymous (Mar 30)....I agree with Taco Goulooze and Anonymous (Mar 30). The Ancestry indexing of these records is dreadful. Just appalling. I'd guess that at least 25% of the records I've looked at contained at least one blatant error (i.e. something that was not in the least bit ambiguous or up for interpretation). E.g. "Jane Smite" in the index where it clearly says "John Smith Jr." and the father's name is correctly indexed as "John Smith". This is gross incompetence on the part of Ancestry and a true shame.<br /><br />Seriously, Ancestry, it would be far better for the world if you posted the unindexed images and took your time with the indexes. It is pretty clear that they aren't using the double-keying method, or if they are, they have a completely inept group of indexers. I've never seen anything this bad on Ancestry.<br /><br />I should also note that the Mass BDM registries are generally excellent and readable. There are people who should be there that have been missing, but I've come across almost nothing that was illegible (on the part of the writer, not counting damage to the physical document itself) and very few records with "incorrect" spellings or information. If the Familysearch index for the state records isn't perfect, I haven't found the errors.<br /><br />If there is anybody you can't find in the 1841-1915 time frame, I'd suggest looking either at the state records on the NEHGS or Familysearch sites and then manually searching for the person in the Ancestry database. <br /><br />Anonymous -- Ancestry (to its credit) does have a nice table of the towns that haven't been added yet on the main page for the collection.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-87405249919163474732012-03-30T13:36:50.785-04:002012-03-30T13:36:50.785-04:00I regularly use familysearch.org [updated site wit...I regularly use familysearch.org [updated site with many images];and, Mass Archives 1841-1910 [index only]. Both are free sites. I have been looking at the Holbrook Collection on ancestry.com. It is very good for some cities/towns. There, however, as with all databases are some errors. Although, I am used to names being incorrect in the originals, and have found records at familysearch.org that are mispelled in the original or in indexing, the same cannot be said for the Holbrook collection at ancestry.com. There is either an indexing problem, or some cities/towns are only partially indexed [and not in any order].<br /><br />We could use a list of the cities and towns that are included in the Holbrook Collection and whether the indexing is completed, partial or otherwise.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-5496168970867789342012-03-23T12:04:59.373-04:002012-03-23T12:04:59.373-04:00I clicked on your link to the first Ancestry examp...I clicked on your link to the first Ancestry example, Marian, and it looked blurry to me. But about 20 seconds later it apparently finished loading and looked quite sharp -- at least as sharp as the American Ancestors image. So perhaps you need to give it more time to load. I was disgruntled by images in another collection last week, and then discovered they were just taking more time to load than I expected. Eventually they turned out to be sharp. Thanks for taking the time to make the comparisons. Very helpful information.Barbara Schencknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-22514975698359169752012-03-22T15:10:09.439-04:002012-03-22T15:10:09.439-04:00Christine - It will be interesting to see if there...Christine - It will be interesting to see if there are more coming. The newspaper article indicated that the Holbrooks had retired. Perhaps some other group will pick up where they left off?Marianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04738104230962644360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-66445879662820265462012-03-22T15:07:49.022-04:002012-03-22T15:07:49.022-04:00This collection was presented at Family History Da...This collection was presented at Family History Day in Tarrytown, NY last Saturday. A couple of things to note: this collection is supposed to be more thorough than the pre-1850 MA Vital Records collection, in that the Holbrooks went to every single town in MA & got records from each town that was willing to share. That being said, we noticed that certain towns were not yet available because they had not yet been filmed (like all the "A" towns). I guess more are coming.Christine M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/01625485691037280392noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-42075514037444983692012-03-22T14:11:04.005-04:002012-03-22T14:11:04.005-04:00I posted on G+ on the bad job they did on indexing...I posted on G+ on the bad job they did on indexing the records, but on the whole, I'm happy these images are available. If the writing is hard to make out, I'll go with the transcriptions made and published by the NEHGS. Not only were they done by people who actually cared about accuracy, but they were also done at a time, when the writing would be less faded (early 20th century).Tacohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04059717877562427778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-691016683378293851.post-81954662033909765272012-03-22T11:38:56.777-04:002012-03-22T11:38:56.777-04:00I tried searching for several different family mem...I tried searching for several different family members with no luck. Might try some collateral lines when I get home. Guess my Irish luck ran out on St Patrick's Day!!Denise Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15794443727015706399noreply@blogger.com