Terminology Tips January 2015 This document is intended to provide guidance to our project volunteers. Determining the correct category for some documents is not a black & white decision there are obviously grey areas. As volunteers we try to use our best judgment in determining document categories. Adoption Record This is a Legal Court record that often includes the names of the involved persons, the adoption fee and/or sum of money paid. Affidavit An affidavit is indexed as a Court Record. However, if the affidavit is part of a military pension file, index it with the pension file as Legal Other Military. In the older documents (submitted with applications from the 1930s 1940s) many are titled Affidavit but signed by a Notary. Categorize these as described under Notarized. Analysis An analysis is a written or typed document explaining why certain information proves something specific such as a name/date and/or place in the applicant s lineage. The analysis may or may not be titled analysis and in many cases may actually be a letter addressed to the genealogy department. Analysis is only used when proving specific information. It is not used when proving someone s lineage. Backside of Document At the top right of the document is the word Page with one, two or more numbered buttons (see Tools for the Project on the last page). This tool has been provided in case you need to look at the backside of a document. Normally you would not have to use this feature unless the first page looks like it is the back of a document. If you have to click on "Page 2" or flip it over so to speak to see what the document is that was sent in for proof, then Page 1 is the Backside of the Document. You can look at Page 2 if you want, but it is not necessary and will save you time to not look at it. To clarify further, Backside of Document should be used when you come across a document that may not have any information or may only have a member s name and chapter info on it or it may have an ancestor number (like A85643) with a member s number underneath 271615, such as: A123456 321987 Backside of Document does not refer to a second page of a document, such as a birth certificate or the second page of a letter. The continuation of a document should be categorized the same as the first document of the associated record. For example a Will may cover several documents in your set. Categorize all of them as a Will. Baptism A baptism is a Church Record. Bible Record A Bible Record will look like a page out of a Bible. Often you can see the crease of the Bible and part of another January 2015 1
page as the Bible is laid open for scanning. Some Bible pages have Family Record at the top of the page. It is still a Bible Record. A Bible record would not be categorized as a Vital Record even if it lists births/deaths/marriages. Bible Record Abstract Bible Record Abstract is when information from the original Bible page has been transcribed or typed onto a different page. If the information is copied (such as: typed, re written by hand) from someone s Bible it is categorized as Bible Record Abstract. It will probably be noted either on that document or possibly the document before or after that the information was copied/transcribed from a Bible. Bible Record vs. Family Record Bible Records are those birth/marriage/death pages from with a Bible. Sometimes there is a title across the top of the page that says "Family Record" but it is still indexed as a Bible Record. We almost have to "feel" it looks like it came from a Bible...looks like the sheet is printed with the information written in or the sheet may look like it has a crease down the middle as if it is two pages in an open bible. A Family Record, not in a Bible, is usually a handwritten or typed "story" of family information. Biography vs. Genealogy Both Biography and Genealogy are under the category of Published, as in a book. A Biography gives details of a person s life beyond the basic information of birth, marriage, children, and death. It will tell of things such as what the person did, places lived, how they earned a living, etc. Biographies often have titles such as, Biographical Sketches of XX County. A Biography could be about an entire family, it does not have to be about a certain person. Often published books that have information about the history of an area contain biographies of its residents. If the selected page in a history book is about the life of a certain person categorize it as a Biography, not Local & State History. A Genealogy will basically give a list of names, dates (birth, marriage, death), and locations. Genealogies often have titles such as, The Descendants of XX or XX and his Family. Blank Sometimes you ll only be able to see the lower part of a document. Try refreshing to see if it is just a glitch and hopefully the document will load completely. However, sometimes the document may not have been scanned properly. If there is not enough of the document shown to identify how to categorize it, mark it Unreadable. Unless the entire document loads and it is completely blank, do not categorize it as Blank. (See also Unreadable and Xs) Bounty Land This would be indexed as Legal Land Land Record. It is not Military. C.A.R., DAR, SAR If a document was created at the DAR/SAR/C.A.R. headquarters categorize it as Delete since they already have it. However if the recipient writes (by hand) a reply to return to HQs do not mark it Delete. January 2015 2
Cemetery Records Cemetery records include: tombstone photos, Find A Grave, cemetery office, lists from the internet, books of transcriptions, etc. Records from a church that give burial or cemetery information are Cemetery Records, not Church Records. Sometimes a map is included with cemetery information, such as a map of the cemetery plots or a map showing the location of the cemetery. These are categorized as Cemetery Records. If it is a photo of two gravestones side by side they are Single Readable. If they are two separate photos those would be Multiple Readable. Census Record Census would include not only images of census pages but also abstracts from census records. Church Record Church Record includes any document that originated or is noted as coming from or being property of a church. This includes baptism records. An exception is a marriage record created by a church which would be categorized as Vital Marriage Record. City Directory Index these as Published Local & State History. Court Record Index an affidavit that is signed by a court official as a Legal Court Court Record. Not a Court Record: a statement by someone saying that such and such is true see Notarized or Page Swearing Something is Correct. DAR, SAR, C.A.R. If a document was created at the DAR/SAR/C.A.R. headquarters categorize it as Delete since they already have it. However if the recipient writes (by hand) a reply to return to HQs do not mark it Delete. A document titled DAR Data Cover Sheet would be Delete. Sometimes the cover sheet isn t the first document of the set and sometimes there is more than one in the set. If the title is Office of the Registrar General mark it Delete. If it is someone writing to the organization, do not categorize it as Delete. For instance a letter to the Registrar General is not marked as Delete. Since we are not familiar with all of the Registrar Generals names, you ll need to look at the end of the letter to view how it is signed. If you have an image of a page of a DAR application, mark it Delete. Delete Delete should be rarely used. Only use Delete if the document originated at the DAR/SAR/C.A.R. headquarters as mentioned above or they are pages from a GRC book. Also, if you have an image of a page of a DAR application, mark it Delete. An exception would be if it is a postal slip saying something was mailed in which case you would not categorize it you would use Delete. Also Delete the pages that say something like Genealogy Record Sheet; and the ones where the applicant s name, patriot, generation, etc. is listed and it is NOT the backside of a document (determined when Page 2 is click on). January 2015 3
Diary Is listed in the Unpublished category. A Diary would include a journal of almost daily events, experiences, observations, etc. It may be hand written. Even if the Diary has been published it would index it as Unpublished Diary Divorce Record Legal Court record with the information of a divorce decree. Duplicates in a Set Sometimes documents inadvertently get scanned twice. We would categorize them twice. Envelope/Postal Slip The envelope may have been part of a record such as proving where the document came from. Make it Unpublished Letter. If it is just like a postal slip saying something was mailed we would not categorize it use Delete document. Family Newsletter A family newsletter should be categorized as according to the information specifically provided. Unpublished Family Record may be applicable. Genealogy publications are categorized as Published Genealogy. Family Record vs. Bible Record Remember Family Record is under the Unpublished category. An application for "Membership in another lineal society" is an Unpublished Family Record. Memorabilia, such as, a graduation program, baby book page, or a printed invitation/announcement of a marriage are all Family Records. A Family Record, not in a Bible, is usually a handwritten or typed "story" of family information. Many times a page in a Bible that has a list of births/deaths/marriages will have the words Family Record as the header of the page. However, it is still a Bible Record and not a Family Record. Foreign Language This is to be used when applicable even if you are fluent in that language. This includes church records that are written in Latin. Funeral Home Record Actual records such as the services provided by a funeral home would go here. The funeral home cards provided with the person s name, dates, and in many instances have a verse, is categorized as a Family Record since the information is compiled by the family and provided to the funeral home for issue. Genealogy vs. Biography Both Biography and Genealogy are under the Published category such as published in a book. If the family kept some records, that would be Unpublished Family Record. Often the information is mentioned as coming from family records. January 2015 4
A Genealogy will basically give a list of names, dates (birth, marriage, death), and locations. A Biography gives details of a person s life beyond the basic information of birth, marriage, children, and death. It will tell of things such as what the person did, places lived, how they earned a living, etc. GRC Records Choose Delete for ALL Genealogical Records Committee (GRC) records. Guardian Record Legal Court record that often includes the names of the involved persons and appoints the guardian. Hospital Birth Record Vital Birth Record Immigration Record Legal Court record regarding citizenship. Includes naturalization records. Indenture Depends on the wording. The record will probably begin with This Indenture. If it is a land deal make it Land Record. The file will mention number of acres or perhaps location of land. If it is an indenture to learn a trade make it a Court Record. Read through the file to determine how to categorize it. Indian Affairs (Bureau of) If it looks like a census record make it Census otherwise make it a Court Record Land Bounty This would be indexed as Legal Land Land Record. It is not Military. Land Record vs. Probate Record If a land transaction is mentioned in a probate record it is still indexed as a Probate Record. Letters Letters usually will begin with something like Dear, and end with something like Sincerely and their name. Do not delete letters written to the Registrar General. Also, if a letter is from the Registrar General and the prospective member writes (in cursive) on the letter to send it back to the Registrar General do not delete it. An example would be the Registrar General writes requesting marriage information and the applicant hand writes information on the letter and returns it to the Registrar General. A letter to the Registrar General is a Letter. A letter from a research genealogist to the Registrar General or to a prospective member is to be marked as a Letter. A letter is to be categorized as a Letter except when it is from a source such as a church, cemetery, town clerk, etc. where the letter contains relevant information. In these instances categorize it Church Record, Cemetery, Town Clerk, etc. A letter from a town clerk saying that a record cannot be found is an Unpublished Letter. An envelope that may include information important to the document would also be categorized as a Letter. If it is a postal slip saying something was mailed we would not categorize it use Delete document. January 2015 5
A letter explaining why a specific fact is true, often addressed to the genealogy department, should be indexed as Unpublished Analysis. Local & State History vs. Town Record Local and State History are documents/books with information of events and people of the area. Note that they are under the category of Published. If the document/book is a list of births, deaths or marriages then it is indexed as a Vital record. An example would be a state publication, like an index of a state s vital records. Town Record is listed under Legal Other. Town Records would be documents such as from town clerks or a school record. Manuscript An Unpublished Manuscript would be a book or lengthy document written by hand rather than typed or printed. It may be something of a quality that could have been published but has not been published. Map In order to be indexed as a map it should not be associated with other documents. If it is part of other documents the map would be indexed as the associated documents are indexed. For instance if the map is of a cemetery layout with other cemetery documents, it would be indexed as Cemetery Record. Marriage A newspaper article about a marriage is a Published Newspaper Record. A printed announcement of a marriage created by the family is an Unpublished Family Record. A marriage registrar, a list of marriages created by the city, state, county, church or from their records, is Vital Marriage Record. If the year of the event can be determined, enter it. If not, confirm without a year. A marriage license application and a marriage record by a justice of the peace are both Vital Marriage Record. A book of marriage records (example Johnson County Illinois Early Marriages 1878 1885 ) would be Vital Marriage Record. A state index of marriages would be Vital Marriage Record. Military Record All military records go here regardless of where they come from (National Archives Pension File, Footnote, book listing soldiers, etc.). Anything to do with military service goes here...draft registrations, even a vital record within a pension file that gives the date of birth, death or marriage...it would still go under Military since it is part of the military file. Sometimes public claims (such as, VA Publick Claims) are for military service so they would be categorized as Court Other Military Record. Sometimes these are payments for claims for supplies provided during war times. If the claim is paid by the court, index it as Legal Court Court Record. Oaths of allegiance would also be Court Records. Multiple Readable Documents vs. Single Readable Document When there are multiple paragraphs with different information and sources, YOU MUST click Multiple Readable Document and categorize the information at the top. This way the Genealogist will know to look for more information on the document. As we have seen, many of the older documents submitted with applications in the January 2015 6
1930s 1940s contain information of various kinds, such as census, cemetery, church, Bible Records, lineage, etc. We are to categorize these by the information presented first on the document and also mark them Multiple Readable Documents. By doing this, the genealogist will know to view the remainder of the document for other information. So for example, if a document has (from top to bottom): deed excerpts, will excerpts, and cemetery information, categorize it as Multiple Readable Documents Legal Land Land Record. With each document in the set you are processing, you should hold down the left mouse button and drag the four sided arrow up the image to view the entire document. If you have more than one image on a document, such as a passport and a driver s license, index it as Multiple Readable Documents. Another example, if there is an obituary and a photo of a cemetery stone on the same page and you can tell they are two separate items. That would be a Multiple Readable Documents. Index the top most or left most image. A left and right page of a book scanned as one piece of "paper" is a single document. We index the top left item unless a specific line is marked. Newspaper Record vs. Obituary An article in a newspaper that tells of a person's death is a Published Obituary. If the person was a prominent individual in the community and there is an article about the person's life, and it is announcing their death, it is an Obituary. A funeral notice, a newspaper record of the funeral service, would also be indexed as an Obituary. If you have a page from a newspaper but no articles are noted or have underlines, even if it contains obituaries, if you cannot tell which article they are referring to, index it as Newspaper Record. Notarized If the document is a statement swearing something is true stands alone without an associated document, even if Notarized is Unpublished Family Record. If a page swearing that something is correct/true is accompanied with an associated document it should be categorized the same as the associated document. To see other documents in the set, click on the "folder" icon to check the next few documents as those will help you choose the correct category. You can also see the previous document in the "folder" window. Obituary vs. Newspaper Record An article in a newspaper that tells of a person's death is an Obituary. If the person was a prominent individual in the community and there is an article about the person's life, and it is announcing their death, it is an Obituary. A funeral notice, a newspaper record of the funeral service, would also be indexed as an Obituary. If you have a page from a newspaper but no articles are noted or have underlines, even if it contains obituaries, if you cannot tell which article they are referring to, index it as Newspaper Record. Page Swearing Something is Correct If a page swearing that something is correct/true is accompanied with an associated document it should be categorized the same as the associated document. In order to do that, click on the "folder" icon to check the next few documents as those will help you choose the correct category. You can also see the previous document in the "folder" window. If the document stands alone without an associated document, even if Notarized is Unpublished Family Record. January 2015 7
Postal Slip (See Envelope/Postal Slip) Probate Record vs. Land Record (See Land Record vs. Probate Record) Probate Record vs. Will A Probate Record is the disposition of property after a person dies. Usually towards the beginning of the record it will have the person s name followed by deceased (or abbreviated dec d). If someone is acting as the administrator of an estate they are probating the estate. If the document mentions someone dying intestate that is a term for "no will" or the document might mention the deceased and how the estate is being handled. These are things that might be mentioned in a Probate Record. A Probate Record may be called an administration or list an administrator. It may be a court document appointing an administrator or executor. A probate may also be a list of items from the deceased person s estate showing the items and a price for which each was sold. A Will is made while the person is alive before a person dies. The person is instructing others about how to dispose of their own goods and property after their death. Often you will see the words my last will and testament somewhere in the document. Other phrases you might see in a Will are: I give to my son/daughter/wife or I bequeath to. Public Claims When viewing a document that has Public Claims look to see what service is mentioned. Often supplies are provided, such as pounds of Beef. People supported the military but did not serve in the military. Categorize these as Court Record. SAR, DAR, C.A.R. If a document was created at the DAR/SAR/C.A.R. headquarters categorize it as Delete since they already have it. However if the recipient writes (by hand) a reply to return to HQs do not mark it Delete. Ship Log Listing American Citizens Index as a Family Record. Single Readable Document vs. Multiple Readable Documents Single Readable Document means there is only one image on a page. With each document in the set you are processing, you should hold down the left mouse button and drag the four sided arrow up the image to view the rest of the document. If you have more than one image on a document, such as a passport and a driver s license, index it as Multiple Readable Documents. Another example, if there is an obituary and a photo of a cemetery stone on the same page and you can tell they are two separate items. That would be a Multiple Readable Documents. When there is more than one image on the document mark it as Multiple Readable Documents and categorize the top most or left most image. A left and right page of a book scanned as one piece of "paper" is a single document. We index the top left item unless a specific line is marked. January 2015 8
Social Security Record Legal Other record that might be a copy of a person s Social Security Record. Tax Record Legal Other record that lists names and often property and taxes paid by individuals. Tithes When categorizing documents you might have one with a list of payments called tithes. It might be tithes paid as a contribution to a religious organization or a tax to a government as was practiced in colonial times. Title Page The title page to a book or document would be indexed the same as the page(s) following. If the following page from the book is a list of birth records, then index the title page as Vital Birth Record with no year unless the year of a specific event is underlined or otherwise noted. An index page of a microfilm document would be indexed the same as the document. Town Record vs. Local & State History Town Record is listed under Legal Other. Town Records would be documents such as from town clerks or a school record. Local & State History is listed under Published. An example would be a city directory. Historical information and events would go in this category. Unknown Do not use this category unless the committee s support team asks you to select it. Unreadable If enough of a document is readable so that you know the type, index it as such. Every word does not need to be readable to index it. Zoom in on the document to try to read enough words to categorize it. If there is information written on the page, perhaps on the edge of the page, describing what the document is, use that to index the document. If a document is mostly unreadable, but there is a transcription of the document on the same page, then go ahead and index it from the transcription. Vital Records A listing of births, deaths or marriages from town, county or state records would be Vital. They do not need to be an individual certificate to be a vital record. A birth record from a hospital and a marriage record from a church would also go in this category. A Certificate of Correction of the date of birth would be a Vital Birth Record. Will vs. Probate Record A Will is made before a person dies. The person is instructing others about how to dispose of their own goods and property after their death. Often you will see the words my last will and testament somewhere in the document. Other phrases you might see in a Will are: I give to my son/daughter/wife or I bequeath to. A Probate Record is the disposition of property after a person dies. If someone is acting as the administrator of an estate they are probating the estate. January 2015 9
If the document mentions someone dying intestate that is a term for "no will" or the document might mention the deceased and how the estate is being handled. These are things that might be mentioned in a Probate Record. A Probate Record may be called an administration or list an administrator. It may be a court document appointing an administrator or executor. A probate may also be a list of items from the deceased person s estate showing the items and a price for which each was sold. Sometimes in a listing of court records a will and a probate record may both be on a document. Look for underlined or parts noted to determine which to categorize. Xs If you see an X instead of the document, refresh the page. If you still see an X, then index it as Unreadable. However, if you have two sequential Xs, the system might be having issues so please stop and notify the committee s support team at darprojects@dar.org. Tools for the Project Remember to use the tools we have available while processing the documents. If the image is sideways use the yellow directional arrows few seconds as the image must reload. to reposition the image. This may take a If the image looks to be blank place your mouse cursor in the middle of the image, hold down the left mouse button and drag the four sided arrow up the image to see the rest of the image. If the image is indeed blank next check the second page of the image by clicking on the number 2 just above the image to be sure the image wasn t put through the scanner backwards. If both pages are blank then use the document description Blank Document. If you look at both images in the set and one is blank and the other is definitely the backside of a document mark it Backside of Document. If there is more than one image on the page, categorize the top or left most image. Click on the Folder icon, on the upper left, to be able to view documents that come before and after the document you are processing. Often viewing the documents before and/or after will help determine how to classify the current document. Click on magnifying glass (circle with the + sign in the middle) to zoom in on the document. This especially helps when reading the hand written documents. When working on the project, you might use Firefox by Mozilla for your browser rather than Internet Explorer. The documents we are currently processing were submitted with applications in the 1930s 40s. Many documents are hand written. Many files span multiple documents. In order to choose the correct category it is important to use the Folder Icon to view documents that are before and after the current document. January 2015 10
Currently, for the most part, there are fewer documents in each set. However, it is important to take the time to view other documents in the set before making your category choice. Take your time to thoroughly read. We want to categorize as accurately as possible. January 2015 11