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Multiple (duplicated) Source/Citations

Further to discussions elsewhere with Russ and similar to queries on GenForum - Using Family Tree Maker - e.g. Adding multiple residences, Creating a single source, Adding media to large trees, Searching with 2010.
I have been following Ancestry hints (leaves) in FTM2009 and now FTM2010 and end up with multiple citations for individual facts for many individual people. This is fine if the citations are really different but often they are duplicates of the same census page because that page contains the whole family. If you import/merge one member you get all the relatives again when Ancestry hint finds the next person.
The duplication could be avoided if:
I could replace all the citations with one for the whole family - this is possible but then Ancestry does not recognise that it has already been imported - seems the 'key' to the record in my database and online is the individual's name. So if you change the citation detail from 'record for Joe Bloggs' to 'record for Bloggs family' the hints for Joe (and all his relatives) will become active again.
This could be avoided if:
When importing/merging records found online you could see what was already recorded for an individual - the facts screen (bottom left) only displays 'preferred' facts not all facts (e.g. residences) and I find it impossible to remember what has been recorded previously and what has not.
I'm interested to know how other people deal with this issue.
I know that FTM 2010 is supposed to ignore previously merged or 'ignored' records but I keep getting active hints for sources/media I have merged previously.
Any help will be welcome.
pem

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Russ Worthington on October 3, 2009 at 2:58pm

Pauline,

Here is my observation of how the Web Merge Works with a Census Record. I think that is what some of our duplication is all about.

Lets say that there is a Family with three people in it. You do a Web Search, as a result of the shaky leaf, on a Child, and the parents are in that returned results. You do the Web Merge and the three family members are merged with the data elements and Source-Citation.

A little later, you do a Web Search for one of the Parents. You Repeat the process that you did with the Child. So, I think that what you explained is what would happen in this case. Now you would have these three people, each with TWO of the SAME Source-Citation.

However, and this is what I really like, IF you look at the Source-Citation details, you will see WHO you were searching on, when you did the Web Search. So, One of the Source-Citations would show the search for the child, and the other would reflect search for that parent.

So, in fact, I like this feature. However, i am sure that others will not.

The trick here, I think, is that I review what I have done searches for, on the specific individual BEFORE I do a Web Search for that individual.

Here is how I found it very helpful.

I did a web search for an individual and found and did a web merge. It was on a Child, and picked up the parents who I already had. In this specific family, there were Given Names that were repeated in several generation.

A little later, I did a Web Search, found the individual, Same Name, Same Birth Date, Different Birth Location. When Looking at this "duplication" in Source-Citations, I looked a who I had done the Web Search ON, where I had picked up this name before. In other words, where were conflicting information within this household.

I went back to the Search Results, and there was another "Hit" for that same Individual (conflicting information). Running that Web Merge, provided me with the Correct Individual. Basically, the first Web Search for this individual was the Wrong individual. The information was similar, but still the wrong person. The "duplication" helped me resolve this situation.

I went back to that "bad" hit, and marked it "Ignore".

From reading the various forums on this type of subject, I have learned to really review what I have on this Individual BEFORE I do a web merge. I have gone so far as to print an Individual report for that Individual before I spend a lot of time using the Web Search feature, especially on a family line that I am focusing on or am trying to break down a brick wall.

For census records, for my direct line, I created an EXCEL spread sheet to make sure that I do a Web Search / Web Merge based on my direct line. In other words, I do the Web Search by individual, even though I have found that individual before, by searching for a parent, spouse, or child. This is really important, for me at least, when the specific Census Record, doing a Web Merge does NOT include all Family Members in that Web Merge.

Bottom line, I don't consider the duplication as a problem, but as a confirmation. I like to find a "family" in a specific census year, three times. Found searching for the child, searching for the mother, searching for the father (if all three are recorded on that record).

Only one person's opinion.

Russ