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Re: Sinclair Genealogy Digest Number 11



Jean,
    This is an experience I have had with family genealogies.   Violet Bruce
wrote a history of  the Bruces from Frederick Co., VA which is my husband's
line.  Unfortunately my in-laws were too cheap to buy the book when she
offered it and now she is deceased.  The Bruce Clan of USA Historian had a
copy but his widow claims it is a personal copy and so it wasn't sent on to
the new Historian (among other things).  Then her house was burned down and
all the historical records were lost.
    Now we come along looking for the book but find no clue where it can be
found today.  There doesn't seem to be any descendants or anyone
representing the book.  If we were to find it, what then?  Are we not to
copy it?  Will all her research be lost forever?  It is very possible that
some of the sources she found, might become lost also so the next person
doing the research over again will come up with a different set of
conclusions.

Are you feeling that someone was profiting from the small family genealogy
that you mentioned?  This is, of course, hind sight, but knowing this could
happen now,  perhaps a clear statement that this was a private printing and
should not be copied because it represented only a small select segment of
the family and thus the information would be quite incorrect when viewing
the family as a whole.   But, of course, that doesn't guarantee that someone
will honor your words.

I think the data base is important, otherwise, every generation will have to
"reinvent the wheel", ie, do the research over and over.  What futility!!!
Since we all have about the same allotted time to live,  each generation
without the work of the previous, can not make progress.  Many times this
previous generation is not even known to us.  I think there are few families
where you have in every generation a person willing to keep the records and
continue the research.  So it is necessary to search out these distant
researchers and continue the work.  The world wide data base is a tool that
can accomplish this.

    I hope I haven't  missed the point that you are trying to make???
Laurel


-----Original Message-----
From: Jean Grigsby <jgrigsby@bcni.net>
To: sinclair@mids.org <sinclair@mids.org>
Date: Saturday, September 18, 1999 9:53 AM
Subject: Re: Sinclair Genealogy Digest Number 11


>My feelings derive from the many, many people who have requested that their
>family history not be used for public consumption.  I can still recall my
>nephew calling me late one night as he had found my parents (his
>grandparents) listed on a website and only one child listed - me.  He was
>extremely upset and to be quite frank so was I.  I had never heard of the
>person and when contacted he admitted he had copied the data from a small
>family book I had published in 1970 - 29 years ago.  I had only made 10
>copies for family members and unfortunately one of the recipients passed
>away and during this 20 year period it had ended up in an  "in-laws"
hands -
>a person not even related to the family.  No, this was not my St. Clair
side
>of the family but it is an example of the lack of integrity floating the
>web.
>My name, address, and date were typed on the title page so there could be
no
>confusion that this was a personal family history book.
>
>This has become a concern for most professional genealogists and most of
>them are simply refusing to share their material.  I refuse to allow a few
>to disrupt what I feel is an important goal - hence my refusal to send out
>material on any branch unless the person requesting the material is a
proven
>descendant of that branch.
>
>Perhaps others will be as honest as I have been and state their true
reasons
>or perceived need for a world-wide data base on the internet ?
>
>I seem to be the only person willing to bring it out other than a selected
>list of "respondees".  Do any others on the site have any feelings on the
>subject?
>Jean
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Lena A L <lal@algonet.se>
>To: <sinclair@mids.org>
>Sent: Saturday, September 18, 1999 4:50 AM
>Subject: Re: Sinclair Genealogy Digest Number 11
>
>
>>Hi Jean,
>>
>>Jean Grigsby wrote:
>>>
>>> A suggestion.  Instead of duplicating what others have already done (ie
>>> copying or duplicating the work of others), why don't all of us search
>for
>>> the unfound and unrecorded records.
>>
>>That is of course my main goal but that does not exclude the importance
>>of making  as much Sinclair material as possible accessable/searchable
>>in a database, or when it comes to material that's subject to copywrite
>>referenses to it.
>>
>>Regards
>>Lena
>>[ This is the Sinclair family discussion list, sinclair@mids.org
>>[ To get off or on the list, see http://www.mids.org/sinclair/list.html
>
>[ This is the Sinclair family discussion list, sinclair@mids.org
>[ To get off or on the list, see http://www.mids.org/sinclair/list.html

[ This is the Sinclair family discussion list, sinclair@mids.org
[ To get off or on the list, see http://www.mids.org/sinclair/list.html