Master Source List

[shansen 0]

Just when I think I have it figured out, I second guess myself and now I'm confused again. I have 25 death certificates from the MN Historical Society. Do I enter one source? MN. Department of Health. Death Certificates. Division of Vital statistics. and put the certificate number in the citation detail field? or do I create a source for each person's death certificate? The same question would be for a newspaper, like the Dodge County Star, where I have pulled several obituaries. Does the newspaper get one source and then each time I add a citation, I use the one source but put the date/page in the citation detail? Thanks for setting me straight.

[Terry Reigel 0]

The answer is yes.

 

You can do either. If you want to create just one source for all 25 death certificates, you can do that, and then record the name of the subject and other details in the CD when you cite the source. The advantage - you end up with fewer sources.

 

There are other advantages to creating one source per certificate. For example, if you want to include a notes like who the informant was, certificate number, etc., you can place those in the Comments element in the Source Definition, and add the [COMMENTS] element only to the full footnote template. That way, those notes appear only once, not every time you cite the source like they do if you put them in the CD. If you want to attach a copy of the certificate to the source, it doesn't work well if you have 25 certificates using a single source.

 

Similar considerations apply to the obits.

[GenerationGoneBy 0]

I personally have one source for each document. That allows me to catalog each document in TMG, as well as using them for output. As Terry stated, you can do it either way and both will work and your reader probably won't be able to tell, it just works best for me. I use the TMG source number to catalog my file cabinets, and can put information into the comment fields (that print or don't depending on my needs) about the sources. I often use the reminder field for transcriptions so that I can see the source information on the screen when I am using the actual source, which you can't do if you lump.

 

If too many sources bothers you, remember once you have used a source, you can mark it inactive and it will only show up in the MORE list of sources. That way you can cite an obituary, make it inactive and in LESS view it will not show on the list of sources.

 

One way I keep the list manageable is I prefix the abbreviation field of all sources of similar types so that they sort together.

 

Book

Deed

Will

Informant

1880 Rutherford Co., TN

1900 Rutherford Co., TN

Email

Obit

 

This makes finding a source very easy since they are all sorted by type in the source list. I have 3120 sources and I can find the one I am looking for in around 3 seconds.

 

So the short answer is which way makes more since to you? I am the ultimate in splitters, using the repository field for information about the roll of microfilm, deed book, marriage book, etc. Terry described a normal splitter, who has one source per document with the information about the roll of film or deed book as part of the source template. He also described a lumper, a person who puts the information about the roll of film or deed book into the source citation and then uses the CD fields for the information about the source. All three ways work fine in TMG, each have their advantages and I am sure disadvantages.

 

Some users are a combination of splitter/lumper called splumpers. They will lump for some source types, split for others. The thing is, in the output, you'd be hard fetched to figure out who is which, so do what feels the best for you and ask advice on how to achieve the results you want and I am sure that you'll get lots of advice from all of us. As for setting you straight, I doubt Terry or I did that. We just gave you permission to do what feels best. Sorta like living in the 60s huh?

[Jane Neuman 0]

I've struggled with this, too.

 

I guess I'm basically a lumper, except for the census where I lump by film number rather than year or locality.

 

I go with the "Rochester Post Bulletin" as a single source and then in the CD, I put the date, page, column, etc. In the citation memo (I think that's the name of the second comment box?) I put things that are my personal comments, like "her sister Susie, who was still alive, is not mentioned in this obituary. If I am transcribing a whole article, I use a separate tag so that I can control when / where it prints.

 

For the census, I do the same thing, except in the CD I enter my version of a census transcription and the memo contains comments about the census ... either readability or people living nearby or whatever.

 

When I print things out, I include the CD in the notes for people who are fellow researchers (this makes a BIG set of notes), but just get a very slimmed down list of notes for family or others who are not that interested in details.

 

I hope I don't regret this decision later as it would be a BIG task to rework it down the road. I just can't see setting up the same basic source over and over just because you refer to a different date or page number. Just my opinion!

 

Jane

[GenerationGoneBy 0]

Jane, If we were talking about a book, I'd totally agree, but with obits, I like putting the transcription of the obit into the reminder field of the source so that when I use that source, I have the full transcription right there in front of me. Having a source for each obit allows me to do that. Having one for the Newspaper doesn't give me that same flexibility. ANd it only takes seconds to create the new source. To me the obit is the source, not the newspaper.

 

It's really in what you are trying to accomplish. Personally, if it works for you, I wouldn't rework them. My way works for me, and your way works for you. It sounds like it is working for you quite well.