My name is JoAnna and I have actively searched for my family (Luth-Beerup) history since 1986, for my husband's side of the family (Stull-Schiedel) and my oldest daughters (Redditt-Drake) family since 1987. My four children were literally raised in our local library and learned how to research, read microfilm, and take notes. They also learned and know how to comb a cemetery for the "right" tombstone, and today, two of my daughters are Find A Grave members. Sometimes a reluctant team, nonetheless, my children were, and still are an awesome team and I am very proud of all of them! The adventure continues with their marriages and now more family histories for my grandchildren to document.
Documenting genealogical research is critical. Fortunately, I learned very early on to document information found in my research. When my children "inherit" the wealth of family history accumulated over the past thirty plus years, they must be able to rely on the names, dates, places, and stories for their family. If you do not know where to go back to your original sources of information for another "look-see," you have to start all over again!
To that end, I will say that the majority of the Memorials I manage, I manage because they are family I have researched and documented. If you see one of your family members among these Memorials and would like to manage that Memorial, please send me a request per Find A Grave guidelines. If you have research about a person beyond what I have on their Memorial, I am always enthusiastically open to Suggestions! Genealogy digital records get better daily and as information improves, and so must our records!
Finally, a word of caution gained from experience. While the vast majority of Find A Grave tombstones have "facts set in stone" so to speak that may be relied upon, in my years of research, I have found a few exceptions. My 2xs great grandmother Carthagenia (McAuley) Luth is an example. After examining and weighing many primary documents, two conclusions were reached; her proper name was Margaret Carthagenia although she went most commonly by Carthagenia or Cartha, and she was born in 1849, not 1851. Her death certificate and her tombstone both state her birth year was 1851, and the informant was her son Vernon Claire Luth, which should be trustworthy. However, the 1850 census finds her a living breathing one-year-old girl named Margaret C., and each census year thereafter saw her age increase by 10 years and her name "change" to Carthagenia, and then Cartha. The conclusion of a birth year of 1849, was reached as a person cannot be included on the Census if they are not yet born. Her name "Margaret" is a family name and she herself, shared the story of her name Carthagenia influenced by her scholarly father's respect for the Carthaginians. While her name evolves from Margaret C. to Carthagenia, to Cartha, it is consistent and logical. Carthagenia Luth is engraved on her tombstone with the dates 1851-1935, but her family record will state 1849-1935.
A dose of skepticism should be present for the examination of all sources, primary and secondary, and evaluated for logical conclusions, do the dates and family relationships make sense and are the birth-marriage-death dates consistent? It has to be reasonable.
As a person who works in the field of preserving and interpreting history I can say with all confidence that we are human and we make mistakes; dates get transposed (recently I found 1987 rather than the correct date of 1897 on a record). We should all be vigilant guardians of the information we share, so research and document carefully, proof-read before publishing, and respect this wonderful genealogical tool to our past!
Respectfully yours,
JoAnna

My name is JoAnna and I have actively searched for my family (Luth-Beerup) history since 1986, for my husband's side of the family (Stull-Schiedel) and my oldest daughters (Redditt-Drake) family since 1987. My four children were literally raised in our local library and learned how to research, read microfilm, and take notes. They also learned and know how to comb a cemetery for the "right" tombstone, and today, two of my daughters are Find A Grave members. Sometimes a reluctant team, nonetheless, my children were, and still are an awesome team and I am very proud of all of them! The adventure continues with their marriages and now more family histories for my grandchildren to document.
Documenting genealogical research is critical. Fortunately, I learned very early on to document information found in my research. When my children "inherit" the wealth of family history accumulated over the past thirty plus years, they must be able to rely on the names, dates, places, and stories for their family. If you do not know where to go back to your original sources of information for another "look-see," you have to start all over again!
To that end, I will say that the majority of the Memorials I manage, I manage because they are family I have researched and documented. If you see one of your family members among these Memorials and would like to manage that Memorial, please send me a request per Find A Grave guidelines. If you have research about a person beyond what I have on their Memorial, I am always enthusiastically open to Suggestions! Genealogy digital records get better daily and as information improves, and so must our records!
Finally, a word of caution gained from experience. While the vast majority of Find A Grave tombstones have "facts set in stone" so to speak that may be relied upon, in my years of research, I have found a few exceptions. My 2xs great grandmother Carthagenia (McAuley) Luth is an example. After examining and weighing many primary documents, two conclusions were reached; her proper name was Margaret Carthagenia although she went most commonly by Carthagenia or Cartha, and she was born in 1849, not 1851. Her death certificate and her tombstone both state her birth year was 1851, and the informant was her son Vernon Claire Luth, which should be trustworthy. However, the 1850 census finds her a living breathing one-year-old girl named Margaret C., and each census year thereafter saw her age increase by 10 years and her name "change" to Carthagenia, and then Cartha. The conclusion of a birth year of 1849, was reached as a person cannot be included on the Census if they are not yet born. Her name "Margaret" is a family name and she herself, shared the story of her name Carthagenia influenced by her scholarly father's respect for the Carthaginians. While her name evolves from Margaret C. to Carthagenia, to Cartha, it is consistent and logical. Carthagenia Luth is engraved on her tombstone with the dates 1851-1935, but her family record will state 1849-1935.
A dose of skepticism should be present for the examination of all sources, primary and secondary, and evaluated for logical conclusions, do the dates and family relationships make sense and are the birth-marriage-death dates consistent? It has to be reasonable.
As a person who works in the field of preserving and interpreting history I can say with all confidence that we are human and we make mistakes; dates get transposed (recently I found 1987 rather than the correct date of 1897 on a record). We should all be vigilant guardians of the information we share, so research and document carefully, proof-read before publishing, and respect this wonderful genealogical tool to our past!
Respectfully yours,
JoAnna