8.2 Slow Down and Look Closely
When research suggests there are not civil records for an individual, genealogists turn to substitutes to identify birth, marriage, death, divorce, and adoption (BMD) information. Discovering the dates and places for vital events is not a checklist. Multiple sources strengthen the likelihood that the truth has been discovered and properly noted. Especially when using substitutes, like the ones presented in this chapter, multiple sources should be sought to confirm and strengthen the argument of when and where these key events transpired. Church and immigration records are excellent substitutes and will be discussed in Chapters 9 and 10. There are many other types of records in which to discover the names, places, and dates surrounding these important life events. Uncovering information in unexpected places provides some of the most satisfying experiences in genealogical research.
When working with BMD substitutes, it is important to slow down and look closely at exactly what the record is and what it is saying. For example, a burial record may include a death date along with the burial date and location, but that does not mean that the death happened in the same place as the burial. For that record, the researcher would record the burial date and place, as well as the death date, citing the record as the source for each of those pieces of information, but the death place would be left blank until discovered in another record.