Avoiding Family Tree Pedigree Traps

You sign in to FamilySearch.org and take a look at your part of the huge Family Tree program. Perhaps you are looking at the entries for the first time or maybe not. But as you click back on the entries, you find that some of your family lines go way back in time. Just like the illustration above; clear back into the 1700s. In fact, this line goes clear back to 1624 in Ireland. I can't let you know who this is in order to protect the innocent.

Look at it. All these entries are supported by more than one source. What could you possibly do to add anyone to this family line considering how far back it has been researched? OK, I know there are a few of you out there that have seen the point of this blog post. Why is this an example? Simply put, because all of the dates and places listed above are bogus; completely inaccurate. This is a classic example of a Family Tree Pedigree Trap. How do I know this? I guess my question would be why don't you suspect that there is a problem? Here is where we start. When did Kentucky become a state?

• Here are a few other questions to answer:
• When was Simpson, Kentucky founded?
• When did Breathitt become a county? 
• Did you know that Simpson and Breathitt were both counties?
• Where was this person born?

Would it help you to know that every one of this person's listed children were born in Kentucky except the direct line ancestor child who was born in Tennessee? 

Let's suppose that this person was born in 1766 although none of the cited sources actually mention a birth date. How would that change where he was born? Would it help to know that the first permanent settlement in what is now Kentucky was Fort Harrod constructed in 1774? Would it also help to know that this part of the country was claimed by Virginia?

OK. This type of pedigree trap is very common in the FamilySearch.org Family Tree. You can find one or more of these traps on almost every extended family line. Yes, almost every extended family line. Especially those that go back into the 1700s and 1600s. What happened with the line above? Not much yet. But we are almost certain that the family came through Tennessee and North Carolina rather than Kentucky and Virginia and yes there were two people with almost the same name at the same time: one in Virginia/Kentucky and one in North Carolina/Tennessee. The research to untangle this family line will take a while. 

Unless your pedigree is relatively short, you may have one or perhaps several of these traps waiting for you to unravel. You begin by checking the accuracy of every location cited in the Family Tree. Oh, that means you might have to do some extensive work. Yes, it does. How do I know my pedigree is correct on the Family Tree? Actually, I know that many of the lines are not correct and should be pruned off. But that takes time and we have been working at it now for almost 37 years. 

I guess at this point you have to answer one question for yourself. Do you care if your part of the Family Tree is correct or not? If you don't care, I can't help you.