A Family History Mission: The Reasons for Digitization

No. 73

Note: You can do a Google search for "A Family History Mission James Tanner" to see all the previous posts in this ongoing series. You can also search for "James Tanner genealogy" and find them or click back through all the posts.

Shortly after beginning our mission as Document Preservation Specialists (camera operators), we realized the tremendous need for the work we are doing. The photo above shows the condition of a book we digitized recently. The pages were so brittle that we had to turn the pages with support. The edges of the pages had almost completely disintegrated. This is not a book that had been ignored or neglected, but despite proper storage, the book itself is disintegrating. If you look closely, you can see that the book is dated 1881. 

Each time we see a book or record that looks like this, we realize over and over again the importance of making digital copies of the books. Traditional archivists will immediately point out the need to migrate electronic data as the programs and storage media go out of date and disappear. The answer to this concern is that you can migrate electronic files but without digitization, you cannot migrate paper books. Photocopying is only a stopgap and the durability of photocopies depend on the copying and storage methods used. We are certain that absent our efforts to digitize some of the records we have seen in the Maryland State Archives, the documents would be entirely lost in the future. 

Here are some comments on the deterioration of paper from the Library of Congress's article entitled, "The Deterioration and Preservation of Paper: Some Essential Facts."

Why is 500-year old paper often in better condition than paper from 50 years ago? In other words, what makes some papers deteriorate rapidly and other papers deteriorate slowly?

• The rate and severity of deterioration result from internal and external factors: most importantly, the composition of the paper and the conditions under which the paper is stored.

• Paper is made of cellulose -- a repeating chain of glucose molecules -- derived from plant cell walls. One measure of paper quality is how long the cellulose chains, and subsequently the paper fibers, are: long-fibered paper is stronger and more flexible and durable than short-fibered paper.

• In the presence of moisture, acids from the environment (e.g., air pollution, poor-quality enclosures), or from within the paper (e.g., from the raw materials, manufacturing process, deterioration products), repeatedly cut the glucose chains into shorter lengths. This acid hydrolysis reaction produces more acids, feeding further, continued degradation.

• Before the mid-19th century, western paper was made from cotton and linen clothing rags and by a process that largely preserved the long fibers of the raw material. While fibers may shorten with age, rag papers tend to remain strong and durable, especially if they have been stored properly in conditions not overly warm or humid.

• Starting in the mid-19th century, wood replaced rags as the raw material for paper manufacture. Wood is processed into paper by mechanical or chemical pulping, which produces paper with shorter (compared with rag paper) fibers.

• Mechanical pulping produces paper with the shortest fiber length and does not remove lignin from the wood, which promotes acid hydrolysis. Newspapers are printed on mechnically pulped paper. Chemical pulping removes lignin and does not cut up the cellulose chains as thoroughly as mechanical pulping, yielding a comparatively stronger paper, but which is still not as durable as rag paper.

• Wood pulp paper from before the 1980s also tends to be acidic from alum-rosin sizing (added to the paper to reduce absorbency and minimize bleeding of inks), which, in the presence of moisture, generates sulfuric acid.

• Acids also form in paper by the absorption of pollutants -- mainly sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Book leaves that are more brown and brittle along the edges than in the center clearly illustrate this absorption of pollutants from the air.

• Research by the Library of Congress has demonstrated that cellulose itself generates acids as it ages, including formic, acetic, lactic, and oxalic acids. Measurable quantities of these acids were observed to form under ambient conditions within weeks of the paper's manufacture. Moreover, paper does not readily release these acids due to strong intermolecular bonding. This explains why pH neutral papers become increasingly acidic as they age.

• Acids form in alkaline paper as well, but can be neutralized by the alkaline reserve.

• Besides acid hydrolysis, paper is susceptible to photolytic (damage by light) and oxidative degradation.

• Photodegradation appears to progress more severely and rapidly in poorer quality papers.

• The role of oxidative degradation appears limited compared with acid hydrolysis, except in the presence of nitrogen oxide pollutants.

Generally speaking, good quality paper stored in good conditions (cooler temperatures; 30-40% relative humidity) are able to last a long time -- even hundreds of years.

Why then do we see paper that looks like this?

Most of what you see here is water damage. If you read the list above from the Library of Congress, you will see comments about the different ways that water or chemicals can increase the acids in the paper. These different factors cause the paper to deteriorate. What about this paper?

This is mold damage. If the humidity is too high like it is all summer here in Maryland, this will be the result. Remember, there was no such thing as air conditioning just a few short years ago. I grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and I was in my last year of High School before we had air conditioning in our home.

With these examples of the damage that has been and can occur to our valuable records, every day we are grateful for the opportunity to do our small part in the preservation effort undertaken by FamilySearch.

Genealogy and Proof

The concept of "proof" would seem to be central to making advances in genealogical research. In some areas of genealogical research creating a "proof statement" is the goal of "real" genealogical research. One genealogical certification organization, the Board for Certification of Genealogists, has constructed a detailed "Genealogical Proof Standard."

Having spent a great portion of my life involved in the legal profession and representing clients in the U.S. court system, I have been constantly focused on the concept of proof in many different levels. However, in a genealogical context, the idea of "proof" takes on a whole different dimension.

If you read the publications from the Board for Certification of Genealogists, you will see that the definition of proof used is basically a "sound conclusion." There are entire books explaining how to arrive at such a "sound conclusion." Meanwhile, even genealogical writings that are not related to board certification contain an abundance of legal terms such as proof and evidence. If you take classes about genealogical research or read any of the hundreds of books available, you are likely to find references to the "research cycle" overlaid with references to proving your conclusions with a preponderance of the evidence. You may also find references to gradations of evidence, such as primary and secondary evidence.

As I have written previously, focusing on the legal or professional levels of determining sound conclusions or proof can be frustrating and in many cases less than useful. Meanwhile, through technology, we have developed a method to determine if our conclusions are valid or not.

Before I write about technology, let me propose a hypothetical situation. Let's suppose I am preparing to go to court for a trial. In preparation for the trial, I have gathered as much evidence as I can find. This evidence consists of documents, actual physical objects, testimony from witnesses and my legal arguments in favor of admitting the accumulated evidence during the course of the trial. My actions will be governed by the Rules of Civil or Criminal Procedure in force in the court where the trial is being held. All of this preparation is based on years of study in law school and further years of legal practice. When it is time for the trial, I go to court with my client and all the evidence and present my case to the judge or jury. Hmm. However, all the time I am preparing for trial and during the trial, there is another major factor. The opposing party is represented by another attorney who is just as prepared and trying to prove me wrong. The opposing attorney will present his or her client's evidence and make his or her's own arguments. Ultimately, the judge or the jury will decide my case. I may win or I may lose.

When we are seeking historical information about our ancestors are we trying to prove our case? Who is our client? Who is the judge? Who determines whether I am right or wrong? How can I prove anything in the context of historical genealogical research? When I ask questions like these, I am trying to show the difference between an adversarial proceeding in court and conclusions derived from historical research. There are no genealogical courts or judges. The underlying reason for constructing a "proof statement" in genealogical research is to convince yourself you are right. However, in a professional genealogical context, a proof statement may be used to support publication in a professional genealogical journal or to satisfy a paying client.

In my years of experience in the courts, I have been forced to provide the judge or jury with reasonable and well-supported arguments based on my personal conclusions. If I am successful, I have proved my case. Some attorneys claim they have never lost a case. I suggest that such a statement cannot be true unless the attorney has withdrawn from every case where an unfavorable decision was possible.

Likewise, even well reasoned and supported "proof statements" made about some ancestral relationship can be questioned and may ultimately be shown to be inaccurately determined. So how does this happen? When was the last time you read a well documented, professionally prepared, genealogical journal article? Have you ever taken the time to read all the footnotes and look up all the source citations? When you did this, did you come to a conclusion that was different than the author's conclusions?

Now, let me switch over to the present state of genealogical technology. Let's suppose that I decided to enter my genealogical data into an online family tree program such as the FamilySearch.org Family Tree. Depending on whether or not I support my entries with sources, documents, and photos will determine whether or not others agree with my conclusions. Should I be surprised that others might have different information and disagree? Let's further suppose that I think I am right. Isn't this merely a conclusion I have come to based on whatever level of genealogical research I have done?

The Family Tree is a forum where we can publish our genealogical conclusions and have them challenged by anyone who might be interested. It is an open forum with an unlimited ability to provide peer review. What about the "crazies" and the "ignorant?" So what? How many crazy people and ignorant people do you think I dealt with as a trial attorney? Including some judges and some juries? The important factor about having a venue such as the Family Tree is that it isn't a narrowly focused set of conclusions wrapped up in a journal article, although the same conclusions can be used in making entries in the Family Tree. By putting your information out there in the Family Tree, you are employing the ultimate forum for discussion and conclusions.

Will you get frustrated? Of course. That is the nature of publishing your conclusions no matter what the venue. What about all those people putting wrong conclusions in the Family Tree? Again, so what? If you want genealogy to be adversarial and conclusory, then put your information in the ultimate venue for review: the FamilySearch.org Family Tree.

Hmm. One more comment. If you are trying to make a living from genealogical research, then you still need to play the game by the professional rules. But if you are interested more in finding your ancestors as accurately as possible, then the best place to do this is in the free-for-all Family Tree.

One last note. In Arizona, where I practiced law, if you represented clients before the Registrar of Contractors, you immediately found out that they did not abide by the Rules of Procedure used by the courts. They had their own rules. It was always amusing to me to see how upset the opposing attorneys, who did not know about this change in the rules, could become when I did not "play by their preconceived rules based on the Rules of Procedure." I see the same reaction to the Family Tree from those who think they can prove genealogical conclusions.The concept of "proof" would seem to be central to making advances in genealogical research. In some areas of genealogical research creating a "proof statement" is the goal of "real" genealogical research. One genealogical certification organization, the Board for Certification of Genealogists, has constructed a detailed "Genealogical Proof Standard."

Having spent a great portion of my life involved in the legal profession and representing clients in the U.S. court system, I have been constantly focused on the concept of proof in many different levels.

If you read the publications from the Board for Certification of Genealogists, you will see that the definition of proof used is basically a "sound conclusion." All of these terms when used with genealogy are extremely vague and subject to personal interpretation.


However, in a religious context, the idea of "proof" takes on a whole different dimension. Obviously, much of my interest in genealogical research is religiously motivated.

Remembering RootsTech

RootsTech.org

Compared to the photo above, the first RootsTech Conference, held in 2011, was a quiet affair. The official attendance was around 3000 people. I was invited to attend as an official "Blogger." There were about a dozen of us. I have been an official blogger or Ambassador and every RootsTech Conference since the beginning. As a side note, from the current list of "Ambassadors", it looks like there a still a few of us scheduled for the 2019 Conference.

Back in those early conferences, the emphasis was more on "tech" than the more recent conferences. During the first few conferences, I spent much of time going to classes and writing. One of the high points of all the conferences was the introduction of the FamilySearch.org Family Tree program. For me, another interesting experience was my substitute presentation as a "Keynote" speaker for MyHeritage.com. At RootsTech 2017, I spent most of my time presenting for The Family History Guide, where I serve as the Chairman of The Family History Guide Association. I missed physically attending RootsTech 2018 because of our serving as Full-time Senior Missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Washington, D.C. North Mission. We are Records Preservation Specialists digitizing records at the Maryland State Archives in Annapolis, Maryland. I am looking forward to being back, in person, to the RootsTech 2019 Conference.

Except for a few minutes to eat or rest, I am usually busy every minute I am at the conferences. In the last few conferences, it seems like I lose my voice about half-way through the conference but get it back after I keep talking.

This next year's RootsTech 2019 Conference will be better than ever. It will be held from February 27th to March 2nd at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah. I will probably be attending the BYU Family History Technology Workshop the day before and then traveling from Provo, Utah up to Salt Lake City for the Conference.

I hope I will be seeing some of my readers there at the Conference. I am not hard to find.

More than Handcarts

Illustration in History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century of Mormon handcart pioneers. A depiction of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints en-route to Salt Lake City.

The terrible tragedy of the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies in crossing the Plains to Salt Lake City has become iconic but it is hardly representative of the pioneer experience. As I have written previously, all of my 16 great-great-grandparents and one of my great-great-great grandparents were pioneers. Not all of them crossed the Plains, some came to Utah from Australia by way of the West Coast but none of them came by handcart. My wife's ancestor, Edwin Pettit, walked the entire way with bare feet. See Madsen, Susan Arrington. 2008. I walked to Zion: true stories of young pioneers on the Mormon Trail. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.

Presently, in the popularly available media, almost every video and most of the images of Mormon pioneers show them walking with handcarts. As a genealogist and a historian, I am somewhat disturbed by this narrow focus on only one aspect of the pioneer experience. Estimates are that there were about 70,000 people who immigrated to Utah and who are classified as pioneers. Technically, a pioneer is someone who traveled to Utah between 1847 and the completion of the Intercontinental Railroad in 1869, although some use 1868 as the cutoff date. Of those 70,000 pioneers, only 10 companies of about 3,000 people came by handcarts and only two of these companies ran into the difficulties usually associated with handcarts. By the way, according to the Church History website, "The Trek" it took an average of 75 days to cross the country by handcart and 95 days by wagon.

Tragedy on the trail was not limited to handcart companies. My Great-great-great-grandfather, John Tanner, was a pioneer to Missouri and seriously injured when hit in the head by one of the mobbers who drove them into Missouri. He later crossed the Plains and died in Cottonwood, Utah. My Great-great-grandfather, Sidney Tanner, lost his wife, Louisa, and a newly born infant son in Winter Quarters. After his loss and because he had small children, Sidney married my Great-great-great-grandmother, Julia Ann Shepherd while preparing to go west. Julia carried in her arms her newly born daughter Julia Ann Tanner all the way to Utah. On July 27, 1848, Sidney's six-year-old namesake, Sidney Tanner, Jr., was killed by being run over by a wagon while he was driving the team and fell backwards under the wagon.

Sidney's pioneering days were not over when he reached Utah. He and his family were called to settle in San Bernardino, California. After establishing a farm and a becoming settled, they were then called to return to Utah because of the Utah War. They settled in Beaver, Utah. However, my family's pioneering days were not over, my Great-grandfather, Henry Martin Tanner, was called by Brigham Young to pioneer the settlement of the Little Colorado Colony in Arizona. They settled in what is now called Joseph City, Arizona. The Tanner's pioneering activities extended over three generations and several moves.

Nearly everyone who as a pioneer heritage can tell similar stories. But being a pioneer is not limited to those who crossed the Plains before the railroad. Everyone who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is either a "pioneer" or descended from one. We all have stories about our own conversion to the Gospel of Jesus Christ or have an ancestor who was converted. Many of these more modern pioneers have stories of courage and sacrifice that matches anything suffered by the pioneers who crossed the Plains.

Handcarts are a convenient iconic representation of pioneers, but perhaps we are doing a disservice to our children and grandchildren by giving them the impression that "real" pioneers walked across the country pulling handcarts. One of my ancestors, my Great-great-great-grandfather George Jarvis, was converted in England and came to America and spent about four years in Boston, Massachusetts before he made enough money to take his family to Utah in 1860. When he arrived in Utah and got settled, he and his family were called to settle in St. George and help build the Temple. They spent years of poverty and privation in St. George before they were finally settled and able to support themselves. One tragedy that occurred was that their son, seven-year-old Thomas William Jarvis was killed by lightning while sitting on the steps of the St. George Tabernacle.

Pioneers had and still have a difficult life. But I think it is unfair to repeatedly refer to one group of pioneers as the "epitome of suffering" while neglecting to include the larger picture of those who suffered and incurred losses in different ways. It is convenient, in a way, to show handcart pioneers struggling through the snow, but perhaps those who died else on the Plains like my Great-great-great-grandfather, Jens Christensen, who died in 1866 in Nebraska while crossing the Plains or even those who lived and died in places like St. George and Joseph City should also be remembered for their own sacrifices. When I hear or sing the hymn "They, the Builders of the Nation," I am thinking about the wind in Joseph City and the heat of the desert in St. George and a hundred other places where my ancestors lived and raised families.

We should never forget the tremendous sacrifice of the Willie and Martin Companies, but likewise, we should try to expand our memories to include all those others who through the years braved rejection, persecution, and scorn for accepting the Gospel of Jesus Christ and joining His Church.

I am reminded of the words of the hymn:

They, the builders of the nation,
Blazing trails along the way;
Stepping-stones for generations
Were their deeds of ev'ry day.
Building new and firm foundations,
Pushing on the wild frontier,
Forging onward, ever onward,
Blessed, honored Pioneer!

All pioneers in the Church should be blessed and honored. 

A Plethora of Pioneers

For me, pioneers were not something out of a history book, I lived with and knew people who had traveled by wagon to settle in Arizona. My Great-grandmother was born in 1878 and she traveled by wagon to Arizona as a child when the pioneers in Snowflake, Arizona were still living in houses dug out of the sides of hills. For us, the 24th of July was not just a day off for Utah workers, it was a week-long celebration with a rodeo, a parade, cookouts called a "Camporama," races, patriotic speeches, dances, and parties. My pioneer ancestors did not have to be discovered, they were my reality. Every year, there was a huge presentation with short plays and at the end, a diorama with everyone singing Come, Come, Ye Saints.

Today, for most people in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints outside of Utah where the day is a state holiday and some parts of Arizona, the 24th of July is just another day. As a genealogist and family historian, I can look at my pedigree chart and see that every one of my ancestral lines has pioneers. Some of my ancestors did not cross the Plains in wagons but arrived in Utah by way of boats and overland travel from Australia. But all of them, all 16 great-great-grandparents traveled by wagons to settle parts of Utah or Arizona.

The definition of a "pioneer" in the Church has now expanded to include all those who sacrificed their lives and property to join the Church whether or not they ever traveled to Utah or even came to the United States. By the way, when we talk about the Utah pioneers, we need to remember that the first pioneers to Utah beginning in 1847 were traveling to Mexico to get out of the United States.

FamilySearch has published a whole series of blog posts on ways to discover your own pioneer ancestors. It saddens me when I talk to someone who obviously has pioneer ancestors in whatever part of the world and who cannot relate the stories of how they joined the Church and the difficulties and challenges they went through. My Great-great-great-grandfather, Jens Christensen and one of his daughters, died while crossing the Plains. His name and the names of other of my relatives who died crossing the Plains are memorialized in a monument in Nauvoo, Illinois on the banks of the Mississippi River.

People ask me how I got started in genealogy. If I really think about it, I have to come to the conclusion that I was born into the whole idea and pursuit of family history and genealogy. I may have started my actual research only 36 years ago, but I was destined to become involved because the pioneers gave me no other choice.

A Family History Mission: Conferences, Webinars, Presentations, and Posts

Maryland State Archives

No. 72

Note: You can do a Google search for "A Family History Mission James Tanner" to see all the previous posts in this ongoing series. You can also search for "James Tanner genealogy" and find them or click back through all the posts.

This past week we were asked by FamilySearch to help with a conference in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. We traveled up to Pennsylvania and stopped off to have a nice dinner with my daughter and her family who live outside of Philadelphia and the continued on to the conference. It was the 91st Conference of the Registers of Wills and Clerks of Orphans' Court Association of Pennsylvania. 

The purpose of our attending the conference was to help the representative of FamilySearch meet and offer to help the individual counties of Pennsylvania preserve their records and share them with FamilySearch. It was a busy conference and we met dozens of Registers of Wills and Clerks of the Orphans' Court. It was very successful in making a lot of attendees aware of what FamilySearch can offer in the way of records preservation. The FamilySearch representative made a lot of contacts. We spent two busy days and then drove back to Annapolis in time to work on digitizing records on Thursday and Friday. 

For us, a major part of our full-time mission has involved doing the same things we have been doing for years, that is, teaching, presenting and attending conferences. So far, I have done a few presentations on genealogical research and a couple of webinars. I recently did one for the Brigham Young University Family History Library and have more planned for each upcoming month. Here is one I did this last month.

Technology and Genealogy: A Perfect Match

I have also been spending every Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at the Annapolis, Maryland Family History Center helping patrons and doing a lot of genealogical research. Every Sunday, under the direction of the Branch President of the Spa Creek Branch (Spanish) we are also helping the branch members with finding their own ancestral names to take to the Temple. They recently had a successful excursion to the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Temple to do ordinance work. The Washington, D.C. Temple is closed for two years for renovation. We spend the Sunday School time in the Family History Center and assist the members in signing on to FamilySearch and as a result, they have seen an almost 100% increase in activity. That is really an accomplishment for such a small Branch. This increase has come about from the direct involvement of the Branch President and the Elders Quorum President in encouraging the members to meet with us.

In addition, we have been helping the other missionaries serving with us with their own family history and several other people we have met while here in Annapolis. I also carry on my usual round of posts on my blogs and helping people remotely using the FamilySearch.org Consultant Planner. I just finished helping the wife of one of our friends from Provo find some ancestral names.

A full-time Senior Mission can be a wonderful opportunity to serve and use your own talents to assist the members and others in your area with opportunities to learn and grow in their testimonies and activity. We will continue to have opportunities to help both members and those outside of the Church during the rest of our mission. As I mentioned, I have more webinars coming for the BYU Family History Library. See the schedule on the Library's webpage. I will also be presenting at the Washington, D.C. Family History Center in August. We joined the Anne Arundel County Genealogical Society and I will be presenting a conference on October 27th. I will also be presenting for the Family History Expos Virtual Conference in October. I will also do additional webinars for the BYU Family History Library. That is what is planned so far.

As we are able, we are still involved in helping The Family History Guide. We do plan on helping more actively when we return to Provo however.

Meanwhile, we work all day every weekday that the Maryland State Archives are open digitizing records for FamilySearch and the Archives.

Please consider taking advantage of your opportunity to serve a full-time or part-time mission as a Senior. 

Real Issues with the FamilySearch Family Tree Continued

Yes, I am back to the post I just wrote about "Is there really a fundamental issue with the FamilySearch.org Family Tree?" One of my regular commentators and a few others have made comments that greatly expand on the issues raised in the original post. Because the original post and the subsequent comments raise such important issues dealing with the FamilySearch.org Family Tree, I decided to continue writing about these topics.

Because the comments are so extensive, I will simply highlight quotes from the comments and then respond with my own commentary.

Comment Quote "I have detached a completely empty source, and re-attached a number of US census entries"

This quote goes to one of the most basic but contentious of the Family Tree; the ability of any user to make changes, additions, corrections, and etc. to any of the entries in the Family Tree. This is the real distinguishing feature of a wiki-based program. As I have written several times in the past, historically, genealogists have been mostly solitary, individual researchers. They are not used to operating in a public forum or collaborative environment. They also have a tendency to believe that their own conclusions are "perfectly accurate" and disbelieve that anyone else is competent to understand what they are doing. So the "changes" made to the Family Tree are upsetting and threatening to their worldview of how genealogy should operate.

Here, an "outsider" is able to make changes to an entry merely because he or she wishes to do so. This is easily the most persistently made complaint that I have had to contend with throughout the existence of the Family Tree. This brings us to the next comment.

Comment Quote: Much of the trouble people have stems from a lack of historical background, a lack of understanding of parts of Family Tree, a tendency to assume the worst of other people, and refusing to ask, “Why?”

OK, this is a multi-part quote. Some of these comments may apply to some people. There is a general lack of awareness of the historical background of the people in the Family Tree. There is also a general lack of knowledge about the Family Tree and specifically about how and why it works so well. I also see a significant number of people who assume the worst about those making changes. I find the opposite. Most of the people who I deal with on the Family Tree are simply trying to help. They are either apologetic or embarrassed when I explain what they have done. I don't find much collaboration or cooperation outside of my own family, but that is mainly a function of the size of the Family Tree and the small number of people who actually work at cleaning up the entries. 

Comment Quote: Family Tree [originates] from multiple different databases created from multiple different computer programs from multiple different decades for multiple different reasons with the goal of not losing any information it was inevitable that a certain amount of static would accumulate through the multiple conversions of the data.

I guess static is a better term than garbage, but the effect is the same. Before getting upset about the information in the Family Tree it is a good idea to analyze where it came from. Was it user submitted? And even if it was user submitted, did the user simply copy some handed down copy of an accumulated family history? If you realize that the Family Tree is the composite of over 100 years of accumulated genealogy, you can begin to see that even as people make "corrections" what they think is "correct" can come from unverified information they inherited from family members. There is still a huge amount of this type of information in the Family Tree and even more, sitting on family group records and other programs waiting to be used to "correct" the accurate information in the Family Tree. 

It is extremely easy to determine if the information either already in the Family Tree or that has been added is accurate or verifiable. If there is no source given for the information, it has to be assumed to be unverified and very possibly inaccurate. 

Comment Quote: Considering history, would one rather have no sources transferred, trust an automatic, illiterate computer routine to discard certain sources, or have all the sources transferred and need cull them oneself? I think the third was the only viable option and I’m glad FamilySearch programmers choose that.

I very much agree with this comment. 

Comment Quote: Hmm, this pertains to a lot of comments about using the term Jr.

Depending on the time frame, the term Junior, abbreviated Jr., does not imply a relationship between the parties. It was commonly used to distinguish between two people with the same name living in the same community based solely on age. It is not appropriate to add this as a suffix or title or whatever unless you a record showing that the person was given the name Junior at birth or used it during his lifetime. By the way, adding Roman numerals such as I, II, III etc. is also a really bad idea. Again, unless this found in a source record about the person while they were alive, it is not part of a name and should be avoided. 

Comment Quote: Nothing done since complete implementation of the Change Log is lost. Every bit of information the person ever had and everything ever done to the person is there. Admittedly, it is not always the easiest document to wade through but the information is there.

Again, I completely agree. You should not be worried about losing information. But, it is a really good idea to have your own separate program if you have a tendency to worry about such things. 

OK, I will probably come back to this again, when I have more time to address the rest of the comments. 

Remember: The Family Tree is the solution, not the problem.