Hints and Tips Sixteen: Writing

Genealogical Reports

L earning how to write accurate genealogical reports is an essential

skill that every aspiring genealogist must learn. While at first they
may be daunting, writing genealogical reports can become part of
your research routine and will help you sort your thoughts about your
ancestors.
From what we learned in Hints and Tips 5: Standards and Good Practice in Genealogy,
there are many principles of genealogical research. These principles also apply
extensively when writing genealogical reports. There are many types of reports that you
could write, including Research Reports, Proof Summaries, and Narrative Family
Histories.

Research Reports
Research reports are usually written concurrent with research, or after a research
session. They usually are written to track your personal research, to share with family,
or to eventually become a professional genealogist. These reports are meant to tell a
reader what records were searched, and what was found in those records (nil searches as
well) during a research session. These reports become a valuable resource when
coupled with a detailed research log.

Multiple research reports can be written on one genealogical family, depending on how
much research is done. When writing a research report, try to follow a format that
works best for your research topic. Here is a basic outline that can help with writing
your own research reports:

 Title: The research report can be named anything; most common names are the
family you are researching and the region they lived.
 Focus of the Research: What your research goals were, if you found what you
expected, etc. Quick overview of the research process.
 Record by Record: If your research was done searching record by record, rather
than by person or surname, write the research report in the order of records
searched.
 or Person by Person: If your research was done searching for specific persons in a
record, organize the report generation by generation, and then person by person.
This will help the reader understand your train of thought and will be much more
efficient for writing.
 Conclusion: Any final thoughts on the research process and what was
accomplished.
 Further Research Suggestions: This can include a step by step guide of what
research still needs to be done, which would include source notes. This will make it
much easier to pick up the research where you left off.
When writing a research report, you can use many different things to make the report
informational and interesting. Graphics, tables, charts, abstracts, and timelines help
make the research report more accessible. Detailed footnotes and source citations will
help the reader know where the resource came from. It is also useful to separate your
report into sections with headers, page breaks, and creative white space on the page.

For specific examples of research reports and how they are written, please visit the
Board for Certification of Genealogists (US) website, http://www.bcgcertification.org/.

Proof Summaries
Proof summaries are reports meant to analyse a specific genealogical question, rather
than an entire research session. Proof summaries can be about any genealogical
question, (who are the parents of my ancestor, where was my ancestor born, etc.)
although they are most commonly written to establish parentage of an ancestor.

It is difficult to outline what goes into a proof summary, because each report is different
depending on the research question and what records were available for searching.
Proof summaries can be in two different formats: line style and narrative style. A Line-
style proof summary outlines the record that was searched, a description of what
information was in the document, and how that helps solve the genealogical problem.
The records are not in the order originally searched, but are ordered in a way that solves
the genealogical problem.

Here is an example of an entry from a Line-Style Proof Summary:

1. Dorset Militia Lists, Sturminster, Dorset, 11 May 1764. List of men ‘chosen by lotts’ at
Cast Meetings of the Subdivision Term of three years, or men who provided substitutes to
serve in their place and stead. Summary of important points:

John Smart took the place of West Stower, a servant. John Smart was from Hazelbury
Bryan, Dorset, a laborer, age 19, 5’7”, single.

 John Smart’s baptismal record states his baptism in 1747, which would make him sixteen
years old at the time of his service (someone had to be eighteen to serve in the militia).
John’s older brother, Robert, who was actually nineteen, was mentioned on the same page
as John on the militia lists, which suggests that John may have lied about his age and
served with his brother in the militia.

Source Note: John Smart (11 May 1764), Hazelbury Bryan, Sturminster District, ‘Dorset,
England, Militia Lists, 1757-1860,’ digital images, original at Dorset History Centre, L/A
1/2/1, www.ancestry.co.uk.

A narrative proof summary will use the same format as a line-style proof summary, but
the information will be written in an essay style, rather than with bullet points. Here is
an example of the same entry in narrative style:

The only other record found before John’s birth was found in Ancestry’s collection of Dorset
Militia Lists 1757-1860. John Smart was listed in the Dorset Militia Lists 11 May 1764 in
Hazelbury Bryan, Dorset. According to the record, John Smart was chosen ‘by lotts’ from all
the men in Hazelbury Bryan to serve for the term of three years in the Dorset militia. John
was a substitute for West Stower, a servant living in Hazelbury Bryan, Dorset. On this
record he was listed at nineteen years of age, was single, and was 5’7”.
Although the militia list stated that John was nineteen, the information from his
baptismal record suggests that he was closer to sixteen years of age. It was likely that it
 wasn’t an issue that he was younger than his proposed age. Also found on this same page of
militia lists was a Robert Smart, who may have been a brother of John Smart.

Source Note: John Smart (11 May 1764), Hazelbury Bryan, Sturminster District, ‘Dorset,
England, Militia Lists, 1757-1860,’ digital images, original at Dorset History Centre, L/A
1/2/1, www.ancestry.co.uk.

Narrative Family History

Narrative family histories are very different than research reports or proof summaries;
these are reports that contextualize the lives in the family group. Along with original
sources, these types of reports bring in information from secondary sources and
scholarly articles to help bring the events in the genealogy to life. There is a specific
style of narrative family history that can be written, called a compiled lineage.

Compiled lineages normally report on each generation searched, which includes every
individual in that family group, similar to the pedigree form used by Burke’s Peerage.
Compiled lineages have a specific way of formatting that should be followed. A
compiled lineage can be formatted as ascending or descending, depending on how the
research flows. It is then started with the father of that family group, followed by the
mother, and then the children. Here is a basic outline for the first generation:

First Generation
1. Ancestor CONDICK, son of Grandfather Condick and Grandmother Yarlett, was born...
2. Mother BROOME, daughter of...
i. Child CONDICK was born...
ii. Child CONDICK was born...
iii. Child CONDICK was born...

As you can see, a compiled lineage has a specific numbering system, starting with
numbers for the parents, and roman numerals for the children. This numbering is
continued after the last number for the parents, (ex. 3) and the next generation of
children pick up the next roman numeral (ex. iv).

Many genealogical programs, such as Roots Magic, have a function that can create the
basic format of a compiled lineage, (including the numbering system and source notes)
but they normally need some editing before they can be presented.

The types of sources that can be used to supplement the vital information from a
genealogy can vary, depending on the even that you describe. For example, if a child
was born during WWII, there will be many secondary and scholarly sources that will
outline what life was like for children during the war. Try to think outside of the box by
looking up more scholarly articles, rather than genealogical sources when writing a
compiled lineage.

By writing genealogical reports, you will be able to get more out of your research. Your
research will be elevated, as well as your writing skill, and you will be closer to
becoming a more successful genealogist.

Further Resources
Ancestry, The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual. Washington DC: Ancestry
Publishing, 2000.
This document was written by Abbie Black 2013.
© Society of Genealogists 2013.