Wednesday, June 21, 2006

On The Shelf : Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian by Elizabeth Shown Mills

This book is arguably the best guidebook for genealogists and family historians wanting to be sure that they cite sources in a orderly manner. I know that when I started working with my genealogy, I wasn't always worried about sources. When I did cite a source, more often than not, it was an incomplete source. Consequently, I'm now trying to go back and re-cite my sources. Invariably, I've come across disputed facts in my family tree.

Evidence! has been one of the best-buys in my genealogical library. I've been using its suggested citations as I go forward and update my files. Elizabeth Shown Mills is a well-respected genealogist who has put together an easy-to-read work that anyone can follow. You do not need to have a Master's degree in library science to understand these citation formats. Plus, being a genealogist, Ms. Mills has developed citations for the types of documents that are unique to genealogists. For example, I never had to cite a tombstone on any term paper, but now that I'm working with genealogy, it can come in handy to have a standardized format.

Published in 1997, this book will be a staple of my library for years to come.

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