Marienburg Alte Haüser an der Nogat
Tips & Opinions

Publish your information

Publishing genealogy information seems important to me.  I suppose that ought to be obvious enough just by the size of ManyRoads. But why go to the trouble?  What is the value?

I can only answer those questions from my perspective.  Perhaps some of our readers might be willing to chime in via comments on this page.  But for me the value lies in these areas (in no particular order):

  1. Much of the information I have found was difficult to locate, I’d like others to find things more readily.
  2. It seems every time I find information, a few years late it has vanished.  Often the very sites where the original information was published have disappeared.
  3. I believe that sharing information, photos, knowledge encourages other to do likewise, whether with me or others it matters not.
  4. Our history is too important to lose and we need to facilitate its dispersal.  Redundancy is a sure buffer against loss.
  5. Selfishly, I want to have my family remembered.  And, publishing family history is a reasonable way to encourage remembrance of both the people who and places that have slipped into history and the past.
  6. Organizing related threads of information makes the individual components more meaningful.  Context can be re-established; linkages become more obvious.
  7. Meeting new found family members.  I have met untold numbers of family members with whom I was previously unacquainted.
  8. A sense of community, I have been amazed with the breadth and depth of community that exists among and between fellow genealogists.
  9. Seeing the information ‘on paper‘ provides a unique perspective, as well as sense of belonging, that I find to be uniquely valuable.
  10. The family history archive provides a unique memorial to our collective journey through life. It makes the family real, tangible and alive. It assuages loss and promotes healing and understanding.

We are those for whom we search. Without them, we would not be.

ManyRoads Creator, Professional Genealogist, Family Historian, ManyRoads Podcast co-host, Old Guy and most importantly 'opa'