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How does Gedidiah willis connect to Smith? I see a source links to Ancestry that gives a location to where Gedidiah lived but how does that link him to Smith?
The fact that Gedidiah is named as Smith's father implies that it is true. The GREAT thing about WeRelate is that info has to be backed by a valid source. I can't find anything that suggests that. Is there somewhere else that I need to go to find the facts? This is a wonderful site and I know a lot of hard work goes into this. I am finding it much easier to navigate and I thank all who are involved. ruthnevada
- WeRelate IS a great site, if for no other reason than that it gives people a clear opportunity to show what their information is based on. Unfortunately, most data elements (such as DOB's and DOD's etc) still have those little red question marks beside their entries to show that a source is needed. Much data gets drawn in as "best available" but probably should be regarded as "provisional until we can document this fact better". WeRelate is still in its infancy, and since most genealogists haven't a clue as to what's needed to document facts, its going to be a while before data such as this can be verified and validated. Lots of stuff are simply taken on faith until someone gets around to doing better.
- More specifically as to the evidence for Gedediah being the ancestor of Smith Willis, that connection was made by a researcher on this line some time ago, who is now deceased. As far as I know this was speculative, based on geographic proximity. What's here is a pointer to be explored, proven, and perhaps accepted or rejected as the data develops.
- Even more specifically, while WeRelate has a clear method for identifying the source of specific facts, it does not have a good system for identifying why we think a particular person was the son of a particular couple. There are workarounds, and ways you can do it, but WeRelate still needs an explicit way to handle this. On the otherhand, I don't believe anyone else has really solved this problem either, and there are probably more pressing problems to be dealt with. IF there's a will that lists children, then that can be cited in one of the editable fields besides the persons name. Or discussed on the family page. An alternative, especially for more complex situations, is to create a standalone article (article space, not person space) that lays out the reasoning for things like this. The truth is, this is probably the hardest, most important thing to prove in genealogy. And often gets short shrift. Q 18:49, 29 May 2012 (EDT)
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