Advice before editing this pre-1700 Griffin profile?

Question

I have information to contribute to the profile of Samuel Griffin. This is what I can add:

• In 1747, Samuel Griffin took the Freeman's Oath in Newtown, Connecticut.  

These are the sources I am using: 

Johnson, Ezra and Jane Eliza,  Newtown’s History and Historian Ezra Levan Johnson, Newtown, Connecticut, 1917, p. 119.

Should I contact one of the pre-1700 projects or know about any style guidelines before proceeding? Thank you!

Answer 1

I'm a long way away from being any kind of expert in US genealogy, but just looking at the source you have, I would say it is not enough to add the information to Samuel Griffin's profile.

The source is a published book from 1917, which is a highly derivative work. Does it cite sources? If so, it's better to try and find the original source. Only if the original source no longer exists, but was still in existence when the book was published, would I cite the book, along with a note what the book is citing.

Since I cannot look into the book itself, there is no way for me to know if this Samuel Griffin is actually the right Samuel Griffin. Are there any other identifiers given in the book, aside from the name? If not, you'd have to be especially certain that this is the right Samuel Griffin. An original source can help with that, as can looking into if there were other Samuel Griffin's at the time.

My advice would be to use this bit of information as a jumping off point to seek out original records. You'd have to ask someone with more knowledge about that time and place in the US if you want or need help with that, though.

Comments

Mulder-2419, thanks for your comment. I appreciate it! The book is a commemorative history by the town's historian, which includes transcriptions of historically noteworthy lists from official town records, including names of early town proprietors, those on early tax lists, and those included in official actions at town meetings. I referenced information from a list the author cites as Volume 4 of the town records described as "being complete," and he lists the names of those at the second Freemen's meeting in 1747 [undated] who took the Freeman's oath. While that helps provide more specificity, I think it is good advice to see if the original records are still available for confirmation.