Sourcerers Challenge (June 2023)

+21 votes
4.5k views

Hello, Sourcerers! It is time to start sourcing! Prior month Owl Stickers and Sourcerers Badges will be posted soon.

To participate:

  • Review the Rules
  • If you are new to the Sourcerers' Challenge, click the "Answer this post" button (not the comment link) and tell us you are participating

You only need to answer this month's post if you don't already have the Sourcerers' Badge. You are welcome to add an answer to ask questions or offer encouragement.

If you have a problem with the Tracker let us know by using the comment link to the question that opened this thread. 

USING THE TRACKER

The tracker should only be used when the profile meets the Monthly Challenge definition of Unsourced (see the Rules). Add a comment to the question if you are unsure if something counts as Unsourced. You can use either the Unsourced Profile Category or the DBE Report for Unsourced profiles to find profiles that will definitely qualify. The Orphaned profiles category is another great place to look for unsourced profiles. 

After you save an edit, a green banner appears at the top of the profile edit page with a dark “button” labeled Challenge Tracker is a link to the Tracker page. Click the link and, on the page that comes up, select Sourcerers challenge and click the appropriate hint in the right column (or fill in your own if none of the canned answers fit what you did). Click Add Action and you are finished. The Tracker records the number of profiles to which you have added sources. You can see the results for any monthly challenge using this link. The current month is at the bottom

http://wikitree.sdms.si/Challenges/SourcerersChallenge/default.htm

Remember, your sources need to be as full and specific as possible, so others find them useful. That means, if the source is online, you should link to it. If it is a page from a book, the page number should be included so others can easily see where you found the reference. Some books and magazines have free-space profiles to help with citation formats. Find them in the Sources Category. If the book does not have a free-space profile, consider adding the WorldCat permalink to help others find the book.

When you can, it is great to do a bit more while adding sources, like clean up the GEDCOM leftovers or help the formatting from older profiles. Sources are important, but if you cannot find them among all the other stuff, they are not helping as much as they could.

If you attempt to add sources to a profile and cannot find any, please add a note under a == Research Notes == section (click the link for examples and instructions on placement) giving where you tried to find records. Something like "Looked for John in the US Census records for 1900-1940 and could not find him on FamilySearch or Ancestry" would be fine. Or, "Searched google for an obituary and did not find one." That way the next researcher knows where to start. Do not remove the Unsourced Template and do not use the tracker to count in your tally.

The Monthly Challenge runs from the first of the month and ends on the last day of the month, GMT time. 

The Current Challenge Tracker Results Page has up-to-the-minute stats for those of you using the Challenge Tracker.

http://wikitree.sdms.si/Challenges/SourcerersChallenge/20230601/User.htm

Ask any questions here in the thread, otherwise, SOURCE!

in The Tree House by Wendy Taylor G2G6 Pilot (141k points)

34 Answers

+11 votes
Would love to give this a try
by Katrina Graham G2G6 Mach 3 (30.9k points)
Welcome, Katrina!  I see you on the Tracker.  There is no need to track changes, unless you have added a source, or removed the Unsourced category if sources already exist on the profile.  Adding a link to the FamilySearch profile doesn’t constitute a source.

I hope the helps. Let me know if you have any questions.
Hi Katrina! You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge.
Thank you
+11 votes

"Sourcer" i am not clear how this works, but if someone will direct me how it works, i would be happy to "Sourcer"

by Robin Rohlmann G2G4 (4.2k points)

Welcome, Robin! It is not essential to use the Sourcer app. It just makes citing sources from Ancestry, for example, easier. Personally, I use FamilySearch.org wherever possible, as it is free and they provide citations which can usually be copied and pasted.  

So far as using the Sourcer app is concerned, first you need to download the version suited to the technology you use. There is a user guide provided - https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:WikiTree_Sourcer_User_Guide

I hope that helps

Thank you for your feed back, i have Sourcer app. but yet, i do not understand how to bridge the info to WT.  i copy and paste from Ancestry, Family Search, myheritage. i have download the version as you share i just not sure how it works

+10 votes
Never did this before, so no better time to try!
by Frank Skinner G2G1 (1.0k points)
Welcome, F!  I see you on the Tracker. You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge.
+10 votes
Think I resouced  two profiles, but did not sign up.  Sorry.
by M. A. Old G2G6 Mach 1 (14.7k points)

Welcome, M!  I see you on the Tracker.

FindAGrave memorials have a citation at the bottom which can be copied and pasted, or you can use the WikiTree template {{FindAGrave|nnnnnn}}, where nnnnnn is the memorial number. However, on the Sourcerer’s Challenge a memorial will need a photo of the gravestone.

The Sourcer app is good for helping to cite sources from sites such as Ancestry. See https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:WikiTree_Sourcer

Let me know here if you have any questions.

+10 votes
Thank you in advance on all thesources you add. Is there a way to bring sources into wikitree from other programs or does each one need to be created in wikitree? Is there a."best pratices" when adding sources. How do I join the challenge?
by Mary Ellen Wilhelm G2G1 (1.7k points)

Welcome, Mary Ellen! 

I usually copy and paste citations from FamilySearch.org, but the Sourcer app can help with citing the sources you find on sites like Ancestry. See https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:WikiTree_Sourcer

Let me know if you have further questions by replying here.

Hi Mary Ellen!  I see you on the Tracker, though you don’t seem to have added a source. The profile you tracked is too recently created to qualify for the challenge.  The Sourcerer Challenge is about adding sources to older unsourced profiles.

I suggest finding unsourced profiles you created before this month and adding sources to one of those.
+10 votes

I've not tried a sourcing challenge before, but I'd like to join in, please. I added the Sourcer app yesterday and had a practice, so I think I'm ready. smiley

by H Gibson G2G2 (2.6k points)
Welcome, H! I don’t see you on the Tracker yet, but will check back in a day or two.  Let me know here if you have any questions.
Hi H!  I see you on the Tracker now.  You should get your Sourcer badge at the end of this month’s challenge.
+8 votes

The Challenge Tracker doesn't seem to work currently. I added censuses to Edith Weaver and to Wilbur Sachsenmeier

by Jelena Eckstädt G2G Astronaut (1.5m points)
Hi Jelena! I have left a message for Aleš asking him to look into it. Normally, nothing gets lost, even when there is a delay updating.
When I can't use the tracker (no matter if locked profile or any other problem) I like to document the profiles here. (Edit: That's Jelena here, I didn't log out from the Project account)
Hi Jelena! Further to this, it has updated for me in the last few minutes, but I don’t see you on the Tracker.
+9 votes
I love owls... and finding Swedish sources.
by Kathy Pelletier G2G6 (6.1k points)
Welcome, Kathy! I see you on the Tracker. You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge. Have fun sourcing Swedish ancestors.
+10 votes
Joining late :)
by Sarah Fergione G2G6 (6.1k points)
Thank you, Sarah! Have fun source hunting!
+10 votes
Joining in while working on unsourced profiles for Florida.
by Melanie Seago G2G6 Mach 1 (11.4k points)
Welcome, Melanie!  I see you on the Tracker. You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge. Please note that while adding additional sources is great, the Tracker will only count one per profile.

Have fun with those Florida sources!
+10 votes
I'm adding some sources to Kentucky profiles!
by C. Proper G2G Crew (840 points)
Welcome, C!  I see you on the Tracker.  You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge.  Please remember to remove the Unsourced category when you have added sources.

Have fun sourcing Kentuckians!
Thanks for the reminder - went back and took Unsourced off the ones I did yesterday.
+9 votes

I will start to source. I am a newbie to the challenge.

by Ralph Geer G2G6 Mach 3 (35.2k points)
Welcome, Ralph!  I see you on the Tracker.  You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge. Have fun!
+9 votes
I have been sourcing a bunch of profiles but sometimes I forget to use the Tracker. Oh well, at least the work is being done.
by Liza Gervais G2G6 Pilot (402k points)
Thank you, Liza! All sources are appreciated!
+8 votes
One day left in the challenge? No sweat! Here's to joining my first Sourcerers Challenge with zero sweat to place high on the leaderboard. :)
by Jeff Ikeler G2G6 Mach 2 (21.2k points)
Welcome, Jeff! I see you on the Tracker. You should get your Sourcerer badge at the end of this month’s challenge.

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