Does anyone check the google map pin?

Question

I am curious if anyone bothers to verify the accuracy of the google map pin at all and make possible adjustments if it is an error. I know we have to call it what they did but sometimes it is an error that is easily fixed. for example.

Kallstadt, Rheinpfalz, Königreich Bayern gives an error but when translated "Königreich Bayern" is Kingdom of Bavaria. So if it was changed to just "Bayern" it would still be correct and then possibly work. After all I don't put that I live in "The State of Maine, Country of United States".

This probably is not something that would come up in a suggestions report but is it worth consideration when dealing with place names?

Comments

Not any more, most locations are not compatible with modern place names

Answer 1

I have given up checking the map pins because the results are so bad for locations in Sweden.

I did some very quick checking, and to my surprise some of the locations actually turned up. But mostly one would have to remove either the village name or the parish name in order for the Google map to show a result, which is the consistent experience that soon made me give up th map pins.

For genealogy purposes it is crucial with Swedish locations to have the parish included, since that is how the records are organized and archived. There are same-name villages all over Sweden, and there are villages with the same name as a parish somewhere else.

In unsourced profiles imported from elsewhere it often happens that the locations only include one place name followed by county and country. This makes it a challenge to find the sources, since the place name can be either a farm/village or a parish. If it's a parish you're probably OK - but if it's a village you're in for some serious digging around.

So adapting location names in data fields to what the Google map provides will all too often cause extra work for somebody else at a later stage.

Answer 2

Hi Steven, as someone interested in history as well as genealogy, Königreich Bayern is specific to a time period, 1806 - 1918 and also around the time of the formation of Bavaria into a Kingdom there was quite a lot of swapping of territory in Europe, so it is specific to a geographic area as well.

If we just used Bayern, it could be anytime from about 554 or earlier to now and both the history and geography would be much more general.

I prefer the specific to the general, but perhaps that's just me?

Answer 3

I have not bothered with it, as my guess is that the google maps pin would give the current names for the location and could just add to more confusion.

Answer 4

Only by accident. As others have mentioned it helps only if you are looking to find a current location and then it only is a very rough estimation for that location. Since we should be following the standard of using the locations as they were at the time of the event the map pin has almost no usefulness to genealogy.

Answer 5

I have looked at them, but like everyone else has stated they don't translate well. With the way names and actual locations have changed over the years. I don't really trust it completely...

Answer 6

I do if i am clueless to where some place might be. Some profiles just have a name with no country, and if it is an obscure name the maps usually give an indication to the country at least.

Answer 7

Rarely, since when the location is (as it should be) historic and not current, Google Maps will not find it.

When I want to find where a place is, I google it to find out the current location, and when I have it use Google Maps.

I hoped there was a quicker way by adding the current location in a category, but apparently the new fashion is to use historic location categories as well, so even that won't work anymore.

To clarify, I want the locations in the data fields to stay historic, so I don't see the point of having the map pin there for old profiles. I would like the map pin to be used near a location that works with it. That should be the subject of a Suggestion thread.