Data Doctors: What to do if a source is attached to a private tree on Ancestry and you need it to validate.

Question

Data Doctors:  What good are sources that are attached to a tree which is private on Ancestry or Family search?  The extra time to ask permission to view the tree is frustrating.  Any suggestions?

Comments

To work on your Family Tree means you have to be something of a sleuth, a detective .  It takes a lot of time, but it’s really a lot of fun to maybe you will find the mark or  signature of one of your very own 1700s ancestors.  Clues can be found in family memorabilia, wills at the county courthouse.  Planning a trip with a family member to do some research in a particular town is great fun. You visit local libraries, Cemeteries, points of Historical interest, and the courthouse and maybe the church or churches.  And you have lunch and/or dinner and marvel over your discoveries. published genealogies very often have mistakes so you  must verify their sources if they have any.  If not, it’s unreliable And up to you to find a source.  Family stories  often turn out to be just stories, sometimes with a grain of truth . 

  I hope you have the chance to start on this very interesting quest. 

Answer 1

That is just another reason to look for other sources than a family tree.

Comments

Oh, I couldn’t agree more.  But when you are looking at other peoples work and are asked to clear up their sourcing thru the Data Doctors...and their source is a private tree.  You see my point...Time.   A previous answer really helped. I am new to helping sourcing others work.

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A "family tree" is NOT a source

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Yes, I know a tree is not a source but the information in the tree that the person posted as its source is blocked because the person made their tree PRIVATE.

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The flippant answers here don't help much.  All well and good IF it is sourced elsewhere. But if that is the only known source and it is not accessible what is to be done?

You could try contacting the owner of the tree if this is possible.  If not add a research note saying where else sources have been looked for and not found. But leave the inaccessible source, it may be resloved one day.