M Williams

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Biography

Past member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society with a Masters in Library Science. Genealogy researcher for 30+ years. I do my own research, whether in the field at archives, libraries, government repositories and cemeteries or through communication with other generous researchers who have passed invaluable research information to me. I am always extremely grateful for this. When people are willing to share their hard earned research with me, I believe it is a priceless gift. One of the reasons why I contribute to WikiTree.

I endeavor to find primary research records for every BMD. If primary sources are no longer available (as so many records in New Hampshire were lost: 1. by fire or other natural disaster), 2. Physically carried away into the unknown (as when a minister's records left the church when they did), 3. Inadvertently destroyed (like so many of the 1820 census'), 4. Or ravaged by time (as in old paper and ink records ill-preserved so that they are no longer readable, and headstones that acid rain has erased or washed away in floods), I rely on the many family genealogies that were written in the late 1800s - mid-1900s. I, of course, document all of this with sources. Unsourced family genealogies are primarily used as finding tools, but believe they are also not to be disregarded entirely. Some of that information came directly from the ancestor's family records, and are to be revered as such.

I endeavor to find multiple sources for any information I provide, and if conclusions are drawn based on ancillary information (a person's birthdate is approximated by the date of birth of their first born child), I notate that clearly. I shy away from any information that is not from a primary source, or is backed up with primary source records. I do not include information as fact that doesn't have a primary source. I may offer it up as a finding aid for those researchers who want to develop the idea further.

My main area of interest is the New England states, 1600s-1800s. I don't research overseas, except for a tiny amount that is possible through access to genealogy programs that contain European records (as in Ancestry.com). This is both because of practical reasons (i.e. access to records), my limited knowledge of European history, languages and genealogical resources, and finally the amount of time I have to work on all this.

Sources

• First-hand information. Entered by M Williams at registration.