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Your Guide to Evidence & Proof in Genealogical Research

Evidence is the information we use to reach a conclusion. Proof is the reasoning that explains the conclusion. Some evidence is "direct"; for example, a birth record is direct evidence of the date and place of birth -- which is not to say it is always correct! Some evidence is indirect; for example, that same birth record may give the names of the father and mother, serving as indirect evidence that a marriage probably took place sometime before the birth. Proof is based not on quantity, but on quality and consistency of the bits of evidence.

Books:

BBC. Genealogical Standards Manual. Provo, Utah Ancestry, 2000.

Mills. Evidence! Citation and Analysis for the Family Historian. Baltimore, GPC. 1997

Rose. Genealogical Proof Standard: Building a Solid Case.

Rubincam. Pitfalls in Genealogical Research

Articles in magazines:

"The Truth Behind the Family Legend" in Family Chronicle February 2007 pp. 12-15 tells several stories of how researchers tracked down the real stories behind the oft-repeated family lore.

Some online articles :

Dear Myrtle. Mythology vs. Genealogy

Neill. Organizing the Inconclusive with Discrepency Charts.

What is the genealogical proof standard

Board for Certification of Genealogists. Genealogical Proof Standard. -- a chart that neatly outlines the elements of the gps and lists the nature of the contributions to credibility inherent in each element. An older guideline was one called "the preponderance of evidence". The BCC explains why they replaced the older standard with the new genealogical proof standard. See also their article "Evidence Revisited: DNA, POE, and GPS."