G2G: I want to add a fully sourced profile for my 4th ggf but find an old incorrect unsourced profile for him

Question

When I find an incorrect unsourced profile for my ancestor, I feel that I should create my own fully sourced profile although technically it is a duplicate.   I wrote to the owner of the unsourced profile but got no response.

Comments

Is his profile open so you can edit it?

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yes its open to editing.

Although I have 50 years experience in genealogy, I'm new to Wiki and don't know the protocol of editing profiles managed by someone else.

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You can see WikiTree’s guidelines here: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:Communication_Before_Editing

If you haven’t received a response in 3 days and have good sources to back up the new info, then go for it! 

If you are making minor changes, or the profile has had minimal work done to it, you don’t need to communicate first.

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Your 4G grandparents were born in the 1700s. With people who lived that long ago, you are not going to upset another descendant who has fond personal memories of the ancestor and doesn't want their profile to be sullied.

You should, however, be respectful of their work. In the profile text, describe the data you found on the profile and indicate why you think it was wrong and what your sources were for the information you replaced it with. For example, you might say that the profile showed a marriage date of 1782, but cited no source, so you replaced it with the marriage date of 1774 that is documented in the vital records of Anytown.

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@ Chris, unfortunately, unresponsive profile managers are not uncommon. A manager does not "own" a profile or the content, they are merely an active member w/ an interest in that profile. If you have a desire to follow that profile, ask to be on the trusted list. I interpret open profiles as an invitation to add and improve. Since this is a collaborative. effort, I don't hesitate to contribute if I have a source

Answer 1

As you know its never good to create a duplicate!  Here is a wikitree help page on what to do when a profile manager is unresponsive. 

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:Unresponsive_Profile_Managers

Answer 2

You definitely don't want to create a duplicate profile. 

Here is a help page for how to handle unresponsive profile managers: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:Unresponsive_Profile_Managers

I've found wikitree very quick to respond where I have had issues with unresponsive profile managers.

You can also of course edit the profile directly. If you've done everything you can to contact the manager and not getting a response (within a reasonable time frame), you are able to make edits. Just be ready to back up you edits with sources. 

If you haven't already you can also comment directly on the profile and see if it gets a response.