Can we get an arborist to do "post merge cleanup" on this profile?

+11 votes
322 views
Since this profile was created, there have been four other profiles merged into it (ien=153; 258; 164; and 375) There is no clear biography, but instead it seems as if there is a rambling argument that has ensued over the past seven years, and cut and paste (copywrited?)  "notes."   

I would tackle the job, and remove all but what can be substantiated with sources, but I am not one of the profile managers.  I think that the profile could benefit from the polish of a well-seasoned arborist.  Is anyone up to the challenge?
WikiTree profile: Michael Kauffman
in Genealogy Help by Janne Gorman G2G6 Mach 4 (40.4k points)
retagged by Ellen Smith
What a mess!  I hope someone with more seasoning than I will be able to tackle this.
Have you tried reaching out to the profile manager or other person who did all the notes; should be able to figure that out from the Change tab. Seems like they would be in the best position to clean up the profile.
The changes tab does not include any of the information from the duplicate profiles that were merged.  If the information is not included in the profile at the time of the merge, it is lost to the system.  This is a failure of the merge utility, as far as I can tell.
The information on the merged in profiles is usually retained in the changes tab. Was it not in this case?
There seems to be a change in how changes to previously merged away profiles are displayed. You can no longer click on a previous profile number in a change display to see ITS changes. BUT you can do a workaround by typing this into the URL window:

https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Special:NetworkFeed&who=

And adding to the end of that string the profile ID of the merged-away profile. This will display the old change page of the merged away profile. That will let you see who created it, who proposed and merged the duplicates, etc.

Information from the merged-away profiles is actually retained via the changes log, but it's somewhat hidden from view and isn't obvious how to get to it. The way I access them is this:

  1. From the changes tab of Kauffman-141, scroll down to an entry that shows a merge... for example the one dated 24 Nov 2014. 
  2. Click on the link for the merged-away profile Kauffman-153. This takes you to the change page for that profile. 
  3. On the last change (first on the list, dated 24 Nov 2014) for Kauffman-153, click on the link for "edited the data". This takes you to the page that shows the details for before and after the merge. 
  4. Everything in the left column is what was in the merged-away profile at the time of the merge. The right column simply shows the redirect command.
Hope that helps!
Thanks.  So do any of you who have commented happen to be arborists?  Am I allowed to "clean up" the bio and remove all the bantering that does not contribute to the person's life story?
I am actually an arborist.

If the profile managers won't engage and help with the cleanup, and you are pre-1700 certified, I don't see an issue with cleaning it up. A history of your changes will be retained in case it needs to be restored to its current state, for some reason.

Thank you for your generosity in being willing to step forward and take care of it. If you have any questions, you may reach out to me or G2G. My WikiTree ID is Hill-11959.
Joyce, wikitree no longer works that way apparently.  It used to but when I tested it this morning it redirected to the current profile.  See the workaround I posted elsewhere in this thread.
This profile needs to be cleaned up like the ones on other sites and locked to prevent further merges.  Until there are results from y-DNA most of the sons/associations should be removed.      THere is no historical support for a Michael "III".      Two of the 3 lineages mixed up in this profile have clearly defined haplogroup test results with highly refined y-haplogroup results.   The "Swiss" Kauffman lineage is R-Z36+.   Immigrant Michael Kauffman (i1717) is R-L188.   I really don't understand why, after several years, the owners of this profile and not removed the incorrect relationships.   This information continues to pollute the internet and this site.

2 Answers

+4 votes
Jillaine - That's strange that you don't get the same results I do. What I posted is exactly how it works for me. I just now tried it again and it worked. But it's good to know there's another way, in case it stops working for me in the future.
by Joyce Rivette G2G6 Pilot (178k points)
Your directions are how I access the merged away profile also.  For those that it doesn't work, they may be clicking on something other than "edited the data".
+5 votes

Okay, I found the birth records for this Michel Kauffman, born 1675 in Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland and that of Miichel Kauffman, born 1678, in Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland.
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Kauffmann-6. ) The christening records of the children of the latter ... who stayed put in Switzerland ... were easier to find than those of this Michel, who immigrated to Pennsylvania.  Someone who has better access to Mennonite records may be able to find them, though. 

I left the researcher's notes that said that this Michel has been disproved by DNA results because I really don't know how that works. I am waiting for the "fallout" to begin over my "cleanup" of this profile, since I am NOT an arborist.  Thank you for the comments from a member of the arborist group, who encouraged me to "step forward."  

by Janne Gorman G2G6 Mach 4 (40.4k points)

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