Thanks for visiting the Canada Project, Trans Canada Trail style guide and Help.
The most important part of a profile is the sources that are on the profile. There are a number of different styles and formatting options we can use when adding sources to a profile. But the most important thing to consider is what information needs to be in the sources.
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What is a source?
A couple of notes on terms. You can probably use the words source, reference and citation completely interchangeably. But here we'll try to be consistent.
- a source is the place where you get the information from.
- a reference is the description of the source in the biography.
- we won't worry about citation here, but we usually use it to mean an inline reference
So, for example, a source might be the 1921 Canada Census for Ontario, but the reference is the way that we explain where to find the source, and exactly where in the census the data is located.
What counts as a source?
In theory, almost anything can count as a source, including family history. But it can be tricky to document family sources in a way that is rigorous and clear enough for project work. And for the Trans-Canada Trail, we have created a set of reliable resources that represent verifiable sources that are excellent for Canada genealogy.
It's important to understand that this does not mean that these kinds of sources don't have mistakes. There can be misspellings, wrong dates, or completely wrong data in these sources. We also need to be careful with sources, to make sure the data is collected from them correctly. Even if the original document is correct, people can copy names or dates wrong, or miss critical information.
It's also important to understand that just having sources on a profile doesn't mean the profile is accurate. It's very common that a source can be used on the wrong profile entirely. For instance, you might see a list of children, born in multiple countries and with birthdates that are too close together (or more than thirty years apart). We still need to read the claims that are made, and evaluate whether it makes sense.
So, for these and other reasons it's important for a reference to describe the source clearly, explain why we are using the source, and provide enough information for other researchers to go back and check the source.
Some examples of sources that might be okay, but have insufficient references are:
- FamilySearch: Family search is a great resource, and we encourage hikers to use references from FamilySearch. But by itself it doesn't tell us anything
- Canada Census 1891: this suggests that if we look, we'll find that person listed in the census, but we can't tell anything else
- Birth record: similarly, it suggests that the person in the profile has a birth record, but nothing about where to find it, or what it says
- https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMXQ-MM1: this is somewhat better. The link takes us to a document. But by itself, we can't tell what the document is, or what it says, without going to a different website
- https://central.bac-lac.gc.ca/.item/?app=Census1871&op=img&id=4396322_00045: this too is a good source, but as a reference it doesn't tell us anything
What information should a reference have?
Wikitree prefers an approach to references called Evidence Explained. This means that a reference should have a certain amount of explanatory information in it for anyone to understand it, without leaving the profile, and not just a url link, or a couple of words.
What is that evidence? Different people might have slightly different opinions about the format or exactly what belongs, but a useful approach is to consider (and taking birth record as an example):
- Who? This refers to either the author of the source, the creator (often a religious or government entity), or the informant: Province of Ontario, Vital Records.
- What? The title of the source comes next. It's usually easy it to find at the top of the record: Statement of Birth, Mary Harriot Boucha, French Portage - Lake of the Woods, Kenora, Ontario, Canada.
- When? Typically you cite the year a book or microfilm was published; if it is a journal or magazine, add the month or season. For a website, add the access date: 03 Nov 1900, Accessed Feb 19, 2024.
- Where within the source? This could be a page number, an image number, or any other way to explain to others how to find the source again: Digital Folder Number, 004656991, Microfilm Number, 2057343, Image Number, 1231, Indexing Batch, I11326-3
- Where in the world is the source? This could be the publisher’s city and state, the URL, or the place you’d go to view it if unpublished: FamilySearch. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMXQ-MMY
See also: Canada Project Source Citations
How to do this?
For FamilySearch, the preformatted citation has much of the necessary information. You can find this on the document transcription (not the image) page. [as of Feb, 2024] The repository information is on the same page, under the "Document information" menu (see the image linked on the current page). If you were to take all that information and put it into a reference, it might look something like:
- "Canada, Ontario Births, 1869-1912", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMXQ-MMY : Thu Dec 07 16:48:33 UTC 2023), Entry for Mary Harriet Boucha and William Allen Boucha, 03 Nov 1900. Digital, Folder Number, 004656991, Microfilm Number, 2057343, Image Number, 1231, Indexing Batch, I11326-3
Or, better, if you were to use the Evidence Explained format above, it would look like:
- Province of Ontario, Vital Records. Statement of Birth, Mary Harriot Boucha, French Portage - Lake of the Woods, Kenora, Ontario, Canada. 03 Nov 1900, Accessed Feb 19, 2024. Digital Folder Number, 004656991, Microfilm Number, 2057343, Image Number, 1231, Indexing Batch, I11326-3 FamilySearch. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMXQ-MMY.
Either way, it's obvious what the reference is about, where and when it was found. Most importantly, there's enough information for anyone to get back to find it again. Even if the website changes, and the URL breaks (this happens sometimes) and someone needed to go to a different website, or to the microfilm, it would be clear how to find it again.
Not every Evidence Explained style reference will have exactly the same order, or content. But it should be enough to answer those basic questions. And on a single profile, the style and formatting should be consistent. The Canada Project has a number of template examples you can use to help.
How can I add a source to a profile?
We'll discuss more complicated inline citation later. The easiest way to put sources onto a profile though is to add them as a bulleted list at bottom of the profile.
This should be below the references tag, for instance:
- == Sources ==
- <references />
- * Nova Scotia Historical and Vital Statistics. [https://www.novascotiagenealogy.com/ItemView.aspx?ImageFile=1816-88&Event=birth&ID=67236 Minnie Laura Coldwell Birth Record.] Registration Year: 1868 - Book: 1816 - Page: 88 - Number: 308. Accessed 2021.
- *"Massachusetts Marriages, 1841-1915," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-6PV3-CDY?cc=1469062&wc=3PMM-6TL%3A1063286001 : 24 May 2018), 004279727 > image 608 of 1060; State Archives, Boston.
See an example of this style on the profile of Minnie Laura (Coldwell) Alfred (1868-abt.1928).
Notes
This guide isn't meant to replace the main help pages. You should always refer to the main pages to find:
