RootsChat.Com
General => The Common Room => Topic started by: LizzieW on Friday 16 October 15 16:37 BST (UK)
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I've just had an e-mail advising me that someone on Ancestry has contacted me about my 2 x g.grandfather, on behalf of someone else who also has my 2 x g.grandfather as his 2 x g.grandfather.
As I've not got a tree on Ancestry, how is possible to link me with anyone? I've even done a search for myself in case someone has a tree with living people in it, but nothing comes up.
I am going to respond and ask the person how he managed to contact me.
Lizzie
ps. Looking at the profile of the person who contacted me via Ancestry, I wonder if he is a Professional researcher. He is apparently researching on behalf of his friend who lives in Bridlington, but he lives in Hertfordshire.
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My first reaction from the thread title was that it is a run of the mill spam / phishing email and the fact that you actually have an Ancestry account is just coincidence. Don't click on anything inside the email to follow a link or respond.
Assuming that the message is Kosher (a big assumption) then there is no reason why somebody hasn't built a tree of descendants of a common ancestor. I don't have an Ancestry account so I don't know how he could have linked that to your Ancestry account.
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How odd, if you don't have a tree there I presume you just use Ancestry to look up records etc - so how could he know who your ancestor was? Did you ever have a tree on Mundia, as I believe they are now on Ancestry?
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Incredible Lizzie,
Maybe someone from this thread, http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=429965.0 ;D
Lucky you.......hardly anyone contacts me but then again I have minimal info. on ancestry........too time consuming, people helping themselves to info. with no interaction/contact.
Keep us informed of the outcome..........intriguing ???
Annie
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Curious and puzzling ................................
Sandra
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The only place I've ever had a tree was Genes Reunited and that's not up to date. My main tree is kept private on Legacy.
I went onto Ancestry direct - not via the e-mail and found a message waiting for me, so I guess it's a genuine contact. I've replied asking how he was able to contact me as I don't have a tree on Ancestry.
ammack - I wish. ::) I know all about the family in question, what I want is some psychic to give me information about my g.grandfather on another branch of my tree. As I said, I don't expect anyone to contact me as I don't have a tree on Ancestry and as I have all the info about this particular family, it's not even as though I've contacted someone else about it.
I'll let you know what the man's response is.
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Perhaps you've posted on their message boards?
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I've only ever asked other people about someone I'm interested in. I don't think that's what you call the message board is it?
If I don't get a response from the person who contacted me, I'll get in touch with Ancestry to find out what is going on. The only other thing I could think of was that Ancestry has taken over Genes Reunited, but that doesn't seem to have happened - yet
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Do you save records to your "Shoebox" on Ancestry or to your computer?
I get notifications about other people who have saved the same record as I have recently saved
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Have you submitted corrections to any of their transcriptions? Census etc?
I was recently contacted by someone with an interest in one of the corrections that I had made on Ancestry
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The only other thing I could think of was that Ancestry has taken over Genes Reunited, but that doesn't seem to have happened - yet
I thought GR was owned by Thomson's ie FindMyPast ;)
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I used to save records to Shoebox but not relating to the particular family that I've just been contacted about.
I've just looked at the Shoebox and can't see how that can be used by someone else to contact me.
Lizzie
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I also have never had a tree on Ancestry but I used to get notifications when someone accessed an entry on the National Probate Calendar that I also had searched for/accessed (I say 'used to', I'd forgotten about these but received another one the other day).
Could that explain how this other individual realised that you were interested in the same ancestor?
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Are you in the Member Directory? http://community.ancestry.co.uk/directory/directory.aspx
Stan
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Well, because I've not got a tree on Ancestry, the person who contacted me was not able to reply to my response ::) So guess what, he went on Genes Reunited instead and was able to contact me that way. He said the reason he could contact me via Ancestry was because I'd made a correction to a census transcription on Ancestry. I guess it must have been to do with the family he's researching.
So mystery solved and now I need to find out if the man he's doing the research for is just a friend, or a client.
Lizzie
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Lizzie,
He seems very keen on the info. you may hold & has gone to a great length to contact you via other means.........good detective work ;D
Annie
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He hasn't told me what he wants to know yet, apart from clarifying my 2 x g.grandfather's middle name, which is spelt wrong on a parish record on Familysearch.
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I have had similar contacts from people querying my relationship/interest in particular people following an amendment to transcriptions by me.
Often I have just spotted them and tried to be helpful . It is usually on the old census where neighbours are listed. Must admit though ,would have liked to be more helpful to the enquirers.
Fortunately here on rootschat we have lots of help.
Regarding the shoebox I have noticed things placed in mine unknown to me, must be the fairies!
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I've clarified that the middle name of my ancestor as shown on Familysearch is wrong as I have marriage and death certificates for my ancestor, plus birth and marriage certs of his children all showing the correct spelling. I've not had an acknowledgement yet. If, as I suspect, the person who contacted me is a professional researcher, then I don't expect to hear from him again until after the weekend.
Lizzie
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Not sure why the other person can't reply to your response on Ancestry. I don't have a tree on there either, but can exchange private messages with other users.
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My guess is he doesn't have a tree on there either. His comment when he contacted me via GR stated
"You had made an amendment to a census transcription on Ancestry which gave me your address.
Could not reply to your reply through ancestry so am using GR".
I've just been on to Ancestry and did a random search to find a name that had been corrected. I clicked on View/Add alternative information (if no-one has added alternative information it just states Add) and it gave me the name of the person who had submitted the info (well probably the name the person uses on Ancestry). Clicking on the name brings up the person's profile and their interests - presumably if they've added anything - but also a box to click to contact the person.
I'm surprised that having contacted me that way, he couldn't then reply to my answer. Perhaps something to do with neither of us having a tree on Ancestry.
Lizzie
ps. Just found one of the corrections I did. Not only was the surname transcribed wrong, the place of birth which should have been Boston was mistranscribed as Preston (Lincolnshire!!). In my correction about the name, I also mentioned that although I didn't think they corrected place names, the place of birth should be Boston, and not Preston. Much to my surprise there is also a correction for this.
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Surely you don't need a tree on Ancestry to be able to contact anyone - just a subscription? Perhaps he isn't a professional researcher but uses the library edition and that is why he couldn't contact you?
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Groom - he contacted me via Ancestry originally, so it's a bit surprising that he couldn't then respond via Ancestry to my reply to him. I've not heard from him since I confirmed the middle name of my ancestor which had been spelt wrongly in the parish records of his baptism.
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Hello Lizzie,
I think I am related to "John Frederick William Alden" how can I get in contact with you?
I think he had a son called "Charles Frederick Alden" born 1905 Sculcoates Yorkshire.
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Colin - make one more post, and you'll be able to use the personal message system - the little document icon under your name.
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I.d be thrilled if someone contacted me on ancestry ..I chose that site because I thought more people used it.But message box remains closed .....i can't even tell if mails sent by me have been read.
I.m glad you worked out how the contact was made
I have contacted people on there about their trees showing living relatives....!