RootsChat.Com
Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: Sandrafamilytree on Wednesday 26 July 23 09:09 BST (UK)
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Apologies if this has been asked before. :)
I recently submitted 2 queries/reports to Ancestry, as when I clicked to view the Census returns in question, the images presented to me were completely wrong.
I just wondered, as a general point, are Ancestry good at correcting these reported errors?
Will they just correct them, and not tell me that has been done?
Will they correct them promptly... or take ages?
Or will my reports just go into a black hole somewhere?
I guess I want to manage my expectations!
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Morning!
In my experience, both Ancestry and FindMyPast have been very good at responding to reported errors. Might take about a week or so though.......
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Morning!
In my experience, both Ancestry and FindMyPast have been very good at responding to reported errors. Might take about a week or so though.......
Thank you for the prompt response. ;)
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Morning!
In my experience, both Ancestry and FindMyPast have been very good at responding to reported errors. Might take about a week or so though.......
FindMyPast have just got back to me about a report I made. They have completely ignored what I said though. I was looking for a baptism record, and this particular record was in their Denbighshire Baptisms records. However, the record says "sepulta fuit", which means was buried, as I pointed out to them. This was on a whole page of burials, although I'm sure there were baptisms somewhere in the same book.
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Find My Past have to date never corrected an error that I flagged up in 2019. There is a child on the 1911 census image who is not on the transcript.
In 2020 I reported the error by filling in the relevant boxes. When I checked again last year 2023, still no correction made. I have just checked again today and still no correction.
Makes you wonder why you bother to report problems with images/transcripts when nothing is done.
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Since I started this thread, months ago, I've reported a few Ancestry errors where the image does not match the supposed search result - pretty basic stuff.
I haven't necessarily checked every one since then, but where I have bothered to check, the errors are invariably still there.
I'll probably still report errors I come across, but I no longer expect them to be put right. :(
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Ancestry make no money from correcting errors so they don't bother!!!
About 8 years back i reported an error on 1841 census for Holme,Huntingdonshire where the transcription moves the parish to Hertfordshire,at the time i posted this on Huntigdonshire board to alert others and responses showed about 8 parishes were wrongly recorded.
Just now i have checked the board and my post and responses have been deleted!
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I have found that generally Findmypast deals with corrections, which is one of the reasons I consider it to be a better site. They give space to explain the correction and will correspond about it, but they cannot deal with some transcriptions without images which they have "bought in" from other sources, largely from LDS origins.
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Ancestry make no money from correcting errors so they don't bother!!!
About 8 years back i reported an error on 1841 census for Holme,Huntingdonshire where the transcription moves the parish to Hertfordshire,at the time i posted this on Huntigdonshire board to alert others and responses showed about 8 parishes were wrongly recorded.
Just now i have checked the board and my post and responses have been deleted!
Four generations of my ancestors lived in Holme so I am painfully aware of this issue. It has been like that since I first started using Ancestry in 2012. There's a similar problem with Holme in 1881 where the residence place is indexed as Glatton.
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I've not had many good outcomes in dealings with Ancestry or its users. As JAKnighton says, they make no money from corrections so they don't seem to bother. I've frequently found errors in entries, including one classic in which an ancestor was recorded as still working as a lorry driver at 124 years of age! The author had merged two sets of different family records to come up with this gem.
As a general rule, I suggest that a useful guideline is to look at the number of supporting documents and actually check that they match the records shown. If there are any errors, it's probably more helpful to contact the author of the information (although you can sometimes get a frosty reply).
Good luck!
Peter
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I reported an error in the 1911 Census Entry for my Paternal Grandparents about 10 years ago now.
Ancestry have mixed them up with a family a few doors away and put them as all living together, even though the Census pages show them as living inseperate households.
I wrote the error on a note attached to the Entry and I’ve phoned Ancestry about it, but nothing has ever been changed.
In my opinion it’s a waste of time pointing out errors to Ancestry. FindMyPast however, do make changes and corrections if errors are pointed out.
Romilly.
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Apologies if this has been asked before. :)
I recently submitted 2 queries/reports to Ancestry, as when I clicked to view the Census returns in question, the images presented to me were completely wrong.
I just wondered, as a general point, are Ancestry good at correcting these reported errors?
Will they just correct them, and not tell me that has been done?
Will they correct them promptly... or take ages?
Or will my reports just go into a black hole somewhere?
I guess I want to manage my expectations!
Oh Ha Ha!
Ancesrotry coreect ererors? LOL!
They NEVER correct ANY errors!
Why?
Because it would cost a fortune!
Their indexing and transcribing is littered not just with random but with systematic errors.
So they don't bother. At all.
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I find it disappointing that archive services, including the National Archives, are happy to allow this sloppy outfit to make their holdings available online. I can only assume money talks for cash-strapped public services, but it is poor value because money is not being spent on good indexing and on corrections.
They are probably tied into a contract for several years, but if they all voted with their feet when possible and moved to a better organised British provider we would find a considerable improvement.