What assumptions can ever be safely made?

[RecursiveS]

In my mind, any database representation should reflect only the data in the original documents.  A database should collate data.  Assumptions can be applied to data but not be loaded into it.   Otherwise it can give a false idea of "truth" which can only be what is in the original documents.

I agree Andy & Guy's posts are good ways of firming up your assumptions for summarising data.  Many parish records include places of residence this would also validate supposed connections.

Thank you for your comments, and to Sillgen for hers.

I, too, now have the view that I cannot make any assumptions (however logical and valid they seem to be at the time) as if I cannot absolutely guarantee that the Adam & Eve who had a child in 1831 are the same Adam & Eve who had a child in 1833 then I risk missing valuable links or skewing the entire database. So, the (possible) duplicates go in then!!!!

Incidentally, Boongie Pam, I would be interested in talking to you about how you are dealing with a similar type of large scale database....

Thanks again to all who have replied and set me on track for many hours of filtering out the duplicates 

[Guy Etchells]

I suppose this could be classed as genealogy on a village/town scale - I need to capture the information first and then make the links as and when further data becomes available to narrow down the possibilities...

I had similar problems working out some relationships in my Bottesford Families database (genealogy of the entire village) and I am still firming up some relationships after many years work.
Sometimes it is only additional records such as witnesses to marriage, wills or land etc. that solves the mystery, but that is what makes it interesting.
Cheers
Guy

[downside]

Hi RecursiveS

Bear in mind that parish priests sometimes make mistakes, they are only human.  Sometimes it is spelling mistakes and sometimes they make even bigger mistakes such as a name being completely wrong.

If the children are still alive by 1841 you can get additional cross-referenceing from the census otherwise it can be an act of faith as to whether you have the right children matched with the right parents, particularly if it is a common name.

downside

[RecursiveS]

thank you downside....

I am currently re-thinking the whole logic of this...

Have some thoughts on new ways to approach this and will report again if they have any apparent merit.....

Thanks again to all who took the trouble to reply.