Finding FamilySearch Source List Images
The image on the upper left is a typical example of the Memories tab on a FamilySearch person page that has not been enriched with the images available in the list of Sources. The image on the lower left is that same Memories page once the Sources list's images have been located and added.Finding FamilySearch Source List Images PowerPoint PDF
Finding FamilySearch Source List Images PowerPoint PDF Handout Version
Someone new to family history will view Memories long before they will view, understand, or utilize the Sources tab. Original documents speak to hearts. They validate a person's life and give us a peek through the window of time. When documents are made readily viewable in Memories novices may see a census or vital record for the first time. When these documents are about people that are meaningful to them they engage more fully in family history. Because of this, there is great value in enriching Memories pages with images of original documents.
Without doing any research the sources listed under the "Sources" tab on a FamilySearch person page can lead us to many of these precious images of original documents. Unfortunately, these images often remain hidden behind the text in the Sources list. Within the individual source references themselves, links to the images break or the images become unavailable due to contract changes with the repository where the documents originated. Original documents often give more information than the indexed version and allow us to catch mistakes or typos that indexers or family members may have made when entering the information.
Many images are readily available but there are also many that are not. I have included in this PowerPoint different representative scenarios for finding images online. Your journey in tracking down images may differ but you can see the processes that may be employed to assist you. It may take a little work to find some images but the pay off is worth it!
I encourage and challenge you to track down all of the images possible from the Sources lists on your first four generations of ancestors and download them. Crop the black borders off of the images to pretty them up a bit but don't crop the image to just your ancestor's information. The entire page is valuable for document analysis. Properly title the images and then upload them to FamilySearch. Tag and attach the document to the people mentioned in the document. I recommend adding the source citation to each memory in the Description box including the URL.
When we add images to the Memories on FamilySearch those memories are being stored in the Granite Mountain Records Vault. This is one of the best sources for online storage for your family history. You are future proofing your research and that of others while making it readily available to you, your family, and posterity.
For ideas on naming and organizing historical images see the post:
For help uploading images to FamilySearch see the post:
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