Genealogy Jottings

Why does a person volunteer? Work for no pay must have a reward of some sort, or people would not do it. Usually they enjoy the work, or want the experience it provides, or see some benefit to others. Volunteers usually get treated well, but even volunteer jobs can have their downside.

Lately I have volunteered to index the 1940 U.S. census in the nationwide project orchestrated by the National Archives and the LDS church. I chose to work on Minnesota records because I have roots there. Many people from Nordic countries settled in Minnesota, and I am familiar with their ethnic names. I thought this would be useful in transcribing Minnesota records.

Thus, I have been frustrated by the project review process wherein arbitrators sometimes alter the names I have listed on the batches I do. I know that it is difficult to decipher handwriting, and I could certainly make a mistake on a name. But I get frustrated when an arbitrator changes a dubious letter to alter a common Norwegian name into a name that does not exist. Most recently, they changed Gravdahl to Gravdohl on a page I did. Yes, the second vowel was ambiguously written, but Gravdahl is a real name while Gravdohl is not.

I have had other questionable changes made, too. One arbitrator changed an obvious capital F (written just like all the F‘s in the gender column) to a Q. How will a researcher ever find this name in the final index?

Now, as far as I know, the arbitrator values stand. The software provides a feedback feature for disagreeing with the arbitrator, but it is not interactive. One does not know whether any further changes get made. I am finding it frustrating to see the arbitrators edit errors into the project when there is no real appeal process. I wonder whether anyone thought to match arbitrators with their ethnic areas of expertise.

This 1940 index is a massive undertaking, and the work has been fun. I wish the result could be perfect. But as has been the complaint with every census index ever made, there will be so many mistakes.