Genealogy Chat

I am very new to reseaching my family tree and didnt realise that this huge argument exhistied or that people would take people from your tree that they are not related to.
Until today i didnt even know how to hide those that are living, although i've yet to decide whether i want to do this as other people who share my tree have children not hidden and so it would be easy enough for anyone to find them if i were to hide them.
I have researched and have my own stock of census', birth certificates, marriage certificates and the like but i have not copied them onto here that they are the sources of my info because as far as i'm concerned i know they are my sources and if anyone RELATED wanted to know my sources i'd tell them.
From the half a dozen people i have shared my tree with so far there have been gains on both sides from sharing as sometimes i have had more knowledge on one branch and they've had more info on another and so sharing has been useful.
If i take this info from others trees is this stealing when its out there to share? I dont see that someone taking parts from my tree as stealing but sharing. If after granting access to my tree at the same time they granted me access to theirs and i dont see the connection i withdraw the access.
Am i being niave to believe that a site called Genes Reunited is about being United?

Just more names on their tree, Fiona... I have to admit I am a recovering name-aholic ;-) ... when I discovered the second wife of the father of two of my cousins on here (I guess he's no longer officially my uncle as the 'blood' connection is that his first wife - and my cousins' mother - is my father's sister!) I set about merrily copying a lot of her names onto my tree just so it would have more names on it.

Then I metaphorically slapped myself about the face with a wet haddock and realised none of her family were actually related to me, and trimmed my tree back to just show my cousins' father's 2 marriages and the parents of his second wife. Thinking about it now, I'm even considering pruning her parents and just leaving her on... how times change!

Whilst I am in the main in support of the gist of this thread, I do agree that the twigs on our trees are not our personal property. However, our time and money spent researching it are. As Pat says, the word sharing has a meaning in the dictionary, and people that are quite happy to take info from us, without recipricating really annoy me. But my biggest dislike is for those that seem intent on connecting everybody in the world. I had someone take a load of info from my tree, and although they did open their tree to me, it took me ages to work out how they related to me. I eventually found that a distant cousin of mine had a wife, who had a distant cousin, who had a husband who had a half-sister, who had a distant cousin who was the person whose tree it was. There was so much zig-zagging up a branch, down the next , then up again, etc, etc. I got dizzy. When I looked again a few months later, they had continued the trend from the other half of my tree. What is that all about ?!?!?

The best way I think is to keep your tree simple and then give others information if you think the query is genuine. Most of mine is still in folders and can still share. Some twenty years ago a couple brought there photocopy machine to our home and I allowed them to copy a lot of material on his side of the family. (A line shared by my husband) and a couple of years after they had a unveiling of a monument for this direct relation, ( a 35 min drive away)and we never knew a thing, til we read it in the newspaper. The word SHARED has a very good meaning to it. I have jotted down names from others trees that interest me so I can check them and I wish to be corrected if I have something wrong often helps to break down that brick wall.

I think we all have been the victim of a 'tree thief' at sometime and it will always go on.

What upsets me most is when I, personally, have never put my kids names in my tree, even hidden as living, I then find that someone else has given them away to others whose only connection to you is in the 16thC.

Tina -
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I have found my own and my living relations names on the site


I must admit I'm somewhat puzzled abt how one can steal something that's been given away.

The information on your living relatives is all out there if anyone wants to find it. A recent contact (with a shared ancestor) on GR was given access to my tree and a few days later emailed me a detailed document which, amongst other things, named all my living relatives giving dates (quarters) and places. The information was not on my tree - I had typed in each one as "living person". This person had ALL the information, including some that was unknown to me.

It's pointless to get uptight about the possession of the information, distressing as it may be; we all now live in the age of easy access to information, which how we were able to construct our trees in the first place!

I only keep a skeleton tree on GR. My complete trees (4 of them) are all private on Ancestry.

If I receive a query I am more than happy to provide details which I may have of their immediate family but no more. Branches are only of interest to me and those people included on the branch.

I have received and given lots of information but only to people who are truly related. When I get a request for tree details from someone who has thousands of names a great alarm bell starts ringing.

It's all give and take, within reason. Without help from others I would have been stuck with some rellies who did nothing remarkable and just sunk into the murky past.

nameslessone

I once queried this and it transpired that the entire 'stolen tree' consisted of about 20 names in all.

Reading threads such as this you can easily get the impression that there are 100's if not 1000's of names involved.

Can someone tell me how you copy a 'whole tree' off GR?
I sometimes sit here for hours taking notes on just the little bits that match my own family.

I understand helen's point - okay have the information if you are related - but why do you want info on people who have nothing to do with you?
someone wanted info on my dad's adoptive father - therefore no relation of mine or my mum's at all, and not much to do with my dad's side, as dad was 14 when he was adopted! I offered him info off my own back, but unfortunately GR had a 'glitch' and my tree was opened to him.
He took everything - including my mum's side of the family.

I realised my tree was open and closed it - and he 'assumed' where my ancestors had come from. Now there's a family tree that is totally wrong on the internet - and he's giving this information to others!

Oh - and he never did find out the slightest personal thing from me about 'The Commander'- who was a very interesting man!!!

having my research "borrowed" does not annoy me too much.
What annoys me is the people who take all the information, and the £££ that I have spent on getting certificates and then do not give anything back.
They do not get the certificates for their part of the tree, they don't do their own research, and they don't have anything to back up their claims other than other family trees.

Just because 4 people tell you a lie does not make it the truth.

I have now got to the stage where I don't even accept a tree on ancestry as a source unless I have looked at it and it is obvious from the exact dates on it that they have carried out extensive research of their own and can back up the facts that they have.

Fiona

This happened to me so I removed the tree and replaced it with a very basic one. I have put name, year and place of birth and nothing more and have left off living relatives and all the personal information that I don't want to share with just anybody.

'My' tree does appear on Ancestry (twice by the same person) but I can't do anything about that.

As I said, I am happy to share; however, I am not happy at personal information, just one example being family nicknames, being put on a person's site.

I agree with Mick in the Sticks on this, I have been a little surprised on occasions to find myself on other peoples trees but its not really a problem. Loads of my info comes from other people (though I do ask if I can add it to my tree) and I pass on as much as I can. Surely the more of our trees that are published, the more chance there is of tying up with distant family members.
Jayne

Those who 'steal' information from other trees also risk copying incorrect information, there are several trees on GR which include my surname, the majority have all copied errors from others without checking their source of infomation. If you are not happy, you are under no obligation to share.
Jon

Tina,

If you read the debates on this subject you will see that these so called 'tree stealers"' are not doing anything wrong, so there is no-one to name and shame.

This is a public site any info you post on here including access to a tree is liable to be copied to anybody you open that tree too, if you do not wish people to copy your information then it shouldnt be on the internet but on a hard disc for your use only.

I personally have no living relatives on my tree on this site, the tree i have on here is opened to people who have a proven connection and if I open it I am basically saying I,m willing for the information to be shared.

Mrs / Ms Meercat you are after my own heart,. I have also have put a plant in my tree that is completely ficticious.

If this doesn't catch them then query their research when

i) you suspect they have copied from your tree and
ii) you have changed your original info because you have new info which proves it was a load of whatsits.

at which point.... let them squirm to come up with their proof, which by now you know doesn't exist

Simples.....!

I have also experienced this problem, of people stealing my family, this man has even got my dad on his tree, its caused upsets with my living family members, i thought Genes never showed living relatives!
Cant we name and shame these family stealers without us getting into trouble just to warn others?

Tina