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Subject: Re: Subject: Clerk's copy -- original vs. derivative
Date: Mon, 3 Apr 2006 00:07:14 EDT

Rondina wrote:

> I have a simple question based on a
discussion between Donn and Craig about how to divide a bibliography.
Somewhere in this thread I became confused. Is the entry in the volume at
the
courthouse of a vital record considered an original or derivative source of

primary information?

Rondina'a question as to whether original vs. derivative has been adequately
answered (it may be either), but I would like to amplify a bit on "official
record copies"--those derivative records transcribed or photocopied into the
recording office's ledgers from an original which may no longer be in
existence.

As Elizabeth noted, these records are entitled by law to be accepted in
legal proceedings as evidence in place of the originals, While they are presumed
to have been made with some care, they are not entitled to automatic
credibility, either for their faithfulness to the original, or for the truth of the
content in the original. Both may be questioned in the light of other evidence
presented.

Just like genealogists, whoever is considering these records from a legal
standpoint--jury, judge, board or commission--has consider each piece of
evidence in the light of all the other evidence at hand, and decide how much trust
to place in each document, whether it is an original, official substitute for
the original, or some other derivative.

Legal bodies have to make either-or decisions on the basis of what's before
them. We genealogists have the luxury of avoiding such tough calls by adding
qualifiers to our conclusions when they aren't as convincing as we might
desire--words like "almost certainly," very probably," or "probably,"

IMO we very probably should use such qualifiers more often than we have in
the past. After all, we never know what new evidence may come to light that
could upset our original conclusion. If it hasn't already happened to you, you
just haven't been at genealogy long enough.

Donn Devine, CG, CGI
Wilmington, Delaware, USA

CG, Certified Genealogist, CGI, and Certified Genealogical Instructor are
service marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used under
license by board certificants after periodic evaluation, and the board name is
registered in the US Patent & Trademark Office.

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