Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

In a field where there is such a tremendous exchange of vital information, research and documentation standards are not only a convenience, they're an absolute must! Family historians exchange research with countless others in countless ways. We copy information from books and databases, correspond with libraries, societies, and government offices. At times we even hire professionals to do legwork in distant areas, trusting them to solve important problems.

Achieving Reliability & Consistency

So how can a researcher be assured that he or she is producing or receiving reliable results? This official manual from the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) provides solid, time-honored standards by which all genealogists can pattern their work. These standards of competence extend to all phases of a research project:

- Collecting the information
- Evaluating the evidence
- Compiling the results

They also apply to all phases of teaching:

- Lecturing
- Presenting classroom sessions
- Preparing written instructional materials

Who Needs It?

Experienced Genealogists preparing for Certification
Beginning & Intermediate family historians concerned about improving the quality of their research and documentation skills
Instructors, lecturers, and authors teaching others how to conduct genealogical research
Since its foundation in 1964, the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) has promoted-in lectures and publications-attainable, uniform standards of competence and ethics that have become generally accepted throughout the field. This latest edition of the BCG Standards Manual has been painstakingly prepared to clarify, codify, and organize the standards and make them readily accessible to all.

"Anyone who wants to become a certified genealogist will need to read this book. Every other genealogist should read this book to see "how the pros do it. "Every genealogy software developer should read this book to see how printed reports are to be created. I would also suggest that every beginning genealogist should read this manual to see how to do it the right way." I wish I had read a book like this when I first started researching my family tree!" --Dick Eastman

113 Pages. 8.5" x 11" Paperback

Average Customer Rating:

BGS Guidebook	Customer Rating:
Great price and fast shipping on this reference manual that is the bible of genealogy.

Excellent Resource Guide	Customer Rating:
As usuall these manuals are great for a resource guide. A valuable addition to my library.

The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual	Customer Rating:
This book should be read and on the library shelf of every "non professional" genealogist. I can't recommend it highly enough, especially for anyone who is the least bit interested in genealogy. It helps to turn a "myth" into a "fact".

Pseudonyms, Pseudonyms, Pseudonyms

Customer Rating:

The book is a great source of information. It could be a "must have" for any genealogist, amateur or professional. The extensive use of pseudonyms detracts from the importance of the sample documentation given. I could barely get through reading the numerous sample documents or reports from Traditional Storey to Ima Goodresearcher! I would recommend using real names and not ficticious ones in the next edition.

Absolutely essential for any genealogist!

Customer Rating:

If you're serious about the research you do on your family's history -- if you're not satisfied with merely collecting names, if you expect to see proof for statements made by other researchers, if you want those who come after you to be able to pick up where you've left off -- then this review can be boiled down a simple statement: Read this book. Buy it, consult it regularly, learn its principles. Since 1964, the BCG has developed and promulgated reliable methods for genealogical research, standards for proof, and a code of ethics for genealogists. This Manual is designed to clarify, codify, and present these standards in an easily accessible form. The first section presents standards for genealogical proof, data collection, and evaluation of evidence, the second lays out standards for genealogical instructors, lecturers, and authors, and the third discusses continuing genealogical education. These are followed by seven lengthy appendices that give examples of lineage compilations and the proof summaries that should accompany them, the most widely accepted formats for lineage publication, and researcher client reports -- which are a very useful tool even if you're only doing research for yourself. There certainly are thousands of books out there begging genealogists to buy them, but the "essential" bookshelf for American researchers is really rather small: _The Source,_ Greenwood's _Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy,_ Everton's _Handybook,_ perhaps _Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives,_ and a few others. The _Manual_ should be on that shelf.