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Doreen Neilley's Filing System

Version V 5.3.2

 :)

 

    We use a 3-part document ID code. It will look like this: 058-12b-0001 (family code - document type - document number)
 
Part 1: Family Code.
    We currently have (between my husband's family and my own) over 80 distinct ancestral family lines that we are looking at. So we had to separate them somehow! We started with a letter (P for Peter, D for Doreen) and 8 numbers (1,2,3,...) thinking that we would never need to identify family lines beyond the great-grandparent level. Boy, were we wrong, I'm happy to say! When things started becoming a problem, we scrapped the letter part and now use a 3 digit number. We divided them by having 001 - 499 be specifically my families, and 500 - 999 be Peter's. If I could do it again, I would use 001 - 499 for the male side, and 500 - 999 the female, just because it is more in line with "standard" practice. I would also be optimistic and reserve the first 32 numbers (001-032, and 501 -532) for the closest ancestral lines; it would look like a pedigree chart out to 3x great-grandparents (see attachment, done in Word, system scanned with McAfee 7.0 Professional since I last opened emails)
 
    This part of my filing code is used for both the source document coding, and the personal reference number coding (in the Extra Details box on the top right of the Details page).
 
Some points:
*  Most people will say - "but I'll never need that many numbers! I'll just use 01 - 99". I did that after we abandoned the letter + single numeral system. Then I had to go back and add the zero to ALL my source documents and ALL my individual person reference numbers, so they would sort properly! TMG lets me use more characters than FTM does, so I decided "why wait for spring - do it now!", before I ran out of numbers, which I was getting very close to for my ancestors, and had to do it for even more sources and people!
* by having a family code at the beginning of the document ID, and using the same family code in the reference number for an individual, I know instantly that everything with that number relates to the same family. I used to remember them all, but now ... But as long as either a document code or a personal ID starts 005, I know it has to do with my DOW line. Also, I can track any DOW strays that might end up being important, by putting 005s (for Dow associated stray) at the beginning of their reference number.
 
Part 2: Document Type.
    When we first started trying to file things, we used the "put the birth certificate behind the person" system. Worked for about 2 months! After several different attempts, we have settled to this.
    The 2 numerals denote a major document type. For example, 01 means documents relating to birth information, 02 is baptisms, confirmations or bar mitzvahs, 03 is marriages, 04 is dissolutions, 05 is deaths, ... Until we invented this system, we were always coming up with documents that didn't fit! Now, if we find one that just won't fit anything we already have, we make a new number!
    The alphabetical character after the 2 numerals is a sub-type. These are different for each of the major categories. 'g' in 01 Births is Diaries that make mention of a birth, but 'g' in 03 Marriages is Banns & Licenses. We kept the 'a' pretty much for the most official types of documents; birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees ...
 
Part 3: Document Number
    This is just a sequential number for the documents in the specific group; so if I have a document for family 005 that is a birth certificate (01a), and I already have 5 certificates from before, this one will be #6.
 
The source document coding for the certificate mentioned above would be 005-01a-0006. I put it in the binders for the DOW line (marked 005), in the first section 01, which contains documents only for birth information, sub-section a, which is all certificates (no newspaper announcements or anything like that), after the #5 document.
 
    As long as my filing is up to date (yeah, right!), I can find any document in 30 seconds! And by looking at my source document coding, I know what it is without pulling it out (it's a birth certificate for one of the DOWs, or it's a newspaper write-up for a McMURDO wedding).
 
    We have also figured out how to extend the system for things that really don't relate to a specific family, such as regional maps, things I print off the Internet about language translations (Gaelic names, for example), history (eg. the Crusades), etc. Sometimes we have a little discussion about where a specific item belongs, but we haven't found a source document yet that we can't file away now!
 
    I hope that this raises some thoughts for some people, and that those who like it find that it solves some problems. If anyone wants the full list of the source types and sub-types we have developed Click here Source Document Types
 
Sincerely, Doreen Neilley, at this for 15 years and still learning! BTW, thanks so much for your incredible presence on the list. Sometimes you give me good ideas, sometimes you start a train of thought that produces a good idea, and sometimes you just brighten my day!

 

Teresa's Notes:  Thanks Doreen, Somedays I tend to grate nerves as well. :)

 

The following is her ancestral numbering system.  I hope you can follow it. 

GEN 1      GEN 2     GEN 3     GEN 4     GEN 5     GEN 6

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            001

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         002

                                                great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           003

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         004

                                grandfather

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            005

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         006

                                                great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           007

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         008

                father

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            009

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         010

                                                great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           011

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         012

                                grandmother

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            013

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         014

                                                great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           015

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         016

self

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            017

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         018

                                                great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           019

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         020

                                grandfather

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            021

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         022

                                                great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           023

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         024

                mother

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            025

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         026

                                                great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           027

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         028

                                grandmother

                                                                                3x great-grandfather            029

                                                                2x great-grandfather

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         030

                                                great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandfather           031

                                                                2 x great-grandmother

                                                                                3 x great-grandmother         032