Researchers get family details wrong

I would like to warn anyone researching a relative lost in World War One to do their own thorough research and not to rely on that done by other people.
By The Newsroom
Published 27th Sep 2018, 08:56 BST
Updated 27th Sep 2018, 09:02 BST
Do your own family history research.Do your own family history research.
Do your own family history research.

In the past two years, two different researchers have given different family details for my grandfather L/12191 Acting Bombardier George Barker, C Battery 161 Brigade Royal Field Artillery (The Scarborough Pals Battery). Niether version being correct.

My grandfather only came to live in Scarborough shortly after his marriage to Violet May Jones, a Scarborough girl, in 1913 and so does not appear on any local census. This seems to be the cause of the problem, as both the researchers concerned found the family details of two different Scarborough born men with the same name and approximate age and attached them to my grandfather’s service details. Thereby causing possible confusion for those two families should they decide to research their family history.

The concerning factor is that flawed research of this nature affects family history, local history, and, if not corrected, also national history.

Dave Barker

The Whins, Newby,

Scarborough

Related topics:Scarborough