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Thank you so much for your offer to help transcribe Iowa State Census records. Included in this manual should be answers to most of your
questions. Nothing here is written in stone, feel free to ask questions.
1. WHERE TO FIND THE CENSUS RECORDS THAT YOU WILL NEED TO TRANSCRIBE:
You must provide your own census records to transcribe.
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LDS FAMILY HISTORY CENTERS -- For most
people, this is one of the most inexpensive routes to go. Most LDS Family History Centers
(FHC) have a selection of microfilms in stock, and almost any other film you might need is
available from Salt Lake City. The cost for films borrowed from Salt Lake City is usually
around $5.50 for a month's use (within the FHC). If renewed twice more, the film will
be kept at your local FHC permanently. There is no charge for in-stock films. Check your local
phone book under "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" for your local Family History
Center or visit www.familysearch.org.
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Public Libraries
are often able to get films through inter-library loan for little
or no cost. See if your library can order them from the State
Historical Society of Iowa in Des Moines. They have details and
the address your library needs at their site. Find more information
here: State
Historical Society of Iowa: Inter-library Loans. |
| Ancestry.com - This is a paid subscription site. Sometimes free limited time subscription offers are available. Direct link: Iowa State Census Images.
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2. TEMPLATES AND BLANK FORMS:
We have several templates online. Hopefully, one of them will be useful to
you. I have a bit more experience using Excel than some other programs, so I would prefer that you use the Excel template, but it is totally up to you.
Whatever you feel most comfortable with is fine. Basically, I don't care what you use to get the data to me -- just get the data to me.
| Q. Do I Have to use your template or can I make my own?
A. You are more than welcome to create
your own template or modify the ones we have to suit your needs and
preferences within guidelines - BUT - send me samples of your work
to make sure that it fits within the goals of the project. Keep in
mind what the end product will be. It doesn't matter how fancy or
plain your template is, it will be turned into a text file. If you
cannot find a template for the census you are transcribing, with your
input, I'd be happy to create one.
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Q.
Why can't I just transcribe the census right into a text
program such as Notepad, Wordpad or NoteTab?
A. When a text file gets transferred
to the internet, depending on how it is entered, it can get changed
quite a bit. This creates lots of editing work for the formatter (me).
It is very easy to lose track of lines, keep columns straight and
keep column data from overlapping. If you can't use the templates,
or if you strongly feel that using a text program is for you, I can
work with you on how to do it. Getting you able to transcribe is the
main goal!
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3. WHAT AND HOW TO TRANSCRIBE:
The usual way of transcribing from microfilm is to write entries on paper
while viewing the film, then enter it into the computer, later at home. There are "blank" census pages online that you can print out and then fill in with
your data. Or, you can work with your Excel (or other) spreadsheet program and print out some usable blank pages.
A variation on this is to photocopy from the microfilm at the library, then
enter it into your computer at home, but you must take special care to
double check hard-to-read entries. I like to make notes on the back of
the photocopy regarding entries I can't read, and such.
Some people bring their laptop to the library and enter the data as they view the
film. You can also use a tape recorder, which goes really well at the library but is hard to
transcribe if you don't have a dictaphone setup.
| Q. When do I start sending in my files?
A. Please send a sample of your work when you get about 10-15
lines entered to make sure I will be able to open the file and
use it.
Also, send a larger file after maybe an hour's worth of work so
I can critique your work and offer suggestions and the like.
Then, as you finish a township, send the file to me.
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| Q. Is it okay to use the ditto marks?
A. No, please type in what the ditto marks represent.
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Q.
Do I have to enter page & line numbers too?
A. If these numbers exist in the census,
please transcribe them. If
they do not exist, I may have you assign at least a page number. A
note would then be made in the transcript that the transcriber assigned
the page number.
Page and line numbers, as well as dwelling and family numbers, help
maintain the enumeration order. At a future date, we may convert the
transcripts to a database and will want a way to keep this order,
so that
you can find family members and others living nearby. An additional
benefit is to help you locate a person on census film more easily.
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| Q. What if there is nothing on a line?
A. Leaving a line blank and putting
"Blank Line" in
the Transcribers Remarks field. If there are several blank lines or
a blank
page (or more), also make a note.
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| Q. What do I do about names and things I can't read?
A. If there are a few letters that you can read, use an asterisk
(*) for each illegible letter. If you can only make out one or
two letters at the beginning or end, use the question mark (?).
i.e.: J**nson or J?
If you think a letter could only be from among a few, use parenthesis
around a list of letters separated by slash marks at in this example:
Jo(a/h)nson. |
4. MAKE A BACKUP COPY.
It is a very good idea to make a backup copy of your data. You never know when something might happen to your computer. I suggest that you regularly
copy your files to floppy disks or zip disks.
5. PROOFREADING
Please be very careful when transcribing documents. Make sure you don't
skip any lines. Having someone to proofread for you can be very helpful.
If you have someone to proofread for you, please let me know. Do indicate
in the spreadsheet that the transcript has been proofread and by whom.
Proofreading is not currently required by a second volunteer. We are
very happy to have volunteer transcribers and do not want to discourage
that! If you can find a proofreader (or second volunteer transcriber)
for your work, it would most welcome! Proofreading is an important job,
which raises the accuracy level of the transcript and marks it as fully
validated.
6. WHAT CAN I DO WITH MY TRANSCRIPTION AFTER YOU GET THE FINAL COPY?
When you are finished with your transcription a copy will be added to the
IAGenWeb State Census site for the appropriate county. A copy may also
be kept at the Iowa USGenWeb Archives site. The following notice will
appear on your transcriptions: "The submitter has granted permission
to the IAGenWeb Project to utilize the files permanently for free access
on IAGenWeb state or county pages." This will allow county coordinators
within the IAGenWeb project to put the data on their county pages, should
they wish to.
You are more than welcome, and encouraged, to send a copy to the genealogical,
and/or historical, societies and libraries in the county for which you transcribed census records. You could also donate a copy to your local
Family History Library. The data is yours to do with as you like. It will always be available for free access from the IAGenWeb project and we hope you
will share your work with other interested groups.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND EFFORT.
I cannot even begin to thank you enough for your hard work and dedication to this project. Your help
with this project is greatly appreciated, not only by the IAGenWeb Project, but by all the visitors to
our site who will be helped and able to further their research thanks to your data. Take a well deserved
break and let me know if you would like to continue transcribing Iowa State Census files.
Steve Williams
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