You know when you have too much info when.....

[rjm]

When you order a certificate that you already have. I had returned to an ancestor that I was researching a few months ago and "found" his Medal Index Card at the National Archives. Too bad I already had it. And didn't bother to file it properly. Arrgh.

[Guest]

I have done that three times ? bad eh ? I now make sure I put them on my tree instead of just filing them.

[Olde Crone Holden]

I ordered a birth cert from a local RO. I was very fortunate that they emailed me and asked me if I really wanted it as I had already purchased it six weeks before!

OC

[Guest]

that was very nice of them OC , what a wonderful service

[Darksecretz]

I haven't done that with a cert, but, I have done that with 'other' bits of FH.. like chasing up a son and busily finding all the relevant info, census, marriage details etc... too look in my FTM tree and see that it is already there!! [complete with ref's etc!!]

[herky]

I have done that too rjm, but with a wrong cert.
I spent many years trying to find my great gran's birth cert and twice sent for the same wrong one. And, of course because it was wrong, I hadn't entered it on my tree or filed it properly.
I have a nice batch of wrong certs for great gran but did find her eventually ( totally different father so different surname).

[foxyloxy]

Thankfully I have not reordered certs, but I have researched the same ancestor line more than twice or three times, or four ;D

I do have an excuse for 'the twice' computer stolen so lost all files ( yes I know I didn't back up) and 'new' research I had only put on the computer, not in my written record files and the second time the computer got a virus and they couldn't get lots of the data back, I backed up onto an external hard drive which was also affected and it was all a complete garbled mess...all I can say is you learn from your mistakes ( I think)

The other times I have absolutely no excuse for at all, although I am really pleased I did as not only did I check everything I had researched before I found lots of other information and records that I didn't find the first time around, which smashed some brickwalls but it is great to know others are eejits too

[PeteW1959]

I have a spreadsheet that I list all the my certificates.

I enter all the details from the BMD index of the certificates I want (when I can afford them!), I then put a date in a column when I place the order, then in another column when they arrive, and finally in a column when I have scanned them and entered them into my tree.

It is quick and easy to check before ordering a new certificate that I haven't already got it.

[Caroline]

I have a spreadsheet that I list all the my certificates.

I've got one of those too, so I could be wearing a halo ..... but one does need to remember to fill it in ....

[congletonian]

so glad I'm not the only one who "forgets" previous research. I tend to flit from branch to branch with my research so I might spend hours on a line and then go to my other notes and find my research results already there. Usually happens with the difficult research lines as I have to keep taking a break from them because they drive me mad !!! The certificates I've bought I keep in a couple of ring binders filed under family names so I always check there before ordering. Amazing how much research you gather but I have been doing this for over 32 years !!!

[kylejustin]

i have my certs in folders, and scan the english and irish ones and add them ancestry. i add all the scots ones to ancestry too. any aussie ones i have on a4 paper i do the same. i usually print off some certs more than once (by accident) thinking i havn't done it, but so far, have not bought any duplicates.

i put the year and district of the events in my ancestry tree, and check there before ordering anything. usually, if i have full dates within certificate years, i have a copy of the record.

[rjm]

I have a spreadsheet that I list all the my certificates.

I enter all the details from the BMD index of the certificates I want (when I can afford them!), I then put a date in a column when I place the order, then in another column when they arrive, and finally in a column when I have scanned them and entered them into my tree.

It is quick and easy to check before ordering a new certificate that I haven't already got it.

Good idea. If nothing else this whole duplicate certificate episode has finally convinced me to get organized.

[Darksecretz]

Good idea. If nothing else this whole duplicate certificate episode has finally convinced me to get organized.

RJM have a look here in our Reference Library, link posted below:

How-to-store-it-all

[Janet]

I ordered a birth cert from a local RO. I was very fortunate that they emailed me and asked me if I really wanted it as I had already purchased it six weeks before!

OC

I wish that the GRO had been that considerate as I ordered up and obtained not one or even two, but three wrong certificates for the same person!! And I used to wonder how people could ever do that!! Now I know how easy it is, but thankfully I have not done this with the dearer certificates and I now have everything on Family Historian on my computer so can see at a glance what certificates I still need.

Janet