Organizing paper/document files

[BL Samuel]

I do digitalize most research I do now, but also keep a paper copy for most things too...as I have for the past 40 years. I have used a system of record keeping within family groupings (in notebooks rather than files in a drawer). I use logs, assigning a code to the research and filing as per Ann Carter Fleming's categories. Works pretty good.

I also use Ben Sayers system for organizing research online. That works too.

Then, of course, I use Reunion 10, document carefully with sources numbered....but ...now I have digital as well as paper. What system works to record where to find the actual saved document copy or original in the paper or digital files? How do you cross reference? My head doth spin.

[C.Keyes]

Re: Organizing paper/document files

I do digitalize most research I do now, but also keep a paper copy for most things too...as I have for the past 40 years. I have used a system of record keeping within family groupings (in notebooks rather than files in a drawer). I use logs, assigning a code to the research and filing as per Ann Carter Fleming's categories. Works pretty good.

I also use Ben Sayers system for organizing research online. That works too.

Then, of course, I use Reunion 10, document carefully with sources numbered....but ...now I have digital as well as paper. What system works to record where to find the actual saved document copy or original in the paper or digital files? How do you cross reference? My head doth spin.

I feel like I am at day one of a 100 year project and think your approach sounds overwhelming and reasonable, it would be criminal to toss those pieces of paper that Great Grandma, Grandma and Mom took the time to write and list out, thankfully now a decent digital scan can be done with my iPhone so I don't have to worry about some papers being in Kansas and others in Oregon. I am going to follow your thread closely and gather as much wisdom as possible from the experts here.

[ttl]

Re: Organizing paper/document files

If I have a digitized source document, I link it to the Reunion source reference as a multimedia file. That takes care of locating the digital version.

I also keep a three ring binder with page protectors to hold all my paper copies. Each page protector is marked with the Reunion source number and is stacked in numerical order inside the binder(s).

So I guess you could say the Reunion source number is the cross reference between the digital and paper copies of the source document for me.

It's not elegant, but keeping it simple allows me to attend to the two things that are of highest priority to me in documenting my genealogical research:

1. Not being driven away by the accounting. If I felt obligated to maintain my sources as if my dining room was the national archives, I'd never do a single drop of research. But that's just me.

2. Establishing the minimum (but guaranteed) path from my Reunion family file to my sources. This means documenting the minimum info that would allow me or a third party to track down another copy of the source document somewhere in the world (e.g. newspaper city/state, newspaper name, article headline, date, page and nothing more), and my copy of the source document (e.g. multimedia link or source number to look up in my binders).

[C.Keyes]

Re: Organizing paper/document files

This make sense and is what I started this weekend actually. I also decided that since so many of my current family lived in the same time and area, I have been reviewing the US Census forms that I have saved from Ancestry.com and then started an outline of the year, county, line and family member in each census period that way I can use just one digital copy of the census sheet for up to 15-20 people at a time rather than having individual copies for each family member. It keeps the OCD voices quiet while I get started.

I have also discovered that a good use of the hundreds of address labels that I get in the mail will be useful to tag the pages in the sheet protectors indicting myself as the compiler and all I then need to do is add a date and a Reunion Resource number. So in a hundred years when there is no longer any snail mail people will wonder where all those funny little stickers came from, some sort of "evidence of inclusion" into a tribe?

[kmgenealogy]

Re: Organizing paper/document files

Then, of course, I use Reunion 10, document carefully with sources numbered....but ...now I have digital as well as paper. What system works to record where to find the actual saved document copy or original in the paper or digital files? How do you cross reference? My head doth spin.

You might want to take a look at Mary Hill's system:

http://123genealogy.com/organizer/index.htm

You could still put the Reunion Source # on your plastic sleeves.

Legacy Family Tree Webinars has a webinar on Mary Hill's system. It's worth the $ for the CD if you really want to use her system. You can see the first 15 minutes of this webinar. See:

http://www.familytreewebinars.com/download.php?webinar_id=125

Click on "Watch Preview"

She is having another webinar on Legacy Family Tree Webinars on 9 Apr 2014. The webinars are free. If you miss the webinar, it will be available free for about a week before it goes into the webinar webinars, which are available only to members. See-

http://www.familytreewebinars.com/upcoming-webinars.php

Hope this helps.

[BL Samuel]

Re: Organizing paper/document files

Let me clarify a bit as I think my query title may have misled.
I have through 40 years of researching a reasonable paper filing system:
using logs to record research within each family unit,
then assigning a number/code
and filing within a notebook for the family group(s) that resource pertains to.
With that then, the log of research serves as an index of the documents.

Along comes computer genealogical programs a few years back. So all the above research is recorded appropriately with sources on the computer.

Next, concept of online searching, digitalization of findings and photos, old docs, etc.

The question is cross-referencing the paper files with the digitalized docs AND where/how to record in your Reunion files to the proper people.
Thanks much