Source Entity

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Overview

A Source entity represents an original document, record, publication, or material that contains genealogical information. Sources are the foundation of evidence-based research and form the middle layer of the evidence chain between repositories (where sources are held) and citations (specific references within sources).

Sources can include:

• Vital records (birth, marriage, death certificates)
• Census records and population registers
• Church registers (baptisms, marriages, burials)
• Military records and service files
• Newspapers and periodicals
• Published family histories and genealogies
• Wills, probate records, and court documents
• Land records and deeds
• Immigration and naturalization records
• Oral histories and interviews
• Online databases and digital collections

File Format

All GENEALOGIX files use entity type keys at the top level:

# Any .glx file (commonly in sources/ directory)
sources:
  source-parish-register:
    title: "St. Paul's Parish Register, 1840-1860"
    type: church_register
    creator: "Church of England"
    repository: repository-leeds-library
    date: "1840/1860"

Key Points:

• Entity ID is the map key (source-parish-register)
• IDs can be descriptive or random, 1-64 alphanumeric/hyphens

Required Fields

Entity ID (map key)

• Format: Any alphanumeric string with hyphens, 1-64 characters
• Must be unique within the archive
• Recommended formats:
  • Descriptive: source-birth-register, source-1851-census
  • Random hex: source-a1b2c3d4 (for collaboration)
  • Sequential: source-001, source-002

title

• Type: String
• Required: Yes
• Description: Full title of the source

Example:

title: "1851 Census of England and Wales"

Optional Fields

type

• Type: String
• Required: No (but recommended)
• Description: Classification of the source type

Common source types:

• vital_record - Birth, marriage, death certificates
• census - Census records and enumerations
• church_register - Parish registers, baptisms, marriages, burials
• military - Military service records, pension files
• newspaper - Newspapers, periodicals, gazettes
• probate - Wills, probate records, estate files
• land - Deeds, land grants, property records
• court - Court records, legal proceedings
• immigration - Passenger lists, naturalization records
• directory - City directories, telephone books
• book - Published genealogies, family histories
• database - Online databases, compiled records
• oral_history - Interviews, recorded memories
• correspondence - Letters, emails, personal papers
• photograph - Photo collections
• other - Other source types

Example:

type: church_register

authors

• Type: Array of Strings
• Required: No
• Description: Author(s) or creator(s) of the source

Example:

authors:
  - "Elizabeth Shown Mills"
  - "John Doe"

creator

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Creating organization or individual

Example:

creator: "General Register Office"

date

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Publication date or date range covered by the source

Formats:

• Single date: "1851"
• Date range: "1840/1860"
• Publication date: "2015-06-20"

Example:

date: "1850/1855"

repository

• Type: String
• Required: No (but recommended)
• Description: Repository ID where this source is held

Example:

repository: repository-national-archives

call_number

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Call number, catalog ID, or reference number at the repository

Example:

call_number: "HO 107/2319"

citation

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Standard citation format for the source

Example:

citation: "1851 England Census, Yorkshire, Leeds, ED 5, folio 23"

description

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Detailed description of the source content and scope

Example:

description: |
  Parish registers for St. Paul's Church, Leeds, covering baptisms,
  marriages, and burials from 1840 to 1860. Includes entries for
  families in the Wellington Street area.

publication_info

• Type: Object
• Required: No
• Description: Publication details for published sources

Structure:

publication_info:
  publisher: String
  place: String
  edition: String
  isbn: String
  pages: String

Example:

publication_info:
  publisher: "Genealogical Publishing Company"
  place: "Baltimore, Maryland"
  edition: "2nd Edition"
  isbn: "978-0-8063-1234-5"
  pages: "456"

language

• Type: String
• Required: No
• Description: Language(s) of the source

Example:

language: "English"

coverage

• Type: Object
• Required: No
• Description: Geographic and temporal coverage of the source

Structure:

coverage:
  spatial: String or Array
  temporal: String
  subjects: Array

Example:

coverage:
  spatial: "Leeds, Yorkshire, England"
  temporal: "1840-1860"
  subjects:
    - baptisms
    - marriages
    - burials

media

• Type: Array of Strings
• Required: No
• Description: References to media entities (scans, photos) of this source

Example:

media:
  - media-register-scan-page-1
  - media-register-scan-page-2

Provenance Fields

Property	Type	Description
notes	string	Research notes about the source
created_at	datetime	When this record was created
created_by	string	Who created this record
modified_at	datetime	When last modified
modified_by	string	Who last modified
tags	array	Tags for categorization

Example:

notes: "Excellent condition, clearly legible"
created_at: "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"
created_by: researcher-jane
tags:
  - primary-source
  - church-records
  - verified

Usage Patterns

Vital Record

# sources/source-birth-certificate.glx
sources:
  source-birth-cert-john-smith:
    title: "Birth Certificate - John Smith, 1850"
    type: vital_record
    creator: "General Register Office"
    date: "1850-01-15"
    repository: repository-gro
    call_number: "GRO 1850/Q1/LEEDS/145"
    description: "Original birth certificate for John Smith, born Leeds"
    language: "English"
    media:
      - media-birth-cert-scan
    tags:
      - vital-record
      - birth
      - primary-source

Census Record

# sources/source-1851-census.glx
sources:
  source-census-1851-yorkshire:
    title: "1851 Census of England and Wales"
    type: census
    creator: "UK Census Office"
    date: "1851-03-30"
    repository: repository-national-archives
    call_number: "HO 107/2319"
    citation: "1851 England Census, Yorkshire, Leeds, ED 5"
    description: |
      Census enumeration for Leeds, Yorkshire, England.
      Enumeration District 5, covering Wellington Street area.
    coverage:
      spatial: "Leeds, Yorkshire, England"
      temporal: "1851-03-30"
    language: "English"
    tags:
      - census
      - 1851
      - yorkshire

Church Register

# sources/source-parish-register.glx
sources:
  source-st-pauls-register:
    title: "St. Paul's Cathedral Parish Register, 1840-1860"
    type: church_register
    creator: "Church of England"
    date: "1840/1860"
    repository: repository-leeds-archives
    call_number: "RDP73/1"
    description: |
      Parish registers for St. Paul's Cathedral, Leeds.
      Includes baptisms, marriages, and burials.
      
      Coverage:
      - Baptisms: 1840-1860
      - Marriages: 1840-1860
      - Burials: 1845-1860
    coverage:
      spatial: "Leeds, Yorkshire, England"
      temporal: "1840-1860"
      subjects:
        - baptisms
        - marriages
        - burials
    language: "English"
    media:
      - media-register-volume-1
    notes: "Well preserved, some water damage to pages 45-50"
    tags:
      - parish-register
      - church-of-england
      - primary-source

Published Book

# sources/source-family-history.glx
sources:
  source-smith-family-book:
    title: "The Smith Family of Yorkshire: A Genealogy"
    type: book
    authors:
      - "Elizabeth Brown"
    date: "1985"
    publication_info:
      publisher: "Yorkshire Genealogical Society"
      place: "Leeds, Yorkshire"
      edition: "1st Edition"
      pages: "324"
    repository: repository-family-history-library
    description: |
      Comprehensive genealogy of the Smith family of Leeds
      and surrounding areas, 1750-1950. Includes source
      citations and family group sheets.
    coverage:
      spatial:
        - Leeds, Yorkshire
        - Bradford, Yorkshire
      temporal: "1750-1950"
    language: "English"
    tags:
      - published-genealogy
      - secondary-source
      - smith-family

Online Database

# sources/source-ancestry-database.glx
sources:
  source-ancestry-uk-census:
    title: "UK Census Collection, 1841-1911"
    type: database
    creator: "Ancestry.com"
    date: "1841/1911"
    repository: repository-ancestry
    description: |
      Digitized and indexed UK census records from 1841-1911.
      Images and transcriptions available online.
      
      Subscription required for access.
    citation: "Ancestry.com. UK Census Collection [database online]"
    coverage:
      spatial: "United Kingdom"
      temporal: "1841-1911"
    language: "English"
    notes: "Digital images of original records"
    tags:
      - online-database
      - census
      - subscription-required

Newspaper

# sources/source-newspaper.glx
sources:
  source-leeds-mercury:
    title: "Leeds Mercury"
    type: newspaper
    creator: "Leeds Mercury Publishing Company"
    date: "1890-06-15"
    repository: repository-british-library
    call_number: "NP 123.456"
    description: "Daily newspaper published in Leeds, Yorkshire"
    citation: "Leeds Mercury, 15 June 1890, page 3"
    coverage:
      spatial: "Leeds, Yorkshire, England"
      temporal: "1890-06-15"
    language: "English"

Oral History

# sources/source-interview.glx
sources:
  source-mary-smith-interview:
    title: "Interview with Mary Smith"
    type: oral_history
    creator: "Mary Smith (interviewee)"
    authors:
      - "Jane Researcher (interviewer)"
    date: "2020-03-15"
    description: |
      Oral history interview with Mary Smith discussing her
      childhood in Leeds during the 1940s and 1950s. Family
      stories, local history, and genealogical information.
      
      Duration: 60 minutes
      Location: Leeds, Yorkshire
    media:
      - media-interview-audio
      - media-interview-transcript
    language: "English"
    notes: "Recorded with permission, transcript available"
    tags:
      - oral-history
      - interview
      - 20th-century

Source Types

Source types are defined in the archive's vocabularies/source-types.glx file.

See Vocabularies - Source Types for:

• Complete list of standard source types
• How to add custom source types
• Vocabulary file structure and examples

File Organization

Note: File organization is flexible. Entities can be in any .glx file with any directory structure. The example below shows one-entity-per-file organization, which is recommended for collaborative projects (better git diffs) but not required.

Source files are typically organized by type or repository:

sources/
├── vital-records/
│   ├── source-birth-john.glx
│   ├── source-marriage-john-mary.glx
│   └── source-death-john.glx
├── census/
│   ├── source-1841-census.glx
│   ├── source-1851-census.glx
│   └── source-1861-census.glx
├── church-registers/
│   ├── source-st-pauls-register.glx
│   └── source-holy-trinity-register.glx
├── newspapers/
│   └── source-leeds-mercury.glx
├── books/
│   └── source-smith-family-history.glx
└── online/
    └── source-ancestry-census.glx

Relationship to Other Entities

Source
    ├── held in → Repository (via repository field)
    ├── referenced by → Citations (citations point to sources)
    ├── documented by → Media (via media array)
    └── may have → coverage information (geographic/temporal)

Repository
    └── holds → Sources (sources reference repository)

Citation
    └── references → Source (via source field)

Media
    └── documents → Source (media can be scans/photos of sources)

Standard Citation Formats

Sources should include proper bibliographic citations. Common formats:

Published Book

citation: "Author Name, Book Title (Place: Publisher, Year), page number."

Vital Record

citation: "Certificate type, Person Name, Date; Place; Repository, Call Number."

Census

citation: "Year Census, Country, State/County, Enumeration District, Page; Repository."

Church Register

citation: "Church Name, Register Type, Date; Place; Repository."

Newspaper

citation: "Newspaper Title, Date, Page Number, Column."

Validation Rules

• title must be present and non-empty
• If repository is specified, it must reference an existing Repository entity
• If media array is present, all IDs must reference existing Media entities
• date should follow standard date formats (YYYY, YYYY-MM-DD, or YYYY/YYYY for ranges)
• type should be one of the defined source types if vocabularies are used

GEDCOM Mapping

Source entities map to GEDCOM source records:

GLX Property	GEDCOM Element	Notes
Entity ID	@SOUR@	Source record ID
title	SOUR.TITL	Source title
authors[0]	SOUR.AUTH	Author (first only in GEDCOM)
date	SOUR.DATE	Publication date
creator	SOUR.AGNC	Responsible agency
repository	SOUR.REPO	Repository reference
call_number	SOUR.REPO.CALN	Call number
publication_info.publisher	SOUR.PUBL	Publication info
description	SOUR.TEXT or SOUR.NOTE	Source text/notes

GEDCOM Example:

0 @S1@ SOUR
1 TITL St. Paul's Parish Register
1 AUTH Church of England
1 DATE 1840/1860
1 REPO @R1@
2 CALN RDP73/1
1 NOTE Parish registers for baptisms, marriages, and burials

GENEALOGIX Equivalent:

sources:
  source-st-pauls:
    title: "St. Paul's Parish Register"
    creator: "Church of England"
    date: "1840/1860"
    repository: repository-leeds-archives
    call_number: "RDP73/1"
    description: "Parish registers for baptisms, marriages, and burials"

Best Practices

Complete Source Documentation

Include as much bibliographic information as possible:

• Full title
• Author/creator
• Date or date range
• Repository location
• Repository catalog number
• Physical description (if relevant)

Consistent Citation Format

Use consistent citation styles within your archive:

• Follow established citation standards (Evidence Explained, Chicago Manual of Style, etc.)
• Document your chosen citation style in archive documentation

Source Quality Assessment

While citation quality ratings are optional, documenting source characteristics helps:

• Primary vs. secondary nature
• Original vs. derivative
• Completeness and condition
• Known limitations or biases

Digital Preservation

Link media entities to sources for digital preservation:

• Scan or photograph original sources
• Store digital copies with source metadata
• Include hash values for integrity verification

Schema Reference

See source.schema.json for the complete JSON Schema definition.

See Also

• Core Concepts - Evidence Hierarchy - Understanding the evidence chain
• Repository Entity - Where sources are held
• Citation Entity - Specific references within sources
• Media Entity - Digital preservation of sources
• Assertion Entity - Conclusions drawn from sources