When indexing tax records, for personal estate

Kelli Lamoreaux

where there should be the surname and given name, all it says is Do. how do i index that?

Re Searching

Presumably there should be a prior record showing the original name and surname to which the ditto refers ?

If not, then you're stumped.

Melissa S Himes

Do is the abbreviation for Ditto. In the General Indexing Guidelines portion of the project instructions you will find how to deal with them:

Ditto Marks

• If a record has a ditto mark or other sign of repetition, type the corresponding information from the previous record or field.
• Do not index the word "ditto" or the ditto mark itself. Other signs of repetition may include the abbreviation "Do" or a vertical or horizontal line.
• Sometimes you will have to depend on contextual information to determine whether a mark indicates repeated information from an earlier record or field, or whether it means something else, such as that no information was given for that record or field.

So, if there is a name above the Do and any of the information is different you would create another entry. But, in these tax records I believe you are only indexing unique names, so there may be no need to create another record.

The best way to get the most accurate answer is share the batch code. It is the series of letters/numbers in brackets after the project title. Then we can see exactly what you are seeing and read the project instructions. They can be pulled up at anytime by clicking on the last icon in the horizontal tool bar or the blue link at the bottom of the entry form or clicking help and then project instructions.

Mirevo

This article would indicate how to index records with Ditto or do marks:

If a record has a ditto mark or other sign of repetition, type the corresponding information from the previous record or field. Do not index the word "ditto" or the ditto mark itself. Other signs of repetition may include the abbreviation "Do" or a vertical or horizontal line.       

Note: Sometimes you will have to depend on contextual information to determine whether a mark indicates repeated information from an earlier record or field, or whether it means something else, such as that no information was given for that record or field.

Sometimes, depending on the project the project instructions indicate to index each unique name, in this case any ditto mark would no need to be indexed. For a precise response please post your question with the share batch code or batch ID.