Regarding the Burial option in every profile
Lately, I've noted several people changing the information in this opt and am confused as to the correct criteria for it. It's been my understanding that the Burial was to input Cemetery and location data. Now, however, people seem to be deleting Cemetery information and instead, leaving only the more general place location, ie. changing "Specific Cemetery" in "Fresno, Fresno, California" to "Fresno, Fresno, California". So, which is correct? And if the option is intended for complete burial data, including the Cemetery (provided there is a Cemetery mentioned on a death record or a positive identification match to a Find A Grave record, or is personally known to a family member who added the information), why are people removing Cemetery details?
Best Answer
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FamilySearch's dual-entry place fields are certainly well able to handle even things like burial plot numbers, so the most likely reason for someone removing a cemetery name is some type of misconception.
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Answers
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It sounds like you have come across some profiles where the cemeteries in question are not included in the Places database yet and so are not available in the drop down list as a "standard" when entering a burial place. Unfortunately there seem to still be far too many people out there who do not understand how to enter place names in Family Tree and insist that only places in the drop down menu can be used. They go around damaging data in the name of standardization.
If they see this for a burial:
They will leave it alone because it is "standardized." But if they see this:
they delete Ogden North Cemetery to get rid of the Standardized Data section because "it isn't 'standardized' correctly." They completely misunderstand how place names work in Family Tree and what "standardization" means in Family Tree. The Help Center articles about this don't help because they really don't explain things very well.
A short term response is to replace the cemetery name then message the people and try to convince them to stop deleting valid place names. A long term solution is to go to the Places database at https://www.familysearch.org/research/places/?pagenum=1&pagesize=20 , click on Suggest A New Place in the top left corner, and request that the cemeteries where this is being a problem be added to the database then in a few months when they have been go back to these profiles and re-standardized them using the new, more complete name.
If you could post a couple of IDs where you see this, we could look and see if my theory here is correct or not.
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It would be nice if all users would learn how place name work, because not all place names will ever be in the Places database. For example, it is perfectly fine and fully allowed to enter this for a burial:
even though plot numbers will never be added to the Places database since that is more precise data than is needed there. But the same people you see removing cemetery names will also remove this valuable added information which has been put in the most obvious spot to have it because it is not "standard."
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