What happens to the records

Ted275

I have records and sources attached to myself and others who appear on FS as living. If and when I die what happens to those records? Do they eventually get released and my profile changes to deceased at say 110 years after my DOB? Or do they stay in limbo for eternity.

Ted275

Thank you. I guess that from the start of using FS I thought if you added sources to the living (including yourself) that as we die off (as is life) that our records would end up as deceased and available to be merged if other records existed or for others to see. I now know that any sources that I have entered against living people, and if they do not die before me, then those records will be "lost" as will any sources attached. Basically my record and any living record I entered will be of no value.

I too, have taken the liberty (in consultation with my 94yo cousin in Poland) in producing the Ancestors and Descendants book of my maternal Grandparents, on my paternal side the descendants are a little more difficult but it has been done. Just need to finalise a few bits before printing off a few books (it will be about 500 pages) to share with various relatives with a hope that they will continue to trace the family sometime in the future.

Alan E. Brown

@Ted275 If preserving living records is important to you, you might consider using a Family Group Tree. It requires that you have relatives that will survive you and maintain the living records, but it does provide a way to share living records. Then as those living people die over time, the group participants will be in a position to mark their profiles as deceased and make those details public.

sc woz

@Ted275 This is a discussion that comes up frequently. Here is a discussion chain that might help. See this discussion group also.

Ted275

Thanks for that referral to the chain. I can see from that that basically the information dies with me and there is absolutely no value in adding any source to a living person (unless they die before me and are then converted to deceased).

Thanks

Knouf, Christopher William

@Ted275

Excellent Question.

When a FamilySearch user passes away, their memories and records remain accessible. Upon the death of a contributor, FamilySearch locks the account if they are aware of the death. However, all memories and sources contributed by that user stay in the database and can still be accessed by others.

Hopefully this helps.

Ted275

Thanks Christopher.

The question was in relation to sources I had added to "Living" people I had created. While the info stays in the database it is not accessible to others as the "Living" person was only accessible to me. So for that reason it appears that I would be wasting my time entering any info against living people.

maryellenstevensbarnes1

@Ted275 Those sources you added may not be available in the future when your "living people" die. Look at all the records/sources previously available that are no restricted. So here's my little example: My grandmother (1901-1993) wrote a book approx 120 pages then when she turned 90, her daughters started helping by adding info and pictures on all their brothers and sisters, then when all my aunts and uncles had died, they preserved the book on FS - imagine what that might mean to my grandchildren who have no idea what it means to Immigrate from East Germany in 1908, leaving your own grandparents behind never to be seen again and live thru two World Wars with relatives fighting for both sides—

Oh yes, you and your family are what history is all about!

Ted275

Thanks Alan that makes perfect sense - all I need now is to convince some young whippersnappers to be interested in their family history.

Again Thank you very much - the perfect solution.