Get better West Indian Ancestry

LegacyUser

Paul Francis said: Yes. There needs to be more of an effort to have a more comprehensive database of the West Indies {Montserrat} that goes beyond the history of colonization. our ancestry didn't begin the moment European ships showed up and that need to be reflected in the information you provide on this site. I'm tired of paying for memberships to certain sites to find out they don't have sufficient information for my search region. The records on my island is in danger because of the currently active volcano (the south side of the island was destroyed in the eruptions in 1995 /96. At any time it could happen again and might wipe out any vital records that are still on the island. I'm part of a demographic that has been severely underserved. Please take steps to rectify the lack of information. Thank you.

LegacyUser

Tom Huber said: Welcome to the community-powered feedback forum for FamilySearch. FamilySearch personnel read every discussion thread and may or may not respond as their time permits. We all share an active interest in using the resources of this site and as users, we have various levels of knowledge and experience and do our best to help each other with concerns, issues, and/or questions.

The entire Caribbean region is "undeserved" in many ways.

The current global pandemic is not conducive to sending field teams to locate and digitize existing records.

But, in preparation for the day when FS can again send some of its 300 field teams back out to digitize and preserve local records, you can help.

If you know the person(s) who are the custodians of the Montserrat records, and can speak with them, maybe you can convince them to let FamilySearch digitize and preserve their records. Have them go to https://www.familysearch.org/records/... and read what is offered (all for free!). They will need to then contact FamilySearch by clicking on the "Find a representative" button.

LegacyUser

MaureenE said: FamilySearch Employee Robert Raymond set out some of the considerations for new filming/scanning of records September 13, 2018 in another topic
https://getsatisfaction.com/familysea...

including
"- What is the number of unique names, dates, places, and relationships per page?
- Are those named in the records already named in FamilySearch Family Tree or our existing historical records?
- Can those names, dates, and places be acquired more efficiently using other records?
- Does FamilySearch have a camera and a camera operator available near the location of the repository?
- Is that camera needed for higher priority projects?
- Are the records at risk of destruction?
- Will the repository give us permission to publish the records for free for anyone to access?
- Do the laws allow the records to be published?"