Are there guidelines for sources of profile information?
For instance, is a online obituary acceptable? A family bible? A relatives recollections?
Answers
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I have done all of the above.
For relatives recollections, I have stated in the Reason section phrases such as "per her daughter", "what his wife told their children", "what his sister told her sons", "per family research", "per family lore", etc.
For online obituaries, I create a Webpage Source.
For paper documents such as family bibles, newspaper clippings, prayer cards, etc., I take photo(s) or scan the pertinent page(s) and create a Memory Source.
Instructions:https://www.familysearch.org/en/help/helpcenter/article/how-do-i-create-a-source-in-family-tree
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It almost sounds as if your background is doing lineage research rather than family history. All records, artifacts, stories / lore, whether they are online, in a newspaper, in a book or in an audio or video file, they are valuable for family research. They are acceptable as evidence of the family's story. Whether they are true to the actual events the family experienced is another matter, but they are evidence of people's existence, and they are usually of interest to descendants. We are not trying to "prove" anything necessarily when we have these kinds of entries to memories. When they become proven to be false or are so outrageous they can't be taken seriously, guess what; I still take them seriously for that "grain of truth" that could be hidden in one word or evidence of an attitude that could be helpful to know. If someone wrote that their great grandmother said her mother was an Indian Princess, I can usually prove very quickly that is hogwash, however, I am now open to the possibility that someone's family in general might have had interactions with Native Americans.
When I take on the task to break through a brick wall, these kinds of breadcrumbs are what I look for and what I start with in my research. So yes, they are acceptable here in the world of family history.
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In the past, some FamilySearch patrons have implied certain types of "sources" are of secondary value, but I am inclined to disagree. Errors in original documents (parish registers, etc.) can mean these can often prove no more reliable than so-called "hearsay" sources / evidence.
No, it isn't necessarily "proof" just because great-grandfather recorded it in the Family Bible, but it is worth adding this detail to a Family Tree profile, so others can assess its reliability in terms of historical accuracy.
@Nyx773 provides good advice above. The Sources section doesn't have to be the only place to add evidence of vitals and other events. Sometimes, these are simply not available in terms of FamilySearch records, or direct links to material on other websites. I believe it just as valid to utilise the Memories and Collaboration sections, as well as Reason statement fields, in providing evidence for ones inputs to the profile page(s).
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