As someone who has a bit of a fetish with filing, one of the oddest bits of advice I encountered early on in my postgraduate genealogy course was to get myself a bound blank notebook to keep my research notes in. No, surely I should use a loose leaf notepad and file the pages into appropriate sections, I argued? Some years later, that notebook, now filled up and somewhat tattered, and its successor, are my most invaluable sources of research and inspiration. You see, the simple act of having to start another page for each new research direction means that you will always know the order in which you found out various facts. For good measure, date & number the pages too. I usually put the surname branch in the top outside corner of each page and create an index at the back of the notebook so that I can quickly look-up all the pages I've made notes on about that name.
How should you note your sources? That's a whole new subject that is guaranteed to spark never-ending debate and squabbling amongst genealogists. My mantra is if you can construct a reference that someone else can use to find EXACTLY the same piece of evidence that you found to back up your theory then that's ALL that matters.
How should you note your sources? That's a whole new subject that is guaranteed to spark never-ending debate and squabbling amongst genealogists. My mantra is if you can construct a reference that someone else can use to find EXACTLY the same piece of evidence that you found to back up your theory then that's ALL that matters.