APOLOGY TO SUE OLMSTED

I owe an apology to Sue Olmsted. She was reading past issues of this Newsletter on the WebPage in December 2003, and was stunned when she saw an article in Vol. 5 No. 2, “Gleanings from The Clintonville Tribune.” Sue informed me that she had written this article, and gave it to the person who sent it to me for publication. That person did not credit Sue as author.

Let me quote Sue, “I am not upset that you have printed these gleanings and shared them.  In fact, I have much more material to send you.  It's just that gut reaction that she sent them in and didn't bother to mention that she had gotten them from me or ask me first.

”If I might be so bold to suggest, in the next newsletter, could you add a gentle reminder that all of us, all genealogists, should cite our sources, including who did the work if we are just passing along info.  I think [she] is a beginner and may not realize that she is getting the credit for work she did not do and should at least acknowledge who did it.

”Also there is the credibility aspect.  I tell people over and over, every day, if you don't know the original source you are flirting with danger as to its accuracy.  Hence we cite our sources.”

I promised Sue that I would include her comments in the next issue.

Carl Hommel