MANUSCRIPT LENGTH

The manuscript must be between 4,000 and 10,000 words, including the title, text, and footnotes. However, the title that appears as a running head on each page is counted only on the first page. Illustrations, maps, and photographs essential to the story may be used, but any captions should be included in the word count.

NUMBER OF GENERATIONS

The genealogy must cover at least three generations and not more than four, all descending lines, including female lines. The chosen progenitor and spouse will be the first generation. All their children, with spouse(s), constitute the second generation. All grandchildren, with spouse(s), constitute the third generation. It is not necessary to list the children in the fourth generation, but a contestant may do so. However, it is necessary to fully develop only three nuclear families: the progenitor, one of his/her children, and one of his/her grandchildren.

The family you select to write about must span at least three generations. The writer and his or her siblings or spouses may not be included as a member of the third generation.

ORIGINALITY

A genealogy should not be entered in this contest if it has been submitted or will be submitted for publication before the contest ends, or if it has been evaluated by the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG). However, a genealogy may be submitted simultaneously to the NGS contest and the BCG provided it is cleared with both organizations first. If the family the contestant chooses has already been included in a published genealogy or article, it may be submitted here only if (1) the published source contained no more than the name, spouse, and their vital dates, or (2) the previously published work contained so many errors, a new genealogy is required to correct the mistakes. If an article alone would be sufficient to correct the errors, that family would not be a wise choice for the contest. In case of doubt, contact the contest chair.

DOCUMENTATION

Any fact stated that is not common knowledge must be documented. The clichés primary source and secondary source no longer meet modern standards of genealogical research and evidence analysis. As all genealogists know, (a) any source can offer both primary and secondary information, (b) original sources can contain secondary (secondhand) information, and (c) derivative sources can include primary (firsthand) information.

SOURCES

Original Source: the person or record whose information did not come from data already spoken or written. The original is the most authoritative source. Often, however, it no longer survives or its preservation dictates that it be examined only as an image copy (microfilm, digitized image, and so on).

Derivative Source: a person or record supplying information that is repeated, reproduced, transcribed, abstracted, or summarized from something already spoken or written. Because every repetition or recopying of data is an opportunity for error, the closer the derivative is to the original the more reliable the data are likely to be.

INFORMATION

Primary Information: data contributed by a knowledgeable eyewitness to or participant in the event that is the subject of the record or by an official whose duties included making a full, accurate record of it. Primary information is further evaluated by:

• how close in time and place to the event the record was created,
• how involved in the event the eyewitness was (participant versus bystander, for example),
• the age and sanity of the eyewitness and consequent extent of his/her understanding of the event’s significance and details, and
• any bias on the official’s or eyewitness’s part that might have affected the account.

Secondary Information: data supplied by a person who recorded it after hearing of the event or its details from someone else. It is judged according to:

• the probable number of times the story was passed along orally before it was written down,
• the reputation of the secondary informant for reliability, and
• the existence of any potential for bias on the part of the secondary informant.

APPEARANCE

The manuscript should be printed on a letter-quality printer with one-inch margins all around. Use 11- or 12-point font size. The title of the genealogy and page number must appear on each page. Notes and references should appear as footnotes at the bottom of the page to which they apply.

FORMAT

Use the format established by the NGSQ. Contest entrants are strongly urged to read papers written by recent contest winners, usually found in the December issues of the NGSQ. The 2007 winner, “A Family for Suzanne” by Ruth Randall, is available here for you to read.

“A Family for Suzanne” (PDF 941KB) >

EVALUATION

The criteria for excellence in a paper rely heavily on how you demonstrate your research skills. You must show the ability to use and analyze a wide variety of original documents. It should not be just the summarization of the work of others. Tell a story, place your family in historical context, but make sure the historical aspect is really relevant to your family and make if brief. The emphasis should be on the original research you did to create the family history.

RESULTS

If an entry should not meet all requirements, the manuscript will be returned with an explanation. All other contestants will receive comments on their entries after a winner has been selected by the judges.