STANDARDIZED DATES & PLACES

2 August 1948 vs 2 Aug 1948

Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States vs Ogden, UT, USA

About vs Abt.

Roy City Cemetery, Roy, Weber, Utah, United States

35 Slides, 20 minutes, 3 Oct 2017

More of these place problems are popping up, especially if you use www.findarecord.com

USA is not an acceptable abbreviation for United States of America nor is it standardized.

Now changed to standardized and the reason added

The date is there, just hasn’t been selected to standardize it.

Dates need to be standardized

Click here (yellow) to select a date.

Add reason here

It now shows standardized,

it’s green, not yellow.

We are seeing more and more of these prompts to correct previously added dates and places by standardizing them.

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We are encouraged to learn to add them correctly the first time.

Entering standardized dates and places

is the name of this Article

This Article also tells us why.

This Article found by going to Get Help and

then typing in standardized.

It can also be found by going to thefhguide.org FS, Project 1, Goal 6 (change info),Change information for ancestors in your tree, A.2 Entering standardized Dates and Places.

Entering Standardized Dates and Places

The next few slides from the Article tell what issues will be addressed in this Article and information for the general public and also members.

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Entering standardized dates and places

Issues Addressed:

• What is the correct format for dates?

• What does "standardized" mean for dates and places?

• What if I do not know the full name of a place?

• How do I enter an approximate year?

• What if the name of a place has changed?

Member Issues Addressed:

• Why does the system not allow the reservation of an ancestor for temple work?

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These following parts of the Article give you needed information about why dates and places should be standardized and consequences if the dates and places are not standardized.

Note: To convert a Julian date to a Gregorian date, see Article Entering Ethiopian dates (55766).

When you enter dates and places, keep these points in mind.

• Family Tree helps you select a standardized date or place.

• Using standardized dates and places helps clarify the information that you enter.

• Standardized dates and places helps Family Tree locate people with the Find feature.

• FamilySearch recommends you use the name of the place at the time of the event.

Country, state and county borders change

This matches with sources and facilitates hinting. Note: this is an important thing

FamilySearch is working to connect historic names of places with their modern names.

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You can enter places in your native language. However, the database that standardizes places is not yet complete.

If you do not see a standardized entry for the place that you enter, select as specific a standardized place as you can.

You can select only the district, province, or country

name if that is the best you see in the record.

The standards improve over time.

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• If you type dates as all numbers, you need to select a standardized date.

You need to select the correct date.

If you do not select a standard, the system shows both possible dates as in the example.

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For example, 6/7/1890 can mean 6 July 1890, or 7 June 1890, depending on where you live in the world.

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• If you select a standard, the system displays the standard date.

To avoid confusion, please select a standard date or

type out the name of the month to ensure that the

correct date shows.

The following gets into the “how of it”.

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1. Begin typing the date or place in the appropriate field. If Family Tree can identify the date or place, a list of standardized dates and places appears in a green banner under the box where you type. For more information, see Article Do not know the exact birth date or death date (64616).

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Entering Dates and Places

• If a standard date or place does not appear, place your cursor at the end of the date or place, and press the space bar on the computer. This brings up a series of choices. You can click one of the choices.

• The standard format for BC (Before Christ) dates is 0120 BC or 0045 BC.

• 29 February is a standardized date. However, it only shows as a standardized date for a leap year.

• If you want the system to keep exactly what you enter, click None of the Above. This option appears at the bottom of the list of standard dates or places.

• If you want the system to use only the standardized date or place, click the standard date or place in the list. The standard replaces what you entered.

2. Click the correct option: If Family Tree can apply a standard date or place, it does, even if you do not choose an option from the list.

• Standardized dates and places show a green banner with the date or place. Nonstandardized dates and places show a yellow banner and the words “No Standard Selected. Click here to select a date (or place).” Click the message, and then click a standard date or place​.

2. This will show:

Date of Burial

June 1991

Choices are:

June 1991

None of the above

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1. Click in date field and press the space bar

3. Choose the

Date (or place)

and this will

standardize it by taking off the blue highlighting.

Example

June 1991

If you want to add extra information that does not appear in the standardized place, the next information will be very helpful to you and it’s fun.

Extra Information can be added for hospital, cemetery, or church - or even a farm or road marker number 69 on the way to the hospital. Information should also be added to The Reason This Information Is Correct.

Another Article, if you wish to provide Feedback: Recommending an addition or correction to standardized places

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3. To include extra information that does not appear in the standardized place, such as the name of a hospital, cemetery, or church where the event took place, use the steps below:

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1. Begin typing the place as you want it to appear. As you type, the system displays the closest matches in the list of standardized places.

b. After typing the part you want to add (such as a cemetery name), type the final part of the place as it appears in the standardized place. If you are typing an old historical place, type the place, and then type the modern place to connect the old name for the place with the standardized name.

Click somewhere else on the screen. The system leaves the place as you type it but connects it with the standardized place.

If the first name in the list is incorrect, scroll through the list, and click the appropriate name.

c. Do not click the standardized place.

Richfield City Cemetery, Richfield, Sevier, Utah, United States

Richfield City Cemetery,

Richfield City Cemetery, Lincoln, Idaho, United States

Richfield City Cemetery, Richfield, Sevier, Utah, United States

Richfield Cemetery, Wood, Wisconsin, United States

Richfied Cemetery, Westhope, Henry, Ohio United States

Start typing

1

2

Choose

BUT what if your choice does not include your cemetery or farm or hospital as this one did?

Don’t forget to add the Reason

3

1. Type it in as you

want it to appear

Backyard, Ogden, Weber, Utah

Backyard, Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States

Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States

Ogden, Timbuctu, Anystate, United States

2. Do not click standardized place, Click somewhere else on the screen. Just above your entry is easy but do not click inside the place box.

3. Should connect with *correct standardized. But if not, scroll list and click correct one.

*Backyard, Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States

**Ogden, Weber, Utah, United States

CLICK here after typing in Backyard...

4. You now have extra *location, plus the **standardized place.

Not here!

4. If you hover your mouse over a date, the hidden (standard) data shows in the pop-up.

This feature is very useful if you see a Data Problem icon appear in the Research Help box when you are on the Person page of an individual.

Make the appropriate selection from within the pop-up.

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• Use Step 3 to put in old historical places with different modern names.

Tips:

If they look for a name and a place, the system can match the place they enter with the standardized place.

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Connecting with the standardized place makes it easier for other people who use the Find feature to find this person.

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Central Valley, Sevier County, Utah, United States. The population 528/2010 census. The town was named Central Valley at its incorporation in 2005. Known for years simply as Central, Invenury was first name. Post Office doesn’t allow two places with same name.

Central, Washington, Utah, United States, is on the edge of the Dixie National Forest, north of St. George. The population 613/2010 census. It is the starting place of the annual St. George Marathon.

Invenury - Central - Central Valley, Sevier, Utah, United States

Example

Reason

Note: Dates or places brought in from new.familysearch.org appear standardized even if they are not. Change these dates and places to the standardized version.

In other words, if the date shows 31 Jan 1956

change it to 31 January 1956.

• When you edit a date or place, click the date or place; then press the down arrow to see the standardized date or place.

Tips continued:

Information for Members

If you use "about [year]" for a date, you need to click the standardized date from the list. If you do not, you cannot reserve the ordinances.

Abt or abt isn’t standardized in Article entitled: Do not know the exact birth date or death date.

Use Before, After, About spelled out.

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