Citation Issues

U.S. naturalization records - local or national?

I want to cite a naturalization record for Charles K. Kelly imaged here: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSMV-Y929-N

Looking at the FamilySearch catalog for these records, it almost looks like they should be cited as federal records, but the authors are listed as Circuit and District Courts:

https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/1344633?availability=Family%20History%20Library

I've reviewed various sections of Evidence Explained 3rd revised ed., but it only seems to have muddied the waters.

Referencing historical legislative documents

I am working on a history blog post that is based partly on information drawn from the Documents of the Assembly of the State of New-York. These were compilations published after each legislative session during the 19th century. They contain reports, transcripts of testimony, etc.

Medical license verification through district court

I am citing information about a medical license issued by the District Court in Williamson County, Texas, but because this record set is new to me, I thought I'd get input on this citation

Williamson County, Texas Medical Register: 76, A. C. Mussil medical license, 3 December 1909; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89QS-J99X-K?i=250&cat=457558 : accessed 19 Nov 2023), image 251 of film 5788521.

The book spine is imaged here: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89QS-J99P-3?i=186&cat=457558

Birth registers on FamilySearch

I was revisiting some of my citations, but I still feel insecure about citations, so I wanted your thoughts on this one:

Williamstown, Orange County, Vermont, "Record of Births 1897-1903,"  p. 8, Sabra Margaret Cross; digital image,  "Vermont, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1732-2005," FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G99D-Q9WK-V?i=148: 6 Nov 2023). 

Identification of dates in church record examples of EE sec.7.24 & 7.25

I read over sections 7.24 & 7.25 in the EE book and have a question about why the event dates and document dates vary in their presentation as they do. As both refer to artifacts, I would have expected the dates to be presented in a similar way. I just need a bit of help to understand if there is a specific reason for this.


A) In the 7.24 example, the certificate date is shown as, "Rogers-Morgan marriage certificate (1848 marriage); issued  1971...", in both the source list and reference note.

Ancestry or Ancestry.com vs. FamilySearch or FamilySearch.org

When citing censuses from Ancestry.com or FamilySearch.org, why do the examples use Ancestry.com and FamilySearch (rather than FamilySearch.org)?  Does it have to do with the corporate name?  And is it unacceptable to use simply Ancestry (instead of Ancestry.com)?

Citing annotated loose clippings as artifacts

I inherited a few clippings that have their provenance partially identified by a penned annotation. I later determined the full provenance information and would like to reflect it in the citation. This situation is a bit more complex than usual, so it seemed worthwhile to as for feedback.

Would the following citation work?

Certificate of Arrival (Immigration/Naturalization Documents) - what date?

I've been researching immigration and naturalization documents for several ancestors this weeks.  Most of them seem pretty clear what the date of the record would be, but certificates of arrival usually have two dates.  It seems that they were often issued years after the individual actually arrived.  So which date should be used in the citiation?  The arrival date, the certificate issue date...or both?

How to cite naturalization records in FamilySearch catalog?

I've been pulling what's left of my hair out trying to cite a record from the Oliver County, North Dakota, naturalization records. Like most North Dakota naturalization records, it is not currently in  searchable database can only be reached through the FamilySearch catalog. The Oliver County collection may be found here.

After making several attempts at it, I eventually came up with this:

Using a database at a government office

Digitized images of the Irish canceled land books can only be viewed on computers at Tailte Éireann (TE), Dublin, Ireland. The original volumes have been filmed and removed from circulation.

To access a townland, the following path within their database is used:

Archive Books > County > electoral division (ED) > volume by years > book # (usually 1 to 8) > Townland index > townland. (See images)