I have been trying to clean up my source list for some time now so I can provide decent citations for my research. The internet is full of guides explaining how to cite census records, death certificates, etc., and there are different approaches for electronic media and physical copies.
Trying to find two approaches that are consistent with each other, however, is something akin to finding two politicians that agree on something. Everyone has their opinion, but it seems there are little differences that exist between each method. Google is a powerful weapon, but searching for citation examples that I can use with my sources can lead to more confusion than one person can handle.
I was just starting to get comfortable with an approach that represents my best effort at synthesizing several different methods, when I started seeing the name Elizabeth Shown Mills over and over. Suddenly her name was popping up everywhere, and everyone was comparing this method or that method to how she does things.
Finally some consistency amongst confusion? Here is an approach that is clearly laid out and adapted to almost any situation that you can think of. Maybe now I can stop spending so much time trying to figure out how to cite each source type, and start spending more time researching again.
It makes me happy. But now I have to go back and update all my existing citations to reflect Ms. Mills' approach. Oh well, research can wait a little longer.
