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Research Planning
FAQs about the I.G.I. - The Answers

I apologize for this long-winded answer, but perhaps my insights can help you, or someone else on this list who may be wrestling with the same questions, concerning the I.G.I.

I wrote the book titled The I.G.I. DeMystified several years ago.  The information in it is based on my 20+ years as a librarian and past assistant director of our St. Catharines Family History Centre AND based on each edition of the instructions that were issued with each new edition of the microfiche version of the I.G.I. 1984 through 1992.  For more information about my book or to order a copy please go to The I.G.I. DeMystified.

Batch file numbers are coded to reflect the type of resource from which a particular source entry was taken.  If you go to the Batch Number Table on my website you will see the breakdown of the batch numbers in table form.  Click on the number or type of batch number that best reflects the ones you were searching.  You will then be able to read the type of resource from which the entry came and the method of its' collection.  The description of the batch will enable you to draw a broad conclusion on the reliability of any other information you found within that batch of names.  For instance, if the batch was drawn from a parish register, then, you can be certain that other DENNEs exist within that register.  Whether those other DENNEs are connected to your family line would only be discovered through further research in original resources.  Information in a batch that is drawn from any source that was submitted to the Church should be viewed with a questioning eye until further research in original records can prove or disprove any relationship between your family and the other DENNE individuals that are included in that batch.

Even in the case of batch numbers that have been assigned to extracted original records - the C###, E###. P###, M###, etc. - there are 12 major pitfalls in working with I.G.I. information that most people do not even stop to consider.  The pitfall that has the potential to provide the biggest negative impact on a search is the fact that any one entry in the index does not include all information that was contained in the original source!  For example, I have seen many people who have jumped on a female in a marriage and started the search of that female's surname only to discover many years later that she was a widow at the time of her marriage to their ancestor!  Resulting, of course, in an entire line of ancestry that is incorrect to their own ancestry.

I hope this has helped to clear away some of the mystery surrounding the I.G.I. for you and has given you some thought on whether or not to wholeheartedly accept all of the DENNE individuals that you found in the one batch file.