CGL Content Knowledge 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which genealogical principle states that original records are generally more reliable than derivative records?
- The Genealogical Proof Standard
- The principle of original evidence (Correct answer)
- The Reasonably Exhaustive Search standard
- The correlation of evidence principle
Correct answer: The principle of original evidence
The principle of original evidence holds that records created closest to the event, without intervening copying or transcription, are generally more reliable.
Question 2: When citing a digital image of a microfilmed census record on Ancestry.com, which element should appear first in a source citation?
- The URL of the website
- The creator of the original record (Correct answer)
- The database name on Ancestry
- The microfilm roll number
Correct answer: The creator of the original record
Evidence Explained guidelines place the creator or author of the original record first in a source citation, before derivative or hosting sources.
Question 3: A 1900 U.S. Federal Census shows a woman's age as 35 and her years of marriage as 12. What additional column helps estimate her children's birth years?
- Mother tongue column
- Number of children born and number living columns (Correct answer)
- Citizenship status column
- Farm schedule reference column
Correct answer: Number of children born and number living columns
The 1900 census uniquely recorded the number of children a woman had borne and the number still living, enabling estimates of lost children and approximate birth windows.
Question 4: Which record type is MOST useful for identifying a woman's maiden name when she died before 1900 in a state without vital registration?
- City directory listing
- Land deed or probate record naming her as a wife or heir (Correct answer)
- Passport application
- Draft registration card
Correct answer: Land deed or probate record naming her as a wife or heir
Land deeds and probate records frequently name women with both married and maiden names, or identify female heirs by their relationship to the deceased, revealing maiden surnames.
Question 5: What does the term 'cluster genealogy' refer to in research methodology?
- Grouping DNA matches by shared segments
- Researching an ancestor within the context of neighbors, associates, and kin (Correct answer)
- Organizing sources by record type clusters
- Analyzing clusters of surname variants
Correct answer: Researching an ancestor within the context of neighbors, associates, and kin
Cluster genealogy involves studying an ancestor alongside the people who lived near them and interacted with them, since families often migrated and settled together.
Question 6: In a German Lutheran church book, what does the term 'Taufregister' specifically record?
- Marriage banns
- Death and burial entries
- Baptism records (Correct answer)
- Confirmation records
Correct answer: Baptism records
Taufregister is the German term for a baptismal register, recording the christening of infants in Lutheran parishes.
Question 7: Which of the following best describes 'indirect evidence' in genealogical research?
- Evidence obtained from a second-hand informant
- Information that answers the research question only when combined with other information (Correct answer)
- A photocopy rather than an original document
- Testimony from a witness who was not present at the event
Correct answer: Information that answers the research question only when combined with other information
Indirect evidence does not directly answer the research question on its own but contributes to the answer when correlated with other pieces of information.
CGL Content Knowledge 2
Which genealogical principle states that original records are generally more reliable than derivative records?