“Fumbling Towards Methodology”
or
“How I Hoped to Save YOU Time By Wasting My Own”
What Am I Doing?
Big Picture: I’m trying to gather whatever information I can about people who bore a variation of the Callan surname. Callan is the most widespread, modern form, but we’ve seen every imaginable spelling. (None of them is “wrong” – all of them fall under the “Callan” umbrella.)
My selfish end-goal is to figure out how to find the ancestors of James “1st” Callin, the man from whom everyone in The Callin Family History descended. But if I’m going to make a big pile of data, I want it to benefit others.
My larger goal for this One Name Study (heretofore, “ONS”) is to find as many unrelated groups of Callan folks as I can, and “make it make sense.” The resulting database should help people map their Y-DNA test results and track their paternal Callan line. Right now, everything’s still a mess, but eventually, if someone wants to use my data, they should be able to:
- Access the Callan Name Study on Ancestry
- access the spreadsheet
- ask for a GEDCOM file for the Callan Name Study
I know that others before me have tried. At least one of them (Hi, Stan!) has been doing a lot of good work to corral researchers and DNA tests – but I’m still in an experimental phase, trying to figure out the best way(s) to do what I want to do in the most collaborative way possible, which, if I came to them without a full plan, would be way too disruptive a process to impose on the manager of an existing effort (not to mention too restrictive on me).
Rather than horn in on an established study and force the manager to deal with me and my million questions and suggestions, I decided to …do this instead.
I’m still in the middle of the “start-up” phase, so this may not be very coherent yet, but I want to get in the habit of providing updates.
How Am I Doing This?
The “How” may change as I learn better ways of going about this, but for now, here’s the cycle I’m using:
- WikiTree – This is where I intend for all the information I gather to end up. It is a web-based, collaborative platform that anyone can access for free. It is also one of my three “starting points” for finding existing information, which I collect on an…
- Online spreadsheet – I used a Tree App to export spreadsheet files from WikiTree for each spelling of the Callan surname and combined them into one sheet. This allows me to coordinate between WikiTree and the other platforms I’m using to run this study, mainly…
- FamilySearch – Also a free, web-based, collaborative platform, and one that gives users access to online source records. There is an app for finding the FamilySearch profile for people on WikiTree, but so far, I have been searching manually and recording the profile ID on the Spreadsheet.
- RootsMagic – I built a “Callan Name Study” file in RootsMagic, and as I find family clusters on FamilySearch, I import them into RootsMagic.
- Ancestry – Once a family is in RootsMagic, I can sync that to my Ancestry account so I can work where I am most comfortable, finding sources and connecting trees.
There are two main “workflows” I’m experimenting with:
From WikiTree to Ancestry:
- Find a WikiTree profile (ie, Callon-95)
- Match the person in that profile to a profile on FamilySearch (in this case, 2MB1-QRH)
- Import 2MB1-QRH and his ancestors/descendants into RootsMagic
- Prune: I’m trying to limit this Study to people born with a “Callan” surname (or spelling variants) – so I remove anyone who falls outside the Study before syncing with Ancestry.
- Sync the RootsMagic tree to the Callan Name Study Ancestry tree.
Once I have a family group in all three places (WikiTree, FamilySearch, and Ancestry), I can use the spreadsheet to keep track of what needs to be done for each individual. This will be the most fluid/non-linear and time-consuming part of the process.
From Ancestry to WikiTree:
- Each family group needs to be thoroughly examined and sourced on Ancestry and FamilySearch, syncing between them and RootsMagic as I go.
- Once the documentary evidence is as good as we can expect it to be, either the existing WikiTree profile should be improved, or a WikiTree profile should be created for each person (with appropriate categories, etc)
I’m still learning what works best for sending information from one platform to another, and I hope to find reliable ways to automate more of these tasks. I expect that I’ll spend the time I schedule for the ONS working through the spreadsheet and figuring out the most efficient ways to get all three online profiles (Ancestry, FamilySearch, and WikiTree) to agree with each other.
Once a person is well-documented on FamilySearch, it can be relatively easy to use the WikiTree Sourcer App to generate a source list and create a WikiTree profile. Getting source information from Ancestry or other platforms, into RootsMagic, and then into FamilySearch is something I’m exploring this month. RootsMagic is key to this because of its tools for cleaning up Placenames, finding duplicates, and
Do You Want In On This?
Right now, this is a one-man operation, but there is plenty of work to be done, so I won’t turn down help. If you’d like to volunteer, I’m looking for people who are already comfortable using at least one or two of the tools I listed above.
I have made the “Callan Name Study” tree on Ancestry public, and I can add Editors who would like to help source profiles and build trees along the Callan lines. (There will probably need to be some kind of application for that.)
If you prefer FamilySearch, I could use help matching WikiTree profiles to FamilySearch profiles, and generally improving the FamilySearch profiles (adding source records, merging duplicates, etc.)
And if you are a paid MyHeritage member, I am not, so I would welcome your insights on working that platform into the plan. If you have a favorite service and want to participate, let’s talk!
Since I’m still figuring things out, I don’t have a lot of time or energy to offer mentorship, training, or guidance, but if you’ve been wanting to learn how to do an ONS for your surname, we can try to figure things out together.
FAQ: Including those I ask myself
“Have you considered using AI tools?” – Yes, but also no. The Sourcer app on WikiTree is automated, but I don’t think it counts as “AI”.
What most people are calling “AI” is usually a large language model (LLM) that isn’t as good at dealing with unstructured data or the random human elements that make genealogy difficult. There is also a moral dimension to consider, as almost all of the large corporations rushing to push their immature tech into every aspect of our lives are doing so without regard for local economies or ecologies. Find me a tool that is capable of actually helping me reach my goals without harming its neighbors, stealing from artists, or enabling warfare, and I’ll consider it.
“Is this project only for people with the Callan surname?” Yes, but no. If you want to be included because you are descended from a Callan, you are welcome, regardless of your surname. I stand by the notion that you are just as much a Callan as I am, if you’re a descendant. And we should make sure your connection is documented in WikiTree and FamilySearch.
That said, I’m only including people with a Callan surname on the spreadsheet and in the Ancestry tree, because without that limitation, this project can quickly get out of hand. (I’ve already had to “prune” several thousand people who had no direct relationship to a Callan, starting with my extensive maternal side!)
Relevant Links
- Callan Name Study page on WikiTree
- Callan Name Study spreadsheet (currently, on GoogleDrive)
- Callan Name Study on Ancestry
If you find a Callan profile on FamilySearch or WikiTree (or build one) and they aren’t on the spreadsheet, you can have them added using this Callan Name Study submission form.
Mightier Acorns 
Say hello, cousin!