FreeBMD





 The reference tool which I have chosen to review and which I think would benefit the Rothwell Arts and Heritage Centre is the FreeBMD website. The reasons for choosing this particular tool is that it ties in with the genealogy service which the Centre provides for its patrons, and as access to the website is free it will not be a cost to the RAHC. Indexes if births, marriages and deaths often provide a starting point for those wishing to carry out genealogical searches as well as providing information to those who are already established in their searching. I have used the criteria as recommended in Cassell and Hiremath's text, //Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century: An Introduction// (Cassell and Hiremath, 2011 p. 341) to guide me in my evaluation of this reference tool. FreeBMD is a website that provides free internet access to the transcribed records of the Civil Registration Index of births, marriages and deaths for England and Wales. The website is an ongoing project as volunteers continue to transcribe these records. The records contain index information for the period 1837-1983.The search page itself, is easy to navigate and allows searching under many variables e.g. by type, by district, names if present. The currency of the actual information being provided i.e. the index of births, deaths and marriages is not relevant to this reference tool as it pertains to historical information. However the currency of the website itself and the updating of the site are important factors and the website provides statistical data relating to usage which indicates constant monitoring and updating of the databases. While searching through the site I found that some of the links are out of date e.g. [|FreeBMD News] was last updated in 2008. While I consider FreeBMD to be a useful tool for the RAHC, there are some factors relating to the website that would need to be given consideration before making it available on a public computer in the Centre. While the site is free to use, use of the FreeBMD site is subject to the terms and conditions of useand any porposed use of the site outside of these terms must be agreed with the project committee. As stated in the Terms and Conditions, FreeBMD can only be used for personal research purposes. It is also stated that any data extracted from FreeBMD must not be reproduced in any form. FreeBMD is, by its nature widely available to anyone with access to the Internet. This means that it is not a tool unique to the centre as the patron could access the information elsewhere. It would, however, compliment other genealogical services provided by the Centre.I would suggest that the Centre would put a link on the desktop to the website and perhaps include it on a ‘Top 10 Local History Tools’. This would inform the public of the usefulness of the site for their own genealogy searching. It is however important to note that patrons would not be allowed to print from this site. They could be advised to take notes of any useful information which they might acquire from the site. The site itself is very ‘text heavy’ and could cause confusion for people who might not be familiar with online reference services. Relevant staff should ensure that they are familiar with this and other online reference tools should patrons need assistance in their own searching. It is stated on the website however that the site is currently under construction. Another downside to the website is that records are incomplete. It is a work in progress however and this will improve with time. Overall, this tool could be an invaluable reference tool for the RAHC enhancing the genealogical service being provided by the centre along with other tools that could be made available.

Gravestone Photographic Resource>

__References: __
Cassell, K.A. and Hiremath, U. (2011). //Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century: An Introduction.// London: Facet Publishing.