Standard Auto-text Templates

Standard Auto-text Templates

When the Auto button is clicked, an auto-text template is used to produce a transcription of the data being entered. These templates can be produced using the Auto-text Templates screen. Due to the many differences in the way data was recorded it is almost certain that the transcription that is automatically produced will need to manually edited in the Source Text box before the entry is saved. This help page describes the limitations of templates, encourages the user to experiment with and share their own templates and gives details of the standard templates included in Ancestral Sources.

Family Historian 7 allows rich text to be used in source text and from Ancestral Sources v7 onwards it is now possible to create rich-text version of Auto-text templates. See the Auto-text templates page for more details. There are rich-text versions of all the standard templates in Ancestral Sources and many of these allow a much closer representation of the original record because of the ability to use tables in rich source text.

Limitations of Transcriptions in Family Historian 6 and earlier

Due to the limitations in Family Historian 6 it is very difficult to produce a tabulated version of a record and so reproducing an exact replica of, for example, a marriage certificate is almost impossible and probably unnecessary. The transcription can be used as a way of easily finding and reading the text contained in the source - a multimedia image should be used if an accurate view is required as to how the data was arranged. Remember, to check the source text produced by auto-text before saving the entry. It is almost certain that you will need to manually edit the source text before saving it to ensure that the transcript is accurate.

Creating and Sharing Templates

Users are encouraged to develop their own auto-text templates for baptism, marriage, death, baptism/cremation and monumental inscription documents that are not included in Ancestral Sources. Note that Census records are slightly different and a variety of different census records are supported through the use of Census Templates. However, auto-text templates can still have their uses even for Census records. Examine the existing templates using the Auto-text Template screen and refer to the Template Keywords and Functions topic to gain an understanding of how templates operate. Please do email your templates to the Ancestral Sources developer Nick Walker, and also consider sharing them in the FHUG Ancestral Sources Knowledge Base.

Standard Templates

Standard auto-text templates are provided for each of the currently supported source document types. Each are described below.

Census Auto-text Templates

Default: This is the usual census template that has been part of Ancestral Sources since the first version. It includes the source and year, place, address and the census grid. There isn't a great need for a variety of Census Auto-text templates as each census year has its own census template which ensures that a transcription of the census columns can be made. The rich-text version of this template will show the census grid in a table.
Split Table: This is very similar to the default template, but splits the table up into multiple tables with a maximum of 6 columns each. This may be desirable to ensure that census tables will fit onto reports that display the source text without being truncated. Note that if you prefer to have fewer or more than 6 columns displayed, edit the autotext template and change the 6 to a different number on the second line of the template.

Birth Auto-text Templates

Generic Birth: This template just lists all of the possible birth fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Birth (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Birth previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Birth Certificate 1837- (England/Wales): Registration of births in England and Wales began in 1837 and copies of birth certificates can be obtained from the General Register Office or Local Register Offices. This auto-text template includes the columns from this certificate but with fields listed on separate lines.
SR Birth Certificate 1856- (Scotland): In Scotland birth certificates began to be a requirement from 1855. Birth certificates in 1855 are different and include a lot more information, much of which can not be handled by Ancestral Sources and would need to be added to your file using Family Historian. These certificates were soon replaced the following year with the certificate represented by this template.

Baptism Auto-text Templates

There are four standard baptism templates:

Generic Baptism: This template just lists all of the possible baptism fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Baptism (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Baptism previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Parish Registers 1812 & Earlier (England/Wales): Before 1812 in England and Wales, baptism were recorded in a variety of different formats, including whatever information the minister decided to record. Some entries just include the baptism date, the name of the child and the father. Others include more details such as occupation, residence, mother's name, etc. This means that it is highly likely that you will need to edit the resulting automatic transcription before saving the entry. Although the title of this template refers to England and Wales, it may well be of use to act as a basis for transcription of records from Scotland and other countries.
Parish Registers 1812- (England/Wales): In 1812, Rose's Act brought in parish registers with printed forms separated into columns. Despite there not being a column to record date-of-birth, this was often noted next to the row recording the baptism details. This template includes the columns from this baptism form, but with fields listed on separate lines, rather than attempting to reproduce the table format due to limitations discussed earlier on this help page.

Marriage Auto-text Templates

There are eight standard marriage templates:

Generic Marriage: This template just lists all of the possible marriage fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Marriage (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Marriage previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Parish Registers 1753 & Earlier (England/Wales): Before 1753 in England and Wales, marriages were recorded in a variety of different formats, using whatever information the minister decided to record. Some entries just record a date and the names of the wedded couple. Others include far more information such as occupation of the husband, residence, marital status (bachelor, spinster, etc.). This means that it is highly likely that you will need to edit the resulting automatic transcription before saving the entry. Although the title of this template refers to England and Wales, it may well be of use to act as a basis for transcription of records from Scotland and other countries.
Parish Registers 1754-1812 (England/Wales): In 1754, Hardwick's Marriage Act introduced printed forms for recording marriage information, with four marriage entries per page.
Parish Registers 1812-1837 (England/Wales): A slightly amended form was introduced in 1812, very similar to the 1754 Hardwick format but with 3 marriages per page and with some extra information recording whether the marriage was by consent of parents, friends, etc. The template includes the phrase 'consent by parents' but there is a good chance that something different will be recorded in a marriage entry so do check this before saving a marriage record. Note that some churches continued to use the previous marriage forms for many years after 1812: perhaps they needed to fill their existing register book before obtaining a new one?
Parish Registers 1837- (England/Wales): The family marriage forms were introduced in 1837 and record much more information including names and occupations of fathers. Certified copies of this data is included in marriage certificates that are obtained from the General Register Office or Local Register Offices. This template includes the columns from this marriage form, but with fields listed on separate lines, rather than attempting to reproduce the table format due to limitations discussed earlier on this help page.
Marriage Certificate 1837-2021 (England/Wales): Almost identical to the marriages recorded in parish registers from 1837, copies of marriage certificates can be obtained from the General Register Office or Local Register Offices.
Marriage Certificate 2021- (England/Wales): From 2021, couples sign a Marriage Schedule. This data is then recorded and eventually digital copies of marriage certificates can be obtained from the General Register Office or Local Register Offices.
SR Marriage Certificate 1856- (Scotland): In Scotland marriage certificates began to be a requirement from 1855. Marriage certificates in 1855 are very different and include a lot more information. They were soon replaced the following year with the certificate represented by this template.

Death Auto-text Templates

Generic Death: This template just lists all of the possible death fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Death (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Death previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Death Certificate 1837- (England/Wales): Registration of deaths in England and Wales began in 1837 and copies of death certificates can be obtained from the General Register Office or Local Register Offices. This auto-text template includes the columns from this certificate but with fields listed on separate lines.
SR Death Certificate 1856- (Scotland): In Scotland death certificates began to be a requirement from 1855. Death certificates in 1855 are different and include a lot more information, most of which can not be handled by Ancestral Sources and would need to be added to your file using Family Historian. These certificates were soon replaced the following year with the certificate represented by this template.

Burial Auto-text Templates

Generic Burial: This template just lists all of the possible burial fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Burial (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Burial previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Parish Registers 1812 & earlier (England/Wales): Before 1812 in England and Wales, burials were recorded in a variety of different formats, including whatever information the minister decided to record. Many entries just include a date and the name the name of the deceased. Others include more details such as occupation, residence, etc. This means that it is highly likely that you will need to edit the resulting automatic transcription before saving the entry. Although the title of this template refers to England and Wales, it may well be of use to act as a basis for transcription of records from Scotland and other countries.
Parish Registers 1812- (England/Wales): In 1812, Rose's Act brought in parish registers with printed forms separated into columns. Despite there not being a column to record date-of-death, this was often noted next to the row recording the burial details. This template includes the columns from this burial form, but with fields listed on separate lines, rather than attempting to reproduce the table format due to limitations discussed earlier on this help page

Monumental Inscription Auto-text Templates

Generic Monumental Inscription: This template just lists all of the possible MI fields and displays the values entered for each. A caption for each field is displayed, even if there isn't a value for some of the fields. This is an ideal template for users who just want to ensure that all of the data included in the entry is recorded, without worrying about making an accurate copy of the text.
Generic Monumental Inscription (Data Only): This is identical to the Generic Monumental Inscription previously described, but will only show captions for fields that have data in them.
Standard Gravestone: The inscriptions on gravestones don't really follow any particular rules. This template simply displays the details for each person entered based on the supplied data which may include death and birth dates and places, occupation and residence. Wording such as 'in loving memory of' and 'gone but not forgotten' are not included. This means that it is highly likely that you will need to edit the resulting automatic transcription before saving the entry.