Web politicalgraveyard.com

Biographical Checklist and Submission Guidelines

I am pleased and honored to accept nominations of people and submissions of information for the database and web site. The information and corrections I have received from users of the web site has made The Political Graveyard more complete, more accurate, and more useful to its millions of visitors.

The following guidelines should explain the process a bit.

First, note that (though I have some volunteer assistance for data entry), the person who is responsible for everything is me, including receiving and responding all email, writing and debugging all programming, accepting new records into the database, putting new pages online, and so on.

I am very dedicated to this project, but I also have a full time job as County Clerk/Register of Deeds, responsible for a staff of 55 and millions of records. Moreover, I have a family, including a 8-year-old daughter; and my wife and I are homeowners, which entails the usual maintenance tasks. Inevitably, when other things come up, I fall behind answering email and updating the web site, and I can only ask that you be patient with me.

You can provide the information in whatever form you choose. My first preference is plain text via email (to polygon@potifos.com), but you could also send image files (photographs of gravestones, scans of obituaries, etc.), or photocopies via postal mail (P.O. Box 2563, Ann Arbor MI 48106).

It doesn't work to send citations to reference works or microfilmed newspapers not easily available to me and tell me to look it up. I do spend a lot of time on research, but I'm still concentrating on those sources which will yield information on many people at once. I may get to your citations eventually, but I am already 50 years old, and I don't know how much time is left to me to work on this project.

Some people find it easiest to go through the biographical checklist (below) and answer each question. Eventually I will make this a clickable form, but in the meantime, it's probably easiest just to cut-and-paste the questions into email and type in the answer after each one.

Others would rather send photocopies of obituaries, biographical sketches, or other narrative material and let me find what I need. That's okay too.

Feel free to use whatever approach works for you.

If you type information from other sources into email, please take a moment to carefully proofread what you have typed, especially the exact spelling of names (people and places) and dates. Variations in these are a constant headache, not only for me, but for everyone who does historical research.

And again, many thanks for your help!

And now, without further ado, the biographical checklist:

• Full name:
• Regular name as used on ballots, etc.:
• Any other names used (e.g., birth name, maiden name, pen name):
• Nickname if any:
• Date of birth:
• Place of birth (city, county):
• Location of birth (e.g., log cabin, hospital, ship):
• Sex (M or F):
• Parents' names, including mother's maiden name, and years of birth and death for each:
• Spouse(s) full names, date of marriage, year of divorce if any, and years of birth and death for each:
• Race/ethnic group/Indian tribe:
• Religious affiliation (denomination):
• Occupation, profession, or business:
• Organizational affiliation (including service clubs, veterans groups, professional associations, political organizations):
• Wartime military service and rank:
• Hometown or hometowns (city, county, state, etc. of residence during years of political activity; if more than one, approximate year moved):
• Political relatives by blood/marriage/adoption (specify relation for each):
• Elected or appointed position(s) held and range of years
• Elective offices sought unsuccessfully, in which years
• Political party national conventions attended as delegate or alternate, in which years
• Political party positions held (e.g., national committee, state or county party chair), in which years
• Major awards/prizes/honors/medals (e.g., Pulitzer Prize, Medal of Honor, etc.):
• Special distinctions or achievements or historical significance (very briefly):
• Scandal, impeachment, expulsion or criminal prosecution (very briefly):
• Any involvement with professional sports (e.g., as player, owner, commissioner):
• Any involvement with the entertainment buisness (e.g., as actor, musician, screenwriter):
• Any assassination attempts or participation in duelling:
• Any handicaps or disabilities (e.g., loss or paralysis of limbs, blindness, etc.):
• Date of death:
• Place of death (city, county):
• Location of death (e.g., at home, hospital):
• Cause(s) of death:
• Whether cremated, buried at sea, or donated body to medical school:
• Place of burial or entombment (name and location of cemetery):
• Whether cemetery records/office/publications, or gravestone corroborate this:
• Reinterment to other location (year, name and location of cemetery):
• Other monuments or statues (e.g. courthouse or capitol grounds):
• Sources consulted:
• Explanations for any inconsistencies (e.g., if different dates of birth or different spellings of the name were given in different sources, which one is most reliable and why):

"Enjoy the hospitable entertainment of a political graveyard." Henry L. Clinton, Apollo Hall, New York City, February 3, 1872