About the data: Difference between revisions

Line 1:

This wiki was seeded from ~~a merged research file~~ of Camp Ritchie ~~class-roster rows~~ and ~~a larger demographics table~~ compiled over many years by [[Dan Gross Memorial|Daniel (Dan) Gross]] and other researchers. Soldier pages are a public starting point, not a finished biography of every man.

This wiki was seeded from two distinct bodies of material: the Classes 1–31 roster data supplied by '''Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc.''' (also known as '''The Ritchie History Museum'''), and research files compiled over many years by [[Dan Gross Memorial|Daniel (Dan) Gross]] and other researchers. Soldier pages are a public starting point, not a finished biography of every man.

== Class roster disclaimer ==

Line 6:

== How information on this site is compiled ==

Nothing on this wiki comes from a single authoritative database. Pages are built by combining several kinds of material, then edited in the open like any wiki. The main layers are:

=== Camp Ritchie Museum class data ===

The class, section, and related roster data for Classes 1–31 was supplied by '''Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc.''' (also known as '''The Ritchie History Museum'''). It is separate from Dan Gross's research files and is not data created by this wiki's maintainers or by Dan Gross. The museum's copyright and reproduction restriction are stated in the [[Template:Class data disclaimer|Class roster disclaimer]] above.

=== Dan Gross research files ===

~~The roster backbone is a spreadsheet~~ and related working files ~~Dan Gross maintained~~ for the original theritchieboys.com project: ~~Camp Ritchie class lists,~~ demographics, IPW team assignments, research notes, and cross-references he and collaborators gathered over decades. Dan's original Excel timeline/roster file was the general starting point for this project, but it '''was not and is not uploaded to this site'''. Its information was combined with other research and records; it was never treated as the sole authority. That work is invaluable but was never a formal archival finding aid; typos, duplicate names, and uncertain matches were part of the working process.

Dan Gross maintained spreadsheets and related working files for the original theritchieboys.com project: demographics, IPW team assignments, research notes, timeline material, and cross-references he and collaborators gathered over decades. The initial '''Research notes''' on soldier profiles came from the Dan Gross research spreadsheet/source rows used in the merged profile import, including material from his original Excel timeline/roster work. They are distinct from the Camp Ritchie Museum's Classes 1–31 class data.

Dan's original Excel timeline/roster file was the general starting point for this project, but it '''was not and is not uploaded to this site'''. Its information was combined with other research and records; it was never treated as the sole authority. That work is invaluable but was never a formal archival finding aid; typos, duplicate names, and uncertain matches were part of the working process. Later additions under Research notes may come from OCR, family contributions, or other cited research and should be judged by their own source.

=== Dan Gross timeline documents ===

Line 18:

Line 23:

=== National Archives and census records ===

~~Class roster paper was digitized from National Archives sources.~~ Soldier infobox fields also draw on WWII Army enlistment records, the 1940 census, and related public government data merged into the project file. NARA data itself can contain transcription errors, missing men, or fields that do not align cleanly with later research. Each page's collapsed technical section shows some of the codes used in the merge; it is not a full NARA record dump.

Soldier infobox fields also draw on WWII Army enlistment records, the 1940 census, and related public government data merged into the project file. NARA data itself can contain transcription errors, missing men, or fields that do not align cleanly with later research. Each page's collapsed technical section shows some of the codes used in the merge; it is not a full NARA record dump.

=== Facebook posts and community pages ===

Line 48:

Line 53:

* An infobox built from names, Army serial number (ASN), class/section/rank, vitals, nativity, religion, enlistment, IPW teams, and related public fields

* Research notes ~~copied~~ from ~~the~~ source ~~file~~ when they existed

* Research notes imported from Dan Gross research spreadsheet/source rows when they existed; later additions identify their own source where possible

* A collapsed technical section with NARA and census codes used in the merge (not the raw NARA dump string)

Line 62:

Line 67:

* The raw NARA enlistment dump string

* Dan Gross's original Excel timeline/roster file was not uploaded. Its data was used as a general starting point and combined with other research and records.

* The private Word-document timelines were not uploaded~~, and their newly extracted~~ findings ~~have not yet been added to~~ public profiles.

* The private Word-document timelines were not uploaded. Selected clear findings from them may be incorporated into public profiles with descriptive citations, but the original documents remain private.

* Internal merge logs and ambiguous-review queues (those stay with the research project)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-This wiki was seeded from a merged research file of Camp Ritchie class-roster rows and a larger demographics table compiled over many years by [[Dan Gross Memorial|Daniel (Dan) Gross]] and other researchers. Soldier pages are a public starting point, not a finished biography of every man.
+This wiki was seeded from two distinct bodies of material: the Classes 1–31 roster data supplied by '''Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc.''' (also known as '''The Ritchie History Museum'''), and research files compiled over many years by [[Dan Gross Memorial|Daniel (Dan) Gross]] and other researchers. Soldier pages are a public starting point, not a finished biography of every man.
 == Class roster disclaimer ==
@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 == How information on this site is compiled ==
 Nothing on this wiki comes from a single authoritative database. Pages are built by combining several kinds of material, then edited in the open like any wiki. The main layers are:
+=== Camp Ritchie Museum class data ===
+The class, section, and related roster data for Classes 1–31 was supplied by '''Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc.''' (also known as '''The Ritchie History Museum'''). It is separate from Dan Gross's research files and is not data created by this wiki's maintainers or by Dan Gross. The museum's copyright and reproduction restriction are stated in the [[Template:Class data disclaimer|Class roster disclaimer]] above.
 === Dan Gross research files ===
-The roster backbone is a spreadsheet and related working files Dan Gross maintained for the original theritchieboys.com project: Camp Ritchie class lists, demographics, IPW team assignments, research notes, and cross-references he and collaborators gathered over decades. Dan's original Excel timeline/roster file was the general starting point for this project, but it '''was not and is not uploaded to this site'''. Its information was combined with other research and records; it was never treated as the sole authority. That work is invaluable but was never a formal archival finding aid; typos, duplicate names, and uncertain matches were part of the working process.
+Dan Gross maintained spreadsheets and related working files for the original theritchieboys.com project: demographics, IPW team assignments, research notes, timeline material, and cross-references he and collaborators gathered over decades. The initial '''Research notes''' on soldier profiles came from the Dan Gross research spreadsheet/source rows used in the merged profile import, including material from his original Excel timeline/roster work. They are distinct from the Camp Ritchie Museum's Classes 1–31 class data.
+Dan's original Excel timeline/roster file was the general starting point for this project, but it '''was not and is not uploaded to this site'''. Its information was combined with other research and records; it was never treated as the sole authority. That work is invaluable but was never a formal archival finding aid; typos, duplicate names, and uncertain matches were part of the working process. Later additions under Research notes may come from OCR, family contributions, or other cited research and should be judged by their own source.
 === Dan Gross timeline documents ===
@@ Line 18: / Line 23: @@
 === National Archives and census records ===
-Class roster paper was digitized from National Archives sources. Soldier infobox fields also draw on WWII Army enlistment records, the 1940 census, and related public government data merged into the project file. NARA data itself can contain transcription errors, missing men, or fields that do not align cleanly with later research. Each page's collapsed technical section shows some of the codes used in the merge; it is not a full NARA record dump.
+Soldier infobox fields also draw on WWII Army enlistment records, the 1940 census, and related public government data merged into the project file. NARA data itself can contain transcription errors, missing men, or fields that do not align cleanly with later research. Each page's collapsed technical section shows some of the codes used in the merge; it is not a full NARA record dump.
 === Facebook posts and community pages ===
@@ Line 48: / Line 53: @@
 * An infobox built from names, Army serial number (ASN), class/section/rank, vitals, nativity, religion, enlistment, IPW teams, and related public fields
-* Research notes copied from the source file when they existed
+* Research notes imported from Dan Gross research spreadsheet/source rows when they existed; later additions identify their own source where possible
 * A collapsed technical section with NARA and census codes used in the merge (not the raw NARA dump string)
@@ Line 62: / Line 67: @@
 * The raw NARA enlistment dump string
 * Dan Gross's original Excel timeline/roster file was not uploaded. Its data was used as a general starting point and combined with other research and records.
-* The private Word-document timelines were not uploaded, and their newly extracted findings have not yet been added to public profiles.
+* The private Word-document timelines were not uploaded. Selected clear findings from them may be incorporated into public profiles with descriptive citations, but the original documents remain private.
 * Internal merge logs and ambiguous-review queues (those stay with the research project)