? abstract: An abbreviated transcription of a document that includes the date of the record and every name it contains, as well as all pertinent information, such as a land description or bequeaths in a will. It may also provide relationships or descriptions (witness, executor, bondsman, son, widow) of the people mentioned.

? Ahnentafel:A German word meaning “ancestor table.” This system of numbering gives each ancestor a number and makes organization and reference easier. Fathers are even numbers; mothers odd. To find a father's number, double the child's number (if you are number one, then your father is number two). Add one to the father's number to get the mother's number (your mother would be number three).