Help:Links in Red

These links are usually to articles that have not actually been written. Someone may have thought they would write an article on this topic, but never got around to it. For links to pages that have not actually been written we ask that you might consider writing some of them yourself.


 * For a complete list of red links that need articles written for them see Special:WantedPages

What are the subjects of the articles these links link too?

 * Many of these links were to go to articles historical articles of various parts of the country, such as county histories.
 * Many were for histories of various trails and roads showing how people move from place to place.

You can write them yourself

 * To author these articles, you can gather material from the various histories that exist on the Internet or in Wikipedia.
 * Many of these articles such as in Wikipedia are quite long so be prepared to condense them down into your own words. Your article need not be long.
 * IMPORTANT: Be sure to point out how the history of the place or route effected the moment of people as they settled the country. For example: From where and how did people arrive in Kentucky?  What routes might they or their children have taken when they continued westward.  This might give researchers clues on what areas to go to next to look for records.
 * ALSO IMPORTANT: Many parts of the country were settled by particular ethnic groups from foreign countries. Many German immigrants settled in certain parts of the county.  What route did they take to get there?  This will help to know where someone might have stopped short of the original destination and settle down in a place on the way.


 * If you want to quote extensive material from other articles, you may need to get permission.

Include where you got your material for your article

 * Be sure a give credit to where you found the information you used in your history.

List links to other sites

 * Be sure and included a list of links to the sites from which you gathered material
 * Find and link to others that might be of interest to genealogists

How to create a page for links in red
Have material for an article with a link in red but not sure how to create it? Follow these easy steps:
 * Find the search box on any page.
 * Type in the title of the article you want to write and enter.
 * What appears on the screen is “Editing (the name you just typed in).”
 * In the blank area below the header box is where you either type in your subject material or download text that you may have type in a word processing program. (This by the way is the best way to create text before you insert into your newly created article.)
 * Next place any images you want by typing code similar to the following:
 * [[Image:name of approved image.jpg|thumb|(position “right” or “left” side of the page)|250px (size of image in pixels)| Type caption if you have one ]]
 * Please note: All images must be approved by FamilySearch Wiki before you can use them. See: Help:Submitting images for approval.


 * Place the images on the page along side of the text where you want it.
 * Be sure to break up the text with headers very so often so the article will be not a solid page of text. (Notice how this article was put together).
 * If the article is not your own creation, be sure to reference the source from where you summarized.
 * To create a reference type:


 * Create a Reference section at the bottom of the page to list your references like so:
 * ===References===
 * The reference you typed between the tags will show here.
 * The reference you typed between the tags will show here.


 * Finally be sure an give your article a category by typing:
 * For help with naming categories, see Help:Categorization.