Transcribing documents

upncmnhistori

Is there any good tips on transcribing old documents for 19th C.? I am usually good at it as I have picked up how to read it by working in genealogical office but some documents can be really hard to read from the 19th century when letters are squashed together. I am guessing during the times of great famine and civil war things were hecting enough letters to the other person were very rushed.

convert

It's just a matter of getting to grips with the handwriting and making out letters in words to get a sense of what's being written. There's no easy or instant way of reading/transcribing the letters, it just takes time. Unless, of course, you want to hire somebody to do it for you!

Dr.Nightdub

Give yourself an hour with the Ernie O'Malley notebooks in the UCD Archive. After that, everything else that's ever been written down since the dawn of mankind is a doddle.

upncmnhistori

Thanks. I am starting to read his books actually. Its good to learn how to transcribe if you are a historian.