How do I organize my ancestor's sources in Family Tree?

Article Id: 1367
November 30, 2023

In Family Tree on the FamilySearch website, you can change the order that a person's sources are listed in. You can also add or change the event date that is used to sort sources chronologically. You can view sources but not change their order while using the Family Tree mobile app.

Steps (website)

  1. In Family Tree on the FamilySearch website, display the person page of the person whose sources you want to see.
  2. Display the type of sources you want to see:
    • To display sources about the person, click Sources.
    • To display sources about a relationship that this person is in, scroll down to the Family Members section. Then click the Edit icon for the relationship that you want to see.
  3. To change the order of the sources on the list, at the top right side of the sources list, click Options. The default is by Date. Click Custom to be able to drag sources to a new place in the list. 
  4. To add a date to a source that does not have one, click Add, enter the date, and click Save.
  5. To update the date on a source that already has one, follow these steps: 
    1. Click View source.
    2. Click Edit.
    3. Enter the date.
    4. Click Save.
  6. (Optional) To change the source dates order from descending to ascending, click Ascending. To change it back, click Descending.
  7. (Optional) To view Source Types, select or deselect the following:
    • FamilySearch
    • User Created
    • Memory
  8. (Optional) To turn off Unfinished Attachments, click the toggle button.
  9. (Optional) To see more information about the source, possibly including an image or link, click the source title.
  10. (Optional) To open all of the source details up at once, click Detail View.

Steps (mobile app)

  1. In the Family Tree mobile app, display the person page of the person whose sources you want to see.
  2. Tap Sources.
  3. (Optional) To see more information about the source, possibly including an image or link, tap the source title.

In the mobile app, you can see only the sources attached to people, not sources attached to relationships. In the mobile app, you cannot change the order of the sources or open all of the details at once. 

Steps (Family Tree Lite)

Family Tree Lite does not currently display sources.

What are sources in Family Tree?

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