Indexes...



...will tell you where to go and not much else!

What is an index?
in·dex  
n. pl. in·dex·es or in·di·ces  
1. Something that serves to guide, point out, or otherwise facilitate reference, especially:
a. An alphabetized list of names, places, and subjects treated in a printed work, giving the page or pages on which each item is mentioned.*

Indexes can be very valuable and they can be very frustrating.  Knowing what an index is will spare the user frustration! 

Indexes are a compilation of names, dates, and other useful information.  Indexes are valuable because they are usually arranged in alphabetical order, which means you may quickly see if your ancestor is listed or not.  An index will point you in a direction, but indexes don’t usually give much more information than that.   In other words, an index will probably give you just enough information to whet your appetite.  FYI; just because a library has an index, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the library has the record of the index! 

*Source:  Online at:   The Free Dictionary.com:  http://www.thefreedictionary.com/index

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