Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Transcribe and/or Translate a Record on MyHeritage Scribe AI Tool

 From Randy (my cousin) over at Genea-Musings:

it's Saturday Night - 

time for more Genealogy Fun!!!

Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to:

1)  MyHeritage introduced the Scribe AI Tool to analyze, transcribe, translate, and provide historical context to a record or photographic image.  Have you used it?

2) Pick one record image or photograph from your collection and ask Scribe AI to do its task list for you.  How did it do?

NOTE:  If you cannot access Scribe AI for whatever reason, please access another AI tool (such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Transkribus) that can transcribe, translate or analyze a record of photographic image.

3) Please share your selected record or photo image, plus what Scribe AI told you about the image as a comment on this post, on social media or in your own blog post! Please leave a comment with a link on this post so others can check it out.

Here's mine:  

I chose a land survey from 1781 for my 6th great-grandfather, Hosea Tapley (1691-1778). This survey goes with a land warrant that I am planning to post in Amanuensis Monday's blog post. 

I uploaded this image to Scribe AI, and this is what it told me:

1)  Historical context

This document is a colonial-era land survey plat and description from North Carolina, created on April 9, 1761. It visually and textually outlines a 695-acre tract of land surveyed for Hosea Tapley in Orange County. Land surveys like this were a crucial step in the land grant process, occurring after a warrant was issued and before the final patent or grant was finalized. The document includes a hand-drawn map of the property boundaries (metes and bounds) using chains and links as measurements, referencing natural landmarks like oaks, hickories, and poplars. It also lists the "Sworn Chain Carriers," who physically measured the land; it was common practice for family members (like Hosea Tapley Junr.) or neighbors to serve in this role.

2)  Details mentioned

Principal Individual:

• Hosea Tapley: Landowner and subject of the document. He is having 695 acres of land surveyed on the Muddy branch of the Flat River in Orange County, North Carolina. The document notes the survey runs along "his former line," indicating he already owned adjacent property.

Associated Individuals:

• Hosea Tapley Junr.: Sworn Chain Carrier. Likely the son of the principal individual, assisting in the physical measurement of the land.
• John Camp: Sworn Chain Carrier. Likely a neighbor or relative assisting with the survey.
• W. Churton: Surveyor who drafted the plan and recorded the measurements.

Key Events:

• Land Survey: Dated April 9, 1761, in Orange County, North Carolina.

3) Key findings

• The document is a land survey for 695 acres in Orange County, North Carolina, conducted on April 9, 1761, for Hosea Tapley.
• The land is located on the Muddy branch of the Flat River and adjoins land already owned by Tapley.
• Hosea Tapley Junr. and John Camp served as sworn chain carriers, suggesting a close relationship (likely son and neighbor/relative) to the landowner.
• The survey was completed by W. Churton, a known surveyor of the period

4) Suggested next steps

• You should search for the corresponding land warrant and final land patent/grant for Hosea Tapley in the North Carolina State Archives or online land grant databases to complete the picture of this transaction.
• Look for Hosea Tapley and Hosea Tapley Junr. in early Orange County, North Carolina tax lists, court minutes, and deed books to establish their timeline and community network.
• Investigate John Camp in local records, as chain carriers were often close neighbors or relatives by marriage.
• You can use MyHeritage to search for family trees and historical records linking Hosea Tapley Sr. and Jr. to trace their descendants and origins before 1761.
• Since the document mentions Tapley's "former line," you should look for earlier land acquisitions by Hosea Tapley in Orange County or surrounding areas prior to 1761.

5) Full text transcription

By a Scale of 40 Cha in an inch 

No Carolina Orange County 

[Map annotations: Hosea Tapley 695 Acres, Muddy br, Flat river] 

This plan represents a tract of land survey'd 
for Hosea Tapley; on Muddy branch of 
flat river. Beginning at a red oak, of 
the sd Tapley's, & runs thence with his 
line, North 20 Chain, to his Corner white oak. then his line East 21 
Chain, to his Corner hiccory. then his line North 52 Chain. to a red 
oak. on his line. then West 47 Chain 50 Lin. to a post oak, then North 
90 Cha to a Saplin Corner: then West 54 Chain 50 Lin. to a post oak 
then South 52 Chain. to a stake, on his former line, then East 4 Cha 
to his former Corner poplar. then South along his former line 
110 Chain to a white oak. then East 57 Chain, to the first 
station, Containing 695 Acres; survey'd the 9th Day of April 1761 

Sworn Cha Carriers 

John Camp 

Hosea Tapley Junr. }                                                                                             W: Churton

I loved this!  It was so much faster than uploading  the file to Gemini and then having to get my magnifying glass and try to transcribe the words that Gemini did not understand! I only had to correct the line cut-offs and one word in the entire transcription.