No less than seventeen Baltimore newspapers were drawn on in the making of this compilation. The book began as a compilation of marriages and deaths from Baltimore's "Federal Gazette," published in an unbroken run from its inception in 1796 through the year 1816. Recognizing that deaths and marriages reported in one newspaper did not always appear in other newspapers and seeking comprehensiveness, Mr. Barnes ultimately decided to include vital records from all Baltimore newspapers for this period--seventeen in all. The text consists of some 7,500 abstracts, identifying, at the very least, an additional 5,000 persons, mainly brides, parents, and relatives.