User:Nadine Viveiros/sandbox

Article Evaluation
Zachariah Gillam was a New England sea captain and his expedition was a significant landmark leading to the creation of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Although the Wikipedia article written about Captain Gillam is neutral, assumptions are made within the article with no concrete evidence or proper citation supporting the claims made. This is evident when the phrase “He must have known” and term “presumably” is used when describing his relationship with two adventurers. For one statement made in the article, in the place of where an in-text citation should be is, “citation needed”. If the information does not come from an academic and reliable source, it should be removed from the article. The article only has two references, one of which is never cited within the written text and the other is only used three times in in-text citations throughout the entirety of the article. The first reference comes from the “Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online” which is a valuable reference and was published by the Library and Archives Canada, and the other is a book written by Arthur Silver Morton and was published by the University of Toronto Press in 1973. While the few references used are academic, they are not used to properly cite the information given within the article, lowering its overall credibility.

In regards to the format of the article, a very short but clear and easy-to-understand lead section was present and provided a satisfactory overview at the start of the article. While stated in the lead that Gillam was involved in the early days of the Hudson’s Bay Company, there is very little mention of his contributions and involvement in the following paragraphs. There are grammatical errors found within the text such as informally referring to a ship as “her”. The Wikipedia article only has one heading (the biography) and did not cover many aspects such as the individual’s early life or accomplishments; but may be due to the lack of literature or information in regards Zachariah Gillam’s life. The article was written chronologically through time, making it easier to follow and understand. This article is rated as a “Start-Class” biography article and visibly needs more credible sources and proper editing to ensure the article provides accurate and reliable information to its reader.