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Joyce's Search Tip - January 2008 -
| Do You Know that you can search just the
Census
Records on the site by using the three county level Census
buttons in the Partitioned search engine at the bottom of the
Current
What's New Page?
You can further limit your search by choosing the find all words
option and entering a year or township name along with your surname.
Remember that alternate spellings of surnames WILL affect your search results. |
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Census records are very often difficult to read because of handwriting,
microfilm quality, and spelling issues. Our early census takers were not
as well educated as we'd like them to have been, and even the people bearing
the names often could not spell them with the same consistency we are accustomed
to in this era. The census taker wrote what he believed he heard as well
as he could. These have been transcribed for you to the very best or our
abilities given the difficulties mentioned. Please be tolerant of what
you would consider "mistakes." If you can recognize the names you are looking
for, then it is a success. If not, then you may want to find a place where
you can view the originals so that you can judge for yourselves. Excessive
attention to outmoded spelling issues is the sign of a beginner in family
research. Those of you who have been at this a while are well aware of
the "spelling errors" in our early records and have learned to take them
in your stride. If you want to tell us what is right and what is wrong
with the transcription, your notes will be added to the Comment
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