Is the correct (Acadian) spelling of this last name Pesselet or Pesseley?

Question

I want to merge the duplicates of Jean Pitre's wife, Marie Pesselet/Pesseley, but I'm not sure what the spelling of her last name should be. Currently there are duplicates with the following spellings (that I've seen): Pesselet, Pesseley, Posselet, Presselet, and Pesselin. Only the first two seem to have any merit.

The 1671 census uses Peselet, and 1678 uses Pesselet. However, on this site, Stephen White is quoted, and he writes Pesseley. I tend to just go with what White says, but I haven't seen this spelling elsewhere.

Does anyone have input on this? Maybe you're familiar with the name (which I'm not)? Thanks!

Answer 1

I agree that names get butchered quite a bit in census and church records. In this case I would stick with the spelling Stephen White uses.

Comments

Alrighty, Pesseley it is then!

Answer 2

I would put your prefered last name as the birth/current name, but list the alternate spelling under the other last names. Then, if for some reason the name was changed, it would still be findable by family and such.

Comments

Oh, I'll definitely include alternate spellings. I just need to know the right one before I start merging, so that I can choose the final profile ID. The final last name at birth should be the correct spelling of the name, as used at that time.

Answer 3

With Census and in some cases, church and register, records the names are spelt the way the person entering the name hears it.  This means that both versions are right.

Many people before the twentieth century were illiterate, so the name written by the registrar or clergyman was the name they had.  There are examples of people having as many as three versions on Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates.

How many ways have people written your surname if you haven't spelt it out over the telephone?  Some of mine are amazing!