Would the community approve of listing Jack Ross by his birth name? [closed]

Question

Hi All,

There is rather compelling evidence that Jack Ross, Ross-14817, was born as Herman Franklin Swindle in Perry County Alabama. He was married first in Alabama as his birth name to Rosie Nichols, with whom he had children. Sometime between 1930 and 1940, he left Rosie and the kids to marry her younger sister Joyce Irene Nichols. In doing so he assumed the alias "Jack Ross" and they moved to Florida.

I feel that there is enough documentation to conclude that Herman Franklin Swindle and Jack Ross are one in the same, but as this would be a large change to the profile and potentially hurtful to the family, given his son (Step-Son?) was the famous Bob Ross, I wanted community input before I update anything.

Your thoughts?

Comments

If it would cause distress to the family, don’t do it.

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If the "famous" Bob Ross (I'd never heard of him until this question), was born 22 years before his parents married in 1964, while his mother was married to someone else, HIS last name at birth wasn't Ross, either, but Cox.

If Jack Ross's birth name truly was Swindle, then the profile should reflect that.  BUT, before any changes are made, it needs to be at least 99.88888% certain.  (IMNSHO.)

If there are no living children, who is there to offend, or distress?  Every family has its skeletons in the closet, and we are not to hide them away. I've at least two instances of name-changing in my branches, and the living descendants are facing what that has led to without hiding away from it.

WikiTree is about accuracy, and that includes the last name at birth being what it was, not what we want it to be.  I had to change the  last name of my own great-great-grandfather when I found out -- and confirmed with the help of others -- that he had lied on official documents about his name and that of his parents, and his place of birth (which led multiple family researchers (including two members of the LDS) down many a garden path and into solid brick walls).

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Oh Melanie, if that had been an Answer I'd given you the gold star for it

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Hi Melanie,

Bob Ross was the artist who did painting instruction lessons on television, best known for his phrase "happy little trees".

I am in complete agreement with your comments and thank you for your elaborate response. I believe accuracy is most important on Wikitree as well. I am going to contact the profile manager to discuss this and let him or her decide what they would like to do. My hope is that perhaps they have more documentation than I have access to.

The parentage and surnames for this family are incredibly confusing. "Bob" Robert Norman was actually born before his mother was married to Cox or Ross. He was born in 1942, but his mother married Cox in 1943 and Ross in 1964. I suppose a birth certificate would clear that up, which I unfortunately do not have.

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And it would be even more confusing, given that he (Bob the sort of famous in America, but not Australia) was born before his mother's first marriage to Cox, that it is likely his last name at birth may not even be Cox.  (But it more than likely was not Ross, so the Project in charge of his profile should take another look at that last name.)

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"Born in Daytona Florida in 1942, Ross was the child of a carpenter (Jack) and a waitress (Ollie) who separated, married other people, separated from those new partners and then got married to each other again all before their son had hit his teens." http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2015/09/surprisingly-mysterious-life-artist-bob-ross/

That statement doesn't even appear to be factually correct if they remarried in 1964 but it may shed some light on the situation. I also found an image of Jack Ross's obituary and uploaded it to the profile.

I too would like to see the evidence. The profile manager seems to concentrate on Japanese profiles (some created without any sources ) and I would not expect her to have any private knowledge of Bob Ross's family.

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Matthew,

Thank you for uploading the obituary. I also question the factual accuracy of that article. There is no record of Ollie being married prior to her marriage to George Cox in 1943. Her surname on that marriage record is her maiden name, Helms, meaning it more than likely was her first marriage.

And Jack Ross was married to Joyce Nichols as of the 1940 census (their actual marriage date, sometime in the 30s, isn't documented) and they didn't divorce until 1951 (1951 FL divorce record).

I sent the profile manager a long private message with all the dates, names, and information I have been able to gather. At this point, I don't feel I have enough evidence to comfortably make profile changes superseding the profile manager.

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(Hi, I'm the original profile manager)

I am late to the conversations (Apologies!) and I would like to add that yes, I do not have any connection to Bob Ross and know little to nothing about his family beyond what you can find online. Because of this, I will step down from his family members' profiles and allow someone else with more information and sources to contribute and correct the profiles. For those who reached out to me, thank you for taking the time to do so. I will help where I can, but I will leave the rest to those who can make more educated improvements.

(I also apologize for my lack of sourcing on some profiles... I will take the time to try and fix this.)

Answer 1

Nina;

Please explain the evidence with more detail and clarity.

Also, references to Ancestry.com files that others can not view, does not suffice for an independent check.  It should be clear enough that all good genealogist would agree.

Have you contacted the Profile Manager?  

Also, Son vs. Step Son.  There is a huge difference.

Comments

Hi Andrew,

You are right that the best bet would be to contact the profile manager. That is exactly what I will do and then let them decide the best course of action. Perhaps he or she has access to non-public documents such as his birth or death certificate.