Could Laura Koontz Wood have 3 different middle initials?

+6 votes
215 views
OK, this one's driving me a little batty. In Gallia County Ohio in 1848, a Laura Koontz was born to Samuel Koontz and Catharine Donnally and appears in the 1850 census. In 1870 (still in Gallia), a Laura Koontz (b 1848) married a Harrison Wood, and in 1871 (still in Gallia), they had a daughter Catharine Wood. In 1880, Harry Wood, his wife Laura (b 1848), daughter Katie (b 1871), and two more children appear in the Gallia County census. Seems cut-and-dry, right? Here's the problem: in 3 of those four records above, Laura has a different middle initial. In 1850, she is Laura A. Koontz. In 1871, she is Laura C. Koontz. And by 1880, she is Laura J. Koontz.

If you click through to her profile (linked to this question), you'll see that this isn't just a question of FamilySearch poorly transcribing sloppy handwriting in records: it's definitely an A, a C, and a J. So what do I do? Ignore the middle initial? Look for three unique Laura Koontzes in the same county, with the same birth year, two of whom are married to Harry/Harrison Wood?

Any advice welcome. Makes me wish for the old days, when an unsourced family tree was a perfectly satisfying answer to my lineage. :)
WikiTree profile: Laura Wood
in Genealogy Help by Doug Matthews G2G4 (4.4k points)
edited by Doug Matthews

1 Answer

+3 votes
Though it's entirely possible that Laura had three middle names, it's not very likely.  (I have a Theresa Catherine Wilhemina Caroline Koch in my family tree!)  Though it's likely that these are all the same person, I suggest looking for a source other than a census record that might list her middle initial or name or other confirming information.  If you know where she is buried, is there a tombstone or burial record?  Can you locate a baptismal or marriage record?  FamilySearch has many of these records available.
by Star Kline G2G6 Pilot (715k points)
I'll keep looking: so far, those are the only records with middle initials (and of course, they're all different). Her tombstone just has the maiden name as the middle name, and the other records I've found (e.g. son's marriage record) don't have any middle initial at all.
Another thing I've noticed is that records are not always put together by the person who knows the true answer - and so can be incorrect. They might have asked the husband, who said one thing. Dad said another. The neighbor helped out on one census and said something different. It's very hard to pin down when these things occur unless it's specific (i.e., states "information provided by next door neighbor"). In most cases, you really don't know who provided the answers, and the person recording the information can sometimes even make mistakes.

This appears a little too consistent to be a simple mistake, but I wouldn't throw it out of the realm of possibilities.
We have a fair number of names with multiple middle names on my mother's side of the tree. As they are always German in origin but involve people with various degrees of American assimilation, the names can be Anglicized on headstones, perhaps in German script at the point of origin and  often confusing in that our family "recycles" names a great deal.

I therefore sympathize with your situation , Doug. More experienced folks may have other suggestions, but the way I (personally) would handle this problem would be to give her the profile that you know to be true: First, Birth Name and Married Name. Then in the Bio field, I would make a list of the differing initials for her middle name(s) just as you've described them in the census records.   That way, when additional information comes to light, you can add her full middle name into her "official" profile.

We are going to be optimistic that her "real" middle names will be found,  are we not? Or as my mother would say, "Keep a High Thought."

Just my opinion, of course.
Thank you all. Do you think the similarity in years, names (Catharine as mother + oldest daughter) and locations is enough to link Laura to Samuel and Catharine? There are a surprising number of Laura A Koontzes in mid-19th century Ohio, and I'm wondering if I'm looking at different people and assuming they're just one person...
I would look for consistency through the children. The initial can change based on what was told to the census taker. The initial to me is the least important part of the information.

By the way, I am also a Koontz through Diana Koontz and her daughter, Eliza Roach Beardsley.

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