Hi Diane, Again, you provide terrific information, THANKS! You provided several more good leads on puzzling questions that I have. I had previously found one brief one-liner giving Galena mining permit info, but it had only one Neavill, and not John,... That you and Chris Heaton have the names James, John, and Alex, with a few dates, is a real revelation. The info that Chris Heaton passed to you,... does it give any other information, such as sector, location, or the like on any of the three? A second area, or just comment: I hadn't considered that newpapers - the Galenian - would be that useful at that early a date, giving Ephraims's marriage information in 1832. I don't know where both Alexander M. and John D. were married, but assume it must have been in the Jo Daviess Co IL area, since they were already mining there prior to marriage dates (1831 and Apr 8, 1838). The disconnect I have is figuring out how/why the sisters that they married (Maria Louisa and Elizabeth Ann Meredith) arrived in that area - previous to that, I had them born and raised in Champaign Co, OH). So, I'll need to go back and search. Any one have easy access to those years of the Galenian?! Wondering outloud if there are also the names John Luff Meredith (their father) or John Thomas Wheeler Meredith (their younger brother) getting Galena mining permits. (Is the mining permit information online somewhere?) Thanks for the admonition about considering circumstantial evidence as an "open and shut case". I agree with you about the need for PROOF; I need to muzzle my exuberance! Cheers, Wayne Olsen Bonney Lake, WA