>>...one must always remember the rules the enumerator had to follow. The >>biggest rule was that they COULD NOT ASK the person being enumerated how >>to spell the name. .<< I would be interested in learning where this information came from. I checked at IPUMS where the enumerators instructions can be found for every census from 1850 on, and there didn't appear to be any mention regarding the spelling of names.

That is fascinating to me...why would the enumerator not be allowed to ask how to spell names for the census? I want to hear more about this. I know that my Runyan family has gone through many name transformations. It's not just a matter of evolving either...one more recent Runyan relative chose to spell their name "Runion" while most of the others use Runyan. It actually started as Rognion, but also includes Runyon. Pick a name and stick with it ...lol. It does make it interesting for us detectives, all these years later. Mark -----Original Message----- From: Helen Sent: Tuesday, April 03, 2012 1:21 AM To: njhunter@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [NJHUNTER] Family Search >>...one must always remember the rules the enumerator had to follow. The >>biggest rule was that they COULD NOT ASK the person being enumerated how >>to spell the name. .<< I would be interested in learning where this information came from. I checked at IPUMS where the enumerators instructions can be found for every census from 1850 on, and there didn't appear to be any mention regarding the spelling of names. Visit the Hunterdon County GenWeb page at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~njhunter ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NJHUNTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message