This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: tohliam44 Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.cattaraugus/10748.1.2.1.1.1.1.1.2.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Hi Anne, Good to hear from you again. Soon after I received the results from NY Dept. of Vital Statistics, I posted a request for help in the PA section of this website. I have no ideas other than perhaps Arthur was born in PA and migrated to NY. I greatly appreciate the offer to help in Cattaraugus County. I thought about that as well. I emailed the county historian who was very pleasant and friendly. Unfortunately the results provided no positive information. Here is her reply and perhaps you can tell if your time and effort would be for naught in my situation: "I'm sorry to tell you that I have had very little luck finding information on Arthur George Bates of Clara Schuman. An obituary in the Ashford Gazette Newspaper dated April 6, 1902 listed George Bates died at the home of his son Lorenzo Bates, Tuesday, aged 71 years at East Otto, New York. I check the records on file at the Cattaraugus County Clerk's Office, Little Valley, New York. The marriage records for the entire county from 1905-1935 are on file. I didn't find any marriage records for Clara. The ones for Bates males were with women named Lucy and Alice. I also check the index in the miscellaneous ledgers and found no adoptions under either Bates or Schuman. I found a Lydia Bates, age 61 years, living in the Cattaraugus County Poorhouse, Machias, New York on the 1910 federal census for Cattaraugus County. She was still residing there on the 1915 New York State Census." Unfortunately none of those names were connected to my Bates. As mentioned above, I'm thinking about writing PA vital statistics and requesting the same info I did from NY. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.