Arthur Cravener wrote: > > I'm new to genealogy. > > Something I'm puzzled about is why some change the > spelling of their surnames. Part of the answer is the the Census data from 1850 on. In these Census the interviewer recorded whether persons could read or write, ergo the incident at best attempts to spelling but nonetheless ones that produce changes. One family I know is Lawhorn. The Welsh spelling is Laugharn and pronounced as Laaaaaarrnnnn, almost a genuine southern drawl. But since first coming to this country in the 1700's the name variations have been in Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee are Lanhorn, Lowhorn, Lawhern, etc. Brian Green