Hello everyone, Researching those pesky Smiths or Johnsons? You'll be happy to know that an everyname index is now online at the Mercer Co. Archive page: http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/pa/mercerz.html Searching Tips - Mercer County 1850 Census Even with an index, the Mercer Co. 1850 census is a large record to search, with over 30,000 names to choose from. If you can't find the surname that you are looking for, here are some things to keep in mind: 1. Alternate spellings - Different spellings can be especially tricky if they occur near the beginning of the surname, and you are trying to use the search button on your browser, or an alphabetically sorted index. Looking for Humphry? How about Umphry? Knox? How about Nocks? McCan? How about Can? Kenada? How about Canada? McClane? Have you tried McLain? These are just a few of the many variations you'll come across in this census. Scan through all of the names in a township, and you may come up with ideas for new starting points. Remember that the electronic file is just a fast check- you can always check the actual microfilm! 2. Localize the search - Consulting other records, such as one of the county histories, can be very helpful in narrowing down the locality for a search. If you need microfilm for other counties, please see the National Archives links mentioned at the top of the 1850 census page. Also, trying an earlier or later census may uncover those who were absent during one enumeration. 3. Surnames enumerated by R. Henderson were listed as ditto marks (") after the head of household on the original schedules. Therefore, the surname (as well as birthplace and occupation) has less spelling accuracy (there was less chance to cross-check the handwriting for these particular names against other versions of handwriting for the same family). 4. Some people have detected transcription errors- please keep in mind that the interpretation in the transcript can be wrong. Important leads should be verified from microfilm! While the handwriting is pretty good for most of the schedules, legibility problems are still plentiful, and some names defy interpretation. With sufficient haste, you can make "Daniel" look like "David", "Sawyer" look like "Lawyer", or "Chairmaker" look like "Chainmaker". Try it! If you are certain that you've found an error, you are welcome to forward notice of the mistake to Richard_Winder@bc.sympatico.ca Here is a list of common look-alikes in this census (the equivalences can be read in either direction). If you've hit a brick wall, you might try some variations based on them: UPPER CASE CONFUSION P=B=R=K=H=N I=J=S F=T=J L=S M=W P=T U=V lower case confusion a=e a=o (very common) a=u e=i (very common) o=ie u=ee c=e c=i d=el/cl s=r g=y=z n=m m=nr rm = nn t=l u=v w=m b=l h=li k=h p=fr r=n (very common) ending s = ending z Numeric confusion 0=1 1=7=9 4=9=5 2=9 5=6=0 2=3 8=9 Happy hunting! Richard S. Winder (Richard_Winder@bc.sympatico.ca)