This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: lesliewaidler Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.pennsylvania.counties.schuylkill/11306.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Just a quick word to the wise: when searching the census on Ancestry.com, there have been several times when I absolutely KNEW where an ancestor was, and yet, time after time, the search would yield nothing. I still occasionally have to search a specific enumeration district or even a county page by page myself to find my ancestors/relatives whose names have either been misspelled by the enumerator or the transcriber of those records. Sometimes the original census taker's handwriting was just very hard to read due to poor handwriting or damage to the original records, and sometimes the transcriber wasn't as careful as we'd like. I've seen lots of instances, also, where it's a case of a simple & common spelling mistake or typing error. In any case, a page by page search of a district (although VERY daunting [and tedious] at times if it's a large population) can yield the results you need. It also gives you insight into people of the same surname living within the same area th! at can help you with other family lines down the road. 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.