I saw my first example the other day of someone RE-PUBLISHING "Poythreff" from a PREVIOUS TRANSCRIPTION of an early Poythress document. I suppose it hadn't even ocurred to me until now, but to re-copy a transcription citing "Poythreff" or "Poythrefs" is actually to put a handwriting interpretation ERROR back into the stream. In these instances the "re-re-publisher", almost by definition, is simply compounding an albeit innocent error of transcriber # 1. The proposal is that we simply correct the "Poythreff/Poythrefs" errors as we transfer a RE-transcription to our own page, knowing that it was simply a previous transcriber's error in the first place. To me, this is completely distinct from actual variants; i. e. Poytress, Portriss, etc. appearing in either original documents OR transcriptions. These can (should) be cited as written and be "sic'ed" or qualified or even transcribed literally as the author deems appropriate because this is very likely a variant spelling and probably true to the original document whether the clerk got it right or wrong. None of this addresses the issue of phonetic/misspellings by court clerks,etc. which is an issue we have learned to live with and is likely the source of some variants to begin with. I don't make this to be a federal case, just a consideration. The object is to avoid the almost universal stigmatizing of "Poythreff" documents as "there goes a genealogist unaware of period handwriting conventions." Maynard

I think that there are two different issues here. First, to transcribe Poythreff as Poythress is not a transcription error. To not do so is to demonstrate that you do not understand the colonial hand. I have similiar problems with people who transcribe Ye as Ye instead of The, which it really is. The Y is not actually a Y but a T character that my email program can not reproduce. I believe it is called a "thorn". Second, I disagree that a variation in the surname should be converted to the politically correct surname. Variations should be kept as they are. One never knows when a side of the family decides that it should be this way. There are just too many similiar surnames that have no connection. In our own discussions we have eliminated some variations as not belonging to us, although for the life of me I can't remember what they are. I do know that they begin with the letter 'P.' <G> Craig ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2001 11:41 PM Subject: A Modest Proposal > I saw my first example the other day of someone RE-PUBLISHING "Poythreff" > from a PREVIOUS TRANSCRIPTION of an early Poythress document. > > I suppose it hadn't even ocurred to me until now, but to re-copy a > transcription citing "Poythreff" or "Poythrefs" is actually to put a > handwriting interpretation ERROR back into the stream. In these instances > the "re-re-publisher", almost by definition, is simply compounding an albeit > innocent error of transcriber # 1. > > The proposal is that we simply correct the "Poythreff/Poythrefs" errors as we > transfer a RE-transcription to our own page, knowing that it was simply a > previous transcriber's error in the first place. > > To me, this is completely distinct from actual variants; i. e. Poytress, > Portriss, etc. appearing in either original documents OR transcriptions. > These can (should) be cited as written and be "sic'ed" or qualified or even > transcribed literally as the author deems appropriate because this is very > likely a variant spelling and probably true to the original document whether > the clerk got it right or wrong. > > None of this addresses the issue of phonetic/misspellings by court > clerks,etc. which is an issue we have learned to live with and is likely the > source of some variants to begin with. > > I don't make this to be a federal case, just a consideration. The object is > to avoid the almost universal stigmatizing of "Poythreff" documents as "there > goes a genealogist unaware of period handwriting conventions." > > Maynard > > > > > ==== POYTHRESS Mailing List ==== > Poythress Geneaology Research Web > http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~poythress/ > >