I think I have one like that. My Aunt Flo unbeknownst to me always called herself Norva. She died and I looked her up on the SSDI and couldn't find her. (Actually I have a very elusive PYLE family. No one on this list or on any place on the Internet have they been connected.) Anyway, to make a long story shorter, I contacted everyone email I could who had the same last name of the only cousin I knew of, and I found her. She told me her mother went by Norva and when I went back to the SSDI, there it was. Completely wrong name. It's Florence on her birth cert. Norva shows up no where except on the SSDI. Can you imagine. No wonder my Pyles are so very invisible. Sandy Monmouth Co., NJ Surnames: TILTON & HARRIS, PYLE & MORAN Mercer Co., KY Surnames: PATTERSON & BUNTON, LAWSON & McGINNIS ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gwen Wood" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, August 31, 2000 7:54 AM Subject: Re: [PYLE] Pyle Book > Here is an off the wall question that genealogists who are more experienced than I might be able to help > me with (I hope). > > Basically, I want to know how to list people who are know by another name other than their legal names. > My two cases in point: > > My father, JAMES ASHMAN XXXX, always told me his middle name was his mothers maiden as was the custom in > his era. This year I found his birth certificate only to find out he was named JAMES HENRY XXX. I'm sure > he didn't realize this since his naturalization papers, marriage license, and death certificate all have > JAMES ASHMAN XXXX. For all intent and purposes, he IS James ASHMAN xxxx. But....do I list him as James > HENRY since that is his legal name??? > > Case #2 is my mother. Her birth certificate says GWENDOLYN MARIE XXXX. She went my MARIE all her life > because her mother 'liked Marie better than Gwendolyn'. A note of interest is that 5 of the 10 children > went by their middle names! My mother also didn't realize what her legal name was so she married and > had many legal documents with the name MARIE GWENDOLYN XXXX on them. She also named me Gwendolyn Marie, > thinking it was the reverse of her name so to make a long story short(er) she had her name changed > legally. Again, what name should I use for genealogical purposes?? Birth certificate name or legally > changed name? > > What's ironic is that on the marriage license of my mother and father, neither one have their "legal" > name on it.... are they legally married? ;-) > > Looking forward to your responses! > > Gwen > > > ==== PYLE Mailing List ==== > Visit the PYLE GenConnect Suite > Copyright 2000 > Author retains copyright >