Ray, Thanks for the tip, but I am already aware of the book, although I do not own it. I do have maps showing changes for some states (such as KY) that I work in frequently. Otherwise, I look it up. I was only suggesting that there is a lot of confusion out there. Beginning and even genealogists do make mistakes, but sometimes the confusion starts with the record itself. Again, unless I find William Pile/Piles/Pyle/Pyles family (he is just an inlaw), I will never be absolutely sure what Knox Co. NC refers. He gave the info and the Soldiers' Home (Civil War) just recorded it. At another point, I had one of my greatgrandmother's sisters born in an odd place called Lanesville, IN. Since the kids were born in two states and several towns within one of the states, I was puzzled at the distance but never really questioned the entry, until I found that there had been two towns of the same name until the name was later changed for one of them (to Lawrence) and the town I wanted was actually close by. The original record, however, still reads Lanesville. I get questioned all of the time because this same greatgrandmother was born in Shelby Co. IL while some others were born in Shelby Co. IN. It is not a typo, but I will bet anything that there are some who "correct my mistake" in their own genealogies. I could give other examples but hope I clarified my point. It is just too easy to slip up. Again, thanks for mentioning THE HANDYBOOK. It is an excellent tool. Sherry Ray Revette <[email protected]> wrote: Hi Sherry, The information you seek IS AVAILABLE and has been for years. You can find it in most librarys and the reference book can be purchased for about $50.00. You need to introduce yourself to "The Handybook for Genealogists" published by The Everton Publishers, Inc. It is LOADED with answers to all of the questions you pose as unknown or uncertain plus much more helpful information to a genealogist. This is a very handy book for genealogists. ........... Ray/FL > Marie, > I agree that listing a birth county can be tricky. I think that it > is possible that someone born in a particular town or city passes > that information along to descendants. When a family member looks > (maybe a century or two later) for that place on a map and > determines the county, he or she may be unaware that county > boundaries changed and sometimes changed dramatically. That could > be true in PA and definitely is true in states like KY. I see the > same VA marriage listed in multiple counties. It takes some > backtracking to figure out what the original county was. Sometimes > even the state changes. I have one in-law who gave his birthplace > as Knox Co. NC. I think it might now be TN, but I do not know for > sure. I also agree with you that there is no proof of place > listed--not even the state as far as I can tell. I am amazed that > you can remember as much of the county changes as you do. I always > have to look it up. This is not my family, but if I get some time, I > will see if I can puzzle anything out. Sherry ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message