Funny you should say that about the Steadmans, mine did the same and were from Loudoun. (protested which side of the civil war they were on) I have Steadman notes at home, let's exchange! [email protected] Brenda J Scott -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, June 20, 2005 2:56 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [VALOUDOU-L] Re: VALOUDOU-D Digest V05 #187 On the subject of "Spelling," I think it was primarily PHONETIC in the "old days," until our friend, Noah Webster (maybe one of Ross' "kin") came along to standardize things and make life a lot easier. We should never assume someone is NOT related to us, just because they spell their name slightly different from the way we do. During the Civil War, one of my cousins' families dropped the "a" from Steadman to become Stedman--in protest of the side his family chose to fight on. Makes life very interesting, to say the least!! Patti Jones Schacht ==== VALOUDOU Mailing List ==== The First Sunday in each month will set aside for a "Brick Wall" Roll Call. Please always put the surname you seek in the subject and tell us something about your Brick Wall person.