Gloria, Thank you for your posting expressing the "reality" of things encountered in researching, especially our Swiss and German and Palentine ancestors. I am a 7th great granddaughter of Jost HITE and the 8th great granddaughter of Johannes and Anna Magdalena HITE, his parents. Henry Z. JONES, Ralph CONNOR and Klaus WUST formed a great team of researchers that produced much true "factual" information regarding these ancestors especially back in the homeland where they traveled and viewed many documents. Acutually, JONES-WUST traveled abroad while CONNER dug in Pennsylvania. As Gloria stated and most will support, NEVER trust the spelling of a Germanic name. Always remember that while the English were the "scribes" and writing documents in English (this was a colony of Great Britain), the Germans were reading, writing and specking their native language while becoming and being bilingual. The Germans held on to their culture for a number of generations going forward in time. Some signed documents with a German signature; but many others just used a mark, thus, by some, being labeled illiterate which was NOT the case. I would like to share a part of the following as an example of what this great team of researchers found out about my HITE family which could apply to any German-Swiss-Palentine family from the region. 1. Johannes HITE was a butcher; but he also was also a Lutheran church warden, civic leader and landowner of Bonfeld. There is even a plot in the records of his property at Bonfeld. Description of his holdings: one two story house include a barn; two fields of 1, 8 acres; 2 meadow consisting of 2152 square yards and a garden containing 538 square yards. 2. At Bonfeld, Heilbronn, Baden-Wuerttenberg, Germany, on 6 Mar 1679 he married for the first time a DEVOTE Catholic, Anna Magdalena. Anna Magdalena HITE would remain a Catholic all her life. When she passed away, Johannes HITE sent for a Catholic priest to give her a proper Catholic burial. 3. About two years later, Johannes HITE married the widow, Anna Marie SCHULTZE. They also left Bonfeld; but no evidence has yet to be found that Johannes HITE made it to the American shores; but their is evidence that Anna Marie, his second wife did make it to America as well as some children. 4. Back to the Lutheran Church at Bonfeld where Johannes HITE was a church warden. Much of what the team of reachers found was in the very records of this church. Among which was found a list that the pastor kept of those from Bonfeld that left for America over a few years span. These were not just church members but also other Bonfeld citizens. Listed among them was a Anabaptist (Mennonites) named NEFF; Joh. Jacob ROTH, a weaver; Heinrich FUNCK and his brother, Martin FUNCK. (Shenandoah Valley folks) While many "true" facts are now available because of JONES-WUST efforts, much of the myths continue to circulate, in my opinion the worst one is that Jost HITE was married to DUBOIS when beyond a shadow of a doubt he was married to Anna MERKLE and the MERKLE family is well document in the Bonfeld Lutheran Church records. While all the MERKLE family did not come all together at once, they did come to America and some are also among those Shenandoah Valley folks. Anyway, happy hunting and back to my research which is lagging! Chocy